Don Williams
Cedar Hill,TX
Summary
Accomplished leader with extensive experience in driving organizational resilience through adept incident and change management within global business environments. Recognized for maintaining effective engagements with stakeholders and aligning IT strategies with business objectives. Seasoned in overseeing multiple direct reports and IT operations for availability of critical IT services. Instrumental in establishing command center operations and performance metrics for real-time monitoring of incident response coordination. Excel at identifying root causes of recurring incidents to support continuous improvement for service stability and reliability.
Overview
14
14
years of professional experience
Work History
Incident Management Practice Lead
Humana
05.2024 - Current
- Dynamic Incident Management Practice Lead responsible for driving global incident management initiatives across multiple cross-functional teams. Successfully led the redesign of the ServiceNow incident module through the Incident Management 2.0 Initiative and led data quality initiatives that improved data quality by 49% and reduced stale incidents by 7,000. Collaborated with cross-functional leaders to enhance service performance, implement automation solutions, and establish proactive monitoring protocols for effective incident resolution.
- Global process & practice owner for Incident Management.
- Incident module owner (ServiceNow Incident Mgt.).
- Designed plan to rebuild ServiceNow incident module for 2026 (Incident Management 2.0 Initiative).
- Provide oversight and direction to Incident Mgt. sub process teams (IT Service Desk, Escalation Team, Major Incident Management Team, ER (L2) and Development (L3).
- Implemented Value Stream Mapping (VSM) exercise which resulted in a merger of Escalation Notification Team and Major Incident Teams into a single Major Incident Team to streamline the Major Incident Process.
- Implemented an Incident Management Enterprise Priority Matrix.
- Own the enterprise incident management framework, including severity models, escalation rules, and readiness criteria.
- Implemented PagerDuty as the enterprise escalation tool to enhance incident response and management.
- Partnered with Pharmacy Dispensing business segment to develop urgency thresholds that tie directly to the Enterprise Priority Matrix.
- Developed and implemented ticket data quality standards and governance plan that increased data quality by 49% on incident resolution notes.
- Developed and implemented automation use cases for incident root cause analysis using home-grown automation tool (Strider).
- Created Incident to Problem Mgt. Handover Process to facilitate efficient transfer of information between teams.
- Implemented an Incident Mgt. Cleanup Initiative which reduced the number of stale incidents by 7,000.
- Hold monthly Incident Practice Meetings with all stakeholders to review metrics, SLAs and discuss any ongoing process inefficiencies.
- Developed Incident Management training modules for the enterprise called “Byte Size” which provide training on the practice in 5 min intervals.
- Define Incident Management Standards, Policies and approve all Incident Management sub process team procedures.
- Lead Monthly Operational Excellence meetings to provide senior leadership insights into the Incident practice.
- Work closely with cross-functional technology leaders to improve service metrics, enable automation and enhance their end-user experience.
- Use performance measurement techniques, including SLA/OLA data, service/support metrics and KPIs to continually review and drive service quality improvements.
- Partner with Observability Team to introduce business thresholds into our proactive monitoring program.
- Enhanced data quality and reporting while supporting roadmap initiatives such as automation, self-service and AI-driven ITSM.
Director of Change Management
DTCC
07.2023 - 04.2024
- Provided leadership to diverse multinational Change Management Team spanning Manila and the US, comprising 15 members to bolster global Change Management initiatives. Deliver presentations on Change Management metrics and major initiatives while serving as key liaison between technical teams, business stakeholders, and executive leadership.
- Global process & practice owner of Change Management.
- Led Change Advisory Board (CAB)
- Improved overall performance by setting Change Management Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) for teams to achieve.
- Assured accountability throughout Change Management lifecycle by leveraging and integrating robust governance structures.
- Streamlined Change Management processes by developing and implementing a ServiceNow Change Management platform.
- Created standardized Change Management Process Risk and Controls (PRC) as a part of the 2024 roadmap.
- Led Change Management Modernization Project to decouple Change and Release Management.
- Partnered with DTCC Observability Team to tune tools for enhanced views on unauthorized change identification.
- Partnered with business lines and key stakeholders to ensure adherence to Change Management policy and procedures.
- Maintained a prioritized CSI backlog.
Director of Incident Management
DTCC
11.2021 - 07.2023
- Directed global Major Incident Management Team operating 24x7x365 across Chennai, Manila, and the US including Associate Directors, Managers, and Analysts. Managed all major and technical incidents through swift resolution. Acted as primary point of contact for Risk Management reviews, creating new Incident Management Process Risk and Controls (PRC) to mitigate risks effectively.
- Global process & practice owner of Incident Management.
- Acted as point of escalation for major incidents and customer-impacting issues.
- Ensured timely and accurate executive and business communications throughout incident lifecycle.
- Complied with regulatory standards by orchestrating external audits for Incident and Major Incident processes.
