Customer Service Project

Michael R. Buckalew

**** **** ****** **** **, Celina Texas 75009

H:972-***-****, C:214-***-****

*********@*********.***

http://www.linkedin.com/in/MichaelBuckalew

http://www.visualcv.com/michaelrbuckalew

Summary:

Over 15 years I have managed Projects and Programs and been responsible for deploying

multiple systems across major, (Sprint, Worldcom, MCI, Cox) mid-major, (Starnet, SunRocket,

Birch, Cinergy, PacWest), customer’s networks, including hardware and software for a major

vendor, (Nortel) as well as start-ups Santera and Netrake. My teams and I were responsible for

installation, installation support, commissioning, (EF&I), acceptance and in-service of the

systems including cutovers and integration testing on-site with the customer. I also held

responsibility for sustaining support after in-service.

I have had global responsibility for purchasing materials to drive a telecommunications division

and securing supply chains for major deployments of new products across customer networks.

I’ve secured partners and contractors and negotiated service level agreements while

implementing cradle to grave service strategies to sustain the product and customer.

I’ve lead large organizations of service and project personnel, including 2 Directors, 6 Senior

Managers, 14 Managers, and 140 – 160 persons doing (Program/Project Management, Inbound

Call Center, Tier 2 and Tier 3 TAC, Product Introduction of new hardware and software for

major customers, Test (final and systems), Installation Support and Field Services). I’ve worked

with the team to establish and then improve delivery processes, provide consistent and needed

quality and stay on time and on budget to achieve high customer satisfaction.

I have lead project teams at multiple sites within the US and abroad. (Dallas, Atlanta, Research

Triangle Park, San Diego, India, Indonesia, Guam, Great Britain as examples). I established goals

and objectives, worked with sales and multi-site project teams to improve deliveries and provide

consistent methodologies and insure that our international efforts were effective. Traveled as

necessary to India, Indonesia, and domestically to insure efforts on the ground were effective.

I created service and operations organizations from the ground up, hiring and directing Program

Managers to introduce major CLASS 4/5 and Wireless systems into customer organizations and

integrate new products and services into existing networks as well as creating new networks of

multiple systems at multiple locations. My teams and I have written work instructions, statements

of work, installation methods, project notes and created sophisticated project plans to support the

introduction of major telecom systems. I have studied for my PMP certification, (not yet

achieved), become adept at Gantt Critical Path Analysis, PERT and Microsoft Project, and taken

on-line courses in Project Management Techniques.

Over 20 years my teams have averaged customer satisfaction scores of 98% or above and I have

delivered many different types of products including legacy switches, PBX and enterprise

switching, gateways, soft switches, VOIP, servers, routers, wireless gateways, wire line and

terminals.

I have vast experience within the area of Global Project Operations, Technical Support, and

International Service and am an expert on work flows, securing a supply chain, service level

agreements, managing partners, service delivery and service creation. I have an excellent

knowledge of call center techniques, training methods, service standards and I have a proven

track record of delivering results under challenging conditions.

I Will:

Improve workflows, processes and reduce cost.

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Increase communication and cooperation between teams and orgs.

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Improve response times and delivery techniques.

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Monitor quality standards and drive efficiencies.

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Motivate the team to succeed.

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Document and plan for contingencies.

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Create a culture of excellence.

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Resolve internal and external conflicts.

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Create effective internal training programs and make this a part of the culture.

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Partner with my counterparts to improve the customer experience across the organization.

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Experience

Netrake/AudioCodes Plano Texas

Senior Director, Operations 2006 - 2008

Responsible for IT/IS, Program/Project Management, Customer Service, Manufacturing, Procurement,

Physical Security, Final Systems Assembly and Test, Material Management, Shipping and Receiving,

Professional Services, Partner Management, Trials/New Product Introduction, Customer interface,

Disaster Planning and Recovery, Software Delivery, Repair and Return, Training (Internal and External),

Program/Project Management.

