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Information Mapping, Inc.

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June 2008	www.infomap.com	Vol. 16, No. 2

From Baseball to Business:
Information Mapping Knows No Bounds for
Corporate Sales VP Bill Whitlock

By Susan Roswit, Contributing Writer

When Bill Whitlock started coaching his six-year-old son Michael’s baseball team, he had to reread the team's rules five times before he understood them. "They were a hodgepodge of information," he says, "and I got frustrated trying to follow them."

Putting his Information Mapping skills to work, Bill transformed the mishmash of rules into a clear, well-organized document that helps parents and team members quickly find what they need—from batting and pitching rules to the team's code of conduct.

Making information easy to use, access, and understand is something Bill talks about a lot as Information Mapping’s Vice-President of Corporate Sales, a role he assumed in January.

Usable information—a timeless need
The Illinois native, who has progressed through regional, national, and global sales leadership positions since joining the company nine years ago, says the need for usable information is a constant—as important today as it was four decades ago when the Information Mapping method was first devised.

“As times change,” he explains, “just about everything changes—the products companies produce, the problems they encounter, the markets they serve—but the need for usable information to drive performance never changes. It’s a solution that everybody can use. It isn't restricted to a particular niche, but has universal potential.”

It’s the universality of Information Mapping that makes every day a new adventure for Bill, educating him about different industries. “One day, I might be working with a pharmaceutical firm that’s developing a new drug and the next day I’m helping a financial services firm improve the efficiency of its customer service.

“My job,” he says, “is to help customers cut through the information fog to figure out the kind of help they need. Many times, customers know they need to improve the way they manage information, but aren’t sure exactly where the problem is or how to approach it. We’re a full-service company, with training, consulting, and technology offerings—but not everyone needs a soup-to-nuts solution. I work with customers to determine what their goals are as well as their resource and time constraints, so we can tailor a solution for their particular needs.”

A company with four decades of experience
What sets Information Mapping apart, according to Bill, is “our significant experience and how we relate to our customers. People turn to us for our 40 years’ experience. Many rely on us for training. Others may have an information management problem that is so big they can’t put their arms around it, and they look to us for guidance.

“We’re also easy to work with. Our customers know they’re not just one among thousands, and that they can get our attention whenever they need it. They can pick up the phone and talk to anyone from a salesperson to our CEO.”

Perhaps most significant is Information Mapping’s overarching goal for its customers: to make them self-sufficient. “Unlike many companies, we don’t plant ourselves inside an organization to make ourselves indispensable. Instead, we transfer our skills and knowledge to our customers so they can move forward with the solutions we’ve developed together.”

Bill moved his family ten years ago to Homer Glen, a semi-rural town outside Chicago, replete with horse farms and forest preserves, and the slogan "A community in harmony with nature." In his free time, of which he professes to have none, Bill plays golf, shares his landscaping talents with neighbors, and has constructed wood swing sets for family members.

Besides six-year-old Michael, he and his wife Sue have two other children, Meghan, 9, and Shannon, 3. Bill has also coached Meghan’s soccer team. As for Shannon, he hasn’t quite determined her sport of choice, although recent skirmishes, he jokes, may portend a future in “boxing, kick boxing, or even Greco-Roman wrestling.”

A “southsider” (Chicago vernacular for a devoted White Sox fan), Bill’s second favorite team is “whoever is playing the Cubs.”

Published by Information Mapping, Inc.
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© Copyright June 2008. All rights reserved.

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