Chuck Laforte Email & Phone Number

Forte Design offers creative problem solving, technology implementation, and business transformation services. We are dedicated to empowering organizations and people to meet strategic directives and overcome business challenges. We focus on team-based collaboration, enterprise communications, and business performance solutions built using and extending the Microsoft M365 Power Platform and Azure cloud platforms. • Consulting and project delivery (directly and via partnerships) to current clients including Microsoft, Western Digital, Simply Good Foods (Quest Nutrition/Atkins), Califia Farms, Mozart Therapeutics, Immunome, Virginia Piper Charitable Trust, and Port Jobs.• Facilitate and translate client requirements into process workflows, architectural solutions, and technical specifications that lead to the technical implementation of business solutions.• Oversee business operations and sales efforts by creating proposals, negotiating fees, defining estimates, assembling delivery teams, and coordinating project schedules. • Foster long-term relationships with partners including: Simplicity Consulting, Jeffrey M Consulting, Lions +Tigers, KDH Consulting, Bucher and Christian Consulting.

New York, New York, Us

NOTE: Full time between 2012-2014, then part-time consulting from 2014-present.• Gather requirements and create functional specifications for CBRE Global Investors Investor Center, a reporting portal that manages and reports on over $90 Billion dollars of international assets. This portal provides portfolio performance (NOIs, capitalization rates) for global institutional investors. • Manage vendor selection process for private equity investment management dashboard and reporting portals. Evaluated products from Microsoft, Tableau Software, eFront, and Intralinks. Present vendor reviews and recommendations to Executive Reporting team. • Oversee the integration of multiple SharePoint portal platforms following acquisition of ING Bank. Worked with European counterparts to define strategy, vision, and platform consolidation efforts.• Provide management oversight to third-party consulting resources and facilitated UX/visual branding, technical architecture, and portal governance efforts for Investor Center and company Intranet.

Santa Monica, California, Us

• Delivered custom solutions, designed forms, documented workflows, defined business processes, and configured Excel dashboards to manage and support operations and reporting of 70+ shopping centers nationwide. • Developed reference materials and conducted business team training. • Created use cases, storyboards, and wire frames. Worked within both SCRUM and traditional project management styles and managed and prioritized work via Project Web Server and MS Project.• Defined concepts and implemented company Intranet and publishing portal platform and migration from Oracle Web Center. Established metadata, search, and analytics strategies.

Seattle, Wa, Us

• Performed dual sales and consulting role. I generated over $850K in service contracts for boutique SharePoint design and interactive marketing agency. Exceeded all four quarterly sales goals while also providing billable consulting services to clients.• Provided end-to-end client services and meeting facilitation including sales, design, consulting, agile project implementation, and account management. Oversaw UX challenges—ensuring that final deliverables met both the highest usability and functional standards.• First employee to earn Microsoft Certified Professional designations in SharePoint and PerformancePoint.

Boston, Ma, Us

• Prospected to Microsoft’s communication and marketing managers seeking technical writing, editing, and content management services. Tracked opportunities and pipeline using Salesforce.com. • Managed financial and accounting reports for large-scale projects ($500K+ budgets) with Microsoft’s Live Search (Bing!) and Local Search organizations. • Managed budgets, invoices, item charges, project forecasts, status reports, and issues and developed resource schedules for over 30+ direct reports involved in large scale product testing activities.

Bellevue, Wa, Us

• Created and won consulting services deals ranging from $50-250K. Headed pre-sales activities: proof of concepts, RFPs, sales pitches, and demonstrations to senior executives (CIO, CTO level).• Directed enterprise-wide SharePoint content consolidation initiative that eliminated eight applications for Lexis-Nexis Applied Discovery. Architected and deployed SharePoint 2010 ECM and collaboration solutions for Russell Investments and other Puget Sound area clients.

• Facilitated requirements, defined tech specs, and oversaw the creation of custom content management solutions for Home Loan Division. • Senior Analyst for WaMu Financial Services consumer sites (personal and institutional investors) – developed requirements, use cases, process flows, and technical specs. Developed QA/validation plan and managed testing teams. Managed task delivery and integration challenges with third-party vendors.• Managed migration SharePoint demo environment to a fully functional data center environment. Managed a team of 20+ individuals from infrastructure, procurement, security, design, and development ensuring continual uptime for 3000+ existing sites.

M.S., Human Centered Design & Engineering

B.S., Environmental Resource Management