Ozarks Technical Community College’s 2024 Commencement Speaker is Tom Douglas, the chief executive officer for JMARK – a Springfield-based information technology firm.
A Bolivar native, Tom joined JMARK in 1997 upon completing his enlistment in the Navy, where he earned two Navy Achievement medals. One resulted from his passion for technology when he upgraded his first computer and designed a financial reporting database.
As a level one engineer at JMARK, he worked his way up the ranks before purchasing the company in 2001. Tom had to make some hard decisions and downsized the company to only six people. Now, with over 125 employees, JMARK is a leader in its space.
Tom has built a people-first business that attracts and empowers some of the top people in the world. Under his leadership, JMARK has consistently grown at best-in-class rates with best-in-class net promoter scores while winning an award for Best Places to Work™. The company has been recognized on Inc. Magazine’s list of the top 5,000 Fastest Growing Private Companies in America nine consecutive times.
As JMARK’s CEO, Tom is a trusted technology adviser to a global list of clients. He has been named to the annual MSP (managed service providers) Mentor 250 leadership list five times. Nationally, he is an in-demand speaker on leadership and technology, including culture and people puzzles, operational efficiencies, executive strategies, entrepreneur tactics, technology trends, IT maturity methodologies, and cybersecurity. Tom has also been involved in technology acquisitions and startups.
Tom’s latest passion is to share the lessons learned from building a great business that celebrates the culture and people who make it successful. In his Amazon Bestselling Book Adapt or Die™ and the online courses, Tom shares the Algorithm of Success™ formula required to help small and medium businesses thrive in an ever-changing world.