How I Know What I Know and Do What I Do

Introduction

I am often asked about my knowledge and skills as an executive management and information technology consultant. I have acquired my expertise through a variety of sources, including formal education, informal education, hands-on experience, professional forums, publications, and technology testing. I have unique and valuable skills and twenty years of work experience that can benefit you and your organization.

Formal Education

My formal education provided a solid foundation for my professional career. Throughout my high school and undergraduate academic career, I was a motivated and high-achieving student. I earned multiple merit-based scholarships, achieved perfect marks on occasion, and received top achievement awards in recognition of my academic work and intellectual leadership.

I excelled in several areas during my formal education, including critical and speed reading, public speaking, research, teaching, and writing. I served as a teaching assistant, supporting my fellow students through their coursework and delivering exams and lectures.

In formal learning environments, I was an innovator in cultivating my own learning. I took the initiative to learn the skills I needed and wanted, such as creating a thesis program in my university department. This experience also gave me the opportunity to develop my critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

My formal education at the university level was cross and interdisciplinary, spanning the arts, humanities, social sciences, and business. This provided me with a lifelong toolkit of skills that I continue to use in professional practice.

​Informal Education

In addition to my formal education, I have also gained a great deal of knowledge from informal sources, such as articles, audiovisual media, books, certifications, courses, training, site visits, and workshops. I am constantly engaged in developing my knowledge and skills, both hard and soft (e.g., domain and technical skills, and interpersonal and intrapersonal skills) on a wide range of topics that allow me to better serve my clients and constituents.

Some of my reading interests include: aesthetics, art history, business management, American and world history, military history, philosophy, poetry, and technology. I am a self-directed, habitual, and lifelong learner who challenges myself by learning holistically about a topic in order to gain a better understanding of it. I regularly earn industry certifications to demonstrate my achievement and proficiency in a particular topic or technology.

As the methods, techniques, and tools of informal learning continue to evolve, with even greater access and speed made possible by digital technologies, I strive to learn and apply as much as I can, and at a steady pace, in order to have a nimble and prepared mind.

In my professional career, I have also benefited from the support and guidance of mentors. I have also learned a great deal from my colleagues through peer-to-peer learning. I am able to identify and appreciate exceptional teams and colleagues. I am also familiar with the professional qualities I look for in clients and collaborators.

Throughout my career, I have taken a hands-on approach to learning. This has included site visits, secret shopper visits, training, workshops, and activities with experienced practitioners. While much of my work can be done most efficiently and effectively through digital means, I am willing to immerse myself in an environment to better understand the conditions and consider work goals. I am always looking for ways to improve my skills and knowledge so that I can be ready, relevant, and resonant. I am committed to lifelong learning and self-actualization.

Hands-On Experience

I have acquired a great deal of knowledge through hands-on experience. This has taught me how to build my abilities and apply my knowledge to real-world circumstances. I began working in office administrative support roles during my school years and had internships in my then-chosen field of art history and museums. These early experiences gave me insights into organizational operations and vocation-specific activities.  

I have learned the importance of clear, decisive, and visionary leadership, as well as the importance of an established chain of command to run an organization efficiently and effectively. This includes clearly defining roles and responsibilities. I continued to work part-time in museums throughout my college years while completing my studies, which was supplemented by international study and professional internships.

My formative years of professional experience took place at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, one of the world's great art and culture institutions. I began my career with two internships, which led to temporary and then full-time positions. I held seven different roles during my time at the museum.

As a then recent graduate, I was eager to learn and get involved. I took a hands-on approach to my work, learning by doing and improving my skills as I went. I was also open to new challenges and willing to do what was needed to support my colleagues and constituents. This experience helped me to understand the importance of earnest and forthright service, while also maintaining my own considered approaches and vision for achieving successful outcomes.

I used my adaptability and foresight to design processes and technological solutions that made my previous roles obsolete. This brought greater efficiency and reduced operational costs, and also enabled me to develop capabilities to support the institution in a changing, challenging, and dynamic environment impacted by difficult economic conditions and digital transformation.

In my roles, I often had to solve problems with limited resources, people, and time across the organization and with national and international partners. Therefore, working across different work approaches and contexts and resolutely harmonizing those to achieve successful outcomes was always a major priority. I learned how to solve tactical obstacles, while developing and building overall strategic capabilities.

After working for over a decade at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, my career expanded as a fellow and consultant. I have guided and supported organizations beyond the arts and culture sector, including a variety of educational, non-profit, for-profit, and government organizations.

