DICE Southeast 2020

Tyler Alexander

Principal
RedBird Capital Partners

Tyler Alexander is a Principal of RedBird Capital Partners, where he focuses on investment opportunities in the Communications sector. In his current role at RedBird, Tyler is actively involved with the firm’s investments in N3, Compass Datacenters, TierPoint, and Next Tier HD and he currently sits on the boards of N3, Next Tier HD and Compass Datacenters. In addition to his investment responsibilities, Tyler leads the firm’s Management Compensation Team, which designs and implements competitive executive compensation packages that create strong alignment, drive performance and are in accordance with best practices. Prior to joining RedBird in 2013, Tyler was an Associate at MidOcean Partners, a New York-based private equity firm, where he focused on investment opportunities in growth-oriented consumer businesses. Prior to MidOcean, Tyler began his career at Rothschild & Co. in the firm’s global advisory restructuring group. At Rothschild, Tyler specialized in special situations, recapitalizations, and in-court and out-of-court restructuring transactions during a period which included the Financial Crisis. Tyler received a B.A. in History, with distinction, from the University of Virginia, where he was a Jefferson Scholar.

Mario Calderone

VP, Real Estate
ServerFarm

As VP of Real Estate of ServerFarm, Mario Calderone is responsible for all aspects of the commercial real estate portfolio including acquisitions, leasing, management, financing and disposition. A seasoned real estate industry professional, Calderone has an established track record of successful value-creation across a broad range of investment assets. Prior to joining ServerFarm, Calderone founded and operated Alpine Investment Company, a private investment company that he operated for more than 15 years. During this period, he was responsible for over $500 million of successful investment or capitalization of commercial assets involving entities such as General Electric, Global Exchange, Royal Ahold, ATT Corporation, and Verizon. Calderone also spent several years as Asset Management Vice President for a regional development firm with an office and industrial portfolio totaling more than 2 million square feet. During his tenure, the company successfully built and leased over 700,000 square feet of commercial space. Calderone started his career at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Calderone received a Master’s Degree in Corporate Finance from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from Temple University.

Justin Kline

VP, Portfolio Development
Legacy Investing

Justin Kline is Vice President of Portfolio Development at Legacy Investing, where he leads the efforts to maximize the value of Legacy’s portfolio through acquisitions, leasing, dispositions, refinancing and related transactional projects. Justin started in real estate at the Washington, D.C. office of Colliers International Valuation & Advisory Services where he focused on property valuation and consulting along the eastern seaboard. More recently, he specialized in Investment Sales brokerage in Southwestern Pennsylvania at both Colliers International and JLL. Justin’s background in valuation and investment sales has created a well-rounded balance of technical ability and deal management that he is able to utilize to drive value for Legacy’s investors.

Terry Rennaker

VP, Development - Hyperscale
Equinix

Terry Rennaker joined Equinix in 2018 to lead Development for the Hyperscale Infrastructure Team (HIT). The Equinix HIT business services the needs of the top 12 global cloud, technology, and SaaS providers for their global large footprint deployments. Prior to joining Equinix, Mr. Rennaker was a principal in his own project management services company. Rennaker Company provided project and program management for some of the largest data center users in the world. He has delivered over $4 billion in projects worldwide. Mr. Rennaker also held the position of Management of Integrated Solutions Development for the Skanska where he focused on integrating the supply chain including finance, new technology research and development, design, construction, commissioning, and operations of data centers. He served as the Director of Mission Critical for CB Richard Ellis in Canada and was responsible for the successful delivery of a $700 million data center program. Terry was the CBRE Critical Properties Global Knowledge Network team. He holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University and played for the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL.

