Frontier Solutions & Strategies was established in 1996 primarily focused on IT management consulting services and the provision of technology for computer forensics. The latter included providing a broad range of computer forensic hardware, software and training to customers such as law enforcement, military and audit firms. In 2004 we expanded our services to include telephony and ergonomic computer accessories (keyboards, mice, etc.).
We had offices in two cities in Australia – Brisbane, Queensland and also in Melbourne, Victoria.
Paul’s Accomplishments
Paul owned and operated this successful 6-figure business selling computer forensic software, hardware and training as well as IT, telephony, and e-commerce solutions to customers in Australasia. Spearheaded IT groups, developers, technical services, help desk groups, large global projects, product management, and solution implementation. Designed ICT strategies, business plans, disaster recovery & contingency planning, proposals, budgets, work plans, reporting structures, and system governance frameworks. Led contract negotiations, supplier management, policy formulation, best practices implementation, quality control system, and IT projects.
Project: ePayment & VAN/VCC System for Travel Agents and Airlines
Role: Software Development Manager and Business Analyst
Organization Name: eNett International
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Period: November 2009 – April 2010
Accomplishments:
- Headed a multi-disciplinary team of 30+ staff members and consultants across Australia, Canada, UK, and India.
- Supervised development of innovative payment solutions for the airline and travel industry.
Project: Product Development of ePayment System for Airlines
Role: Product Development & Business Analyst
Organization Name: Promisant Ltd
Location: Brisbane, Australia
Period: 2003
Accomplishments:
- Collected and analyzed project requirements to translate technical specifications into actionable plans.
- Crafted products and payment architectures for multi-currency credit card payment solutions for the travel industry.
Technology Platforms
- Web technology, AS2805 messaging, Payment processors, credit card networks, GDS, Airline reservation systems, Point-of-Sale (POS / EFTPOS)
Project: ePayment Products for Airlines & Travel Agents
Role: Business Analyst and Product Development
Organization Name: QSI Payments
Location: Brisbane, Australia
Period: 2001
Accomplishments:
- Increased sales figures by developing an e-commerce payment solution for Sabre for their travel agents (Merchant Pay).
- Defined and reviewed strategy, roadmap, and features of products/total offerings.
Technology Platforms
- Unix (Sun), Windows 2000 Server, Java, QSI Payment Server, QSI Payment Client, Sabre Host Systems, Lotus Domino.
- Also, systems and specifications to connect QSI Payment gateway to USA bank clearing systems at Vital and FDMS.
Project: Wholesale Fare Management & Airline Booking System
Role: Senior Project Manager
Organization Name: Fare 1
Location: Wales, UK
Period: July to December 2000
About Fare 1 Pro
Travel web project “Fare 1 Pro” was launched in the USA and in the UK. The company went public on the London AIM exchange in Oct 2000. It is a business-to-business virtual shopping centre that allows travel agents to buy products from tour operators, airlines, car hire companies and ticket consolidators. Provided solutions for suppliers to receive payments directly from the consumer (bypassing the travel agent) and for the agent to settle payments online directly with a supplier. Supported multiple currency settlement and cross-boarder selling.
Accomplishments:
- Oversaw architecture development, system designing, and business needs analyses.
- Enabled agents to buy products from tour operators, airlines, car hire companies, and ticket consolidators through online booking system.
- Recognized for introducing an e-commerce empowered discounted airfares booking system for UK agencies.
- Facilitated technical discussions with VC investors and shareholders and assisted with Q&A in preparation for an IPO of the company in London, UK.
- Developed organization plans and budgets for the company.
Technology Platforms
- Unix (Linux), XML, CORBA, OO, Java, custom designed and written messaging interface layer, various airfare and travel-related software/hardware systems,
- ClickPay, Earthport,
- X.25 and ALC networks, Lotus Domino, Websphere and DB2.
