Proven Implementation & Optimization Manager with 16+ years of experience. I help companies make it easy for everyone to do their job right and provide insights that aid them in doing the job well.In 2005, I was convinced by the President of Columbia Specialty to join the team. He saw my love for leadership, organizations, and systems. He gave me the room and resources to work ON his business through:•Software Implementation•Process Improvement•Data Handling•Team BuildingWe were on Forbes list of 5,000 Fastest Growing Small Businesses for my first three years with the company.Having joined the team with a passion of hospitality and coffee, and the determination to “work to learn”, I have worked in multiple roles in Coffee. I constantly stood out by continuing to work ON the business through process improvement and software implementation in addition to my given responsibilities. Notably, I worked with Portola Coffee Roasters as we lead the charge of Third Wave Coffee into Orange County. Portola opened three new locations during my final year with the company.I returned to Columbia Specialty to assist with a software implementation. I was absorbed once again by the work and the personal and professional growth it requires. My first stint was Operations focused and I became very familiar with Accounting and Finance during my second term. I picked up acumen in Data Analysis, Project Management, Financial Analysis, Conflict Resolution, and Team Building before aiding in selling the business to Tri Star Industrial.Tri Star’s CEO recognized my gifts in Data Analysis. He set me to work building reports and dashboards for our leadership, sales team, and investors. I picked up the skill of Data Visualization and he greatly increased the profitability of the company Tri Star acquired and overall profit of the company he runs. He was very clear the tools I created helped him drive his vision through the organization.
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Account Manager - Oc CoastalShoreline Supply Feb 2022 - Oct 2022Los Alamitos, California, United StatesOnboard and support restaurant and coffee shop customers.Created tools for our sales team and customers to quickly compare:• Pricing vs Alt Supplier• Alt Milk Pricing (by case/quart/ounce)• Menu Pricing
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Database & Analysis ManagerTri Star Industrial Llc Oct 2020 - Feb 2022Implemented SaaS Data Analytics & Data Visualization.• CEO increased EBITDA 5-10% (at new branches) using the dashboards, graphs, and reports to drive his vision and focus his leadership teamOptimized our 80,000+ SKU product library and pricing (customer, vendor, and contract).• Saved the company 5-10% of profit for affected items over the 2+ weeks it would have taken to update previously, for every update going forward• 15-30% more items linked per manufacturer• Saved hours of work for each rebate requirement (Customer and Vendor)Aided in implementation of (SaaS) Paylocity for HR, Payroll, Time Clocks, Time-Off Requests, etc. -
Director Of Corporate ServicesColumbia Specialty Company Nov 2019 - Oct 2020Long Beach, CaliforniaServed on Columbia’s Advisory Board.In charge of all our centralized services:• AR & AP• Purchasing• Inventory Management• IT• Pricing & Product Data• Procedural ImprovementSegmented Sales Pipeline by branch, rep, and writer.• Resulted in enabling us to diagnose and address cashflow issues, prevent costly mistakes, and ensure all five branches were using best practicesWorked with the CEO and Controller on the sensitive process of selling the business.• Resulted in the company being successfully sold to Tri Star IndustrialLead the urgent cross-functional pivot to a “Full Physical” inventory during sell of business.• Prevented delaying or derailing the purchase (complex project satisfactorily completed within deadline)• Saved hours in processing time vs previous systems• Optimized to streamline auditing (internal & external)I wrote and sent "Corporate Services Weekly" to my team with the intention of bringing our performance in tighter rapport with Columbia's Guiding Belief Statements. -
Project ManagerColumbia Specialty Company Sep 2017 - Oct 2019Long Beach, CaliforniaKept migration to Sage X3 ERP (from Mincron) moving forward.• Required that I go through one implementation from 8x perspectives• Resulted in a Go Live in May 2020 on a software that enabled us to focus on and monitor whatever we decidedCreated tools and reports for every user type. Most tools created with a management-by-exception approach and many of the lists were specific actions to take.• Resulted in freeing up management to perform more strategic workI created our financial reports using Nectari/SEI Excel add-in.• Streamlined the data-side of bank audits• Enabled us to schedule financials to be emailed to leadership daily• Made it much easier to observe, teach, and adjust GL posting behavior
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Implementation SpecialistColumbia Specialty Company Nov 2015 - Sep 2017Long Beach, California• Brought on to speed up the migration from Sage 100 to Mincron. Resulted in a months sooner and Go Live, with much more accurate data• Used Microsoft Access to enhance the pricing system from Mincron, making updates quicker, more accurate, and more insightful• Created a responsive “Pricing Report Card” which stated everything a salesperson would need to know to trust the pricing. Resulted in faster quotes, more sales, and higher margins.• I created live Financials in Excel using SQL and an ODBC connection that allowed the user to specify the month and year they were reporting to—which enabled more accurate forecasting and helped identify unusual expenses• Involved in all bank audits• I created and facilitated a soft-skills-focused “Learning Club” that operated at full-capacity and was attended by our President
