Laura Ploughe

Over 18 years of experience in systems and technology project coordination and management, instructional program development, systems education program design & implementation, systems analysis, business process analysis, training, and system administration, in multiple applications related to local, state, law, and higher education business functions.

EDUCATION:

• Indiana University, (1988)
• Master's in Education (Instructional Systems Technology)
• Ball State University, (1984)
• Bachelor's in Journalism (Photojournalism)

   

   

  RESPONSIBILITIES:

  Primary responsibility of UBS Business Applications & Fiscal Control:

  Business Application development and support and departmental financial rollup oversight for University Business Services (UBS) State and local accounts; providing the UBS AVP financial direction for Purchasing & Business Services and Auxiliary Business Services units

   

  Business Applications:

  1) Blackboard Transaction System, Building Blocks Manager, Pharos integration & Micros Point-of-Sale

• Campus declining balance system database and processes, equipment, system administration, and end-user support of system application and uses (Sun Card: vending, laundry, cash-to-card, copy, print, POS)
• System enhancement, administration, support and project management
• Integration of retail systems to Blackboard Transaction System including Pharos, Micros, MBS, Catapult and B-2-B with off campus vendors/merchants
• Integration of eCommerce to Blackboard Transaction System: Community System, Campus Dish, and OLCO.
• Imports of data through Building Blocks Manager, RMS and ARAMARK.
• Exports of data for Paciolan, ARAMARK, Lenel, Community System

2) ISAAC - Integrated System for ASU Access Control:

• Door Access and CCTV video coordination and administration and support with vendor
• System enhancement, administration, support and project management,
• iCLASS chip authorizing entity, enhancement, administration & support
• System administration and end-user support of application
• Data entry and processes that interface with the Sun Card systems

3) ASU/Canon Sustainable Digital University

• Campus partnership with Canon for device deployment and integration administration, support and project management

4) eCommerce and Enhanced Procurement and Departmental Business Services

• SciQuest (eProcurement, Chemical & Supplies Management)system enhancement, administration, support and project management
• Small Business Program system enhancement, support and project management
• Mail Operating System, University Club Membership System, and Staples billing system support and financial reconciliations and integration support with Advantage and users
• SNAP-8 Professional survey development, administration and reporting with UBS end-users
• Advantage Procurement, Inventory Management module administration and support and integration with work-order and stores order processes
• SharePoint site custom document management and collaborative facilitation in intranet applications within ASU departmental units in Business and Finance

5) ATM Business Services

• Deployment, reconciliation and administration with the vendor

6) Surplus Property and Property Management system

• Surplus auction and property management system support and administration with the vendor

7) Parking system

• Parking system support and project management and administration with the vendor

My Story:

I began my career in the area of using technology to create photographic multimedia presentations by combining physical components of colored gels or acrylic materials with photography back in the mid 1980's. I labored in darkrooms for 3 years before deciding that the multimedia presentations I was creating for instructional programs for large companies were full of bad content with no systematic messaging. This ended my photography career. Thus only a hobby now.

Upon obtaining a Master's in Education in Instructional System Technology I began my career with primary responsibility as a Systems Analyst and Applications Consultant/Instructional Designer for a company that wrote software applications used in governmental and municipal agencies. Applications of this nature tended to be court records, police dispatch and 911, fingerprint, financial general ledgers, utility bills, and property appraisal or government fund raising apps. I spent a lot of travel time in courthouses and city buildings deploying and supporting rural state workers in the Mid-West. Rural Mid-West and the 1990's seemed too tame for me - off to the Windy City I went.

The Windy City brought new responsibility and opportunity to now serve a national market as a Manager of Training and Installation for software applications used by agencies involved in recreation, libraries, and associations where memberships, rentals, boating and golf were king. Fund accounting, membership management, and retail transactions now became my world. The luxury recreational facility/equipment asset tracking and rental management, identify management and authentication, and sales postings records along with the travel and night life ...hmmm, need I say more?

Freezing 9 months of the year drove me West. But once there, travel kept me away and "West" only meant that I looked forward to coming home during my travels. Institutions of Higher Education became my customer. As a Client Site Integrator of software used exclusively by the education industry, my primary responsibility was to now manage large software projects and provide consultation and implementation expertise for the software used in providing identity management, asset tracking, authentication, and retail transaction postings for card transaction systems. Integration between student information systems, residential management systems, food inventory and recipe systems, parking systems, asset tracking systems, law enforcement systems, financial reconciliation and billing systems, and recreational facility and equipment rental systems now meant that my previous year's experiences all converged under a great exciting world. Over 50 school implementations later, across all 50 States and Puerto Rico, I landed at ASU because I wanted to be on the inside of the institutional experience.

As the Director of the Business Applications and Fiscal Control for the University Business Services unit my responsibilities now are for the applications support of core systems functions of units that provide business services to the University and the financial controls as they are combined under University Business Services. A culmination of all experience into a single role.

Advancing the ability for institutions to integrate smart card, near field communications, multi-protocol wireless technologies and remain in compliance with ISO and PCI are a part of my newest role in an advisory committee with multiple higher education institutions and this as well as advancing e-Commerce and best procurement practices through consulting engagements completes the story and continues to add to my experience and passion for life.