Archives: Blog

This is the custom post type for catconsult blog

Mohammed Khan’s Twenty-Year Journey with Catalyst

Posted on July 1, 2025

Meet Mohammed Khan

Mohammed Khan always knew he wanted to do something with computers. He was initially drawn to the innovation, growth, and rapid change of the technology space. That passion led him to pursue a degree in Computer Information Systems, and later, a Master of Business Administration from DeVry University. His expertise and interest in IT led him to Catalyst Consulting Group.

Khan joined Catalyst in 2005, marking 20 years with the organization this year. Originally hired as a contractor, Khan worked his way up through the company, holding positions ranging from Senior Consultant to IT Director. In his current role as Vice President of Infrastructure, he manages and oversees the design and implementation of technical projects. His role combines high-level technical oversight with client-facing strategy to ensure that Catalyst not only delivers the technical projects but also meets client goals.

In his time at Catalyst, Khan has made quite a difference. “One of my proudest accomplishments was leading a major development in the deployment of biometric solutions for boarding of international flights at O’Hare and Midway Airport. That was one of the most widely used custom-built products by our team.” But beyond building products, Khan has found mentoring junior team members and supporting their professional growth especially rewarding.

Khan credits several formative experiences for shaping his growth trajectory into leadership at Catalyst. “Being a part of the Incident Response Team taught me how to perform under pressure, take ownership, and communicate effectively. As I took more responsibility leading various projects, it helped me develop a deeper understanding of how to align technology with other client objectives.” As he gained more leadership responsibilities, he was challenged to think beyond technical skills and focus on strategy, client relationships, and team development.

For those aspiring to a similar career path, Khan stresses the importance of curiosity, building a strong foundation in problem-solving skills, effective communication, and delivering quality service.

“Treat any project like a learning opportunity, so do your research, be dedicated, and do not be afraid to ask questions. It’s one of the best ways to grow and learn.”

Khan is looking forward to continuing his work with the amazing team at Catalyst. “Something that really excites me all the time is working with people that have a variety of different talents and skills.” This talent helps Catalyst focus on their leadership vision, helping them ask the question: what can we do better? With Khan’s passion and focus on collaboration and continuous improvement, he is excited about what lies ahead.

Catalyst Technology Out in the “Wild”: Chicago Edition

Posted on April 28, 2025

Catalyst Tech Out in the Wild, Chicago Edition, header.

Catalyst Technology Out in the “Wild”: Chicago Edition!

At Catalyst Consulting Group, we’re proud to see our solutions making an impact in communities across the United States and Canada. As a Chicago-headquartered company, it’s especially meaningful to see our work in action right here at home. From city services to airport experiences, Catalyst-powered tech is helping real Chicagoans every day.

Collage, clock-wise, of airplane interior, taxi lights, vehicle sticker, and pothole.

So, here’s how Chicagoans experience Catalyst technology in their everyday lives while out and about!

🚗  For example, one of our team members recently replaced their family car and needed to transfer their City of Chicago vehicle sticker to the new car. Thanks to the City’s EzBuy system, powered by our staff working at the Office of the City Clerk (OCC) team, that was an easy, fast, and efficient process! Up next? Perhaps registering our dog through EzBuy!

This efficiency extends to the airport experience.

🚕  Thanks to Catalyst teams working on the MPEA (Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority )/GTT (Ground Transportation Tax) project, taxi drivers can quickly pay their airport access tax right from their mobile phones, helping us get to the airport with ease.

✈️  Once there, Catalyst’s work with the Chicago Department of Aviation shines through: thanks to our boots-on-the-ground deployment of biometric technology at O’Hare for international travel with certain airlines, you can breeze through boarding without ever needing to show a boarding pass or passport, just your face!

🕳️  And when we return home from our travels, if our taxi happens to hit a pothole on the way back, we can easily report it using the self-service capabilities we helped build on the City of Chicago’s 311 system.

From curb to gate, and back again, Catalyst solutions help make the journey smoother at every step.