David Spiewak

Managing Principal
Next Tier HD / DJS Group

In 2013, David co-founded Next Tier HD, a boutique real estate private equity firm. Next Tier HD operates an investment, development and advisory platform with a mission critical, data center focus. Mr. Spiewak spends his time on Next Tier’s Investment business and its global Data Center consulting and brokerage arm (DJS Group). NextTier HD has developed and acquired over 3,000,000 sf of data centers and mixed-use assets since its 2013 inception, and over 6,000,000 sf of assets across the United States, since its founding partners started working together in 2000. Currently Next Tier HD has ownership in assets in North Carolina, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, and Virginia and is a partner and developer of Databank’s Georgia Tech HPCC facility in Atlanta, GA. David has specialized in the Mission Critical arena since 1997 having spent his career on both the IT and real estate sides of the house. Prior to Next Tier HD, David was a Principal and Executive Vice President of a global IT consulting firm, was a partner and Senior Vice President of T-Rex Capital, where he co-headed the acquisitions and leasing activities of the company. Prior to T-Rex, Mr. Spiewak was a Vice President of Tishman Real Estate, a founder of Plymouth Partners and a broker at Grubb & Ellis.

Ryan Sullivan

EVP, National Head of Data Center Investments
Lincoln Property Group

Ryan Sullivan is an Executive Vice President and National Data Center Group Leader with Lincoln Property Company, overseeing Data Center Investments and Capital Markets. Ryan is responsible for broadening the firm’s data center offering, by partnering with Lincoln’s national commercial and industrial platforms to identify and execute on data center opportunities across the country, including new investments, development, leasing and third-party services for institutional investors, data center operators and end users. He also partners with Lincoln’s Investment Management team to source investment capital for data center opportunities. Ryan has extensive data center investment, development and leasing experience and joins Lincoln from GI Partners, where he led the firm’s real estate development activities, as Director of Investments and Head of Development. Prior to joining GI Partners, Ryan led investment and portfolio management at Landmark Dividend’s Digital Infrastructure Division, prior to its acquisition by Digital Bridge. From 2015 to 2020, Mr. Sullivan oversaw all investment, leasing and development activities for Lincoln’s Data Center business, formerly known as Lincoln Rackhouse. With his leadership and extensive mission critical investment and development experience, he helped build a respectable national data center operating platform of 16 datacenters across 14 markets, totaling over 3 million sq. ft. and 100 MWs of data center capacity. Earlier, he served in development, leasing and portfolio management roles at Digital Realty. Over his 18+ year data center career, Ryan has managed data center and tech/life science portfolios valued at over $7.5 billion in AUM and pursued data center projects in most U.S. and many international markets.

Madison Williams

Executive VP, Finance
QTS

Tim Gainey

Director, Commercial Applications
Tindall Corporation

Ed Gazzola

CEO
Bennett & Pless

Ed has been involved with mission critical facilities since 1988. Over the years, he has fulfilled many roles including acting as the Structural Engineer, Project Manager and Project Executive for the implementation of these facilities in multiples industries. These include large scale enterprise facilities, colocation facilities, cable head-ends, central offices and wireless switch facilities. Prior to joining Bennett & Pless, Ed founded a full-service engineering firm that specialized in the design and construction management of mission critical facilities. It remains a highly regarded firm today. As a result, Ed intimately understands the architectural, structural, mechanical, electrical and fire protection requirements for these facilities. Ed continues to actively apply his expertise at Bennett & Pless as the Project Executive on key mission critical facility projects. Large International Colo Provider, Northern CA Project Executive for the structural design of a new three story, 750,000 square foot data center for this colocation provider. The structural design includes addressing challenging soils in a high seismic area with an existing basement. Wholesale Data Center Provider, Various Cities Ed is the Project Executive for the structural design of a prototype facility that is currently about to be deployed in multiple locations across the country. He has applied his years of experience to influence the structural design of this 250,000 square foot, 2-story data center. Fluence, Energy Storage Facility, Los Angeles, CA Bennett & Pless was selected by this “industry leader” in energy storage to act as the Project Manager and Structural Engineer of Record for the execution of their mission critical facilities. The first building being designed is the world’s largest energy storage facility, 100 MW, located in Los Angeles. Bennett & Pless assembled a full service team of highly respected consultants to design these first-of-a-kind facilities. Ed facilitated key sessions to establish the needs and design criteria; which resulted in numerous design innovations for this unique facility. Verizon Wireless, Multiple Cities, Nationally For over 8 years as Project Manager and Project Executive, Ed oversaw the deployment of numerous mission critical facilities across the country. This included new facilities, conversion of existing buildings, and adds, moves and changes within the facilities.

