Leadership Team

Darren L Spohn
President & Chief Executive Officer

Darren L. Spohn is President, CEO, and founder of Spohn & Associates, Inc., and has served as a board member of several high-tech companies and Advisory Partner of Adams Capital Management LLP. Mr. Spohn is the author of five popular McGraw-Hill technology books. Prior to founding Spohn & Associates in 1998, Mr. Spohn served as the Chief Technology Officer and Vice President of Engineering and Development at NetSolve, Inc. in Austin . There he managed NetSolve’s engineering, product and software development, information systems, and business channel development efforts. Mr. Spohn held a number of critical engineering, marketing, and management positions at MCI Communications including Manager of Data Product Marketing & Development and Manager of Data Network Engineering and Design where he was responsible for their internal data networks. While at MCI he also led the design efforts of four intelligent national data networks, including the multiplexer and frame relay/cell switch network that formed the technology platform for MCI’s first generation HyperStream Frame Relay and ATM Data Services. Prior to MCI, Mr. Spohn co-founded Design Consultants, a consulting firm that manufactured and marketed personal computers, as well as provided IT consulting. Mr. Spohn started his communications career as a non-commissioned officer in the Pennsylvania Air National Guard. In his eight years of service he spent the majority of his time on international telecommunications projects in both the United States and Germany. Mr. Spohn holds a B.S. in Telecommunications Engineering from Capital College , and has added to his bachelor’s degree an M.S. in Engineering Management from Southern Methodist University, where he has completed work toward a Doctorate in Engineering.

Darren is a notable author of several books.

Steve Davies
Vice President, Spohn Consulting Services

Steve Davies is Managing Partner at Spohn and Associates and is lead of the Consulting Practice. He is responsible for the operations and direction of the security practice and frequently participates in consulting engagements. Mr. Davies holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin as well as the CISSP (Certified Information Systems Security Professional) and CISA (Certified Information Systems Auditor) industry certifications. Additionally, Mr. Davies is qualified by the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council as a Qualified Security Assessor.

Mr. Davies has nineteen years of telecommunications and information security experience including information security audit program design, software coding and development, and product development. Mr. Davies career started with MCI Telecommunications in Richardson, Texas where he worked on projects including Network Management applications designed to manage the internal MCI network. Two of the projects resulted in patents for MCI. After serving for 5 years at MCI, Mr. Davies joined NetSolve, then known as Southwest Network Services where he participated on a number of projects for delivering Managed Network and Security Services to customers.

Mr. Davies authored the wide area network management system known as Canvass, a highly scalable, distributed, real-time monitoring system which provided the backbone of real-time notifications for more than 90,000 devices under management by NetSolve. This work is covered by two patents owned by NetSolve, which has been acquired by Cisco.

Mr. Davies additionally architected a real-time security event management and reporting system for NetSolve that provided the backbone for its managed security offering.

Throughout his career, Mr. Davies has served in capacities including management, technical team leadership, and individual contributor roles.

Elisa Sheldon
Chief Financial Officer

Elisa Sheldon brings 20 years of corporate finance and accounting experience to Spohn & Associates, managing and overseeing all areas of the company’s financial operations as well as HR, recruiting, administration, and business operations. Before joining Spohn in November 2007, she was the Chief Financial Officer for American Kiosk Management, LLC; the exclusive specialty retailer representing ProActiv Skin Care Solution. She helped the business grow from 45 to over 500 locations during her tenure and posted record profits in each year.

Elisa has held top level financial positions with Fresenius HemoCare, Lassen International and Electronic Data Technologies. Her experience in finance and technology has led her to develop systems to support business processes for increased profitability and efficiencies. Her expertise in Microsoft based programs has allowed for customized development of ad hoc reporting and decision making models. She has applied these skills for the benefit of the companies she has worked for as well as several non-profit organizations.

Elisa has sat on the Board of Directors/Trustees for the Sea Vision Foundation, Prescott College and Camp Soaring Eagle Foundation. She holds a B.S. in Business Administration, an M.B.A. and is a Certified Public Accountant.

Peter Karavites
Vice President, Spohn Training Services

Peter Karavites graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in Business Administration. Mr. Karavites came to Spohn & Associates after working for AT&T Learning where he was responsible for the training needs of their largest sales segment, Enterprise Markets. Prior to working at AT&T, Mr. Karavites was Director of Training for a nationally known consulting firm whose clients were some of the top telecom corporations in the world. As Vice President of Training at Spohn & Associates, Mr. Karavites is responsible for Spohn’s training arm whose clients range from some of the top tier one telecom corporations and consulting corporations. For every organization he has worked for, Mr. Karavites has always been ranked as one of the best corporate trainers in the company. His experience spans needs assessment, training development and Corporate Training ROI certification.

 
Contact the Management Team

If you would like to speak with any member of the management team please contact our corporate office at (512) 685-1000.