It’s great to see our tech in use in the real world!

Tiffany Tsang’s Journey from Business Analyst to Project Manager

Posted on April 17, 2025

Project Manager Tiffany Tsang

Celebrating the Promotion of Tiffany Tsang

Tiffany Tsang joined Catalyst in 2022 as a Business Analyst and has now risen to her new role as a Project Manager.

Headshot of Tiffany TsangIn her role as a Business Analyst, her primary responsibility was to understand the client’s needs and translate those into technical requirements for the team, ensuring that Catalyst’s solutions support their day-to-day operations effectively. From the start, however, this role was quite challenging.

Originally, Tsang did not come from a background that included IT consulting, so many of the terms and tools were unfamiliar to her when she first stepped into the Business Analyst role. At the same time, her proudest accomplishment at Catalyst has been tackling these new challenges. Even though she was exploring a different type of work, she “embraced the learning curve and quickly applied the knowledge” she gained to succeed.

This growth continued with several formative experiences at Catalyst, which put Tsang on the trajectory to grow from a Business Analyst to a Project Manager. “First, having the support and guidance of great leaders has been instrumental in both my project success and personal growth,” Tsang recalls. “Another highlight has been the opportunity to meet team members and clients in person. Given that Catalyst has a nationwide team, meeting new colleagues in person always brings a fresh perspective and energizes the project.” This support and energy helped her grow into her leadership role at the company.

Now that Tsang has stepped into her new role, she has advice for those wanting to enter her type of work. For those interested in breaking into Business Analyst work, Tsang believes that “the key is to think from the client’s perspective.” For Project Management work, the “focus should be on making sure both the team and the client have what they need to accomplish their goals.” Strong communication and organization are cornerstones to success, and Tsang is looking forward to embracing this new challenge.

Looking ahead, Tsang is excited to lead and support her team toward success in her role as a Project Manager.

“I want to ensure I’m always available to the team, listening to their ideas, addressing concerns, and fostering collaboration throughout the project lifecycle.”

With her drive to embrace and tackle new challenges, Tsang is ready to lead Catalyst and her team to success.

Everything’s Bigger in Texas, Including Innovation!

Posted on April 6, 2025

Texas Innovation Day blog banner

Reflections from Texas Innovation Day

The Catalyst team had the pleasure of sponsoring Texas Innovation Day in Austin, Texas on March 25th! Sunshine and good barbecue were not the only highlights.

As a small business, we are so grateful for the opportunity to put ourselves out there and connect with the community. Joining Texas Innovation Day is especially meaningful as our footprint in Texas continues to grow!

Collage of photos from Catalyst's time at Texas Innovation Day.

Featured imagery includes: Welcome signs at Texas Innovation Day, the beautiful UT campus, the sponsor list, the panel on which our client Jesse of the City of Kyle spoke, and Catalyst’s very own Andrew Henson speaking.

City of Kyle 311 Highlight

One of the highlights of the event was demo-ing and discussing our City of Kyle non-emergency (311) Salesforce implementation with an engaged audience. We covered everything from the agent experience to constituent-facing channels (including surveys, email notifications, our mobile app, and our web portal), which work in tandem to enable the delivery of government services more efficiently within the City of Kyle! It was particularly timely to demo, considering the implementation had just deployed live about 2 weeks before the conference.

It’s always a privilege to hear firsthand praise from our customers, and we would like to thank Rosie Truelove, Jesse Elizondo, and Joshua Cronley of the City of Kyle for their enthusiasm in sharing their experiences with our team and our implementation. We love what we do!

Insights and Innovations

We also enjoyed listening to the panel discussion featuring our dear friend and client from the City of Kyle, Jesse Elizondo, which focused on modernizing customer service within municipalities. It was an energizing panel and reinforced why we do this work: exceptional customer service is what every constituent deserves.

Finally, the demonstrations and conversations around Salesforce’s continued investment Agentforce left us inspired to keep innovating, using AI to free up agent time for critical tasks, and enhance the constituent experience.