Marissa Jules

HPC Core Manager
University of California, San Francisco

John Mailler

VP, Construction
Evoque

Michael Silla

Digital Infrastructure Executive

Robbie Sovie

EVP, Construction & Development
T5 Data Centers

As EVP of Construction and Development, Robbie is the leader of T5’s Construction Services division, where he sets the overall vision and business strategy. He holds the general contractors license and/or business license for construction activity across the organization. Robbie holds a degree in Construction Management from Western Carolina University.

Tye Hayes

CTO
City of Atlanta

Technologist, Solutions Architect and Business Strategist—Tiwanna Hayes leads with over 20 years of experience in delivering efficiency, reliability, and innovation in the Information Technology industry. Most recently, Hayes served several of Georgia's school districts as a consultant providing thought-leadership, operations management, and technology activations; while helping districts maximize strategic spend and optimize operational cost and secure. Prior to her consultancy, Hayes was tapped to lead the Atlanta Public School District (APS) as the Deputy Chief Information Officer. In this role, Hayes stabilized and restructured the district’s IT operations by focusing on innovation and citizen-centered services, increasing the agencies’ overall efficiency and equity through updates and business process improvements. Under her leadership APS experienced exponential improvements in graduation rates and overall digital literacy for students, parents, and teachers. With a comprehensive understanding of IT services, Hayes previously served as an Information Security Officer for Lockheed Martin Aeronautics where she led the Information Security Compliance and Governance group. In this role she directed information and data integrity for all IT functions, helping the company create its first Information Security Roadmap and an Integrated Forensics and Computer Incident Response team. Hayes’ established track record of technology leadership and digital transformation have been recognized by both local and national organizations. Hayes was a 2014 recipient of the prestigious CIO 100 Award as well as the recipient of the STEM Women of Color for IT Leadership Award and the Modern Day Technology Leader, Black Engineer Award. She was selected as a participant in the 2018 cohort of Leadership DeKalb and serves as a board members for several community organizations. With an unwavering dedication to digital literacy for all people, Hayes serves a number of organizations leading discussions on technology tools for learning and achievement as well as teaching her strategy for technical decision making that leads to robust information technology systems for small businesses and corporations alike. Hayes has made long-lasting contributions to our nation as a former United States Navy Officer. She holds a master’s degree in Managerial Strategy and Economics from New York Institute of Technology and a bachelor's degree in Operations Management from Georgia State University.

Shawn Novak

Executive VP, Strategic Solutions
Switch

Shawn Novak is the Executive Vice President of Strategic Solutions, an executive leadership role on Switch’s National Sales team. Shawn will be key in helping our valued customers and partners define their hyperscale needs and multi-cloud requirements. Shawn’s role will allow him to be one of Switch’s leading digital strategists and most of all, a hyperscale and cloud solutions innovator. Shawn joins Switch as part of its greater strategic initiative to build a new strategic sales team of senior data center sales specialists to drive the growth of large enterprise clients across Switch’s national campus footprint. As an expert around cloud, colocation, hyperscale and data center architecture, Shawn assists clients to be more informed on expenditures around their own future roadmap strategies. He develops Rough Order Magnitude (ROM) models that show costs of moving to colocation, hosting, cloud environments and/or building new facilities to upgrading existing facilities. Prior to joining Switch, Shawn served as a First Vice President within CBRE’s Data Center Solutions team. In that role, Shawn was responsible for leading complex consulting engagements for organizations requiring data center mission critical facilities strategies and solutions. Shawn lives in suburbs of Chicago, IL with his wife and four children. The entire family is constantly active, participating in numerous sports, Spartan Runs, and lots of other outdoor activities.

