Executive Leadership Team
Kevin Weiss, President and CEO
Weiss brings nearly three decades of sales, marketing, technology, and leadership experience to his role as chief executive officer of the Trafford parent company, Author Solutions. He is the former CEO of Simdesk, a SaaS market pioneer, and former president of McAfee Inc., a computer security company. As president of McAfee, Weiss assumed leadership of sales, channel development, partnerships, services and customer support, as well as corporate, field and product marketing. He has previously held senior management positions at Ariba, Bindview, and BMC Software and spent more than fifteen years at IBM Corporation. Weiss graduated with a degree in political science from Princeton University in 1979.
Kevin G. Gregory, Chief Financial Officer
Gregory has more than 19 years of finance experience, the last seven as chief financial officer of publicly traded companies. He most recently served in various senior executive positions with Pomeroy IT Solutions—a technology services and solutions provider. As the senior vice president and CFO, his responsibilities included financial, legal, human resources, procurement, and logistics functions for the NASDAQ-traded company. In 2007, he served as Pomeroy's interim president and chief executive officer. Prior to that, he spent eight years in progressive financial roles including senior vice president and CFO of a NYSE-traded educational and commercial content publisher. He started his career in public accounting roles with Price Waterhouse and Ernst & Young. Gregory, who holds a J.D. and L.L.M from DePaul University and a B.A. in accounting from the University of Notre Dame, is also a certified public accountant.
Terry Dwyer, Senior Vice President of Sales
Dwyer previously served in a variety of executive positions with publishing, consumer and technology companies, including chief operating officer with Columbia House and Macmillan Publishing. While at Macmillan, Dwyer led sales, marketing and operations, helping the company grow from $60 million to $500 million in just eight years, including rapid international growth. He was instrumental in the significant expansion of the computer book category, including imprints such as Que, The Complete Idiot's Guide series, and Sams Publishing. Dwyer holds a bachelor's degree in English from John Carroll University and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Michigan.
Bill Becher, Senior Vice President of Production Services
Becher has led service organizations from a variety of executive positions throughout his career. His leadership background ranges from serving as an associate partner at Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) and a national partner at Arthur Andersen Business Consulting to the vice president of professional services and program management for PowerWay Inc. Becher earned a degree in economics from the University of Notre Dame.
Robin Lasek, Vice President of Production and Editorial Services
Lasek, who joined Author Solutions in August 2008, has more than 11 years of production and creative experience with large traditional publishers. She served in several leadership positions with Macmillan, playing an instrumental role in the success of the company's "Idiot's Guide" series. After Pearson Education acquired Macmillan, Lasek continued as a Creative Director and Design Manager, working first, under Pearson Technology Group and later, two Penguin imprints, AlphaBooks and BradyGames/DK publishing.
Keith Ogorek, Vice President of Marketing
Ogorek's career in marketing ranges from account service to creative director to vice president of new product development. He has held executive positions with various organizations and advertising agencies, including St. Joseph Bank and Trust, McCaffrey and McCall, and Bates World Wide, an agency with offices in 84 countries. He later worked as a communications consultant for churches, nonprofits, agencies and businesses, including AuthorHouse, a Trafford sister company. He is also the author of A Clear View. Ogorek blogs regularly about writing, publishing, and book selling. Catch him at http://indiebookwriter.com/
Christopher Schrader, Vice President of Human Resources
Schrader, SPHR, has spent most of his career in "ink-on-paper" media companies. His career includes leadership positions in accounting, sales and operations, in addition to human resources. Schrader earned a bachelor's degree from Indiana University, where he now serves as an adjunct professor of human resources.
James Stanley, Chief Information Officer
Stanley previously held various postions at Powerway, an Indianapolis-based software company, including director of DaimlerChrysler Programs and director of integration and data services. Holding a bachelor's degree in computer science from Ball State, Stanley has written articles for SQL Server Magazine and Visual Basic Programmer's Journal and has spoken at conferences such as VSLive!and SQL Pass.
Alan Bower, Brand Manager
Bower’s publishing experience encompasses business, product, and marketing development in domestic and international markets. Holding senior management positions at Pearson Education, Pearson Technology Group, and Macmillan Publishing, Bower has led online, video, and publishing initiatives with IBM, Cisco, Hewlett-Packard, Cengage, Thomson NETg, and Harvard Business School Publishing. Bower’s leadership in emerging markets and content development adds depth to the corporate marketing group.