Track Room Presenters – PM Symposium

Frank Murphy

Frank Murphy is a Certified Coach (ACC) who worked as a Program Manager for Marketing Technology for a Fortune 100. Frank is currently an Instructor for Palo Alto College in San Antonio, Texas, and also owns a consulting business. He retired as a CMSgt after 30 years in the U.S. Air Force. During his career he traveled to the seven continents, numerous countries, and was a key part of most military operations that needed airlift.

Frank is an accomplished results-driven Operations Leader and Project Manager with extensive experience in leading large teams and driving successful operations across domestic and international environments. He has a proven ability to streamline processes, develop multi-year fiscal strategies, and manage risks while meeting stakeholder requirements.

Frank’s coaching expertise is supported by a background developed in the military and honed after service with expertise in employee engagement, team coaching and other disciplines. He has certifications in PMP, ACC, FAC P/PM, COR, and Change Management to support his clients.

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Dr. Rizwan A. Sheikh

Dr. Rizwan A. Sheikh is an AI Strategist and Governance Lead who empowers organizations to turn their visions into reality. His leadership in driving AI adoption at Fortune 500 companies has resulted in over $100 million in cost savings and revenue growth within the last three years. He has 20+ years of experience in IT, business and AI strategy, AI Governance & Compliance, AI Risk Management, Generative AI, program management, and digital transformations.

Dr. Sheikh’s experience extends to management consulting with Deloitte, Responsible AI, project management, and academic roles at prestigious institutions like Harvard and MIT. Moreover, he is an AWS Certified AI Practitioner. He has made impactful contributions to the public sector (Washington State) and Fortune 500 companies such as PepsiCo, AT&T, Eaton Corporation, and Progressive Insurance. Dr. Sheikh has successfully led AI/ML, AI Governance, Responsible AI, AI Risk Management & Compliance, and cloud-based ERP implementations, including Oracle, achieving up to 30% in operational efficiency improvements and 20% cost reductions across departments.

Utilizing Waterfall, Scrum, and Agile methodologies, he consistently delivers results in project completion and productivity. Dr. Sheikh advises C-suite executives on emerging technologies, including AI, Generative AI, and Responsible AI. He has received the “Microsoft Award for Innovative Vision and Dynamic Leadership.” Recently, he has published an article titled “Managing Projects Successfully through Artificial Intelligence (AI) and ChatGPT,” further solidifying his thought leader status in Generative AI. Having held leadership roles, including Chairman of the IT Board, Past-President of PMI Chapter, and Senior Executive at Deloitte Consulting, Dr. Sheikh also teaches at prestigious institutions such as Harvard, MIT, RMIT, KSBL, and LUMS, imparting knowledge in AI strategy, leadership, and project management. He is the author of “Blue Shark Team-Building: Leading High-Performance Teams during a Crisis,” a seminal work offering insights into navigating challenges like COVID-19. Dr. Sheikh holds a Ph.D. in Strategy and Program Management, an MBA, and a B.Sc. in Information Systems. He is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and a Certified Scrum Master (CSM).

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Sarah Sage

Sarah Sage is the Director for Strategy and Operations at Southern Methodist University (SMU), supporting the Office of the Provost since 2021. With a background in design and user experience, Sarah is passionate about creating flexible portfolio management tools using enterprise-level Microsoft 365 applications. She ensures these tools are both affordable and sustainable through a collaborative design process.

Sarah empowers clients with Agile methodologies, significantly improving their operational processes. Sarah completed a BFA from SMU and an MFA from UT Austin before returning to Dallas and joining SMU in 2011. She has successfully managed major IT infrastructure projects and University-wide initiatives in Academic Affairs.

Her current responsibilities include portfolio management for the Academic Affairs Forum and overseeing project and operations management for the University Decision Support (UDS) team. Sarah uses her background in the arts with project management to design and implement intuitive, user-friendly tools that foster successful teams and collaborations.

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Stephen Fierbaugh

Stephen Fierbaugh, PMP, is North American Project Portfolio Manager for Epiroc, a large multinational manufacturing firm, and leads project teams scattered across Europe, China, India, Africa, Canada, and the United States.

He has a Master of Arts in Intercultural Studies and many years of experience in global project management.

Stephen lives in multicultural Richardson, TX.

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Tina Small

Tina Small’s LinkedIn bio says “Program Manager at Texas Instruments”, but it doesn’t begin to convey the curiosity she has about how it all works! Although she’s been transforming ideas into reality as a PM for semiconductor products since 2006 – and as a development engineer before that – she finally got around to pursuing a Masters.

