OceanFirst Bank is the largest and oldest community-based financial institution in southern and central New Jersey. In 2018 a Forbes study ranked it one of the country's Best In-State Banks and #1 in New Jersey.In my role as VP, Vendor Contract Manager I am responsible to:- Provide guidance and direction on the Bank's vendor management program- Develop and maintain the Bank's vendor management policies and procedures - Assist department and business managers with vendor relationships to include annual risk assessments- Monitor regulations to ensure the Bank maintains compliance with the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act- In conjunction with General Counsel, conduct reviews of vendor proposals and contracts and manage contract requirements.At OceanFirst Bank I am building a best-in-class vendor and contract management program to support current need and future growth of the Bank.

Tecolote Research provides decision support, research, analysis, program management, project controls, and software solutions. It engages in delivering data and cost models vital to effective decisions. At Tecolote, I was responsible for the day-to-day management and oversight of front and back office business activities in NJ. I was charged with responsibility for the business and customer relations for several defense programs. My success in customer relations was exhibited by a multi-million dollar revenue stream, new and renewed contracts. I know the importance of being a skilled recruiter and leader who can pull the team together to address customers’ short and long-term needs. I managed to a constrained budget and achieved or exceeded targets. As the Task Leader and Lead Program Analyst for highly visible projects, I provided analysis and management for military communications programs, some more than $300M in R&D and $2B in production. My activities included: ● Creating project plans, reports, papers, & briefings ● Building detailed presentations to plan and define program needs● Functioning as a Risk Manager ● Coordinating efforts to achieve product lifecycle milestonesA project close to my heart is a radio communications program. I was involved in the initial planning of this project, including the coordination of a large cross-functional team. My work included developing the financial reports, status reviews, presentations, and marketing materials. I completed the analyses of operational problems and formulated a business solution. I worked as the new product’s risk manager, and built the expense plan and budget. I am pleased that the product achieved its milestone on time and on budget. I believe that LinkedIn is an important professional communication channel. If you would like to start a discussion please connect with me on LinkedIn or email smurgles@yahoo.com.

Lucent Technologies, Inc., was an American multinational telecommunications equipment company headquartered in Murray Hill, NJ. It was established in 1996, through the divestiture of the former AT&T Technologies business unit of AT&T Corporation, which included Western Electric and Bell Labs.I joined Lucent in 2001 as a Director responsible for the router product line program launches including: team management, quote-to-cash, sales support, vendor/supplier relationships, and new business opportunities. Some of my accomplishments included:● Establishing tools and processes to track/manage sales funnel which became the primary reporting tool● Leading a team that launched seven new router products in 18 months to meet customer needs● Heading the group that established interactive communication with Business and Channel Partners to increase product awareness and sales● Creating promotional programs for Partners● Establishing baseline policies for pricing and discounting that ensured profit margins met or exceeded company targets

AT&T Inc. is an American multinational conglomerate holding company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. AT&T is the world's largest telecommunications company.At AT&T, I grew my knowledge, understanding and responsibilities in product, project and people management. As a Product Manager, I experienced every aspect of the expansive touch-points in the products and services lifecycles. In this role, my responsibilities included leading the team that defined the implementation strategy for the worldwide deployment of web hosting services, for both large and small businesses, in order to expand our market reach and improve revenues. By balancing strategic viability, market strategy and budget with customer needs, I improved the satisfaction of a key Fortune 100 customer who was ready to leave, working with them until they were extremely satisfied. This remains a proud, career defining accomplishment. As a Strategic Operations Manager, I provided strategic and operational support to my Division’s Chief Operations Officer. In addition to finance, business growth, personnel, and business management support, I served as the Division point-of-contact for all human resources issues and programs. My role included development of processes for staff reporting, as well as executive summaries and presentations. Promoted to Director, I led a team of Product Managers responsible for all stages of the services lifecycle for low-priced hosting, e-commerce and call center collaboration offers. By streamlining ordering, reporting and billing processes and expenses, we not only met our revenue targets, but exceeded our plan by more than 30%. I particularly enjoyed being part of a negotiation team responsible for executing outsourcing agreements. Honing my negotiation skills, I managed vendor relationships of all outsourced programs in my Division, and facilitated contracts with partners and suppliers that reduced expenses by at least 25%.