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Consultants

Leslie Downey
Principal and Founder
In her 20-year marketing management career, Leslie has launched a series of global, network-based application services (such as electronic data interchange, or EDI, services). At General Electric (GE Information Services, now GXS) and two other Fortune 500 companies, she led international, multi-disciplinary teams to evaluate markets, formulate strategies and product plans, and commercialize services for a variety of companies worldwide. She began her career as a sales representative with IBM.

Since 2004, she has focused exclusively on the radio frequency identification industry, tracking developments in standards, applications, and product offerings. Having served on the planning committee for a July, 2005, workshop to improve U.S.-China cooperation in RFID standards development, sponsored by the U.S. National Institute of Standards in Technology (NIST), she co-authored an article to inform the U.S. business community about China’s debate over international RFID standards. “RFID: Will China Throw a Monkey Wrench?" was featured in BusinessWeek online, September, 2005. She reviewed the U.S. RFID marketplace in the lead article in September 19, 2005 issue of RFIDUpdate: “EPCglobal and the RFID Tipping Point.”  Her column "International Cargo Conundrum: How much investment in security is enough?", RFID Journal, February 6, 2006, examined the drivers of investment in freight container security technology.

In March, 2007, Leslie and fellow consultant Patrick May were privileged to present the RFID Excellence in Business Awards to the eight award winners at RFID World in Dallas, Texas.  RFID Revolution co-founded and administered the event, the first RFID industry event in North America.  The company will administer the second annual awards event at RFID World 2008.

Leslie has marketed extensively to the maritime industry and is active in the Washington, D.C. international trade community. She is familiar with U.S. Customs’ post-9/11 trade security programs, the Container Security Initiative (CSI) and Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT), as well as developments in container e-seal technology.  She is conversant in several languages; and her article “Thinking Locally,” about “localizing” information technology products for greater acceptance in other countries, was featured in Byte.com in 2004.

Education

  • M.B.A., University of Chicago, with concentrations in finance and accounting
  • M.A., University of Illinois, Champaign, international relations, Charles E. Merriam Fellow
  • Graduate Student Internship, United Nations, New York, NY
  • B.A., cum laude, University of Illinois, Champaign, French and Spanish
  • Université de Rouen, France, Lettres et Sciences Humaines, visiting year

 

Affiliations

  • AIM North America (www.aim-na.org), Delegate for RFID Revolution  
  • Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (www.cscmp.org), Vice President-Programs
    for National Capital Area Roundtable, 2006-07.
  • M.I.T. Enterprise Forum (www.mitef.org), member
  • RFID Tribe (www.rfidtribe.com), Warrior member 
  • RFID Wizards (www.rfidwizards.com)  
  • Women in International Trade (www.wiit.org), member; Membership Co-chair, 2003-04, and
    Publicity Co-chair, 2004-05

 

Patrick May
Principal
Pat is an expert in sales and marketing strategy,   bringing fifteen years of professional marketing and sales experience. Pat’s background includes a decade of management consulting experience with Deloitte Consulting and Frank Lynn & Associates (a boutique strategy firm out of Chicago).  

In his role as a consultant, he has assisted numerous clients, from large Fortune 50 companies to high-tech start-ups, in creating successful market-driven business strategies. Pat focuses on achieving profitable growth by targeting high-fit market segments and developing “marketing with results” to improve marketing return on investment (ROI). His expertise includes product definition and development, channels of distribution, commercial partnerships, compensation plans (for direct sales and channels), value-based pricing, and promotion to increase market awareness. His Market Value Proposition (MVP) framework ensures that clients create strategies that deliver economic value to the supplier, the buyer, and the channel.

From 2001 to early 2005, Pat was Vice President of Marketing and Sales at Genex Technologies (a high-tech start-up) and successfully led the commercialization of its lab-level imaging technology. This transformation culminated in the purchase of Genex by a public defense contractor at a valuation four times greater than when he joined Genex. While at Genex, he shepherded several new technologies through the product development cycle, producing leading-edge imaging solutions for commercial and government/ homeland defense applications.

Pat takes a very analytical approach to marketing problems, always seeking creative solutions to most efficiently serve the target market. He has worked with clients in a wide range of industries, including telecommunications, computer (hardware and software), industrial, commercial, and government markets. Pat’s greatest expertise lies in addressing the biggest obstacle in commercializing a new technology: solving a real market need that has real money behind it.

Education

  • M.B.A., with honors, University of Chicago, with concentrations in marketing and finance. Received academic scholarship, selected to Dean’s Student Admissions Committee, and served as Teacher’s Assistant for Corporate Strategy course
  • B.A., summa cum laude, The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC, Psychology. Academic honors include induction into Phi Beta Kappa, Outstanding Student in School of Arts & Sciences Award, and Distinguished Psychology Major Award

 

Affiliations

  • Institute of Management Consultants (www.imcusa.org), Professional Member
  • America Marketing Association (www.marketingpower.com), member
  • MIT Enterprise Forum (www.mitef.org), member
  • Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce (www.montgomery-chamber.com), Communications Committee, member

 

Bob Bailey
Principal
Bob Bailey brings a unique blend of skills to bear on the problem of how to market high-tech solutions to a wide range of buyers. He has spent much of his career developing and marketing software solutions for Watkins-Johnson, a manufacturer of electronic equipment, and Landmark Systems, a commercial software house.

Since 1995, he has focused on helping clients turn a technical product description into a compelling selling proposition. His first question to the client is: "What problem does the product solve and why is it better than anyone else's solution?" He has helped clients with a variety of products--microwave antennas, pharmaceutical compliance devices, and document security systems—to grow their market share by honing their message.

Bob has observed that many RFID companies have focused on developing a technically sound product and can describe their product functionally, but have not developed a message that clearly explains the product’s benefits. For example, a tag vendor might do a fine job of explaining the range, size, and other characteristics of the product but fail to mention what a target customer, a manufacturer, wants to hear: that it can help track work-in-progress in a caustic environment.

In addition to his technology development and marketing career, Bob founded and ran Washington Whitewater, the first profitable kayaking school in the Washington, DC area. Although part of his motivation was to spend more time kayaking, the experience provided a tremendous education on how to run a business, especially the challenge of selling and marketing. Bob discovered that his assumption that first-time kayakers cared a lot about the brand of equipment they used was not true. Instead, they were preoccupied with safety and fast learning. It served as a reminder that “listening to the market is more important than listening to your own voice.”