MIS Team

Michael Adams
Director of Management Information Services

Job at HFI

• Responsible for Corporate technology planning and implementation, Network design and administration, data services and data reporting.
• Making sure that everyone is comfortable and confident with the hardware, software and processes that make HFI work more efficiently.
• Always interested in technology that's faster, smaller, less expensive yet provides more bang for the buck and allows people to be more productive with less effort. Also, as a Linux and Unix enthusiast, HFI's back-end services have become predominantly LInux and Unix based.

Experience

HFI related:

• Eighteen years of experience in hardware and application support for end users, including a stint running the support organization for a Telcom company supporting over 1000 users in six countries.
• Twelve years experience in the design, development and provisioning of Wide Area Networks and Local Area Networks .
• Nine years experience in managing Technical Services departments.

Non-HFI related:

• Fourteen years experience as a classroom teacher teaching computer science, history and politics, psychology and sociology, economics, astrophysics and astronomy.
• Eleven years as a priest and assistant pastor of an Independent Catholic Church (Yes, indeed, as Independent Catholics we can and do marry and have families).

Education

BA in Political Science, 1980. Southeast Missouri University
MA in History, 1984, Southeast Missouri University
MA in Teaching, 1984, Southeast Missouri University
BA in Sacred Theology, 1995, Sophia Divinity School
Doctorate in Divinity, Sophia Divinity School
Network and Systems Engineering: Cisco University

Favorite Projects

Anything that increases learning… especially complex technical challenges which require the intuition of a hacker, the dedication of a hound-dog and the precision of a pilot. I love designing, building and implementing software and hardware technologies in response to business needs, and most of all love fixing problems. A good engineering challenge is like a good meal: often not appreciated until over, it satisfies until the next time.

Hobbies and Special Interests

I am a person who wears many hats. One of them is the technology hat worn for HFI, another is the pastoral hat. I am the pastor of an Independent (non-Vatican) Catholic parish and the Auxiliary Bishop (non-stipendiary) for the Diocese of the Midwest for the Catholic Church of Antioch, which encompasses several midwestern states. Ecclesial duties relative to the work of a bishop takes up a significant amount of my time when I'm not nose-deep in technical issues for HFI. My dual-life is sometimes a little schizophrenic, but quite enjoyable. My special interest is in meditation and Contemplative Prayer and it's relationship to the Rosary. The results of this can be seen here, where over 1.5 million people have downloaded the book.

Believe it or not I do have time for a hobby, which seems more an obsession: recumbent bicycles. I ride as much as possible, and normally will put in at least 20 miles before arriving to work during the riding season. Here's a link to the bike I ride.

Favorite Food

I've been a vegetarian for over 25 years, and have learned to appreciate the subtleties of spice. My favorite genre is Italian, and I've been an amateur chef for over 30 years, perfecting pasta sauces and and pastas made from fresh ingrediants and spices. Someday I'll write a vegetarian Italian cookbook. I also love Mexican foods and the incredible subtleties of chilies. I regret that I only have one life to give to the culinary arts, for a life's study can be made of chilies alone.

Character

A person of many interests, my motto is "Live to Serve, Love in Joy". That says it all.

MIS Team