Larry Williams

President & CEO
Technology Association of Georgia

Larry K. Williams, is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Technology Association of Georgia (TAG). Williams, A recognized leader in economic development, brings more than 20 years of experience in global branding, international trade and finance, public and industrial policy, and administration and management to one of the largest state technology trade associations in North America.

Peter Williams

Director & Head of Community Strategy, Atlanta
BlackRock

Peter M. Williams, Director, is Head of Community Strategy & Operations for BlackRock Atlanta. He oversees BlackRock's strategy for community engagement and brand-building efforts across the Metro-Atlanta region. In addition, he is responsible for corporate relations, university engagement and BlackRock’s local social impact efforts. Prior to joining the Atlanta Innovation Hub build team, he was responsible for site selection and location strategy for BlackRock’s newest innovation hub and was a Business Strategist within BlackRock's software engineering function serving as the chief of staff to the head of software engineering. He was responsible for strategic project management, internal and external communications and firm wide coordination with key partners. Before joining BlackRock’s technology business, he was responsible for maintaining relationships with financial advisors for the Retirement & Digital Wealth Solutions effort. His responsibilities included business development, project management and relationship management. From 2011-2014 he was a member of the US & Canada Defined Contribution Group, BlackRock’s 401(k) business. Peter was responsible enhancing the client experience through his institutional client servicing efforts. From 2007-2010 he was a member of BlackRock's Global Consultant Relations Group. He was responsible for developing and maintaining relationships with US investment consultants, as well as preparing new business proposals and external communications. He began his career with BlackRock through the Merrill Lynch Investment Managers' Analyst Program in 2006. Mr. Williams earned a BA degree in Public Policy Studies and a Certificate in Markets and Management Studies from Duke University in 2007.

Tony Zivalich, Jr.

Executive Director, Real Estate Development
Georgia Institute of Technology

Tony has over 34 years experience in providing strategic real estate advisory services for corporate users and non-profit institutions. In particular, Tony has worked closely with clients to develop programs with real world, actionable strategies to align their real estate obligations with their ownership, cost, quality and location objectives. Tony has extensive experience in providing portfolio reviews and analysis, highest and best use studies, occupancy cost benchmarking, merger and acquistion services, development advisory, master planning, site slection, tenant representation, transaction management, financial analysis and ownership structures. His experience involves working across a wide range of asset classes including office, retail, data centers, and headquarters facilities and transaction types including acquisitions, dispositions, build-to-suits and sale-leaseback transactions. Some of Tony's distinguished list of clients include SunTrust, McKesson, Ernst and Young, Georgia Tech, Siemens, Microsoft, Sprint, Mellon Bank, Equifax, Wellpoint, Darden Restaurants and Woodruff Arts Center.

Shane Clemons

Global Team Leader, Platforms & Applications
Verizon

Shane is the product lead for the Platform and Applications services within Verizon Partner Solutions portfolio. Products include: IoT, Data Center, Security, Professional Services and Emerging Services. He is a 12-year wireless, cloud computing, data center and M2M veteran having held sales management, product development and marketing roles. Shane also served as an Engineer Company Commander in the United States Army. His service includes an eleven-month tour conducting route clearance missions in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan). Shane is an Army R.O.T.C alumnus and holds a bachelor’s degree from Ohio University.

Mary Jane Horne

Senior VP, Network Operations & Engineering
iBASIS

David McCall

VP, Innovation
QTS

David believes good relationships and purpose affects one's life at every moment. He has been able to realize his calling to create teams that simplify and enhance people’s interactions within the world of technology. In the industry since 1997, his career has been anything but typical leading IT and technical teams in Hyperscale, Cloud, Hybrid IT, and Colocation. In his spare time, David enjoys boardgames with friends, family time with his wife and three teenage daughters, and perfecting how to grill.

Parminder Singh

Leader, Enterprise Infrastructure Architecture
Cox Communications

Dynamic Leader of choice, who strives to deliver positive transformation, accelerate change and endeavor new ventures through strategic thinking, innovation, influential and agile decision-making abilities in today's rapidly changing digital marketplace.

