Rich Pleasants

Global leader of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Solutions. Lead the development, architectural best practices and act as CTO for all Oracle Cloud Infrastructure for clients.

• Leading development of OCI consulting service offerings for Argano.
• Play a very key role in partner development working with Oracle's partner organization.
• Our full Argano 4 Oracle team delivers unmatched solution and industry-specific experience in support of our clients
• Cultivated strong relationships with key stakeholders, including customers, vendors, regulators, and community leaders to promote collaboration and long-term success.
• Led cross-functional teams for successful completion of major projects, resulting in increased efficiency and client satisfaction.
• As Oracle partner with 1200+ successful cloud implementations, and ever-growing team of experts, we are uniquely positioned to build the digital foundations necessary to bridge gap between market opportunity and ability to execute
• Https://oracle.argano.com/solutions/cloud-infrastructure/

• Consumer, Commercial, Industrial and Military Solution Manufacturing

• Renewable Energy and Healthcare/Life Sciences Innovation, Manufacturing and Education
• All work under a strict NDA.

• Responsibilities: - Work closely with businesses in identifying solution requirements and key case studies/scenarios for future solutions - Enable Oracle and Multi-Cloud cloud journey, analyze TCO, and create a business case, making the Cloud dream become reality - Design and prototype cloud solutions, create solution architecture document covering deep technical aspects of the implementation - Create a unified strategy for cloud transformation governance, automation, security, implementation, and operations - Analyze existing application portfolios, and develop next-gen application architecture, transformation, and modernization roadmap - Conduct cloud solutions architecture review/audit and create review/audit reports - Lead implementation of the solution from establishing project requirements and goals to solution "go-live" - Oversee the development efforts and provide technical help as needed- Day-to-day lead the client through the technical and organizational challenges of Cloud transformation - Participate and lead in the full cycle of pre-sale activities, including RFP processing, proposal development, and direct communications with potential clients - Maintain a strong understanding of industry trends and best practices - Create thought leadership on cloud solutions and hybrid clouds- Serve as a business unit leader with P&L responsibility, selling cloud services, act as a Oracle and Multi- Cloud Evangelist, consulting and provide technical guidance on cloud solutions strategy architecture, design, build, governance, security, operations, and cost control best practices

• Slalom is a global consulting firm focused on strategy, technology, and business transformation
• In 41 markets around the world, Slalom's teams have autonomy to move fast and do what's right
• They are backed by regional innovation hubs, a global culture of collaboration, and partnerships with the world's top technology providers
• Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Seattle, Slalom has organically grown to over 11,000 employees
• Slalom has been named one of Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For six years running and is regularly recognized by employees as a best place to work.

• Responsibilities: - Built a trusted advisory relationship with many of Oracle's top strategic customers. - Encouraged others internally and externally to work through difficult and ground-breaking endeavors through sharing experiences/takeaways while a member of OCI Cloud Engineering team. - Collaborated closely between the customer's needs to the cloud solutions and services that Oracle may bring to bear to deliver value to the customer. - Built cloud architecture vision shows how a business need can be met, or opportunity realized, by a particular combination of cloud technology capabilities. - Collaborated with internal account team and external customer teams to drive adoption of OCI by evangelizing the platform. - Designed and delivered enterprise cloud strategy and clearly articulate business architecture - vision, capability models, capability assessments, and technical cloud architecture - current and future state, solution standard methodologies, migration strategies, and operational excellence frameworks. - Navigated organizations, identifying collaborators, taking care of various interests and politics, establishing credibility for Oracle and Oracle cloud platform. - Ensured customers are following standard methodologies, guidance, and recommendations to develop cloud solutions that are secure, resilient, efficient, and managed with operational excellence. - Led cross-functional teams of Oracle domain experts in helping customers design, plan, implement, and govern enterprise cloud strategies and solutions on time. - Built and led presentations around OCI functionality, both customer facing and at industry events.

• Cloud Chief Tech/ Field CTO - Responsibilities: - Led acct teams and tech SMEs in deving imaginative tech approaches to biz challs translating the biz view (faster time to market) into a functional view; presented alternative tech sols; and determined appropriate seq of biz trans to reach an optimum overall sol for customers. - Leveraged a solid view of the customer's challs, industry and long-term biz objectives to identify opps to dev a competitive advantage with the overall sols. - Demonstrated a deep understanding of the partner ecosys to dev innovative sols to support and enhance the end-to-end presales process. - Led the tech teams in exec-level WSs or vision setting mtgs to develop SWOTs - Worked with delivery teams to provide agile solutions in the US and Canada, while ensuring a sound implementation
• I was responsible for developing a Reverse ROI. - Understanding of tech advancements and sol roadmaps to work closely with acct team leadership to optimize strategic acct planning. - Recognized as an expert within a few industries around Hybrid Cloud, by demonstrating influence and leveraging social media; actively participating at external confs, and industry events; sought out as an SME in their area of focus by industry orgs and standards committees.
• Consulting Executive Responsibilities: - Owned customer ops relationships; developed and fostered excellent csat outcomes with clients. - Managed expense/cost target commitments for all SD requirements while implementing and monitoring expense control - Contact for ops and tactical issues for delivery of many functions to the customer while managing expectations and deving perf metrics - Led and contributed to the account SDP, including 3rd party vendors, and ensured perf goals were met for all in scope services across all HPE customer facing LoBs. - Identified incremental rev opps and acted to accelerate opps to expand consulting gigs more broadly across more customer stakeholder business and IT initiatives.

