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December 14 Newsletter

  

Welcome to the SIMCAC Weekly Newsletter....
....Where each week, we'll share SIMCAC announcements, member spotlights, local/national industry news, upcoming events, and recaps of past ones! 
Event Recap: 2018 SIMCAC Holiday Reception 

What a great way to kick off the holiday season! With a packed house of excited attendees, the vibe was perfect right as you walked in the door. The open bar downstairs and the delicious food contributed to a great environment.


A packed house for SIMCAC’s 2018 Holiday Reception at Elizabeth’s on L in DC!
 
While many SIMCAC events focus around hot topics, this event is one of the few opportunities both current and prospective members are given an opportunity to simply connect and deepen friendships.  As the night drew on, old friendships got deeper and new ones emerged.
 
 
SIMCAC members and guests were treated to a wonderful holiday meal from The Catering Company of Washington

While remarks from our sponsors and chapter leaders were purposefully brief, Mike Huthwaite (our Chair) revisited our 2018 accomplishments and got attendees excited about the packed 2019 calendar.  Much of the conversation about 2019 focused on January’s meeting, where a distinguished panel will discuss how Amazon’s move to northern Virginia will impact our companies and communities.  He highly recommended registering early for that one as a few recent forums to discuss this issue have quickly sold out.


Nanci Schimizzi accepts a surprise $5000 donation to STEM For Her from Joe Malfesi and Mike Huthwaite

Mike Huthwaite and Joe Malfesi also took the opportunity to make a surprise donation of $5000 to STEM for Her!  Nanci Schmizzi, a long time SIMCAC member and representative of the organization was shocked as she accepted the donation.
 
It’s evenings like that that remind all of us why we chose to be members of SIM.
 
Happy Holidays!  We’ll see you in 2019!



Karen Alpert, VP IT Strategy & Measurement at BBYO wins eGroup raffle of a Yeti cooler






Kate Rhoads, SVP Enterprise Systems and Services wins Sirius raffle of an Amazon Echo







Mohamoud Jibrell, CEO of Normshield wins Sirius raffle of an Amazon Echo










Tyler Greene, Market Vice President at Kforce wins eGroup raffle of a Ring Doorbell

SIMCAC Member Spotlight: Ali Tafreshi

Please briefly describe your current company and role 

      Currently I am a CIO engagement partner and digital practice leader at Tatum, an executive consulting services firm. I work with CxOs in building their technology strategy and organizational capability. That ranges in the form of stepping in as interim CIO to stabilize projects and turning around the IT function to transformation work in addressing challenges in supply chain or cloud strategy and vendor partnerships. I bring a unique expertise in data analytics in helping organizations develop their data strategy to monetize and exploit it to drive innovation, business growth, and competitive advantage.   
 

You’ve been in this position for about two years, what has been your biggest challenge? Biggest learning lesson or takeaway?

      The biggest challenge has been to make sure CxO understand there are no magic unicorns and technology adoptions and business process change go hand in hand to get the most benefit.  The biggest lesson or take away: Figure out what you don't know and challenging assumptions. 
 

As you look a few years out, what technology or trends particular excite you?

      I look at things through the lens of data, and having access to more data as more process are automated and digitized means better decisions and expanded use cases for AI and ML tools.
 

Outside of work, what endeavors are you most excited about today? 

      In the heavens: The Mars and Moon missions of NASA!

      Earthly endeavors: Work the SIM capital area chapter is going to increase the value of the membership and I am involved with that.
 

What is the most beneficial part about being a member of SIM?

     Like minded individuals open to share and help each other. 
 

Anything that we missed that you’d like to add?

      I am looking forward to the SIMCAC 40th anniversary in 2019!
All Three Q1 SIMCAC Events Are Now Open For Registration!

2019 programming calendar available here


Featured January Event

        January 23rd at 5:30pm - Virginia Tech's Research Center


Current panelists include

Jack Belcher - The CIO of Arlington County
Victor Hoskins - The Executive Director of Arlington’s Economic Development Office
Christie Struckman - Research Analyst and member of the Leadership, Culture, and People team in Gartner’s CIO Research group

Please register early, as we have limited capacity and we expect this event to fill quickly!
More Information and Registration Here


 

This newsletter brought to you by by Sirius, Commvault, and eGroup.
 
 
 
Attention SIMCAC members! Since our members are the lifeblood of this great chapter, the success of this newsletter depends on our ability to share the happenings within it! So we're going to ask for your help in making this newsletter the best it can be. If you or fellow SIMCAC members have announcements, articles, pictures, videos, or any other content you'd like to share (and please do!), email to jamesparks@simcac.org 

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