Project Manager Customer Service

PATRICK LeVARDI

**** ***

Hazleton, PA *****

570-***-**** (Res.) • 570-***-**** (Cell) • ***********@********.***

Operations Executive

Strategic Planning Profit & Loss Management Mergers and Acquisitions Integration

Management

Operational Design and Process Improvement –Organizational Design and Implementation

Multi Site Operations Contract Negotiations Logistics and Distribution – Call Center/Customer

Service

Manufacturing IS/IT – Inventory Planning Retail Operations Finance HR

Operating and Management Executive with over 25 years’ experience successfully establishing operational and

technical excellence in direct to consumer, e commerce, and retail organizations with full Profit & Loss (P&L)

responsibility. Able to operate and deliver under diverse business conditions including extreme growth,

mergers and acquisitions, revenue and profit declines, and chapter 11 reorganization.

Strengths:

Profit and Loss Management – Tremendously successful at implementing financial controls,

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processes, employee incentive programs, and systems that drive positive change, expense

reductions, and increased profitability.

Leadership – Successfully led implementation of operational and technological projects of all sizes

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with multiple companies including acquisition integrations, proprietary and third party solution

software implementations, and re organizations due to growth, declines, and chapter 11.

Organizational Development Designed, implemented, and managed resource and operational

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organizational plans in multiple companies during growth and downsizing periods, acquisition

transition, and chapter 11.

Innovation – Improved operational efficiencies and profitability through design, development, and

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implementation of proprietary technological solutions, third party software solution selection,

negotiation, and deployment in multiple companies serving as COO responsible for IS/IT and as

executive directly managing IS/IT departments.

Negotiation – Highly skilled at vendor and service provider negotiations having done so with

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technology, operational service, and product providers in multiple companies leading to

improvements in operational efficiencies and profitability.

PATRICK LeVARDI Page 2

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

PETS UNITED, LLC, Hazleton, PA 2007 – 2008

Privately held e commerce and direct mail pet supply company with multiple divisions and URL’s including

dog.com, horse.com, statelinetack.com, bird.com, fish.com, and ferret.com. Company sales of $90 million with

160 direct employees at a corporate headquarter location and 30 more at a third party fulfillment company

facility.

Merger and Acquisition Consultant /Interim COO

Led the integration of a major acquisition and drove post integration operational and organizational re

structuring in 2007 and 2008 resulting in an increase in revenue of 25% and operational efficiencies of 35%

while serving as consultant and interim COO.

Successfully led all aspects of acquisition integration and post integration operations as

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Executive Project Manager including:

Resource planning/assignment/recruitment/and management, Operational planning and

implementation, Organizational design and implementation, Business continuation planning

and implementation, Systems/E Commerce development and deployment, Asset and

Inventory valuation, transfer and storage, and liquidation/recovery, Facility planning and

design, and Product and Service Provider negotiations and integration.

Served as interim COO and lead Executive of a 5 member team with overall company and day to

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day on site operational responsibility under remote private ownership. Management

responsibility for 5 direct and 100 indirect reports.

Implemented organizational structure changes, associate training and compensation programs, overhead

reductions, process improvements, and software enhancements post integration resulting in significantly

increased efficiencies, decreased operational expenses, and increased profitability.

Improved customer service levels by decreasing the order shipment timeframes from 72 hours to 24 hours and

abandoned call rates from 15% to less than 4% on average.

Decreased overall expenses related to third party fulfillment services by deploying internal project management

processes and improved order transfer and fulfillment automation.

Re negotiated pricing contract resulting in a rate freeze for 2008 and 2009 which equated to an overall 3%

decrease in budgeted and actual expense.

Led transportation and logistics efforts for the company including service provider contract and

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rate negotiations resulting in annual savings of 7.5% ($500k), and improved in transit and

delivery times by 1 – 3 days on average.

Led service provider negotiations resulting in expense savings of 10% 20% per provider.