Created Technical Support and organized a newly created Operations team of IT, Manufacturing,

Facilities Management and Security.

Tekelec/Santera Plano Texas

Director, Customer Service, 2000 – 2005

Held responsibility for all phases of customer service, project management and technical assistance,

systems test, program management, professional services, interoperability testing, new product

introduction and installation support. Staffed all the teams from inception and grew customer service

internationally and domestically, while also creating teams for software delivery, software and hardware

upgrades and a 24x7 call center for basing professional services.

Nortel Networks, Richardson, Texas

Group Leader, Tech Support 1990 – 2000

I held the responsibility for professional services for all carrier products, new product introduction and

delivery, global patch delivery and applications, DMS 250 field verification, the network operations

center and all customer support, verification and sustaining phases as well as global responsibilities for

the DMS 500. Headed a team to focus upon and raise customer satisfaction to its highest possible level

by focusing on key areas of their business needs: software delivery, CSR responsiveness and proactive

approaches to problem discovery. I held responsibility for technical assistance and emergency technical

assistance and follow-up for the Nortel DMS 250 product lines, including elements of Sprint, UCS, and

MCI.

Core Competencies

Technologies Directly Supported

Commercial VOIP, UMA, IMC, FMC Support, Security Gateway, Session Border Control, Next

Generation Switching, Remote/On-site Maintenance, Sales Support, IP Telephony, TDM Telephony,

Voice, Data, Call Center, Commercial VOIP, Residential VoIP, Intel Servers, Sun Servers, Cisco

Routers, Juniper Routers, Foundry, Tatung, Media Gateway, Media Gateway Controller, Wireless

Gateway, Wire Line, Wireless, PBX, Enterprise Hardware and Software, Microsoft Office, Oracle,

Siebel, Tech Excel, Remedy, Informix, Lotus Notes, Meridian 100, Meridian 1, Voice Mail

Program Management (Santera, Netrake, Nortel)

I have created and hired entire program management teams, written processes and procedures and project

plans. I have managed major projects for customers such as delivering major/minor software releases to

networks, introducing new hardware, integrating new features, adding data to voice networks, voice to

data networks, integrating new hardware and software products to existing networks, installing new

systems, adding back office systems, planning and executing cutovers of systems, suitcase upgrades,

building labs and facilities, call center design and implementation, Product trials, (bake-offs), traffic

analysis, process mapping

Partner Programs, Product Introduction, Network Roll Outs, In-Service, Cutovers, Service Billing,

Project Introduction/Closure, Trials, Sales Support, Marketing Support, Higher Margins, Priority

Lists, Action Registers, Weekly Calls, Escalation Lists, First Office Applications, Microsoft Project,

Gantt Charts, Timesheet, Microsoft Office, Disaster Planning, Customer advocacy, Hand-offs,

Milestones, Project Plans, Baselines, Ship Dates, Release Control, Bulletins, Checklists, Scheduling,

Multiple projects, Multiple Customers, Multiple Products, Project Integration, Network installations,

New products, New Hardware, New Software, Professional Service Delivery, Planning, International,

Regional

Technical Service (Santera, Netrake, Nortel)

I have managed and built Tier 1 (Call Center/Help Desk), Tier 2 (emergency and standard technical

support), and Tier 3 (patch writing and software delivery). This includes staffing, budgeting, selecting the

OEM and CRM packages, selecting the call center technology, creating work flows and standards and

setting up training. My teams have achieved high satisfaction averaging 98% and I have partnered with

the customer effectively at every level using a service philosophy I’ve developed. I have also twice built

the technical network infrastructure for customer service and IT. (LAN, Router, Ethernet, Firewall, T1’s,

Servers, PBX’s, Call Center, Help Desk, CRM, Inventory Management, Budgets, Labs, Test Equipment,

