Christian Terrill

An accomplished information technology professional with extensive experience in project, programme, and executive level operational management. Areas of expertise include digital transformation, business development, product & solution development, agile development processes, systems and software development, and supplier & partner management. Demonstrating a track record of successfully developing and delivering effective solutions to address business challenges, drive tangible value, and achieve excellent financial outcomes.

KEY SKILLS

• Excellent stakeholder management skills, establishing and cultivating strong ongoing relationships and networks with key internal and external stakeholders, including suppliers, service providers, senior leadership team and the wider organisation.
• Highly organised with excellent time management, planning and prioritisation skills demonstrated through extensive project and programme management experience, monitoring, and coordinating multiple projects simultaneously.
• An empowering transformative manager with a transparent, collaborative, and inclusive management style. Experience of managing teams of over 20 personnel from job specification and recruitment to training, mentoring, and career development.
• A critical thinker and problem solver, adept at diagnosing and rectifying technical issues, focussed on improving operational performance, consistently seeking to optimise services, implement improvements and introduce efficiencies.
• Remains calm and focused under pressure, effectively coordinating conflicting priorities, ensuring the completion of time-based tasks to immovable deadlines, consistently bringing projects to successful conclusion with no compromise in quality.
• Business minded and commercially aware, with strong financial acumen, ensuring adherence to tight budgets, maximising resources, and negotiating favourable agreements with vendors to ensure best value.

CORE COMPETENCIES

• Board Level Accountability: Provides strategic leadership and vision, creates technology roadmaps, establishes delivery targets and reporting and presents recommendations for the complete rollout of products and services.
• Solution Design and Delivery: Designs software and service-based solutions for organisational, B2B and consumer use; delivers solutions to tight schedules within time and budget.
• Change Management: Accountable for organisational change; Subject matter expert for complex and business critical platforms, with a focus on improving functionality, user experience and delivering improved efficiency and revenues whilst optimising costs.
• Risk Management: Designs technology environments to industry best practice and regulation, ensuring risks are managed and mitigated; Designs and implements business continuity and disaster recovery for IT services.
• Projects: Defines requirements and develops solutions for projects to automate data processes, build data warehouses, integrate APIs, and develop user interfaces & optimised customer journeys. Additional projects include redevelopment of product to new language optimised for SaaS platforms, planning enterprise commerce solutions and developing platforms for revenue management.
• Commercial Development: Developed a global network of clients working with investors in North America; Formulated initiatives and strategies to develop territories and support channels for clients.
• Financial Management: A champion performer in winning and retaining business accounts; Creating winning bid teams for budgets of up to £2 million.

CAREER HISTORY

Head of Technology, LW Theatres, September 2016 – December 2022

• Responsibility for all IT systems and services for LW Theatres, which owns and operates six commercial theatres in London.
• Managing a team of four, comprising Project Manager, Product Manager, Systems Manager and Support Engineer, with coaching, mentoring and management on their recruitment, training, and career development.
• Managing external service providers and supplier selection for outsourced services such as IT support, networking and infrastructure services, website development, and data warehousing.
• Creating and embedding IT governance processes, IT audits, supplier governance, data governance & security, GDPR, legal and professional services, and managing any security incidents.
• Project and programme management, working on multiple concurrent projects.
• Continuous improvement of the ticketing system customer journey for the purchase of tickets on the website.
• Utilised Covid shutdown in March 2020 to implement a renewal programme, working through the pandemic, implementing new IT services and core infrastructure across operations, retail, ticketing, customer wi-fi, self-service, and telephony.
• Initiating the development of new technology products, including creating a new customer journey and Smart-Waiter allowing customers to pre-purchase food and drinks prior to their visit.
• Implementing and managing payment services for online and in-venue purchases and payment via telephone.
• Overall responsibility for implementing a PCI DSS framework throughout the organisation.
• Attending both routine and project-based meetings with internal stakeholders and the operational team.
• Meeting with suppliers and customers renting the theatre for resident productions, corporate events, TV shows and live concerts.
• Developing and planning the strategy for achieving the company’s goals, replacing finance system, implementing new CRM platform. 
• Based at the Head Office, reporting directly to the CFO.

