Key Staff

Founder/Technology Architect

Jignesh Patel

Founder/Technology Architect

Jignesh Patel is a technology innovator with over 23 years of experience. He is a Certified Technology Architect, Certified Change Manager, Certified Project Manager and hold numerous other technology certifications. Jignesh is actively involved in emerging trends on technologies that shape the future of transit and government technologies.

Jignesh has helped agencies implement some of the most innovative transit technology solutions involving Intelligent Transportation System, Big Data, Machine Learning, and more. Each of these projects allowed Jignesh to hone his expertise in areas of leading-edge technology in the travel and transportation industry. Jignesh has served clients in many capacities, including CIO Advisor for the Palm Beach Transit, State Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA), Georgia Regional Transportation Authority (GRTA), San Diego MTS and Jacksonville Transportation Authority. He is actively involved in APTA and is engaged on several committees involving Technology & Innovation. Jignesh is working with the National Transit Institute on an FTA-funded initiative to develop transit technologies training courses including; Regional Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Architecture, Systems Engineering and Rural ITS Technology. Jignesh also has extensive experience with Fortune 500 companies, including AT&T, JPMorgan Chase, Hewlett Packard, Lexis Nexis and others.

Steve is an experienced financial leader with over twenty years serving as a Chief Financial Officer and 13 years as a public accountant with E&Y and KPMG.   Steve has served as the Chief Financial Officer for 3 large publicly traded software and consulting businesses including the initial public offering of LHS Group, one of the most successful offerings of its kind. Additionally, Steve has served as the Chief Financial Officer of various family owned and private equity owned software, technology and other businesses ranging in size from $1 million in annual revenue to over $50 million.

Other significant accomplishments include the installation and roll out of accounting software globally, performed diligence and accounting integration on several acquisitions, and led the successful sale of business to a Private Equity Group (PEG).

Niti Systems CFO

Steve Norton

Niti Systems CFO

Transit Technologies SMI Consultant

Philippe Gervaise

Transit Technologies SMI Consultant

Philippe is a results-driven leader with over 20 years of experience working throughout North America and Internationally in Operations Management, Project Management and Systems Development. Broad knowledge and proven ability in leading teams to innovate, attain goals and deliver targeted results. Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities with a proven track record for solving complex situations. Committed to adding value and exceeding expectations through collaborative efforts in problem solving, business insight, tenacity and by providing outstanding customer service.

Engineering professional with background in Hardware and Software engineering as well as System Engineering and Project Management. Managed the development of state of the art fare collection hardware and SAAS platform development and implementation. Over 20 years of Public Transit experience in the areas of Intelligent Transportation Systems Implementations, Innovative Mobility Solutions, Technology Project Management, Transit Planning, Mobility Solutions Delivery, Web-based solutions, and Systems Engineering.

Consultant

Kirk Hoffman

Consultant

Technology Consultant

LaShelda Dasher

Technology Consultant

Results driven and detail-oriented professional with over 30 years of experience in Enterprise Resource Planning including Oracle EBS R12 and Cloud, Data Analytics, Transportation, and Information Technology Management. Known for her good judgment and initiative in problem solving. Adept at translating organization vision into project vision. LaShelda works with clients and partners to provide strategic insights and industry best practices in the identification and deployment of technology solutions. LaShelda is efficient at managing multiple large-scale projects and direct reports with assertiveness and professionalism. She is solutions driven with experience leading cross-functional teams in the development, documentation and delivery of process and software implementations. LaShelda has a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology and a master’s in information system degree from the University of Phoenix.

Julie B. Eldridge, AICP, PMP is a nationally recognized leader in multimodal transportation project development with over 30 years of experience leading LRT, BRT, Commuter Rail and Streetcar studies across the US. Julie has expertise in NEPA/CEQA documents, Transportation Demand Management, accessibility studies, transit station-area planning, grant writing and project permitting. Trained as a Project Management Professional and Communications Manager, Julie has managed budgets up to $4.0m and 12 multi-disciplinary staff on projects across the US for over 30 years. Julie has served a leadership role on numerous FTA funded transit capital investment studies across the country in a wide range of activities, from agency coordination, public outreach, station area plans and site selection to detailed site planning and environmental permitting, and up to construction. Julie is a highly effective public outreach professional, trained by the International Association of Public Professionals (IAP2), with decades of experience developing and managing outreach campaigns, soliciting input for inclusive Title VI and Environmental Justice compliant projects, making presentations to elected officials, the media and public.