Terminals and Work Stations, CRM selection and implementation, Standards based guidelines created

based upon ISO and Telcordia, IP Telephony, Time tracking tools, billing mechanisms, metric collection

tools, VPN, Remote User Areas)

Equipment Infrastructure/Connectivity, Inbound Call Center, Customer Documentation, TAC Work

Flows, Internal and Customer Training, Pre in-service checklists, Corrective Software Patches,

Software Upgrades, Technical Support Bulletins, Improved Call Response, Call Queue Reduction,

Global Technical Resource Development and hiring, Process Improvement, Troubleshooting, Root

Cause Analysis, Partner Selection, Shifts, 24x7x365, Callout, Escalations, Emergency Recovery,

Emergency Follow-up, Disaster Planning, Disaster Recovery, Cutovers, Installation Support, Field

Services, In-site support, Professional Services, Standards (ISO, TL-9000, Telcordia, Help Desk, Back

Office, Billing, Time Tracking, Terminals, Test Equipment, ACD, Call Through Testing, Patch

Delivery, Patch Testing, Patch Creation, Software Upgrades, Change Control, Customer Partnerships,

Handoff, Flowcharts, Presentations, Metrics, Customer Facing Functions, Release Control, Quarterly

Reviews, Service Delivery, Deployment Acceleration, International, Regional

Global Operations and Manufacturing (Santera, Netrake)

I have managed and in some cases created global operations including the selection and evaluation of

international turn key partners, building international call centers for partners and expansion into global

markets, qualifying partners for most phases of customers support, evaluating service level agreements,

pricing, (accepting bids), procurement of material and services, reducing costs of goods and services,

improving efficiency, NEBS, reducing cycle times, and have a firm grasp of lean manufacturing concepts.

I have reduced cost and increased margin while having direct responsibility for manufacturing or as a

contributor to the operation team. I have held responsibility for procurement, shipping and receiving

globally, facilities, physical security and inventory control and repair. At my last assignment I reduced

cist by 50% while maintaining high quality.

Disaster Recovery, Business Continuity, Preventive maintenance, hardware baselines, RoHS 5 and 6,

Test, Circuit Level Repair, Competitive bids, Cycle Times, Cycle Counts, Consolidation, NEBS, Cost

Control, Forecasting, Procurement, Supply Chain, New Product Introduction, Memorandum of

Agreements, Contracts, Turn Key Manufacturing, Environmental Compliance, Agile Oracle, Oracle

Cutover, ERP, Sarbanes, Oxley, QuickBooks, Intuit, Distributor Relationships, Vendor Management,

Database conversion, International, Regional, Quick turn low volume, Assembly, Final Systems Test,

Bed of nails,Functional test, Work instructions, Branding, Scaling, ISO, Telcordia, Department of

Commerce, Predictability, Non Conforming material, Material Handling, Inventory Control,

Homeland Security, Delinquent Material, Shortages, Import, Export, Shipping, Audits, Cycle Counts,

Inventory Adjustment, 1st Yields, Material Reserve

New Product Trials & Support (Santera, Netrake, Nortel)

I have managed teams that have delivered new products, supported trials and integrated technologies into

customer networks as both a professional service and as part of changing technologies. This delivery has

included software and hardware, products developed by Nortel, Santera and Netrake as well as off the

shelf products being re-branded and sold. This responsibility has included testing the product, writing test

cases, executing or supporting the execution of test cases, on and off site support, and ultimate hand-off to

the customer. My teams are known for their ability to reduce costs, reduce the length of a deployment,

seamlessly introduce new technology or features and improve customer satisfaction.

