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A Federal agency required a web-accessible multimedia database containing photos and text for millions of individuals, including links to facial recognition software.  The previous contractor had 50 weeks on the project.  David was contacted two weeks before the project was due for very public launch.  Key challenges included:

  • High Risk: Developing a complete application in 14 days from partial pseudo code, no test plans, and shifting requirements;
  • High Scale: Scaling effectively from hundreds of queries per second at launch to thousands of queries per second in full production;
  • High Security: Providing protection of personal date from hackers;
  • Full Availability: Could not ever be out of service, for any reason.

David’s team successfully developed software, database, network, and hardware systems on the customer’s schedule, including these components:

  • High Scale: Design allowed scaling from 500,000 to 10 million visitors per day within two months and without any interruption of service.
  • High Performance:
    • Interfaces were created for end-users, administrators, quality control agents, and reporting tools.
    • Human visitors experienced a responsive website.
    • Automated visitors could complete transactions in <5 seconds.
    • After tuning, the database achieved performance approximately equivalent to a memory-only database at a fraction of the cost.
  • High Reliability:
    • Regression and load testing tools validated any system change.
    • Review of system test data led to high customer confidence.
  • Secure Environment:
    • Multi-layer security strategy to prevent successful hacking attempts.
    • System design prevented personal data from “leaking” as the result of bugs or attacks.

The multimedia database went live on schedule servicing millions of customers.

  • Within two months, the system grew to include tens of millions of records with text and photographic data.
  • The application was upgraded repeatedly to add new functions without a single minute of downtime.
Testimonials

David has the uncanny gift of identifying business needs by asking on-the-mark questions at a macro level and translating them to applications in a most granular and accurate fashion.

Gerard Broussard

Cory contributed great thought leadership to our project - especially in the area of adult learning and best practices. He was attentive, diligent, and a pleasure to work with. If you're looking for a strategic consultancy with a diverse yet competent portfolio, RAW Consulting should be your clear stop!

Annaliese Wimbleton
Global Innovation Manager / Whirlpool Corporation

I engaged with Research At Work Consulting for review of the University of Michigan Enterprise Analytics Roadmap. We asked the RAW team to look for areas that were either underrepresented or missing. Since we thought we had done a comprehensive roadmap, we were surprised with the results. The RAW team did an excellent job of comparing our roadmap to national standards and identifying areas requiring additional definition. It was a thoughtful and thorough review.

Mary Hill
Director of Data Management Services / University of Michigan Medical School

Cory was a pleasure to work with on a critical training development project. He brought deep knowledge of adult learning theories to his work and presented us with practical suggestions that improved our training delivery almost immediately. In addition to delivering the project, Cory also helped us to gain better insight into our own processes and work culture.

Sara Ulius-Sabel
Global Innovation Senior Manager / Whirlpool Corporation

I hired Cory to lead the design and development of a website documenting the research network. Cory identified a great designer/ developer and managed the project perfectly. The design and content were outstanding, and the website launched on schedule. Simply put, Cory is outstanding and I will hire him again.

Carl DiSalvo
Associate Professor / Georgia Institute of Technology

Cory is a top notch professional. In addition to being a strong Human Factors consultant, he was also instrumental in management collaboration and decision making. His expertise, focus, and creativity under pressure made him a tremendous asset to our team.

Paul Cutsforth
District Sales Manager / Cequent Performance Products

I had the opportunity to hire Cory to document a multi-year, multi-institution (academic and industry) research network that involved over 70 participants with as many projects. Cory conducted interviews with key members of the research network, reviewed key projects, analyzed this data, and produced a detailed report on the activities of the network, with an emphasis on analyzing the structures of collaboration that did and did not work. The report was simply outstanding. Throughout the project, Cory constantly excelled in both his social skills and his research skills. His deliverables were on time and thorough, and his insights were exceptional.

Carl DiSalvo
Associate Professor / Georgia Institute of Technology

David has a superior ability to quickly assess a situation and identify business needs then translate them into an action plan.

Kerry Little

Cory’s interdisciplinary background gave him the ability to see patterns and solutions across different domains that were not apparent to others on the team. These valuable insights have led to opportunities for improvement in the way Intel manages its relationships with academic institutions. I am looking forward to my next occasion to work with Cory.

Ken Anderson
Principal Researcher / Intel Corporation

David drove the project to completion and was extremely effective in a difficult corporate environment. I would hire him again without question.

Warren Schlicting
Senior Vice President / Comcast