• IT Operations Strategy and Transformation SME focused on IT Process Capability Assessments, Adaption, Re-engineering and Transformation to support Cloud Computing and the Software Defined Data Center (SDDC) in a Hybrid Infrastructure.
• Participate in the pre-sales process to understand customer business and tech objectives and product reqs
• Maintain current in-depth knowledge of the entire VMW product lines including vCenter Operations Manager Enterprise (vCOPS), vCenter Orchestrator (vCO), vCloud Director, and vCloud Automation Center (vCAC).
• Good background in general virtualization and cloud computing solution sets including: HP Cloud, MS Azure, and OpenStack.
• Effectively communicate solutions architecture to the customer, third parties and the project teams
• Contribute to definition of an Org Change Management Approach
• Ensure that propositions are technically sound, deliverable, competitive and representative of market leadership in the application of technology to addressing business issues
• Ensures effective client engagement and stakeholder mgmt during assignment (may include management of subcontractors and partners)
• Define, develop and implement actions according to account plans on accounts with account teams
• Drive business development to support pre-sales activities, with a primary focus on identifying, scoping and proposing services engagements
• Coordinate sales efforts with delivery management and practice management team
• Participate in regional marketing events to promote VMware
• Ensure formal contractual mechanisms (i.e
• SOW) are established and maintained within active accounts
• Develop new business opportunities on focused accounts
• Deliver accurate weekly bookings forecast within assigned territory
• Adhere to VMware sales process and methodologies on all opportunity pursuits
• Participate in account relationship and issue mgmt activities
• Maintain proficiency in VMW service offerings, value props, and representative case studies

• GTS Global Center of Excellence.
• Cloud Service Offering IP Development and Field Enablement Training.
• IT Operations and Process Architecture and Engineering for the Cloud- Excellent VMware Solution expertise on vCloud Director, vCenter Operations Manager, vCM (Configuration Manager) and vFabric Hyperic.
• Good broad background with OpenStack thru the release of Essex in 2012.

• Operations Change Agent with client CIOs, COOs and CTOs to drive transformation of business and IT operations.
• Subject Matter Expert in ITIL v2 Service Support and Service Delivery Processes.
• Subject Matter Expert in ITIL v3 Request Fulfillment, Event Management and Service Portfolio Management Processes.
• Guide and Mentor organizations in maturing their IT Operational efficiency and effectiveness, thru structured IT service management continual process improvement programs.
• Deliver high quality ITIL, IT Service Management and IT Operations structured and customized IT staff and executive level training
• Assist clients with developing high quality IT business cases; for key IT initiatives, which support the business.
• Work with client CIO & CTO senior IT leadership on developing their IT strategic plans and roadmaps.
• Assist clients with IT software tool assessments and evaluations, specifically in the IT Service Management, Service Automation, and IT Project and Portfolio Management solution areas (Service Strategy and Service Catalogs).
• Assisting clients with Cloud Computing Strategy, Planning and Application Migration Approaches.
• Focusing on: ITIL/ITSM/ISO/SDLC/CMMI
• And experienced in a number of frameworks, tools and methods, including Zachman; TOGAF, Scrum/Agile and Six Sigma.
• Good background with OpenStack including the first major release in 2010 (Austin)
• Green Industrial, Commercial and Residential solutions related to water, wind and solar; including training, consulting and services
• Renewable Energy Solutions.

• Global Principal Client Architect specializing in IT Service Management Process Strategy, Architecture, and "Run Book Automation" (IT Operations SOPs) and supporting Technology Solutions
• ITIL Service Manager v2 Certified.

• Experienced Manager in IT Data Center and Operations Consulting Group within Accenture Technology Solutions, focused on ITIL v2 and ITIL v3.

• Principal Architect and Strategist for IT Asset Management solutions around ITIL Framework.

• Operations Change Agent with Enterprise Clients and internal executive leadership within our company.
• Infrastructure Practice Director (Application, Physical, Security, and Management) Services Division
• Responsibility for P&L, Staff training, retention and MBO planning.
• Part of Vision and Planning with Microsoft System Center Product Team.

• Operations Transformation Analysis SME and Change Agent within Unisys
• Led North American Service Offering Owner for Microsoft SMS and MOM Technologies.

• Lead for Microsoft Technology solutions such as SMS and MOM.

• Leader of Raleigh NC Software Spectrum Professional Services Office Infrastructure Practice
• Had a staff of 4 consultants that I lead on service offering development and client service engagements.
• Assisted in business development and planning activities as part of the regional management team.
• Worked with staff of consultants to develop training and POC lab for the regional consulting team.

• Lead 2 Enterprise IT Project Teams in software packaging, certification and 3rd level support for the USPS in Raleigh NC.

• Managed all Business Strategy, Planning, Operations, Sales and Services for company
• Managed P&L and a staff of 6 IT engineers.
• Assist clients with developing high quality IT business cases; for key IT initiatives, which support their businesses, local and county government services including public schools K-12 at the state level.

• The installation, configuration, diagnosis, and repair of state-of-the-art electronic, computer, and network hardware and software systems
• Controlled the flow of messages and encrypted information and also conducted electronic warfare
• Acted sometimes as an interpretive cryptologic technician handling radiotelephone communications and foreign language translation.
• In my core role, I maintained electronic and electromechanical equipment
• I also occasionally handled computer communication
• In daily cryptologic operations, I collected, analyzed, and provided electronic intelligence support to commands throughout the world.