Jeff Wabik

Chief Strategy & Connectivity Officer
DC BLOX

Jeff Wabik is responsible for DC BLOX’s strategic technology development. Since joining the company, he has managed the deployment and growth of its software-automated, multi-terabit, service delivery networks which underpin DC BLOX’s edge-connected solutions. For more than 30 years, Jeff has combined imagination, vision, and a deep technical acumen to create next-generation technologies for both start-up and mature organizations. Jeff’s experience includes data center network operations, embedded software development, information security, business development, and creation of L2 switching and L3 routing platforms, including the world’s first multi-Gigabit router. Jeff has held senior technical management positions at Ciena, Ascend Communications, and Lucent Technologies. Jeff graduated from the University of Minnesota with dual BA degrees in Computer Science and Geology. In his free time, he is a fitness addict, a commercial and instrument rated pilot, an avid snowboarder and plays the drums in rock-n-roll bands.

Tim Cooper

Data Center Manager
Travelport

Dave Meadows

Director, Technology
STULZ Air Technology Systems

David C. Meadows II has worked in data center cooling since 1999.  He is currently the Director of Technology with STULZ USA, a manufacturer of precision air conditioning, humidification, and dehumidification products specifically designed for the data center.  Previously David has served as both the Design Engineering Manager and the Applications Engineering Manager at Stulz.  David holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Maryland Baltimore County.  David is also a graduate of the United States Navy Nuclear Power School.

William Panian

Director, Data Center Services
PricewaterhouseCoopers

William Panian is the Data Center Director for PwC based out of Atlanta, GA. He has over 25 years of Data Center experience beginning with 10 years in the design/build of mission critical facilities. William has spent the last 15 years in Data Center Operations leading its vision and strategy at PwC. Additionally focusing on capacity management, energy management, physical security, business continuity/disaster recovery and Major Incident Management. William is an expert in integrating IT/Facilities into one organization, driving out cost and increasing efficiencies in the process. He holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the Michigan Technological University and is a certified energy manager (CEM).

Jake Ring

President & CEO
GIGA Data Centers

Prior to GIGA, Jake founded DC BLOX as CEO in 2014 to provide comprehensive data center services for the SMB market including colocation and managed services. In 2017 he was made Vice Chairman after pivoting the company to providing expanded availability and network services, then left to found GIGA Data Centers to serve the Enterprise colocation market. Prior to this, he was CMO for GE Energy Management where he led the global development of strategy and commercialization initiatives and led the creation of GE’s Critical Power business. Before GE, he spent over nine years managing portfolio companies for private equity investors of electrical & electronic manufacturing businesses. He has also held executive leadership roles with Newark Electronics, American Superconductor Corp., and Emerson Electric, in which he led Marketing & Product Management for the Liebert division. He can be reached here.

Randy Starr

Data Center Manager
Delta Airlines

Brian Woessner

President
Duffey Southeast Construction

The son of a contractor, Brian Woessner spent his teenage years working various construction trades alongside his dad. Ever since earning his first paycheck as a plumber for $3 an hour at the age of 14, Brian was inspired by the challenge of construction. He quickly saw the fun in taking a disorganized construction project and delivering something useful and seemingly impossible to the client. The feeling of accomplishment stuck with him throughout his youth and led him to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Construction Management from the University of Florida and later his General Contractors License. Brian is also a LEED Green Associate. Since joining Duffey Southeast in 2002, Brian has fun every day at work. With the talented group of professionals at the firm, he motivates each project team to build great projects for clients– and not just manage them. To him, being a great contractor means getting out in the field and building the project from the ground up, exceeding the client’s expectations. One of his most memorable projects was a switch gear replacement for AT&T web hosting that had to be completed without any interruption in service. Brian personally worked the night shift alongside the superintendent to complete the project – and he learned a lot in the process. He learned that pulling off the impossible never gets old and that ensuring the success of the next generation of construction professionals is critical to his success as a manager. As the Manager of Duffey Southeast’s Jacksonville Office, Brian is excited to go to work every day. He wants to make the work of his clients easier by doing what he loves to do – build great projects on-time, within budget and demonstrative of superior quality.