She chose an M.S. in Systems Engineering and Management from UTD to shore up her understanding of both the engineering systems and the people systems that are critical to her projects.

She’s been PMP® certified since 2008.

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Tonica Griffin

Tonica Griffin is a results-driven program and project management leader with approximately two decades of experience across technology, financial services, education, and other corporate environments. Currently serving as AVP of Technology Engagement, at Revantage, a Blackstone Company, she excels in aligning strategic initiatives with business goals, driving technology modernization and digital transformation, and leading high-impact cross-functional projects.

Her career includes notable roles at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, University of North Texas, Dell, and General Motors, where she consistently championed process improvement, data-driven decision-making, and inclusive leadership.

Tonica is a PMP-certified professional with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and an MBA, and has been recognized for her leadership and innovation through organizational awards and speaking engagements.

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Dr. Arden Dudek

Dr. Arden Dudek is the Founder and Principal Planner of Planning Management Consulting LLC, where she guides organizations to achieve strategic alignment from the C-suite to project teams, ensuring effective stakeholder benefits. As a certified member of the John Maxwell Leadership Team, she brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise in values-based leadership development. With a passion for continuous learning and a knack for gathering versatile theories and techniques, Dr. Arden excels in coaching leaders and teams to achieve higher value at a faster pace. She specializes in maturing Project Management Offices by 30% and consulting on the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe).

Dr. Arden successfully launched and directed PMOs in Banking and Higher Education. She also led a Lean Portfolio Management (LPM) Work Request process for Wall Street’s largest, most successful Merger and Acquisition. Her Agile team managed priorities and trade-offs of 150+ requests for $12M of IT work not originally scoped for the integration within 18 months.

Dr. Arden published her higher education administration dissertation, Exploring University Project Management Presence as Related to Organizational Models, and contributed to A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide)—Fourth Edition. At Planning Management Consulting LLC, she collaborates with CIOs and Directors of PMOs to navigate strategic priorities. She helps mature businesses that are ready to scale and provides expert project management and leadership solutions. Dr. Dudek helps you clarify your strategy, prioritize your projects, and build teams of servant leaders.

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Jeremy Busby

Jeremy Busby, P.E., is an accomplished program manager and Gresham Smith’s Consultancy Services Practice Leader, focusing on program management efforts firmwide for Gresham Smith’s transportation, water, industrial, and vertical architecture markets. Throughout his career, Jeremy has managed a wide variety of programs and projects for DOTs and local municipalities across the nation. Jeremy is strategic, planning how current projects should accommodate future ones, but also planning project management processes for successful delivery of projects via schedule management and control, budget control, and effective risk management.

Following his 12-year career with the Georgia Department of Transportation, Jeremy joined Gresham Smith and was entrusted with managing the safety and operations programs and freight operations and rural development programs for the Georgia DOT, valued at $1 billion. Through those programs, he has evaluated numerous transportation projects, scoping studies, public involvement plans, all while ensuring the schedules and budgets of over 750 projects fall within acceptable limits.

Jeremy is a recognized leader in program management, engaging in speaking opportunities nationwide, and working in partnership with agencies to transform their program delivery.

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Sidharth Ramsinghaney

Sidharth Ramsinghaney: A Visionary Leader in Growth through M&A, Strategy, and Transformations

Sidharth Ramsinghaney, Director of Corporate Strategy and Operations at Twilio, is a distinguished leader in business strategy and transformation. With over 15 years of experience, Sidharth has held pivotal roles at McKinsey & Company, Deloitte Consulting, Ericsson, Bechtel, and GE, where he has driven significant business transformations and fostered growth from the ground up. His expertise spans technology, mergers and acquisitions, restructuring, and strategic planning, providing a holistic approach to business excellence. Currently based in the US, Sidharth has been instrumental in leading transformative programs at Twilio, focusing on growth, operational excellence, profitability, customer experience, and employee engagement. Over the past two years, he has spearheaded corporate strategy, mergers and acquisitions, and business transformation initiatives, working closely with the C-suite and the Board.