My hands-on experience working with executive leaders and teams in these organizations has given me an in-depth understanding of working with tactical and strategic challenges, especially under difficult conditions of economic instability and multi-year public health, safety, and security crises. I focus on themes of digital transformation, fiscal management, relevance, resilience, sustainability, and visionary leadership.

Throughout my career, I have experienced human behavior in the face of the certain need for change that at times has been inspiring and refreshing when taking on my expert recommendations and having the courage, determination, and vision to move forward, face the day, and advance. 

My work products include internal documents, project plans, and technology systems implementations. I have also facilitated dynamic strategic planning listening sessions, budgets, collaboratively authored documents, objectives and key results, policies, and staffing and team plans. These efforts have helped organizations consider their current situation and chart a course for the future.

I continue to grow each day by learning and working with colleagues and clients. I am committed to empowering them and supporting their organizations to achieve redefined possibilities.

Professional Forums

From my time as a university student, I have participated in professional forums that align with my career goals. In these organizations, I have served in various capacities, including advisor, board member, communicator, juror, organizer, presenter, secretary, and reviewer.

Through my work with these forums, locally, nationally and internationally, I have gained exposure to a variety of perspectives on professional practice in the arts, business, culture, education, and technology. In my work hosting and facilitating professional forums, I have sought to advance professional practice by promoting proactive and forward-thinking approaches to supporting colleagues and peers, leaving them better equipped to adapt to change and overcome challenges.

My interest and engagement in professional forums is very much tied to their ability to support members business, economic, and professional skills interests. I am open and eager to participate in professional forums who are fiscally sound, delivering clear value, and fostering new business development opportunities for members online and on site.

Publications

Throughout my career, I have produced a variety of publications in different formats and media. These include articles, blog posts, book chapters, conference presentations, lectures, podcasts, reports, social media posts, videos, whitepapers, and websites. My work has been published in peer-reviewed scholarly journals, as well as collaborative and self-published projects. I have also contributed articles and posts to organization blogs, publications, and reports when the topic and audience are aligned with my professional practice.

The research, writing, and editing process of my publications has helped me to develop my critical thinking and communication skills. It has also given me the knowledge and perspectives I need to effectively support my clients and constituents. My goal with each publication project is to provide readers with direct, thoughtful, and valuable insights. I do this by reflecting on my research and considering the needs of my potential audience.

I am proud to see that my past writings have been cited in other publications over time. This indicates that my work has had an impact on the professional discourse in my field. I am always looking for new ways to share my knowledge and experience with others. I am excited to continue exploring new formats, mediums, and topics of publication that reflect my professional interests and that I believe will be of value to others.

Technology Reviewing and Testing

Technology reviewing and testing has been a valuable learning experience for me. I have served as an official beta tester for several notable digital technologies from leading global companies, as well as start-ups and crowdfunded projects. Over the years, I have developed an expertise in identifying threshold changes in technology that have the potential to spawn new innovations or create long-term impacts when integrated into business and culture. I am always testing new technology environments, software, and tools, and looking for ways to use technology to improve my work and support my constituents.

As a consultant, I regularly provide expert analysis and review of technology environments, hardware, and software for my clients. I help them identify the best tools to meet their needs, taking into account their budgets, processes, workflows, and most importantly, customer success. I approach the use of technology strategically, not just for the sake of technology. Sometimes, a less-is-more approach or a streamlined and adapted technology stack is preferable to adding a new application for every use case or developing a custom solution.

I review existing and new technology as a professional service to help existing and new players in the market place situate themselves and make needed enhancements and improvements. This has helped me to become more efficient and effective, and it has also allowed me to provide my clients with better service. By being a selective early and prudent adopter of certain technologies and technology environments, I have a technical knowledge that complements my business acumen and interdisciplinary expertise, thereby providing my constituents with multifaceted guidance. I also co-author and write publications about technology environments and products to share my experience and insights with the public.

Conclusion

I believe the best way to learn and perform work is through a combination of formal education, informal education, hands-on experience, professional forums, and technology testing. By drawing on all of these sources, I have developed a deep understanding of management and information technology consulting and the skills necessary to be successful in supporting my clients to achieve their goals.

This introduction provides an overview of my approaches and methodologies for how I acquire and apply my knowledge and skills. Choosing a contractor, consultant, or employee requires careful consideration. Understanding my approaches and skills in the pursuit of achievement and excellence for organizational outcomes can help you make the decision to work with me.

Please connect we me on the Stimler Advantage website and follow me and my company, Stimler Advantage, on LinkedIn.