Carol A Ptak

Carol Ptak is currently freelancing and was most recently at Pacific Lutheran University as Visiting Professor and Distinguished Executive in Residence after years of executive management experience at PeopleSoft and IBM Corporation as well as many years of consulting expertise. Previously, Ptak served as the vice president and global industry executive for manufacturing and distribution industries at PeopleSoft. Here she developed the concept of Demand Driven Manufacturing (DDM) as an overall...See more

Carol Ptak is currently freelancing and was most recently at Pacific Lutheran University as Visiting Professor and Distinguished Executive in Residence after years of executive management experience at PeopleSoft and IBM Corporation as well as many years of consulting expertise. Previously, Ptak served as the vice president and global industry executive for manufacturing and distribution industries at PeopleSoft. Here she developed the concept of Demand Driven Manufacturing (DDM) as an overall product and marketing strategy to align product development, market awareness and demand generation. Her innovative approach is credited with significantly improving the company's position in the manufacturing industry software market and earned her national recognition in publications such as CFO Magazine and the New York Times. Prior to her accomplished record at PeopleSoft, Ptak spent four years at IBM Corporation starting as a member of the worldwide ERP/SCM solutions sales team and quickly rising to the position of global SMB segment executive. From 1993-98, Ptak owned Eagle Enterprises, a consulting firm that promotes company-wide excellence through education and successful implementation. Chad Smith is the co-founder and Managing Partner of Constraints Management Group (CMG: www.thoughtwarepeople.com), a services and technology company specializing in pull-based manufacturing, materials, and project management systems for mid-range and large manufacturers. Clients include LeTourneau Technologies, Boeing, Intel, Erickson Air-Crane, Siemens, IBM, The Charles Machine Works (Ditch Witch), and Oregon Freeze Dry. Chad and his partners have been at the forefront of developing and articulating Demand Driven MRP. Chad is also an internationally recognized expert in the Theory of Constraints (TOC). See less