John Ghirardelli

Executive Director
Morgan Stanley

Timothy Kiser

Founder
Colo Atl

Timothy A. Kiser, Founder of Colo Atl, is a licensed Professional Engineer (PE) in 35 states. With over 25 years of engineering experience, Mr. Kiser has served as the designer and engineer on over 70 telecommunications facilities. Mr. Kiser designed and constructed the fully-built Colo Atl colocation and Meet Me Room facility in November 2001 to serve as a carrier-neutral colocation and interconnection facility. As Owner, Designer and Engineer at the Colo Atl facility, Mr. Kiser was instrumental in achieving the prestigious SSAE 16 certification, an internationally recognized third-party assurance audit designed for service organizations. Colo Atl achieved the certification after a stringent audit of its internal business processes and IT controls, including physical security, environmental security, logical security, and network security. A premier industry expert on data centers/colocation, engineering, peering, and Software Defined Networking, Mr. Kiser is a distinguished speaker. Select speaking engagements include the CEO Roundtables at Telecom Exchange (2012 and 2013), FISPA Live (Atlanta), and IMN Forums on Financing, Investing & Real Estate Development for Data Centers. Mr. Kiser also operates the Georgia Technology Center (GTC) and the Southeast Network Access Point (SNAP), both of which are located in Colo Atl’s Atlanta, Georgia facility at 55 Marietta Street. The GTC is a live lab for network equipment vendors to highlight their optical and electrical hardware and operating systems; and SNAP is a next-generation Internet Exchange (IX) supporting IPv4, IPv6, OpenFlow, and Software Defined Networking (SDN). A Georgia Institute of Technology graduate, Mr. Kiser holds a degree in Electrical Engineering, and served as an Air Force B52 bomber pilot during Operation Desert Storm. In his spare time, Mr. Kiser enjoys traveling, spending time with close friends and business associates and recreational flying.

Hunter Newby

Owner
Newby Ventures

Hunter Newby is an American entrepreneur, investor, conservationist and the owner of Newby Ventures. His primary field of interest has been network infrastructure. As Co-Founder, Chief Strategy Officer and a Director of Telx, he pioneered the carrier-neutral Meet-Me-Room and the development of carrier hotels and data centers in the United States leading to massive value creation and economic development throughout the Country. Since the sale of Telx he has been and continues to be a founder, developer and investor in the creation of multiple network-neutral infrastructure businesses all across North America. Mr. Newby is a recognized authority in the network-neutral interconnection and data center industry. He has served on multiple company boards, is a published author, public speaker and has been quoted in several publications including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times and USA Today. He has also been the recipient of numerous awards including being named to the Global Telecoms Business Top 40 Under 40 in 2010. Mr. Newby earned a B.S. in Communications from Drexel University.

Peter Berry

Senior VP, AOD Operations & Cyber Security
ACI Worldwide

Peter Berry is Senior Vice President of AOD (ACI on Demand) Infrastructure and Cyber Security for ACI Worldwide, running global data center operations for hosted and Software-as-a-Service payments products throughout the world. During his career, Berry has led data center and operations organizations through transformations, consolidations and acquisitions. He has driven improved availability, reduced costs and increased efficiency in both large established and smaller start-up organizations. Berry specializes in IT technical and operational leadership, supporting critical business functions and enabling rapid growth. Before joining ACI, Berry was Vice President of SaaS Strategy and Operations at NCR Corporation, providing leadership in support of rapidly growing SaaS offerings across the globe. Prior to that, Berry led data center and operations teams at VMWare/AirWatch and Liaison Technologies among other companies, and was an executive advisor for Tatum's technology practice.