Recognized for his contributions to the transformation and growth of iconic companies like HPE, T-Mobile, and Jio, Sidharth has a proven track record of working with Fortune 100 clients and CxOs to solve some of the world’s most complex business challenges. He has judged over 10 major international and national awards and peer-reviewed journal and conference research papers, and has published thought leadership articles in Forbes and international journals. Sidharth is a recipient of multiple global industry and employer based awards, including the Stevie Technology Excellence 2024 – Employee of the Year for Communications Technology Industry, Globee Awards in Leadership and Titan Awards for M&A and Business Transformation, and employer based awards – Deloitte Applause Awards, and Twilio Hoots. He is also a recognized industry speaker, having delivered a keynote address at the BXS Summit 2024, a TEDx talk, and served as a guest speaker for the graduating class at a management school in the US. Sidharth holds an MBA with Honors from Boston University Questrom School of Business, a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Thapar University, and has completed executive education from Stanford and M&A certification from IMAA. His strategic insights and transformative initiatives have consistently aligned corporate objectives with enhanced profitability and market leadership.

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Joan Bradee

Joan Bradee is a recognized leader in Program Management. She currently serves as a Consultant for Launch Consulting Group (LCG). Her strengths include leading Strategic Programs. Prior to her role with LCG, Ms. Bradee was the Director of Program Management for the Operating Systems group at Vizio.

Over the past two decades, Ms. Bradee has led a variety of strategic initiatives and programs across a variety of industries, such as healthcare, airline, and high technology, working for such companies as Vizio, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Sabre, Southwest Airlines, and Motorola.

She holds a BS in Computer Science and a BS in Chemistry from the University of Maryland. She also holds an MBA from the University of Dallas. She has her Project Management Professional (PMP) certification, as well as her Scaled Agile (SAFe) Certification, Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) Certification, and Lean Portfolio Management (LPM) Certification. Ms. Bradee began her career as a Software Developer and transitioned into Program Management.

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Peter Gailey

Peter Gailey has been in the High-Tech industry for 45 years. He has held key positions ranging from individual Contributor to CEO, Executive Vice President of Sales, Strategy, Marketing, Business Development, Systems Engineering and Call Centers.

He helps set strategy and builds and manages the teams than execute that strategy. His experiences started in the OEM Sales and Business Development space and progressed through Distribution, End User, Value Added Resale, to Global Systems Integration assignments. He has been on “Special Assignments” as a leader, and Executive Staff. For the past 10 years Peter has been in the Cyber Security industry.

Scope of Experience:

• Helped Architect Solutions that created and drove Billion Dollar Industries in the High Tech Field
• Helped architect the 1st wireless Streaming Media
• Helped architect the original digital Library Automation system
• Helped architect the first Data Warehouse architecture
• Helped architect the first RAID Storage Array.
• Helped architect the Original wireless LAN an MIT Labs
• Helped architect the data storage of the New York Stock Exchange.
• Helped create the Data Architecture for Artificial Intelligence industry
• Helped create the Data architecture for fault tolerant computer systems
• Helped create the first Personal Computer Archive systems
• Sold the world’s largest ERP systems architecture and installation
• Advised hundreds of early-stage firms in Data related areas

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Greg Saunders

Greg Saunders is a Disciplined Agile Senior Scrum Master and PMP serving at the Army and Air Force Exchange Service, the Exchange, which is a $7B international retailer for America’s Soldiers, Airmen, and Guardians. He’s currently the manager of the Exchange’s Program and Project Portfolio Governance office, setting policy for and managing a $511M portfolio of 90 programs, projects, and initiatives.

Previously at the Exchange he 1) served as PMO head with a team of 22, 2) served as the lead PM for the Exchange’s largest program—replacing the accounting systems; 3) worked with PM, governance, and system analyst leads to architect the transformation of the Exchange’s program management approach; 4) served as the systems portfolio manager of 51 primary HR, payroll, & data warehouse systems; and 5) served as the PMO head for a 16-person team managing a $150M portfolio of 60 projects.

Prior to joining the Exchange, he ran a $2.5M/year business in a top-tier consultant firm. During his USAF career he re-established the Denver-based Air Reserve Personnel Center’s (ARPC) PMO; led the upgrade to ARPC’s portion of the Air Force Personnel Center’s call center that supports over 6 million reservists, retirees, and their surviving spouses; and as a colonel at the Pentagon served as both the USAF Reserves Comptroller and the Reservist to the AF CIO Director for Cyberspace Capabilities and Compliance, overseeing a team of 60 managing the USAF’s cyberspace capabilities, policy, and compliance.

Over his 36-year career he has also become a Certified Agile Practitioner, been certified in ITIL Foundation, and been certified by the Air Force as a Lean, Six Sigma Black Belt.

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