Michael Whitehead Author

Based in Los Angeles, California, Angel currently works as a CRM consultant helping businesses of all sizes realize the benefits of SugarCRM. He is a seasoned veteran of the technology world, initially getting his start in the CRM industry back in 1996 with GoldMine Software (now FrontRange Solutions). During his years at GoldMine he authored numerous technical documents, and contributed heavily to development and product management efforts that helped make GoldMine a leading and award-winning solution. His affection for open source software began in 1998 when he started exploring Red Hat Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP; a combination now widely known as the LAMP stack. As an advocate of open source technologies, Angel has continually focused on emphasizing their feasibility and viability in relation to CRM and small business needs. SugarCRM first caught his attention in 2005. Impressed by what he saw, Angel quickly moved to familiarizing himself with its capabilities, and shortly thereafter deployed his first instance. Since then, Angel has continuously refined his SugarCRM skills while also sharing his knowledge with others as an active member of the SugarCRM user community. In addition to his numerous contributions on the SugarCRM Forums, his projects on SugarForge.org have earned him two 'Project of the Month' recognitions. Angel also maintains a blog at http://cheleguanaco.blogspot.com, where he shares additional insights on customizing and troubleshooting SugarCRM. Away from the computer he is an avid soccer fan and regularly writes about the local soccer scene for LAist.com. When he is not playing, watching or writing about soccer, he is out running, riding his bike or enjoying the outdoors. He is fluent in English and Spanish, with a little French in between. His two dogs are a constant source of amusement. Michael Whitehead is a leading authority on the design and implementation of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems. Michael's experience and expertise spans a thirty year career in software architecture, design and development as well as business management and ownership of multiple technology organizations. Among many other accomplishments Michael is the contributing author of the SugarCRM Open Source User Guide. Michael has authored this book for entrepreneurs and small/medium business leaders, like himself, to help propel the success of their businesses through the disciplined application of CRM best practices. More than just a practical guide for the implementation of SugarCRM, this book explores and explains the business implications-and benefits-of customer relationship management for the small/medium business. Michael is currently the founder and President of The Long Reach Corporation (www.thelongreach.com). Long Reach blends real world CRM expertise with commercial open source technologies to develop and deliver cost effective CRM solutions for small/medium business and divisions of large enterprises. Long Reach offers a full range of SugarCRM implementation, customization and training services. Long Reach is also the developer of Info At Hand™, a complete, commercial-grade, customer-centric business management solution built on SugarCRM Open Source.