- Connectivity to Sabre, Galileo UK and Worldspan reservation systems (GDS)
Project: Next Generation User Support
Role: Senior Project Manager, Business Process Re-Engineering
Organization Name: Hewlett-Packard
Location: Grenoble, France
Period: January to June 2000
Accomplishments:
- Successfully led the Europe and Asia Pacific teams as part of HP’s Worldwide “Next Generation User Support” project. The goal of the project was to dramatically improve user support throughout HP worldwide.
- Developed new business processes for HP’s worldwide User Support Group.
Technology Platforms
- Remedy
- Lotus Notes / Domino
Project: Online Travel Agency Airline Booking System
Role: Senior Project Manager and Business Analyst
Organization Name: Asia Travel Network
Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Period: October to December 1999
Accomplishments:
- Led project operations from system design and software selection to final roll out.
- Feature rich discount air fares booking system for this OTA (Online Travel Agency).
Technology Platforms
- Unix (Sun)
- Unidata, BEA Systems (WebLogics and Tuxedo)
- Payment Gateway and Shopping Basket
- CORBA, Java
- Various airline fares and software systems
- X.25 network
- Lotus Domino
- Connectivity to Galileo & Abacus (Sabre) reservation systems (GDS)
Project: Worldwide Y2K Crisis Management System
Role: Senior Project Manager, Business Continuity Planning Consultant
Organization Name: Hewlett-Packard
Location: Boeblingen, Germany
Period: April to September 1999
Overview and Accomplishments:
- Project manager for the Europe team that was involved in HP’s Worldwide Y2K Crisis Management project.
- This project involving coordinating the efforts of team members across 28 countries plus integrating this work with the work in the other regions (USA & Asia Pacific).
- The HP Y2K Crisis Management project was focused on providing a worldwide coordinated approach to monitoring systems and events during the Y2K rollover (the period from 1 Dec 1999 to 30 March 2000) and centralized managing and reporting crisis to various HP crisis control centres around the world.
- The Crisis Management project involved ensuring all disaster recovery plans were complete (through 28 countries) and signed off by management, developing procedures for handling a crisis, status reporting during the Y2K roll-over period, training of all relevant staff of crisis management procedures, and testing of the crisis management procedures (local, Europe-wide and worldwide testing).
- Crisis management included how to manage IT systems failure, facilities failures, human resources problems and external problems (such as failure in transportation systems, civil disturbances, phone network failures, etc) during the Y2K roll-over period.
- The Lotus Notes-based system (which I designed and helped to develop) was used by HP worldwide during Y2K rollover.
Technology Platforms
- Remedy
- Lotus Notes / Domino
- Unix (HP/UX)
- LAN & WAN
- Voice/Data Networks
- Windows 2000
Project: Corporate 3 Year Information Systems Strategic Plan
Role: Senior Management Consultant, Strategic Planning
Organization: Gladstone Area Water Board
Location: Gladstone, AUSTRALIA
Period: November – December 1998
Accomplishments:
- Management Consultant: Developed three-year Information Systems Strategic Plan for the Gladstone Area Water Board (http://www.gawb.qld.gov.au).
- Included: Information Technology Strategies, Information System Strategies, Organizational Strategies, Implementation Alternatives Road Map & Migration Plans.
Project: E-Commerce Solutions for the Travel Industry
Role: Senior IT Consultant
Organization Name: Oracle
Location: Brisbane, Australia
Period: August – October 1998
Accomplishments:
- Devised and executed a business plan for Oracle’s e-commerce consulting group.
Project: Queensland Business Online Strategy
Role: Senior IT Management Consultant, Strategic Planning
Organization: Queensland Department of State Development
Location: Brisbane, AUSTRALIA
Period: July 1998
Accomplishments:
- Management Consultant: Development of a technical architecture to facilitate customer management, document management, information distribution and electronic commerce (e-commerce) for this government department’s Internet and Intranet web site (known as Business Online which was part of the Federal Government’s ‘Business Entry Point’ project.
