Name

Ben Curthoys

Email

ben@bencurthoys.com

May 2009 - Present

Monad Systems - Founder

Company Overview:

Monad Systems was founded to create a new ticketing system from scratch, using modern architecture, platforms, languages, and best practice.

The Ticketing system is entirely web based, using ASP.NET with AJAX and jQuery on the front end, with a WCF service layer and SQL Server on the back end. A lightweight XMPP client handles interactions between the webserver and client hardware.

September 2007 - May 2009

Galathea STS Ltd - Director of Systems Development

Company Overview:

Seatem Group is the oldest ticketing company in the world, with the Keith Prowse agency founding in London in 1780. Galathea STS produces enta, one of the world’s leading box office ticketing systems.

Summary of Achievements:

• Managing redevelopment of enta in C# / .NET 3.5 and ongoing maintenance of older VB6 versions.

Responsibility:

• Responsible for the development of the enta system
• Reports from Production Schedule manager, a development team of 11, QA team of 4 including a QA manager, and a business analyst.

Achievements:

• Migrated source control from VSS to SVN
• Introduced SpiraTest, a test case management system
• Introduced JIRA, for issue tracking
• Introduced Bamboo, a continuous integration server

March 2006 - September 2007

GAAPweb.com - Head of IT

Company Overview:

GAAPweb.com is the UK's leading specialist accounting and finance jobs site. Owned by the Trinity Mirror group, GAAPweb.com is the leader in its category, with a database of over 7000 vacancies from 500 financial recruiters from around the UK, around 85,000 unique visitors per month, and an email subscirber database of 25,000

Summary of Achievements:

• Reengineered business processes for entire back office operation, leading the redevelopment in C# of all the applications used by account management, sales, and web publishing teams, and the implementation and integration of 3rd party accounts and CRM systems.
• Currently managing the rebuilding of the entire website, migrating from Perl to an ASP.NET platform, and creating CV database and interactive functionality.
• Company growth and profitability met ambitious targets set by parent company.

Responsibility:

• WebsiteHosting, design, development of highly visible website that is the core of GAAPweb's business, line manager to the graphic designer
• Back office systemsResponsible for the development and smooth running of all back office systems uses by GAAPweb employees, and the recruitment and management of the software development team.
• InfrastructureUltimately rsponsible systems administration, the voice and data network infrastructure, hosted services, web and mail servers. Line manager to the systems administrator.
• SecurityResponsible for IT aspects of access control, security and alarm systems.
• OperationsLine manager to the Operations manager and Head of Marketing and Product, with an overall responsibility for the products and services offered to GAAPweb customers and candidates.

I currently have direct reports from four developers, one systems administrator, one graphic designer, and the Head of Marketing and Product, and indirect reports from a total of 13 staff.

Achievements:

• Managed launch and load testing of new website design.
• Managed IT aspects of moving to additional office space in the same building
• Personally rewrote core back office systems
• Managed team (and recruitment thereof) to implement complete back office replacement
• Managed implementation of Sage MME and MMS
• Managed migration of server hosting to more reliable supplier and consolidation of other IT systems
• Implemented Subversion and JIRA professional defect tracking, version control and SCM systems and procedures.
• Increased IT team size from 2 to 5.

October 1996-March 2006

Artifax Software Ltd - Technical Director

Company Overview:

Artifax Software is a leading provider of booking and administration software to Performing Arts venues and organisations, and well as the Conferencing and Banqueting industry, Stadia and Sports Venues, Local Authorities and Councils. It has a client base of over 400 organisations worldwide including Clear Channel Entertainment, the Royal Festival Hall, the BBC Proms, the Edinburgh International Festival, Royal Ascot, dozens of local authorities, and the Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall in New York.

Summary:

• Instrumental in the transformation of Artifax over the last 10 years from an organisation of 2 staff to an international company with a turnover of nearly £2 million and over 30 employees.
• Company growth in the last 7 years has been on average 30% year on year. In 2004 Artifax’s success was recognised by a Deloitte Fast 50 Award.

Responsibility:

• Company Director - General legal and fiduciary responsibilities
• Technical Director - Responsible for the development and maintenance of software products, the management of quality assurance and documentation, the management of feature requests and defect tracking, the recruitment and management of software developers, systems administration, the voice and data network infrastructure, hosted services, web, ftp, mail and news servers
• Also responsible for overseeing the expenditure of the business and authorising budgets and major capital purchases, managing short term cash flow and producing long term forecasts

I was responsible for three development teams totalling 9 developers, 5 QA staff who work for our outsourced offshore testing partner SNS Tech, one full time documentation author, and one systems administrator.

Business Skills

• Departmental / Team Management Budgetary control, identification of training needs, provision of internal training, management of workloads and projects.
• Personnel Management Interviewing, Annual Appraisals, Investors In People compliance.
• Financial Management & Control Setting of Departmental budgets, reporting on expenditure to Board Meetings, use of accounting software (Quickbooks), production of management reports, balance sheets, P&L, etc.
• Contracts Developed wording of most of our standard contracts, advised on negotiations and changes.

Technical Skills

Highly Experienced

Computer system architecture and design, C# with Windows Forms and ASP.NET, Microsoft Visual Basic 3 though 6, SQL, HTML / CSS / dHTML / Java script, ASP / VB Script, COM, Windows, Windows Registry, Office, SQL Server, IIS, CVS/SVN source control, XML / XSL / xHTML, Visio, Windows Networking & Security, TCP/IP Networking and Security, Windows System Administration, Linux system administration

Familiar with

Java, Cisco, IOS, Retail Logic credit card validation, Perl

Acquainted with

C, C++, Flash, PHP, 3d programming, Assembler

Languages

Basic German and Spanish

1993-1996

Merton College, Oxford

Ba 2:1 Mathematics

1991-1992

Dr Challoner's Grammar School, Amersham

A Levels 2xA 1xB 1xC

1987-1990

Dr Challoner's Grammar School, Amersham

GCSEs 7xA 3xB

• Theatre, Film, Modern Art, Good Design
• Boxing, Kick boxing, Running
• Politics, Philosophy, Economics, Anthropology, Mythology, Psychology
• Reading, Writing, Mathematics
• Computers, Science, Technology
• Live music, Recorded music
• Contemporary and science fiction novels and graphic novels