Events like these deepen our passion for public sector innovation and making a difference in the cities and counties we serve.

Thanks to Salesforce and Carahsoft for their event coordination and to everyone who made this event so rewarding. We can’t wait for the next one!

Stephanie Perrin’s Rise to Vice President of Delivery

Posted on March 16, 2025

VP of Delivery: Stephanie Perrin Banner

Stephanie Perrin joined Catalyst in November 2022, and in just a few short years, she has made her mark at the company, rising to her new role as Vice President (VP) of Delivery.

Stephanie Perrin headshot.

Her initial venture in the technology field started with her first job out of college, working for CBS College Sports. In the role, she was doing press releases and working with HTML and CSS for website updates. After working in the industry, she got her master’s degree in digital communications while also working at the university’s communications department. After graduation, she began to work for a string of consulting companies, gaining her footing in project management (PM).

She joined Catalyst in 2022 as a senior PM and quickly moved up into the project management office director position. Over her time at Catalyst, the project management team has expanded, with the addition of business analysts (BAs) and change management training leads. Perrin has had to navigate this growth while making sure the team is supported.

In addition to managing the team, Perrin oversees how Catalyst runs projects, from methodology and structure to technical guidelines and managing customer relationships. Internally, she also thinks about how Catalyst can make things more efficient, both for the client and for the company.

Her most memorable project at Catalyst has come from establishing more structure and process at the firm. “I have helped build out a framework for how we run projects in our methodology, which did not exist before. Now, we have more structure, baseline requirements, and templates.” This structure has not only helped Catalyst’s clients, but also “helped with the experience of our internal teams because people know what to expect.”

She attributes her success and preparation in her current role to her background. “Technical frameworks helped me be a better PM when I moved into a project management role, but also knowing how to build trust with clients. I think my background was both of those things, which helped me understand the importance of client relationships and stakeholder management.”

For those aspiring to a similar career path, Perrin stresses the importance of being a problem solver, building a relationship with a client, and understanding a business beyond the knowledge of technology.

In her new role, Perrin is looking forward to continuing to grow and empower her team. “I’ve always really believed in the philosophy of servant leadership. Trusting and empowering your teams to do their job is a really big part of having success in consulting and any kind of leadership or management role.”

With Perrin as VP of Delivery, she remains committed to empowering the people around her and driving impact for Catalyst. With a strong vision for the future, Perrin is ready to guide Catalyst to its next stage.

Reflections from South Florida Innovation Day: Advancing Government Services with Smart Solutions

Posted on March 10, 2025

Palm trees with text overlayed announcing Catalyst's sponsorship of South Florida Innovation Day.

Reflections from South Florida Innovation Day: Advancing Government Services with Smart Solutions

Last week, Catalyst had the opportunity to participate as a sponsoring vendor at the Carahsoft/Salesforce South Florida Innovation Day. It was an energizing event filled with thought-provoking discussions, hands-on technology demonstrations, and meaningful conversations with government leaders seeking to modernize their services.

Photos of our booth and speaking opportunity at South Florida Innovation Day.

 

Key Takeaways: The Future of Government Innovation


AI’s Expanding Role in Public Service

One of the dominant themes throughout the event was the increasing role of AI in government operations. Panels such as AI & Government: The Smart Revolution and Future-Proof Government: AI, Agentic AI & AgentForce highlighted how AI-driven tools are transforming public sector services by streamlining workflows, enhancing data-driven decision-making, and improving citizen engagement. Attendees showed strong interest in how AI can eliminate redundant citizen inquiries—something our AI-powered Intelligent Assistant effectively addresses by automatically pulling citizen records and guiding users to the right resources without repetitive steps.

The Need for Seamless Integrations

We engaged in many discussions about the challenges agencies face when integrating technology, particularly with ESRI/GIS systems. This was a major concern raised during Q&A sessions, and we were excited to showcase how Catalyst has successfully integrated ESRI with service request management and work order systems, a critical capability for agencies needing accurate, location-based service requests.