Technology Platforms
- Lotus Notes, Net-It Central, Oracle, Oracle Payment Server
Project: B2B & B2C Selling & Settlement System
Role: Senior IT Management Consultant
Organization Name: Abacus International
Location: Singapore
Period: March to June 1998
Accomplishments:
- Development of the Membership System and Membership Security architecture used for registering users of the Abacus International web site; for tracking user profiles and preferences; for controlling access to restricted information on the site; and for defining “sell-to” and “manage” business-to-business relationships and “sell-to” consumer-to-business relationships.
- Development of the E-business and E-commerce architecture and recommendations to support Business-to-Consumer settlement and Business-to-Business settlement for users on the Abacus International web site. Included multiple currencies, currency exchange/settlement, cross-border selling and other issues related to international selling.
- Development of the E-business architecture for content management by suppliers (travel agents, wholesalers, hotels, airlines, etc) who have store fronts on the Abacus web site. Site was to handle business-to-business selling (e.g. supplier selling products to wholesalers) and business-to-consumer selling (e.g. Internet user buying from a travel agent or directly from a wholesaler and/or supplier).
Technology Platforms
- Unix (HP)
- Oracle
- Broadvision
- Verifone
- NetDynamics
- Middleware using BEA Systems
- In-house OO tools and technologies
- Connectivity to Abacus reservation system (GDS)
Project: Airport Privatisation – IT Infrastructure Deployment
Organisation: Federal Airports Corporation
Location: Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Role: Information Technology Manager
Period: January 1997 – February 1998
Overview:
Federal Airports Corporation (FAC) was responsible for almost all international and domestic airports across Australia. Paul was hired to lead the teams and project manage devolving the Information Technology systems from FAC’s head office (in Sydney) to each airport so the airport could operate independently after it had been privatized.
The disaster recovery component of this project involved the implementation of all systems and backup/recovery systems & procedures at the airports plus the airports had to test their disaster recovery systems and procedures and sign these off to the satisfaction of the external auditors, the privatization committee and senior management (at the airports and at FAC).
Accomplishments:
- Responsible for all IT aspects of Australia’s Airport Privatization project (Unix Server, Financial & Airport Applications, Disaster Recovery & Contingency Planning, Lotus Notes and NT LAN implementations into 19 Airports) and
- Y2K (Year 2000) Compliance for the FAC-managed Airports.
- DRP Budget was AU$1 million
Technology Platforms
- Unix (NCR)
- Lotus Notes
- LAN, WAN
- Windows NT
Project: Business Process Re-engineering for Agency Front & Back Office Systems
Role: Senior Project Manager & Business Analyst
Organization Name: Gulliver’s Pacific
Location: Auckland, New Zealand
Period: February to November 1996
Accomplishments:
- Developed system architecture document for a large New Zealand travel agency organisation (Gulliver’s Pacific).
- The architecture detailed the technical architecture (hardware, software, and communications) required to achieve the stated business goals of the CEO of the organisation: “An integrated system at the agent’s desktop for front/back office, ticketing, information and knowledge management sharing, and access to Gulliver’s tour and wholesale systems.”
- The strategy ensured lower distribution costs, higher productivity and gave the organization many key competitive advantages. It enabled them to effectively supply and distribute products to their own franchise operators and to improve the payment flow (between their wholesale and their retail operations) and provided them with a platform for corporate-wide information and knowledge sharing.
- An NZ$8 million project affecting over 600 users in more than 160 travel agent franchise shops across New Zealand.
- Achieved business goals by building a solution architecture, encompassing hardware, software, and communications.
Technology Platforms
- Unix (Sun), Unidata database, Lotus Notes, X.25, ALC and ISDN networks, Windows NT Servers and Workstations, and various travel software systems.
- Middleware layer using Tuxedo (now known as BEA Systems) and other 3rd party systems messaging interfaces.
- Connectivity to Galileo reservation system (GDS)
The Brands of Frontier Solutions & Strategies
The brands we launched for the company are shown below. Unfortunately, when the company closed these brands were also discontinued.