IT Strategies International Corp., a Las Vegas-based information technology consulting firm, has released its end-of-the-year sales report, showing a notable rise from the previous year. With more than a 12 percent increase in revenue, IT Strategies Executive Vice President Michael Marriott attributes the company’s growth to a new marketing focus that began in mid 2005 and included a strong push into the gaming sector.
“We have begun to provide resources to Wynn Las Vegas, Bally Gaming, Progressive Gaming, Golden Nugget, Aristocrat, Vending Data and others in the gaming industry and will continue in that direction in 2006,” said Marriott. “In addition, we have kept existing clients satisfied with a high level of service.”
Marriott says more and more businesses and casinos have experienced growth in the technology sector and rely on companies such as IT Strategies to provide technical support. The company now has two full-time marketing personnel as well as two full-time recruits to sustain growth.
IT Strategies International Corp. is a privately held global computer consulting firm incorporated in the State of Nevada in 1996 and headquartered in Las Vegas. The company provides expert, cost-effective consulting for both private companies and public organizations that require specialized information technology skills and/or in-house staff augmentation to take strategic advantage of information systems. Its Website can be accessed at www.itstrategiesint.com.
Life-Threatening Accident Leads Las Vegas Resident to Become Award-Winning Salesman
For most, a near-death experience would cause an individual to reevaluate life. For Brandon Dahle, director of business development for technology consulting firm IT Strategies, a traffic trauma caused him to reconsider his career.
“I was 22 years old and I had played football for eight years, so I guess I felt invincible back then,” said Dahl, now 30. “You have no idea how dear life is until you come close to losing it.”
In 1998, a drunk driver hit Dahle on a California freeway doing 75 miles per hour. In addition to the impact from the driver’s truck, he rolled the motorcycle he was riding across four lanes of traffic and was stopped by a cement retaining wall.
The accident left Dahle with fractured vertebrae, four broken ribs, and two broken arms, one of which was patched together with a metal plate. He was unconscious and awoke in a San Jose hospital with little memory of the accident and the news that he would have permanent disabilities with ongoing injury problems.
“I was told my arm would not fully function again and that I would never walk on my own,” said Dahle. “But I just couldn’t live with that. I made a promise to myself then and there that no matter the pain or work involved, I would prove them wrong.”
Additionally, Dahle learned the drunk driver that hit him had no insurance, so the mounting costs of multiple surgeries, months of hospital care and extensive rehabilitation were solely his own.
Four months and $150,000 in medical bills later, Dahle walked out of the hospital on his own two feet. More importantly, he left with a confidence and work ethic he had never known.
In an attempt to pay down his costly medical bills, Dahle took a job in sales where he had a potential to make excellent commissions. His new outlook on life and capacity for hard work made him a great candidate in the sales field.
During his career in technology sales and since his accident, Dahle has been recognized as a top performer and earned numerous awards for his sales accomplishments, including a Golden Eagle Award from BMD Solutions and the President’s Club Award for multiple quarters from Ascom, Hasler.
Dahle credits much of his positive attitude and persistent, friendly approach to his life-threatening accident, which gave him a “never underestimate the underdog” approach to both work and life.
“I wouldn’t be the same person without this challenging experience in my life,” he said. “I learned to never take no for an answer and to give 120 percent at everything I do. Even though I’ve seen success, I also know my health is worth far more than money.”
In embarking on further success in a field he enjoys, Dahle joined IT Strategies in May. “Joining this leading firm is just another accomplishment I have seen, and I look forward to a successful career here,” he said.
IT Strategies International Corp. is a privately held computer-consulting firm incorporated in the State of Nevada in 1996. The company provides expert, cost-effective consulting for both private companies and public organizations that require specialized information technology skills and/or in-house staff augmentation to take strategic advantage of information systems.
IT Strategies Welcomes New Additions
Embarking on a new year, IT Strategies is flourishing in computer consulting services for a wide array of clients. To continue offering superb service to its new clients and existing customers, IT Strategies has added on new staff to join its successful team. Following are new staff since the last newsletter.
Sean Paaga has been named vice president of business development for IT Strategies.
Paaga is responsible for new business development and client relations. He brings more than 15 years experience in the information technology industry to the company. Prior to joining the firm, he served as branch manager of Robert Half International in Nashville, Tenn., where he oversaw the company’s $36 million operations in the Nashville metropolitan area. He previously served as regional manager for Venturi Technology Partners in Las Vegas.
Aaron Hulse has been hired as a senior consultant and has been assigned to provide technical support for the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino. He has more than 20 years of experience in computer systems information technology. Hulse is skilled in handling many operating systems including DOS, UNIX, Oracle, SQL Server, Access, and Windows 95/98/ME, NT4, 2000, XP and 2003. In previous work, Hulse was a software engineer and applications programmer at local companies E-mailAdvantage.com, TJA Marketing and Marnell Corrao. His responsibilities included system analysis, development and project management.
Another senior consultant to join the firm is Ruth Tekabe. She has been assigned to Las Vegas Valley Water District and will be performing various technical assignments. She brings more than seven years of experience in Full Cycle Oracle relational database and Applications Design and implementation. Tekabe has a strong background in SQL and PL/SQL, MS-DOS, UNIX and Windows 95/NT/XP. Prior to joining IT Strategies, Tekabe worked as a consultant at the Las Vegas Water District. Her duties included monitoring and optimizing the performance of queries and applications to increase productivity, managing data redundancy, and creating and managing database objects.
Yordi Mersha has been hired as a quality assurance engineer and is providing technical support for Bally Gaming. She is skilled in handling many operating systems including UNIX, Linux and Windows (98/ME, NT, 2000, XP); languages including C, C++, Java and Curl; and Web tools such as XML and HTML. Before IT Strategies, Mersha served as a software quality engineer for GTECH, where she worked on the Video Product Baseline project. She previously served as a software quality engineer for Curl Corp., where she wrote test programs in Curl, tested applications and games, and helped develop the framework. Curl was invented to be the first programming language made for internet use.
IT Strategies Senior Consultant Jay King
Finds True Calling in Technology
When Jay King saw a trade school advertisement on the back of a matchbook in 1968, he had no idea that it would lead to a 30-year career in the information technology industry.
“It was just luck, really,” said King, a senior consultant for IT Strategies International Corp. “I saw the matchbook in a pub, went in to take the test, and before I knew it, I was a student.”
Prior to that fateful night in the pub, King served in the United Stated Marine Corps, where he jokes that his only exposure to technology was learning to use a machine gun.
Throughout the course of his 30 years in the IT industry, King has seen “tremendous changes in technology that has changed the way we do business, and has enhanced our way of life.”
“I started out writing programs when the primary method of getting the program code into the computer was with 80 column key punch cards,” King said. “A single program could require more than 2,000 cards, and it would take two to three days to process before we could see how it worked. The advances in technology have certainly improved the speed and efficiency of software development.”
King went on to get his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, and held positions with Honeywell, Inc., American Network Inc., Dynamics Research Corp., and Daugherty Systems Consulting.
He joined IT Strategies International in 1998. His current responsibilities include customer relations, project management, system implementation, and system support and maintenance.
“Jay has been a real asset to our firm and has brought great skills to our clients,” IT Strategies President Michael Beardslee said. “We’re happy to have him as part of our dedicated team.”
IT Strategies once again experienced a fun-filled time at its 2005 Employee Holiday Party. The event, held at TPC Summerlin, offered tasty food, cocktails, music, great company and an abundance of holiday cheer. To view photos of
everyone having a great time, please click here.