Software Delivery, Hardware Delivery, Test Cases, Test Execution, Metrics, Service Delivery,

Customer Quality Partnerships, Improved Delivery, Root Cause Analysis, Large Office Testing, Stress

Testing, Planning, Team Building, Handoff’s, Milestones, Release Acceleration, Lab Support, Early

release testing, Quality Assurance, Release Tracking, Handoffs, Gate Process, Release Notes, Service

Request Management, Prioritization, First Office Application, Quarterly Business Review, Product

Bake-offs, Installation Support, Field Service

Network Operations (Nortel, Santera)

I have managed 3 network operations centers and built 2 of the 3 I managed. My teams have provided,

monitoring and dispatch for TDM and mixed Data networks for Motorola and Nortel and a service to

emerging customers providing full turn key services. (Monitor, Open Tickets, Dispatch, Track, Alarm

resolution). I also built a more modern facility to provide network operations to include SNMP tracking

and more network management capabilities. While supporting media gateways that supported IP and

Voice signaling we also built a 24x7 operations center to support customers and ourselves. We monitored

for alarms, gathered data, tracked release levels, pushed software, and auto generated callouts to the TAC

and management teams.

Budgets, Tracking, Monitoring, Dispatch, Tracking, NetQOS, SimpleWeb, Microsoft, Lotus Notes,

Clearquest, Microsoft Office, Workstations, Terminals, IP PBX’s, Shoretel, Cisco, Remedy, Oracle,

Timesheet, TDM, VOIP, Data, SNMP, Text, SNMP, Security, Chrystal Reports, Metrics, Spiceworks,

SimpleWeb, Bugzilla, Trend Micro, Linksys, Juniper, Cisco, Intel, Sun, Norton, MacAfee, TechExcel

Global Service/Customer Support (Nortel, Santera, Netrake)

I have managed and created teams of customer service professionals and worked directly in most parts of

the service delivery process from engineering and database to installation to Tech Support and sustaining.

I have put together teams and budgets to support the end to end customer experience and been the leader

of teams that were very experienced and successful and some that needed to be re-energized. My teams

have been regional, (within US) and international in scope. My teams have provided account

management, program/project management, technical assistance, field services, new product introduction

and testing. I have achieved very high customer satisfaction by clearly communicating strategy and

blending teams to achieve results, I have also evaluated SAP, Oracle, TechExcel, Siebel, Sales force and

many other forms of ERP and CRM to increase effectiveness of the teams and process. I have been a

leader and full participant in two Oracle Conversions.

Help Desk, Budget, Escalation, Tool Selection, Program Management, Tech Support, Facilities,

Manufacturing, Operations, Professional Services, IT, Network Operations, ERP, CRM, Service

Delivery, Test, New Product Introduction, Supply Chain, MOU, SLA, Contracts, Process,

Improvement, Root Cause, Project Management, Program Management, International, Regional,

Standards, Service Revenue, Quality, Teaming, Integration, Monitoring, Teaming, Documentation,

Training, Upgrades, Metrics, Milestones, Installation, Final Systems Test, Microsoft Office,

Presentations, Writing, Communication Skills, Team Work, Customer Facing, Partnerships, Root

Cause

Awards & Recognition

96% Customer Satisfaction 2004

Team Touchdown Award (awarded by CEO for most efficient team) 2002

Quality Award for Product Verification 2000

Presidents Award of Excellence 2000

Employee Recognition “Best Leadership” 1999

Presidents Pride Award for Customer Service 1999

Platinum Award for outstanding customer service 1998

Quality Award of Merit for 1998 new product introduction.

Directors Award of Merit in 1997 for Outstanding Customer Service

100% Customer Satisfaction for Sprint 1996

Letter and Plaque from MCI for first zero impact software rollout 1996

Letter and Plaque from Sprint for reducing software rollout to 2 weeks 1996

Star Telecom Letter of Appreciation

Presidents award for quality in 1995

Bell Northern Research Customer Service Award 94/95

Sprint Independence Award for Customer Service 1994

Meritorious Service Medal

Army Achievement Medal

Good Conduct Medal (2nd Award)

NCO Service Medal w/numeral 1

20 Certificates of Achievement/Commendation

Army Service Ribbon

Overseas Service Ribbon

Languages

Proficient in German and French

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