Julie has a Bachelors’ degree in Political Science/Public Service from the University of California at Davis and completed a Masters’ Program in Transport Planning & Management from the Polytechnic of Central London.

Senior Transit Planning Consultant

Julie Eldridge

Senior Transit Planning Consultant

Senior Technology Consultant

Russel Case

Senior Technology Consultant

A well-organized, optimistic, and self-driven person with having more than 40+ years of experience in the field of project management, consulting, and business development. Managed services such as NOC/SOC, Outsourcing, ITaaS, Fractional Needs, DevOps aaS, Help Desk, Infrastructure (server, network, cloud, hybrid), and related supporting applications and operations.

High level of expertise in a data center includes Colo, Cloud, DRaaS, Hybrid-Cloud, VDI/DaaS, Data Center aaS, Cloud Anywhere Disaster Recovery, Business Continuity, Azure and telecom services includes SD-WAN, UCaaS, MPLS, Direct Connect, Wi-Fi, Wireless, Dark Fiber, Satellite, Point-to-Point, Call Center aaS. Strong knowledge in IT Security and Compliance such as SIEM, Assessments, Managed Security, Compliance Tools, Ransomware Remediation, Compliance aaS. Familiar with emerging technology such as IoT, AI, Copy Data, Third-Party Maintenance, Office Tech, Point of Sale, Telecom Expense Management, Chatbots.

Highly expertise in project management application tools such as Jira, SalesForce (practical experience across Sales/Channel, Professional Services and Customer Success), Microsoft Project, Deltek Workbook, ServiceNow, NetSuite, Oracle, Dynamics, / CloudSuite Financials (CSF), Lawson / Infor v9 to v10 and v10 to v11, SAP S/4HANA, SharePoint.

Senior Project Manager with Niti Systems Consultants Inc., a certified DBE business and technology firm focused on serving the transit industry. Over 14 years of Information Technology Project Management experience in Transportation and Public Transit in the areas of Intelligent Transportation Systems Implementations, Technology R & D Solutions, Technology Project Management, Feasibility Studies Planning and Implementation, Mobility Solutions Delivery, Systems Engineering, IS/IT Advisory Services, and Data Driven Decisions.

Derrick has advised Local Governments, Transportation, and Transit agencies with Technology Solutions, Organizational Management Assessment, Feasibility Studies, Project Management Planning, Systems Implementation, Business Analysis and Strategic Planning. Actively involved with various business and technical consortiums within local government entities, boards, and committees.

Information Services and Technology Management Consultant

Derrick E. Whitfield

Information Services and Technology Management Consultant

Consultant

Brian Cetinski

Consultant

Skills: • Asset Management, Work Management, Supply Chain Management, GIS, Integrations • Project Management, Change Management, Business Readiness • Functional Lead: Business Process, Functional Requirement, Technical Specification, and Gap Analysis Workshop Facilitator • Infor EAM/IBM Maximo Application Solution Architect • Test Coordinator, Training Development and Delivery • Customer Service, Quality Assurance, Business Development • IBM Certified Deployment Professional • Infor EAM Certified Instructor

Education • MA Computer Resources & Information Management, Barry University 2001–2003 • BS Information Technology, Brevard Community College 1998-2000

Sharath Kumar is a Full Stack Developer with over 8 years of experience in building and maintaining responsive websites. He is proficient in HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Java, React and Angular including modern libraries and frameworks like SpringBoot.

Sharath has served many organizations including Banking, Insurance, Retail, Transportation and Information Technology (IT) by successfully developing and deploying their legacy applications. Sharath’s past experience with building both legacy and web applications from scratch allowed him to deliver and launch the application software in the anticipated timelines. Sharath is currently supporting Niti Systems along with Cambridge Systematics to help DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transit) build, de-bug and develop the Transit Application by providing innovative ideas and proof of concepts according to project requirements and guidelines.

Consultant

Sharath ``Kumar`` Alwala

Consultant