1. business and industrial
2. advertising and marketing
3. marketing

John David Balla
2080 W. Trail Blazer Dr.
Cottonwood, AZ 86336
928.300.7675
[email protected]
Summation:
I excel in solving complex problems because I love the challenge and have decades of
experience doing just that. I am not easily intimidated. Not afraid to roll up my sleeves, be it in an
executive, upper-management, or “for hire” consultant capacity. With a very diverse background
(spanning 30 years), including but not limited to, system integration, project management,
marketing, legal, consulting, I am comfortable working with all levels within any hierarchy, be it
technical, non-technical or otherwise. As I bring a myriad of horizontal and vertical skills unlike
anyone I know, my talents are best suited in an environment that is dynamic; one that provides
the requisite creative space so I can contribute to my full potential.
I am available for select freelance and employment opportunities.
Experience:
2001-Present
Internet Marketer and Business Consultant: Leveraging my past experience as
an eBusiness analyst and consultant (see below), I advise large and small
companies alike in the following…
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Marketing Strategy and Planning
Requirements Analysis, drafting RFPs, and vendor selection
Systems analyses
Implementation Planning and Product/Service Rollout
Pricing Model and Analysis
Promotional Development, including complete development of creative,
i.e., copywriting, graphics, video, scriptwriting, for the print, radio,
television, web and stand-alone video (DVD) mediums.
Complete eMarketing Strategies and Implementation, including press
releases, website development, e-commerce integration, email
marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), blogs, forums, articles,
autoresponders, link building/exchanges, video deployment, affiliate
marketing programs, eLearning, eCoupons, etc.
Video and music production.
MultiMedia eBook/iBook production, distribution and marketing.
Positions held with recent or current clients:
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Special consultant and systems integrator for The Midi Store, a Pro
Audio online shop which sells over 2,500 Music and other Pro Audio
products worldwide.
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Co-founder: Cathedral Rock Publishing, a full service MultiMedia eBook
production, distribution and marketing company. I produced the world’s
1st MultiMedia novel … Cathedral of the Senses … with it’s own selfcontained music soundtrack, including producing the album. I also wrote
the world’s 1st scholarly exegesis … The Big Bite and the Shocking
Truth About Original Sin … the first analytical work that includes it’s own
music video interpretation of said analysis, available on Amazon.com.
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VP of Marketing: VideoGuitarLessons.com – Markets online guitar
lessons for a fraction of the cost of traditional lessons.
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Director of Marketing, Flesch, Preschler and Piebler – An integrated
marketing communications firm based in Sedona, AZ.
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Director of Marketing: MooresMarauders.org – A nonprofit 501-C3
organization dedicated to finding and recovering the some 78,000
servicemen who remain “Missing in Action” (MIA) from WWII.
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Special Consultant: ManicMaids.com – Chicago maid service started in
the early in 1990s and now is one of Chicago largest maid services. I
have been with this organization since day one.
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VP of Marketing and Business Development: VirtualOnRamp – An
Internet startup company focused developing video asset management
products and services to small to midsize businesses.
Volunteer: Yavapai County Correctional Center; Counsel inmates on alcohol and
drug addiction issues.
Columnist: “Memoirs of a Technocratic” for Knowledge Management Magazine
(Defunct)
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Memoirs of a Technocrat, Part I
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A Sorcerer’s Perspective
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The ‘Other’ Knowledge
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Disco Innovation
1998-2001:
Principal Analyst, Business Consultant and Director of eContent and Community
Practice Group
Doculabs, (Downtown Chicago)
Analyst/Director Responsibilities: Creating and implementing research
agenda for the eContent and Community Practice Group, managing staff
regarding same and overseeing benchmark studies regarding same. Hands-on
assessment of various software applications, with all major software vendors
participating, including Microsoft, IBM, Xerox, Documentum, Autonomy, Oracle,
FileNet, and many others. I also assisted Venture Capitalists and Angel investors
in assessing market viability and overall potential of startup companies and their
value propositions.
Noteworthy Accomplishments: Authored several books and articles on
collaborative technology and its role in the supply chain, knowledge
management, document management, distance learning (eLearning), integrated
EDMS as well as a variety of white papers and articles on same; Number one
revenue producer among analysts in 1999 and 2000.
Business Consultant Responsibilities: Advising primarily Fortune 500
companies on eBusiness initiatives and strategies, including defining
requirements and selecting vendors.
Notable Clients: The Principal Financial Group (Commercial Real Estate (CRE)
Division), New York City Employee Retirement Systems (NYCERS), The United
State Postal Service (Washington, D.C. headquarters), Chase Manhattan Bank,
Kaiser Permanente, The Georgia State Assembly, etc.
1996-1998:
Project Manager/Technical Writer/Software Development Manager, Training
Coordinator, Optika Certified Engineer
Avalon Technologies, Inc. (defunct) (Downtown Chicago)
Responsibilities: Overseeing all systems integration projects for several
Fortune 500 companies. Specifics included…
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Project management
Needs assessment and requirements definition
Project planning
Acceptance plans and testing
Interfacing with internal and external software developers and upper
management
Maintaining “scope” of said projects
Resolving problems not anticipated in planning phases
Writing technical manuals to train client IT departments
Training of client IT departments
End user training
Build vs. Buy decisions
Technical support
Noteworthy Accomplishments: Created and implemented universal client
training program; established standards and protocols for customer support
center; oversaw major systems integration projects involving a plethora of legacy
(mainframe) systems and new client/server and web clients.