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Store ManagerPortola Coffee Lab Jul 2015 - Nov 2015Santa Ana, California• Initiated novel scheduling approach to increase staffing flexibility with high buy-in from Baristas• Reduced labor percentage from 50% to 30% over 4-months• Taught managerial skills to fill leadership pipeline (e.g. scheduling, how to set prep pars based on sales history, and supply ordering)• Cultured community by inviting local musicians to sell music and chefs from East End Kitchens to sell items to promote their business -
BaristaPortola Coffee Lab Oct 2014 - Jul 2015Orange County, California Area• Proposed and aided in implementation of Square POS--increasing tips from ~$2.50/hr to ~$9/hr• Initiated a competition in service excellence among baristas to ensure we were focusing on improving service every day• Moved to Santa Ana store when it opened and worked with the fine people on that team to create a culture of excellence in quality, customer service, professional development, and operational efficiency
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General ManagerPortola Coffee Lab Oct 2013 - Oct 2014Costa Mesa, California• Influenced design of future coffee bars to optimize flow and staffing levels• Reduced evening (off-hour) labor by 75%• Worked with Howard Gordon to establish Employee Handbook• Trained Store Managers
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Store ManagerPortola Coffee Lab Nov 2012 - Oct 2013Costa Mesa, CaliforniaPrimarily focused on streamlining the backend of the business:• Training• Accounts Payable• Scheduling• Tips-analysis (as performance metrics)• Ordering supplies & inventory management• Side-work lists in Google Sheets (had names filling in for increased compliance and accountability)• Dress code updatesPortola had a lot of plans for growth and I worked to make the growing process less painful for everyone.
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Barista & Shift LeadPortola Coffee Lab Jun 2011 - Oct 2012Helped Portola Coffee ‘Lab’ (now ‘Roasters’) lead the third wave charge into Orange County with many wonderful and talented people.• Saved our managers hours of time divvying tips by automating the calculations.
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ImplementationColumbia Specialty Company Oct 2005 - Sep 2011Long Beach, CaliforniaColumbia had the relationships and experience to take off, but their under-utilization of their ERP software (MAS 90/Sage 100) was limiting them.I implemented:• Inventory Management• Purchase Orders• RMA Module• Inter-team instant messagingI established our system for:• Conducting and processing physical counts• Labeling our shelves• Labor-tracking in the machine shop• Maintaining pricing (vendor, customer price levels, and special pricing)• Establishing and updating our order points for Purchasing• MTR (QC document) systemI enhanced our control documents, built our first website, and constantly worked to upskill our team.Results:• We made Forbes list of 5,000 Fastest Growing Small Businesses each of my first three years with the company.• Identified $1.3M (just under 50%) of our inventory in excess of our purchasing strategy—so we could begin optimizing operations and investmentInventory Management & Practices (descriptions, pricing, shelf labels, etc).• Enabled us to borrow against a higher percentage of our assets, enabling us to grow more aggressively• Shortened the product knowledge learning curve for new pullers and inside salespeople, ensuring increased speed, accuracy, and service• Control document enhancements improved our accuracy and enhanced our customer experience (we received a lot of positive feedback over years)• Our MTR process differentiated our company from our competitors to a degree that made us the easy/preferred supplier for affected customers
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Barista & Shift LeadKean Coffee May 2008 - Dec 2008Newport BeachKean is the first place I tasted coffee that was roasted and prepared to taste like itself (as opposed to a roast level). The quality of beverage was the highest I was aware of and the team was awesome.• Implemented scheduling software• Developed training tools for drink preparation -
Sales - Bp ShoesNordstrom Jan 2007 - May 2007Brea, California, United States -
BaristaStarbucks Aug 2006 - Jan 2007Fullerton, California, United States -
Shift LeadDisneyland Resort Oct 2002 - Oct 2005Anaheim, California, United States• Started in Stores, working all over Disneyland• Moved to Innoventions where I became a trainer and shift lead• Created training manual to invite guests to take part in sponsor-surveys• Fully embraced the Four Keys and SERVICE model.I learned to appreciate the relationship between systems and hospitality and the awesome power of having a clearly defined and well-implemented company culture. My employment experience at Disneyland has been my benchmark for structure and culture since.
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Nicholas Brewer
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