- Enhanced team capabilities in Enterprise Production Services (EPS) by rebranding the Enterprise Virtual Command Center (EVCC).
- Bolstered productive work environments by fostering collaboration among various technology support teams including App Dev, Application Support, Customer Command Center, Infra Operations, and Production Support.
- Created standardized Incident Management Process Risk and Controls (PRC) as a part of the 2023 roadmap.
- Provided oversight and leadership during all Major Incidents and provided CIO and executive leaders timely updates.
- Led, created, and implemented Incident Management Continual Service Improvement projects (MIM 2.0 & EVCC).
- Partnered with business lines and key stakeholders to ensure adherence to Incident Management policy and procedures.
- Represented Incident Management for all internal (IA Department) and external (KPMG, Deloitte, and SEC) quarterly and yearly audits.
- Maintained a prioritized CSI backlog.
Global IT Service Management (ITSM) Lead (AIG Account)
Accenture
03.2021 - 11.2021
- Served as first line of contact for all IT Service Management (ITSM) functions, encompassing Incident Management, Problem Management, Request Management, Release Management, Service Desk, and Change Management. Formulated strategic targets for all teams as per business objectives. Led continuous improvement efforts by regularly evaluating processes and analyzing key trends.
- Revamped IT service quality at AIG by driving understanding of ITSM benefits among business units and senior leadership.
- Provided overall directional oversight and leadership for the global IT Service Management Team supporting AIG client.
- Aligned IT Service Management staffing and budgeting with organizational goals by utilizing budget performance assessments.
- Maintained operational excellence across IT Service Management functions spanning diverse locations (US, Philippines, Malaysia, London, and India), while administering global account support team comprising 60+ members.
- Owned RCA quality, delivery expectations, and closure tracking.
- Led ITSM governance forums (CAB, CSI reviews, service reviews).
Global Change Management Lead
American Insurance Group (AIG)
09.2019 - 03.2021
- Managed global team of Change Management analysts and technical experts across US, UK, APAC, and Japan. Founded Technical Advisory Board (TAB) as part of Change Management framework, integrating technical Subject Matter Expert (SME) reviews into process for Network and Storage disciplines. Built strategic partnerships with all Business Units (BUs) to uphold organizational standards.
- Safeguarded the firm during critical moments and minimized financial and reputational loss by instituting global change freezes.
- Implemented Standard Change Steering Committee geared toward standardizing Standard Changes and reducing the impact of them in the production environment.
- Provided mentorship for the Technical Analyst Program (TAP) for new college intern hires and staffed 2 interns in 2020.
- Reduced manual workload by leveraging ServiceNow product for enforcing Change Management policies and procedures.
- Navigated impact of COVID-19 pandemic on operations by leading global change freeze for three weeks in 2020 and introducing a measured “thaw out” plan to reintroduce changes into the environment.
Command Center Manager | Santander FTE
Santander Consumer Bank & Collabera
06.2018 - 09.2019
- Provided strategic leadership to all facets of Santander Consumer (SC) Command Center Teams, encompassing Distributed Systems Operations Level 1, Backup and Storage Level 1, Patching Level 1, Enterprise Monitoring, IT Service Desk, End User Support and Major Incident Management. Engaged with senior leadership across Santander Consumer to ensure robust support for SC Command Center. Oversaw vendors and contracts, adhering to Service Level Agreements (SLAs).
- Established a cutting-edge in-house Command Center Operations Team, resulting in budget reduction exceeding 1M.
- Managed and mentored a 24x7x365 NOC support team in daily operations.
- Acted as point of escalation for major incidents and customer-impacting issues.
- Defined, implemented and continually improved standard operating procedures, run books and escalation flows.
- Enhanced monitoring capabilities for Santander Consumer by executing state-of-the-art monitoring suite, consolidating application and infrastructure monitoring into one interface with added event correlation functionalities.
- Defined key performance indicators (KPIs) for Incident Management, Major Incident Management, and Change Management within the Santander Consumer Command Center, emphasizing effective performance tracking and management.
VP, Security Engineer
CITIGROUP
12.2017 - 04.2018
- Hands on technical role in which I led security engineering initiatives, strategies, and operations to safeguard Citigroup's assets, infrastructure, and data. Conducted regular assessments and audits of security systems and processes to enable compliance with industry standards and regulatory requirements. Created test plans or scripts outlining network-related configurations for validation of security measures.
- Elevated network security by tailoring firewall rules to meet the specific requirements of various Citi business units.
- Prioritized cost-effectiveness by accurately preparing project Bill of Materials (BOM) costs and estimations for hardware needs.
- Streamlined network infrastructure deployment and management by executing proficient installation and configuration of diverse network devices, including Checkpoint, Palo Alto, Cisco, Arista, Juniper, Riverbed, and Fore Scout devices.
