Rene' Kraus rk55dc2a@westpost.net 612.209.

8746
7376 9th Street SE, Buffalo, MN 55313

Professional Profile:
Growth and change agent, with superior communications skills and attention to de
tail. Expert in defining issues, action items; deploying innovation and technol
ogy resources; utilizing sound project management fundamentals, new media and br
anding strategies. Demonstrated success in leading diverse teams to achieve ope
rational, strategic, and budgetary goals. Dynamic career in operations, busines
s development, consulting and research for global and non-profit organizations i
n the U.S. Passionate and dedicated board member experienced in diverse organiz
ations, including the arts, education, professional services. Exceptional netwo
rk of colleagues, leaders and decision makers throughout social and business sec
tors, both locally and nationally.
Selected Career Highlights:
- Chaired international team of marketing professionals to develop annual contin
uing education programming for a 3000+ membership organization. Programs includ
ed ten annual webinars; two regional annual conferences; yearly senior workshops
. Additionally, served on leadership team to produce the association's annual c
onference, negotiated contracts for keynote speakers; vetted subject matter expe
rts and industry leaders as presenters and trainers; determined all venue and ex
tracurricular logistics; developed all promotional collateral. Achieved highest
attendance level.
- Directed cross-functional team of rainmakers across multiple offices to identi
fy and quantify revenue potential within new industry focus; undertook extensive
research and analysis in support of new direction; provided continuous reportin
g on status, issues, milestones, budget. Reached or exceeded all revenue goals f
or specific market segments within one year.
- Defined a five-year, $500K branding and naming rights agreement between a larg
e national firm and a new, advanced research and conference facility with specif
ic industry focus, resulting in increased visibility, credibility and unparallel
ed access to leaders and decision makers.
- Developed proprietary database to track all business development activities an
d ROI for investments, involving over 250 professionals in several offices, with
an annual budget exceeding $250K, achieving over 12% return within one year.
- Participated on diverse leadership team tasked with developing a knowledge-man
agement technology solution for executive access and reporting; solicited and ev
aluated diverse technology vendor applications, collaborated with IT for a custo
mized solution.
- Negotiated an exclusive, multi-event, annual sponsorship contract with exclusi
ve representation and participation in private industry meetings held for key po
licy and legislative decisions; determined influential representation for select
subject matter experts at international conferences and publication of articles
with priority placement, achieving maximum exposure to policy influencers.
-Served as chief project manager for innovative commerce project, liaising with
vendor and international airline constituents to develop the first automated in-
flight duty free and entertainment system for international flights.
- Established national communications committee to serve a United Nations develo
pment fund for women, working to define consistency in messaging, visibility and
outreach tactics; support membership development and retention; advocate missio
n and establish funding partnerships.

Specific Experience:
Operational and Administration:
Strong business judgment and comfort interacting with all levels of decision mak
ers, stakeholders, board members. Developed all external business development pr
ocesses, collateral, internal communications and case study validation for a sta
rtup strategy and communications division of a major healthcare organization. P
erformed research and analysis of new markets for expansion opportunities for pr
ofessional services and manufacturing firms. Conducted training of staff to be
expatriated to new foreign offices; extensive hiring and supervision of technica
l, professional, volunteer and administrative teams. Big picture perspective wi
th hands-on approach if needed; delegation of tasks with reliance on individual
competencies and contributions.
Budgeting, Fundraising, and Strategic Planning:
Extensive experience developing and managing project and group budgets over $250
K for professional services organizations with multiple offices and constituents
. Demonstrated, confident leadership of various teams, committees towards achie
ving and exceeding fundraising objectives. Developed individual, group, and pro
ject specific strategic plans, provided monitoring and status reporting as requi
red.
Research and Analysis:
Managed staff of analysts to monitor world markets for competitor and economic c
hallenges; produced weekly and monthly confidential internal reports and white p
apers; conducted an extensive market and competitor study of international indus
try parameters for specific business development strategic objectives; understan
ding of effective use of technology and other tools in support of corporate or f
oundation objectives.
Marketing, Media, Public Relations:
Developed annual media buy and advertising budgets for multiple offices; researc
hed appropriate media for article, white paper and advertising exposure; oversaw
selected PR associates across diverse markets and industry expertise; identifie
d specific training programs in media and crisis management. Led analysis projec
t to determine new media/social marketing potential for visibility and branding
building, relationship and funding development. Polished presenter in front of
audiences of all sizes; published author, effective negotiator, facilitator and
networker.
Employment History:
Optum Health (United Healthcare Group) Minneapolis, MN 2008 - 2009
Senior Director, New Business
Fish & Richardson P.C. Minneapolis, MN 2006 - 2007
Director of Business Development and Marketing, Patent Group
Briggs and Morgan, P.A. Minneapolis, MN 2005 - 2006
Director of Marketing and Business Development
Dorsey & Whitney LLP Minneapolis, MN 2002 - 2005
Business Development Manager, Marketing
Thomson Legal and Regulatory Eagan, MN 2000-2002
Manager, Strategic Intelligence Group
Katun Corporation Minneapolis, MN 1995 - 1999
Manager, Corporate Projects

Community and Board Leadership:

- Ordway Center for Performing Arts: Board member and Chair, Annual Gala Si
lent Auction Committee
- UNIFEM (United Nations Development Fund for Women), United States National
Committee: Board member and Chair, Communications Committee
- The White House Project: Minnesota Founding Member and Leadership Circle
Member
- Legal Marketing Association (LMA): Chair, International Educational Commi
ttee; Editor, Strategies magazine; 2008 Annual Conference Planning Comm
ittee Leader
- American Diabetes Association, Miinnesota: Board member and Chair, Annual
Gala
- The American Marketing Association, Minnesota Chapter: Director, Special
Interest Groups (SIG) Committee

Education/Skills
- B.A. Political Science/International Relations; University of California,
Berkeley, California
- M.A. (executive), Medical Technology Management, St. Thomas University,
Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Conversational ability in Japanese and Spanish; reading/writing of two Ja
panese character systems
Selected Presentations
- Employer Health and Human Capital Congress, Washington, D.C., February, 2009
- Legal Marketing Association, Chicago and Indianapolis Chapter Meetings, May,
2007
- West Legalworks Webinar, "Master Class on Competitive Intelligence", May, 200
7
- The Managing Partner Forum, Hildebrandt International, San Diego, CA, January
, 2007
- The Ark Group Australia, Professional Services Master Class, Sydney, Australia
, December 2006
- ALM Webinar, "Integrating and Maximizing Business Development Training", Octo
ber, 2006
- The Ark Group USA, Masters Class: "Competitive Intelligence and Marketing", C
hicago, IL, April, 2006
Selected Publications
- "Strategies, The Journal of Legal Marketing", a publication of the Legal Mark
eting Association, V11.Nl0, November-December, 2007, Issues Editor.
- "Extending the Tenure of Top Marketers", The Law Marketing Portal, www.lawmar
keting.com, June, 2007.
- "Looking Back and Forward: The Past 20 Years of LMA and What the Future Holds
", Strategies, The Journal of Legal Marketing, V8.Nll, November-December, 2006.
- "New Industry Business Development", Legal Marketing, Volume 1, Issue 4, a pu
blication of The Ark Group United Kingdom, November, 2006.