Al Edwards

VP, Technology & Infrastructure Operations
FX Solutions

Andy Green

VP, Global Infrastructure & IT Operations
PRGX USA

Andy Green serves as PRGX, Vice President of Global Infrastructure Support and Operations and leads the development and transformation of a global IT operation that manages SaaS solutions and IT services for Amazon, Kroger, Target, Walmart, Tesco, and other global, retail leaders. He is responsible for the delivery of IT services including Software-as-a-Service, Data Centers, Network Operations, Cloud, Security, Compliance, and DevOps. Prior to joining PRGX, Andy was Senior Director of Cloud Infrastructure for PTC where he led global IT operations that managed SaaS solutions and IT services for Coca-Cola Refreshments, Dell, Austal, US Navy and other manufacturing, retail and defense organizations. In 2015 and 2016, he was recognized for excellence in service delivery. Prior to PTC, Andy was Director, Global IT for Servigistics where he had the overall responsibility for the company's global IT strategy, IT Security, business systems, and IT infrastructure including the company’s SaaS solution which hosts high-profile clients such as Dell, Cisco, GM, and Coca-Cola Refreshments. In addition to various technical certifications, he holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Florida Atlantic University. Andy graduated with honors from FAU.

Timothy Stanley

CTO
Sunny River Management

Patrick Barnett

Head of Strategic Alliances, GSI GTM - Google Cloud
Google

Patrick Barnett is Google Cloud's Head of Strategic Alliances for GSI GTM. He works with Google Cloud's primary GSI partners to develop and execute transformational cloud adoption projects for North America Enterprise Clients.

Wes Jensen

Director, Technology Innovation & Strategy
Digital Realty Trust

Wes Jensen Is currently employed as the Director of Technology and Innovation and Business Development for Digital Realty Trust. He is a forward thinking evangelist of artificial intelligence, data science and machine learning. Mr. Jensen has over 20 years of experience leading technology, network engineering and service organizations responsible for designing, installing, and maintaining compute, IT, security and connectivity infrastructures for Fortune 500 enterprises and service providers. He has had held executive and technical leadership positions at Netrolix, an AI startup he co-founded, CenturyLink/Level 3, Global Cloud Xchange, XO/Verizon, and more. Prior to entering private enterprise, Mr. Jensen served in Special Operations in the U.S. Army.

Jim Lipps

VP, Solutions Architects
Cyxtera Technologies

Over 20 years of experience leading various organizations helping customers solve IT issues from data center to cloud solutions. His roles have spanned from Operations at Digex in the late 90’s to leading sales engineers for Data Return, Terremark, Verizon and IBM over the last two decades. The focus has always been solving customer key initiatives with solutions.

Kevin Smith

CRO
Ntirety

Kevin Smith is a proven technology sales and marketing executive. He is currently serving as Chief Revenue Officer for Ntirety. A University of Massachusetts graduate, Mr. Smith’s career has evolved along with the technology landscape. Primarily working for private equity held companies, Kevin’s career has flowed from competitive telecom and networking, through SaaS development and deployment, and into Hybrid-Cloud managed services. Having driven value in various C and VP level positions with NuVox, Windstream, Cloud Sherpas, EnablePath and now Ntirety, Kevin provides keen market insights derived from strong business acumen. For outside interests, the Denver based executive sums it up with this “When I am not at work I am either skiing, or teaching kids to hit and steal”.

Mohammad Zahid

Global Head of IT Infrastructure
Exide Technologies

Sohail Zakaria

Principal Azure Global Black Belt, Intelligent Cloud
Microsoft

Sohail Zakaria has 20+ years of success strategizing, implementing, and leading teams at the brink of change and modern growth. He has a history of leveraging existing and emerging technologies, uncovering opportunities, and directing trailblazing strategies to improve overall delivery of product from idea to consumer. Zakaria is an expert in designing/simplifying solutions & implementing Application, Infrastructure, and Operation services for Large-scale enterprises to Start-ups. With a proven track record with a growth mindset providing unity, influence, collaboration, consistency, problem solving, and support to increase organization efficiencies he has excelled with competencies in Digital Strategy & Transformation, Datacenter Migration, Cloud & DevOps Architecture, Certified Scrum Master & Product Owner, Client Relationship Management & Retention, Budgeting & Financial Planning, Technical Planning & Execution, Business & Technology Alignment, Cost Control & Operational efficiency and Development & Empowerment of Technical Teams.