My favorite TV show is Friends and if you’ve seen the show, you are probably familiar with the iconic scene where Ross is screaming “pivot.” This scene always reminds me of the time one of my first managers in my professional career asked me to review some data in Excel and create a “pivot” table. I went back to my desk and panicked because I had no clue what that meant. Thank goodness for Google! Within the next year, I became one of the SMEs for Excel within our finance department. 

Once I understood how data, formulas, and reporting worked, I applied this knowledge to make my job tasks more efficient. This quickly developed into a passion for process improvement. 

My passion for process improvement turned into a thirst for knowledge. I prioritize collaboration with my peers and have pushed myself outside of my comfort zone to ask questions when I lack understanding. Being in the wireless communications industry, I moved out of finance and into project delivery to better understand our business and customers. The experience gained during this time has been pivotal in my career (see what I did there?). It has also helped me recognize the importance of communication, training, and consistency across an organization. 

My career continues to be a learning experience and I am grateful for the opportunities that have been available to me. I enjoy connecting with folks that are new to the industry as well as those who are more tenured. I’m always happy to share my experiences and act as a mentor to my peers.

Outside of work I enjoy running and have done a half marathon in 44 states. My goal is to complete one in all 50! I also enjoy playing with my 2 dogs, reading, and playing softball.

Samantha Love

JTI Enterprises

•	Various small business management consulting engagements in a variety of areas including: acquisition integration, sales, marketing, operations, financial management, and e-commerce.

Strategic Process Improvement Consultant

Crown Castle

- Drove the creation and first update of a business unit-wide roadmap of prioritized improvement projects
- Improved employee engagement survey scores on decision-making by over 20% as a key member of the team charged with improving those results
- Facilitated the creation and documentation of 2023 goals communicated to teammates 3 months earlier than prior years

Strategy & Planning Business Analyst III

Lead projects to:
    - create a business process improvement playbook web page
    - architect, create, and populate a process documentation library
    - document an end-to-end process describing improvement project identification, planning, and execution 
Authored a process documentation standard, describing step-by-step instructions for documenting business processes

Process Innovation Project Manager

•	Key team member standing up a directive PMO to drive execution of corporate initiatives: creating templates and processes, transitioning in-flight projects to PMO management, and planning and executing new projects

Project Manager - Improvement Projects

•	Managed selection, pilot, contract negotiation, and full implementation of fiber network management solution (~$3M)
•	Managed the development of utility pole inspection manager and contract management software: managed subject matter experts across functional teams, facilitated discovery meetings, coordinated Agile development process and testing, developed and delivered user training for successful launches (~$2.5M)

Business Process Analyst

•	Created tools and processes for managing cross-departmental headcount and staffing requests, developed and delivered training to management, facilitated the hiring of over 200 people between 2013 & 2014

Business Analyst

•	Created tools and processes for abstracting terms from contracts; trained abstractors and field personnel resulting in a 33% increase in capital expense reimbursements over previous 12 month average

Temporary Account Manager

H&R Block

•	Drove revenue growth to 3.4% year over year through innovative use of email marketing, local street teams and creative staffing practices
•	Managed operations and performance of a staff of 11 tax preparers and 3 administrative support professionals

Office Manager/Tax Associate

Allegheny Crane Rental, Inc.

•	Established Master Service Agreements and/or informal operating arrangements with gas and oil industry clients working in Pennsylvania's Marcellus Shale play by researching industry, generating leads, making cold-calls, and qualifying prospects across a territory spanning WV, OH, PA, and NY
•	Discovered and implemented a key online marketing tool 
•	Managed vendor selection and process improvement initiatives

Account/Business Manager

New Dimension Comics

•	Led a turnaround project to improve sales at our worst performing store. Achieved year over year sales increases of 39% and 32% in 2009 and 2010 respectively by creating a culture that focuses on the customer experience and driving sales through improved in-stock rates, upselling, and special orders
•	Increased online sales by 50% in 10 months streamlining business processes and incorporating new technology
•	Drove standard operating procedures across all aspects of the business

Business Manager

It's Just Lunch

•	Grew sales from start-up to over $380,000 in first year of operations

COO-Pittsburgh

Engage Marketing Services

•	Increased attendance at an annual Cystic Fibrosis fundraiser by 15% to the highest level in 25 years through innovative use of email marketing, advertising, and viral marketing

GM/Owner

Netcentives, Inc.

Senior Manager, Training and Development

Post Communications

Manager, Client Services Operations

Post Communications/Netcentives

Senior Manager, Training & Organizational Development

I am a US Navy Veteran and multiple business owner with extensive experience in strategy and process improvement. Regardless of your industry or organization type (for profit/not-for-profit/government/church/etc.) I understand the language of continual improvement (TQM/Lean/Six Sigma) and help you create YOUR operating system in YOUR language using those best practices

Skills: 
➢ Align efforts, streamline processes, and eliminate waste to create efficiencies
➢ Identify root causes of organizational challenges and orchestrate strategic solutions, focus on defining and documenting strategy with leadership teams
➢ Design processes and organizations to manage improvements, develop improvement playbooks, and lead teams to create solid project plans and process documentation
➢ Assess project impact on goals and metrics, recommending adjustments and next steps
➢ Engage in candid conversations with leaders and push boundaries to ignite positive change


Finally - words to live by: Leadership first. Next, really understand the process or work. Then, map the org to the work, build tools to help people execute consistently, and train/reinforce continually. If you'd like to talk more about improving your org/team/business - I love this stuff. Please reach out to connect!

taplio

The Battle

Samantha Love

James Irwin, III

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