Joshua Forrest
New Albany,Ohio
Summary
Senior leader with over 20 years of experience in delivering and managing production solutions for Fortune 500 companies across various industries. Successfully managed and executed over 50 projects, collaborating with Finance, HR, Legal, Marketing, Merchandising and Operations teams. Expertise in driving top-line impact, cost savings, and operational efficiencies while ensuring stakeholder satisfaction. Proven ability to enhance productivity through strategic planning and strong relationship building at all organizational levels.
Overview
25
25
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Manager of Corporate Applications
American Signature Furniture
Columbus, Ohio
05.2021 - Current
- Managed new Warehouse Management and Order Management solution as Program Manager.
- Oversaw Corporate applications for Finance, HR, and Merchandising partners.
- Led Data Integrations team to ensure seamless data flow.
- Facilitated strategic planning sessions to align goals with organizational objectives.
- Streamlined communication channels with cross-functional partners to improve workflow accountability.
Senior Project Manager
TOP Consulting
Columbus, Ohio
08.2020 - 05.2021
- Directed cross-functional teams in implementing a demand planning solution aligned with strategic objectives.
- Spearheaded implementation of customer experience platform to enhance service operations.
- Created comprehensive project plans detailing scope, timelines, and resource requirements.
- Facilitated regular status meetings to convey updates, challenges, and solutions to stakeholders.
Senior Project Manager IT
Designer Brands (DSW)
Columbus, Ohio
08.2019 - 07.2020
- Directed Corporate Systems & Marketing projects, fostering collaboration across multiple business lines.
- Guided teams in defining, designing, implementing, and supporting solutions using Microsoft Project/Teams, Jira, and Trello.
- Managed project financials, resource allocations, RAID and status reports while producing Steering Committee decks.
- Led 25+ associates in an Agile Marketing initiative to develop a custom Google Cloud solution for promotions.
- Oversaw the integration of two acquired companies into Designer Brands organization with a team of 50+ associates.
- Facilitated onboarding of over 500 associates into more than 10 corporate systems by a strict deadline.
- Drove engagement for Infrastructure domain collapse, integrating over 500 associates onto a unified platform with upgraded hardware.
Senior Program Manager IT
Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
New Albany, Ohio
05.2018 - 08.2019
- Managed all program components for Abercrombie's P&L planning and reporting systems.
- Oversaw projects, strategic roadmaps, leadership communications, and budgets for internal and external teams.
- Spearheaded migration to cloud-based P&L planning and reporting solutions while managing vendor relationships.
- Directed migration from outdated Content Management UI to IBM's Content Navigator, enhancing compliance and efficiency.
- Coordinated move of Enterprise Content Management solution to IT's sensitive data network to boost data security across departments.
- Facilitated multiple customizations and integrations to improve business efficiency in Accounting Operations, HR, and Legal functions.
- Ensured alignment with users across three countries during the implementation process.
- Accountable for optimizing overall functionality and scalability of content management systems.
Program Manager IT
Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
New Albany, Ohio
12.2014 - 05.2018
- Managed daily program operations and supervised projects, internal team, contractors, and vendors while serving as the primary interface to our clients, partners, and vendors.
- Led a Board of Directors initiated, multi-country project for HR to meet unique compliance requirements that greatly improved bottom-line finances by over $100k while reducing risk-exposure compliance issues by 65%.
- Solution lead for creation of a Real Estate multi-dimensional application that provided data insight/analysis capabilities for accessing profitability of new stores.
- Led an internal upgrade of Abercrombie's on-premise Oracle/Hyperion planning & budgeting platform while increasing functionality that resulted in increased reporting & data analysis capabilities while reducing licensing needs by 50%.
- Authored the creation/implementation of a Xerox network scanning function for a global store footprint responsible for secure delivery of confidential store associate documentation.
Senior IT Analyst
Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
New Albany, Ohio
10.2012 - 12.2014
Manager
Infinis/Whittmanhart/Rolta
Columbus, Ohio
06.2001 - 10.2012
Education
Bachelor of Business Administration - Management Information Systems, Computer Science
Ohio University
Athens, Ohio06-2021
Skills
- Corporate application ownership
- Solutions delivery
- Agile and waterfall methodologies
- Resource management
- Change management
- Vendor relations
- Stakeholder engagement
- Cross-functional collaboration
Certification
Outlining the Financial Accounting Overview in SAP S/4HANA from SAP (2025)
Accomplishments
- Speaker - IBM World of Watson, 2016, Solving compliance challenges through the use of RPA
- Speaker - Hyperion KScope, 2012 - 2013, Simplify report development utilizing best-practice methodologies
Publications
- Sharpening compliance with global labor laws thanks to smarter content management, Joshua Forrest, 2018, Online (IBM)
- Driving Accountability through Disciplined Planning, Joshua Forrest, Kyle Goodfriend, 2012, Print (Oracle Applications User Group)
Volunteer Experience
- Pantry Volunteer, New Albany Food Pantry, New Albany, Ohio, 01/2019, Present
- Home/Walls Build Lead, Habitat for Humanity, Delaware, Ohio, 05/2019
- Safety Education Volunteer, American Red Cross, Columbus, Ohio, 10/2015
Timeline
Manager of Corporate Applications
American Signature Furniture
05.2021 - Current
Senior Project Manager
TOP Consulting
08.2020 - 05.2021
Senior Project Manager IT
Designer Brands (DSW)
08.2019 - 07.2020
Senior Program Manager IT
Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
05.2018 - 08.2019
Program Manager IT
Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
12.2014 - 05.2018
Senior IT Analyst
Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
10.2012 - 12.2014
Manager
Infinis/Whittmanhart/Rolta
06.2001 - 10.2012
Bachelor of Business Administration - Management Information Systems, Computer Science
Ohio University