VP, Command Center Operations Global Change Manager
CITIGROUP
08.2015 - 12.2017
- Provided leadership and direction to change management teams globally for Network, Distributed Server, and Mainframe technologies. Served as the primary escalation point for all Change Management issues to address and resolve challenges effectively. Organized regular meetings with technology leaders to meet current and future technology requirements.
- Optimized change management practices by updating ServiceNow Change Module for handling change processes.
- Ensured optimal service delivery by setting clear Service Level Objectives (SLOs) and Service Level Agreements (SLAs) directly aligned with organizational objectives and priorities.
- Led ServiceNow transformation initiatives which shifted from home-grown tooling (NEAT, etc.) to ServiceNow for all Change Management.
- Led a shift left forum which successfully moved 15% of Network changes to Command Center Operations (CCO) encompassing Load Balancer VIP additions, DNS CNAME additions and switch port adds in 2017 and successfully automated these in 2018.
- Led numerous Change Advisory Board (CAB) meetings on a global scale, encompassing all technologies within Command Center Operations, including Mainframe, Distributed, and Network systems.
AVP, Command Center Operations North America Regional Change Manager
CITIGROUP
02.2012 - 08.2015
- Hands on technical leadership role in which I steered a team of 15 direct reports, tasked with executing change implementation and overseeing change review and approval processes. Generated reports for senior management, presenting detailed insights into all metrics. Managed employment WAN connectivity changes, including T1/T3, high-speed optical (OC3's-192s), ISDN, and MPLS in approved green zones during daily business operations.
- Facilitated application delivery and availability by successfully carrying out F5 Load Balancer changes.
- Strengthened network security measures through crypto key changes, IPSEC VPN adjustments, and GRE tunnel modifications.
- Elevated WAN performance and network responsiveness through deployment of Riverbed WAN optimization appliances within business-approved green zone parameters.
Education
Bachelor of Science (B.S.) - Telecommunications Management
DeVry University
Irving, TX05.2002
Skills
- Firewall: Juniper, Checkpoint (Secure Platform and GAIA), Cisco and Palo Alto
- Routers and Switches: Cisco (IOS, CatOS, and NX-OS), HP
- Load Balancer: F5 LTM and GTM, Citrix NetScaler SLB and GSLB
- Bridging and Switching: VLANs, VTP, STP, MSTP, RSTP, Trunks and Port channels
- L2 and L3 Routing: RIP, EIGRP, OSPF, BGP, MP-BGP, Route filtering, Redistribution, Summarization
- IP and IOS Features: IP subnets, DHCP, HSRP, VRRP, NAT, NTP, SNMP, LACP
- Traffic Analyzers: NETVC, Wireshark, TCP dumps, IP accounting, IP cache-flow, IP NBAR
- Monitoring Tools: Netcool, SolarWinds, Splunk
- QoS: Class Maps, Policy Maps, Queueing, Congestion management and avoidance, Fragmenting, shaping
- Security: IPsec VPN, MPLS, AAA, Traffic filtering and firewall, ACLs, Routing protocols security, Cisco ASA
- Operating Systems: Windows (10, 11), macOS (Big Sur, Monterey, Ventura), Linux (various distributions)
- Ticketing Systems: ServiceNow, BMC Remedy, SolarWinds Web Help Desk, Salesforce, JIRA Service Management (JSM)
Timeline
Incident Management Practice Lead
Humana
05.2024 - Current
Director of Change Management
DTCC
07.2023 - 04.2024
Director of Incident Management
DTCC
11.2021 - 07.2023
Global IT Service Management (ITSM) Lead (AIG Account)
Accenture
03.2021 - 11.2021
Global Change Management Lead
American Insurance Group (AIG)
09.2019 - 03.2021
Command Center Manager | Santander FTE
Santander Consumer Bank & Collabera
06.2018 - 09.2019
VP, Security Engineer
CITIGROUP
12.2017 - 04.2018
VP, Command Center Operations Global Change Manager
CITIGROUP
08.2015 - 12.2017
AVP, Command Center Operations North America Regional Change Manager
CITIGROUP
02.2012 - 08.2015
Bachelor of Science (B.S.) - Telecommunications Management
DeVry University
CORE PROFICIENCIES
Strategic Planning & Execution | Security Engineering | Command Center Operations | ITIL Practices | Performance Oversight | Problem & Deployment Management | Team Building & Leadership | Budgeting & Cost Control | Risk Identification Mitigation | Project Management
ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE
- Tier 3 Network Support Engineer, HP Enterprise Services - Managed Router Services (MRS), Plano, TX
- Infrastructure Senior Technical Analyst, CITIGROUP, Irving, TX
- Change Management Level 2 Technical Analyst, CITIGROUP, Irving, TX
- Infrastructure Level 1 Technical Analyst, CITIGROUP, Irving, TX
- Tier 3 Operation Support Center (OSC) Associate, Verizon Business, Carrollton, TX