Fred Weiner - President, Chief Executive Officer

Fred is the founder of the company as well as President and CEO. He is actively involved in daily management as well as strategic planning, positioning and expansion plans. All department heads report to him.

Ken Unruh - Vice President, Chief Technical Officer

Ken has worked with The Connection since 1994 and has overall responsibility for all technical and physical infrastructures. He has nearly 20 years experience designing and delivering custom business solutions involving technical data and network integration, customized voice solutions, advanced call routing and call center operations. Ken oversees software development, voice and data networking, telecommunications and workforce management. Prior to joining The Connection, Ken worked in business operations for 7 years for a major, national outsourcing organization delivering solutions to financial, retail, insurance and call center organizations.

John Meier - Vice President, Chief Financial Officer

John has 30+ years of experience in the accounting and finance areas of companies ranging in size from several million dollars in annual revenue to over a billion dollars in annual revenue, eighteen of those years as a Chief Financial Officer. His responsibilities include Finance, Accounting, Payroll, Human Resources and Traffic departments. On a day-to-day basis, John is the person responsible to ensure the Traffic department maximizes service levels and minimizes call abandons by shifting agent to adjust for fluctuation in client call volumes.

Harvey Johnson- Vice President of Call Center Operations

Harvey joined The Connection as Vice President of Call Center Operations. Harvey began his career with The Sharper Image, for whom he worked nearly 25 years overseeing the retail firm's global call center operations as well as having management responsibility for multiple outsource call center vendors.

In his role with The Connection, Harvey oversees all call center operations, employee development and training. He closely manages the daily call center performance of our clients' service standards and overall agent quality. Harvey puts a strong focus on employee development, mentorship and accountability. He gives every call center employee, from the CSR level to the Call Center Manager, the tools and the path they need to be successful and then he holds each and every employee accountable to meeting our clients' Key Performance Metrics.

Tim Austrums - Vice President of Sales and Marketing

Tim Austrums joined The Connection over 10 years ago. As the Vice President of Sales & Marketing for The Connection, Mr. Austrums is responsible for all aspects of new account sales, current client growth, and marketing for the company.  

He is an active member of:

• The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) and participates in the Teleservices Council
• The American Teleservices Association (ATA)
• The Society of Consumer Affairs (SOCAP)

Previously he was the National Sales Manager at one of the Nation’s Top 50 largest outbound call center agencies. 

Corey Kotlarz - Vice President of New Business Development

Corey has over 12 years of call center service agency experience. Corey is actively involved in several industry trade associations including Direct Marketing Association, DMA Teleservices Council, American Teleservices Association and Society of Consumer Affairs Professionals. In his role at The Connection, Corey is responsible for generating new business and developing strategic partner relationships. He has experience working with several major Fortune 500 accounts in the utilities, telecom, wireless and financial service sectors. Additional responsibilities include developing all marketing functions such as: advertising campaigns, trade shows, web site and public relations.