PATRICK LeVARDI Page 3

BACHRACH CLOTHING, INC., Decatur, IL 2005 – 2007 and 1992 – 1995

Privately held men’s apparel and accessories retail and direct to consumer company with sales peak of $120

million and 700+ employees across 72 store locations, corporate office, and a distribution center.

COO and Director of Information Systems

Designed, developed, and implemented operational and technological programs and processes that led to

significant improvements in internal and external customer service levels, operational efficiencies, and expense

structures leading to increased profitability.

Direct management responsibility for IS/IT, distribution center, call center/customer service, direct

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to consumer (catalog and e commerce), HR, and finance operations with 8 direct and 85 indirect

reports.

Significantly increased operational efficiencies and decreased expenses through the deployment of

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improved processes, organizational re structuring and change, associate training programs, systems

enhancements and implementations, outsourcing call center overflow, and new telephony software

and hardware.

Led logistics and transportation, facility maintenance, telephony, hardware and software,

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marketing, printing, and supply service provider contract negotiations and management resulting in

reduced expenses, improved performance and service levels, and increased profitability.

Turned around IS/IT effectiveness by:

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Re designing organizational structure

Designing/developing/implementing project management methodologies

Leading the development and implementation of proprietary software applications

Creating company’s first Helpdesk operation from design through implementation including problem

submission, tracking and reporting, resource planning and assignment, and software/hardware

deployment

Successfully leading the selection, price negotiation, project management, resource assignment, and

deployment of new POS and Order Processing and Fulfillment systems

Led Business Re Organization efforts as a result of Chapter 11 filing and emergence under new

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private ownership. Developed, implemented, and managed strategies to reduce the overall direct to

consumer and retail operations. Managed third party liquidation company services to maximize

capital secured from those efforts, strategic store closings including staff reductions and re

deployment, reductions in direct to consumer operational and marketing expenses including both

non overhead and overhead, and the development of personnel retention, training, and benefit

strategies.

PATRICK LeVARDI Page 4

CROSSTOWN TRADERS, INC., Tucson, AZ and Greenwich, CT 1998 – 2004 and 1987 – 1992

A privately held women’s apparel and accessories direct mail company with multiple catalog titles and divisions

including Old Pueblo Traders, Regalia, Bedford Fair, Willow Ridge, Brownstone, and Lew Magram with

annual sales of over $400 million. 10 direct reports and 150 indirect reports.

Senior Vice President, Vice President, Director, Senior Manager

Played multiple roles over a period spanning close to 12 years during two different periods. These roles ranged

from direct and executive level leadership of, manufacturing, inventory planning and purchasing, retail

operations, and proprietary software development with P&L responsibility.

Executive management responsibility for corporately owned women’s apparel manufacturing

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company and staff with Full P&L responsibility. Responsible for all operations including,

demand planning and forecasting, production planning and scheduling, piece goods purchasing

and management, quality assurance, delivery/order accuracy and scheduling, transportation and

logistics, and associate development and training.

• Served as member of an internal Merger and Acquisition team and the Executive Project Manager

for the operational integration of four direct mail titles into the company portfolio which doubled

corporate revenues. Led all aspects of the integration responsible for driving organizational and

process assessment and change, systems implementation, and training.

Directly led inventory planning and retail outlet operations with responsibility for forecasting

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and purchasing of inventory, inventory obsolescence/liquidation, and managing vendor relations

resulting in improvements in inventory cost and turns, in stock levels, backorders, cancels, and

obsolete inventory recovery.

Directly managed IS proprietary software development team of 30 developers and support staff.

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Implemented organizational and process change that resulted in major improvements in cost

containment and on time project completion.

JDA SOFTWARE, INC. Phoenix, AZ, 1995 1998

Publicly traded leading retail software company with worldwide operations.

Associate Director, Retail Systems

Launched a new product offering and created development and service support team in the data

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warehousing sector through establishment of a partnership with a third party software firm.

Performed business consulting and project management services for a multitude of retail clients

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to include systems requirements definition, package customization definition, client training, and

implementation management.

Education

B.S.B.A, University of Phoenix 1996

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