1993-1996:
Director, Corporate Imaging & Print-on-Demand Center
Chicago Legal Copies a/k/a IKON Business Systems (Downtown Chicago)
Responsibilities: Oversaw corporate facilities management of imaging (claims
processing) and print-on-demand (software training manuals) applications as well
as off-premise print-on-demand center; managed in excess of a hundred people.
Noteworthy Accomplishments:
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1987-1993:
Sold, secured and implemented first corporate imaging facilities
management application, a first-of-its-kind solution that utilized CD-ROM
storage media instead of optical disk Write Once Read Many (WORM)
media. Solution had to be custom built and subsequently was added as
a true product offering
Responsible for all phases of project, sales and marketing,
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implementation, project management, project planning, project
test plans and acceptance plans, writing custom specifications
and testing them, training both end users and IT staff
Implemented first-of-its-kind corporate print-on-demand facilities
management application
Oversaw the software development and wrote specs
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Trained staff, both IT and end user
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Established off-premise print-on-demand center.
Involved integrating legacy postscript files with Xerox Docutech
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printers.
On-the-fly file concatenation
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Several unique and challenging customer specifications,
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including custom print media size, 600 dpi, tab inserts, etc.
Litigation Assistant
Jenner & Block (Downtown Chicago) 312.222.9350
Responsibilities: Market and secondary research to support a variety of
litigation cases, including antitrust, criminal, insurance, defense and
telecommunications.
Noteworthy Accomplishments: Successfully defended client facing the death
penalty; ruling was subsequently reversed as plaintiff was found not guilty based
on the evidence presented during the appeals process
Business Proficiencies, et al.:
My vertical experience includes, but is not limited to the following:
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Manufacturing
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Government (Federal & State)
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Banking
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Electronic components
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Retail
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Insurance
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Telecommunications
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Defense
My line-of-business (LOB) experience includes, but is not limited to the following:
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Accounts Payable
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Claims
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Sales
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Marketing
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Configuration Management
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Fulfillment
My extended applications experience includes, but is not limited to the following:
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Supply Chain Management
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Collaborative Commerce
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Marketplaces
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Exchanges
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Portals
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Electronic Commerce
My software application experience (horizontal applications) includes, but is not
limited to the following:
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Content management
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Knowledge management
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e-Learning
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Document Management
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Process Automation
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Commerce Applications
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Portal Applications
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Product Lifecycle Management
Noteworthy Customers (users):
I have extensive experience with both blue-chip and startup companies in a
variety of industries, including but not limited to the following:
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The Principal Group (CRE)
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Partminer.com
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Kaiser Permanente
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Navistar International
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US Postal Service (D.C.)
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Georgia State Assembly
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Blue Cross/Blue Shield of NE
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John Hancock Managed
Care Division
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NYCERS
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Chase Manhattan Bank
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AT&T
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Van Kampen Funds
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Lincoln Reinsurance
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French Toast (Lollytogs)
I also have extensive experience advising software companies on a variety of
development issues, including feature/function development, standards, pricing,
competitive positioning and marketing, including but not limited to the following:
Microsoft Corporation
IBM/Lotus Corporation
Sun Microsystems (iPlanet)
Open Text Corporation
Xerox PARC
Documentum
My current skill sets, as they pertain to the user community, include but are not
limited to the following:
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Application
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Strategic Planning &
Positioning
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Extended Enterprise
Management
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Pre-Implementation Consulting
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Data Management
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Implementation Consulting
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Content Management
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Post-Implementation
Consulting
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Process Management
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Technical Writing
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Software Development;
Process Management
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Business Plans and Financial
Models
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Startups and startups
seeking venture capital
My current skill sets, as they pertain to the vendor (software) community, include
but are not limited to the following:
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Competitive Analysis
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Product Development
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Strategic Marketing (positioning)
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Product Assessment
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Sales Training
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Vertical Assessment
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Internal white papers
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Public White Papers
Publications:
I have also published an assortment of articles in a variety of magazines
concerning the issues surrounding enabling technologies in general and how to
best position them for success.
Publications include but are not limited to the following:
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Information Week
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Knowledge Management Magazine
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KM World
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Group Computing
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Red Herring
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Inform
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TeleRead
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Good eReader
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PR Movie News
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DLB Marketing
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World Book & News
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Fuse TV
In addition, as the Director of Doculabs’ eContent and Community Practice
group, I was also a frequent speaker at industry trade shows and user
conferences concerning the aforementioned topics.
I graduated from Blackburn College in 1986 with a BA in Psychology and
Sociology. 1985 recipient of Blackburn’s prestigious “Citizenship Prize,” awarded
annually to the student whose impact on the community at large has been most
outstanding.
References: Available upon request.
For more information, visit JohnBalla.com