Achievements:

• Activated IT supplier governance programme; implemented security awareness training; management of security incident programme; designed and implemented SharePoint platform; developed 3-year IT roadmap for core technology platforms: Cloud First, Microsoft First; established working group for CRM needs analysis; delivered mobile-optimised web applications; reopened six theatres, 2022.
• Procured and delivered a new Desktop Experience for over 200 Users; Upgraded core ticketing platform; Transitioned from outsourced on-premise/private cloud (hybrid) to outsourced Microsoft 365, Azure Cloud, Azure AD Environment; Developed self-service kiosk User Interface (UI); Initiated partner discussions with Diners resulting in a 6-figure partnership deal in 2021.
• Established Data Warehouse in Azure; Championed New Ticketing Platform; Management of PSP; New Website & Ticketing Purchase Flow; Corporate Needs Analysis & Requirements Definition; Design & Development of BYOD, Office 365, General IT Infrastructure, Network & Public & Corporate Wi-Fi Provision & Renewal of Hosting & Support Services; Implementation of PCI DSS & GDPR, 2018.
• Transitioned all LW computer users to work from home; Implemented VOIP telephone system, refreshed, conceived & built new order-in-advance service for pre-ordering merchandise, food & beverage (Smart Waiter); Covid Response Programme, 2020.
• IT Service Delivery Manager responsible for delivering (£1m) Ticketing System across a six-property estate; seamlessly migrating data in 2017, maintaining relationships with suppliers, optimising operational costs & improving efficiency.

Senior Business Analyst, Ambassador Theatre Group, February 2014 – August 2016

• Senior Business Analyst accountable for operational management of Ticketing Business Intelligence project, project cost of £2m+, Inception, Elaboration and Construction of Integration with Hybris working with Javelin (part of Accenture Strategy).
• Led the specification and functional development of products such as ticketing event setup data pipeline.
• Provided strategic leadership and vision, working with board and senior managers on design plans for the business, evaluating delivery targets and reporting and presenting/recommending a full rollout of functionality.
• Implemented and continually reviewed specifications, development of core business functionality; industry best practice whilst ensuring risks are managed and mitigated.
• Managed relationships with key suppliers, instigating recommendations for production, scheduling and cost issues.

Director of Customer Revenue, Europe, AudienceView Ticketing Ltd, September 2010 – February 2014 

• Strategic Account Manager for the Ambassador Theatre Group, The Ticket Factory & Time Out.
• Account Manager for eight further key accounts, responsible for >£1m in revenues (5% of total revenue).
• Managed all customer interaction, including successful resolution to client conflict issues, and clear customer service vision.
• Formulated initiatives to develop new territories (Scandinavia and Eurozone), resulting in the acquisition of major accounts.
• Managed the success and ongoing progression of customer initiatives, resulting in repeat long-term order growth and revenues.
• Achieved highly creditable sales and delivered increased order growth of £770k (8%) in 2011, £840k (9%) in 2012, £990k (11%) in 2013.

London Operations Director (Customer Experience), Galathea STS (ENTA), November 2006 – August 2010

• Headed overall responsibility for 20+ team including technical services, support, and training to EMEA and global clients.
• Controlled a £2m project budget, including hardware, software, and services.
• Developed strategy for re-development of product from VB to .Net/C#; presented plans to board and received approval, enabling the evolution of business models, and provided a growth framework to access new markets and clients.
• Prepared next generation managed environment and initiated implementation of virtualisation across the hosted environment, increasing capacity and supporting new business capabilities.
• Implemented offsite disaster recovery with IT infrastructure for managed solution; contracted secure hosting provider.

London Business Development Manager, Galathea STS (ENTA), August 2005 – October 2006

London Head of Sales & Marketing, Galathea STS (ENTA), June 2003 – August 2005

Deputy Commercial Manager, Galathea STS (ENTA), 1999 – June 2003

• Masters of Business Administration, Open University, Milton Keynes
• Postgraduate Certificate in Business Administration, Open University, Milton Keynes
• BA Honours degree in Theatre Studies, Central School of Speech and Drama, London

PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATIONS

• ITIL Version 3 Foundation, 2008