Unified Citizen Portals: A Growing Demand

A common frustration voiced by agency leaders was the lack of a consolidated portal where citizens can access multiple services without navigating through disjointed platforms. The No Wrong Door: The Future of Integrated Services breakout session emphasized the importance of providing citizens with an easy, centralized way to engage with government services. This aligns directly with Catalyst’s Next Level Citizen Engagement solution, which offers a single, AI-enhanced, web and mobile portal for service requests, status tracking, and communication.

Catalyst’s Role in Driving Innovation

Our booth was a hub of engaging conversations, where we showcased key features that help municipalities and agencies modernize their citizen engagement, including:

  • AI-Based Intelligent Assistant for natural language recognition, auto-translation, and image recognition to improve self-service experiences.
  • Flexible multi-channel request intake for no-code configuration for agents, web, and mobile interactions.
  • Integration with GIS and work order systems for seamless data synchronization to improve service delivery and avoid redundant dispatches.
  • Citizen engagement through web and mobile as self-service portals and apps to keep citizens informed and engaged.


Moving Forward: What’s Next?

The conversations at Innovation Days reaffirmed that governments are actively looking for solutions that are not just modern but also practical, intuitive, and easy to implement. Catalyst remains committed to working alongside agencies to ensure their digital transformation efforts result in meaningful, efficient public service improvements.

If you attended South Florida Innovation Day and would like to explore how our solutions can support your agency’s modernization efforts, we’d love to connect. Reach out to us to schedule a demo and see firsthand how Catalyst is revolutionizing citizen engagement.

Let’s build the future of government together!

Bryon Martin Promoted to Chief Technology Officer

Posted on February 26, 2025

Chief Technology Officer Bryon Martin Banner

Bryon Martin’s story at Catalyst Consulting Group is a testament to the power of innovation, dedication, and a deep understanding of client needs. Starting with Catalyst as a mobile application developer in 2018, Martin has recently been promoted to the role of Chief Technology Officer (CTO), bringing with him over 30 years of IT expertise in roles from developer to technical architect.

His journey began with a pivotal project: developing the City of Chicago’s 311 mobile application. “That project was a defining moment,” Martin recalls. “It showcased our ability to tackle complex challenges and deliver impactful solutions.” This success laid the foundation for his leadership, as he applied the lessons learned to subsequent projects, ensuring Catalyst’s solutions consistently met and exceeded client expectations.

As CTO, Martin is focused on scaling success and navigating the evolving technology landscape. He is particularly excited about the potential of AI. “AI presents incredible opportunities to enhance our solutions and deliver even greater value to our clients,” he explains. However, he also stresses the importance of a balanced approach, combining cutting-edge technology with proven methodologies.

“At Catalyst, we’re committed to understanding our clients’ unique needs and delivering solutions that drive tangible results,” Martin says. “My goal is to ensure we remain at the forefront of innovation while maintaining the trust and confidence of our clients.”

For aspiring technology leaders, Martin’s advice is clear: “Develop a broad understanding of different technologies and always prioritize the client’s needs.” He emphasizes the importance of continuous learning and a pragmatic approach to innovation.

With Bryon Martin at the helm, Catalyst Consulting Group is poised to lead the way in a rapidly evolving technological world, delivering innovative solutions that empower clients to achieve their goals.

Revitalizing Team Collaboration

Posted on November 25, 2024

During the pandemic, like many organizations, Catalyst had adapted quickly to a remote work environment. In doing so, the company tapped into a much broader talent pool across North America. This shift brought in top talent from various regions, resulting in a stronger, more diverse team.

However, as the world reopened, so did the opportunity to bring these exceptional individuals together in person, which Catalyst embraced. Last week, Catalyst brought one of its teams—who support the custom development portfolio for the Washington State Patrol—into Chicago for collaborative sessions. These inperson meetings were not just an opportunity to share ideas but a way to elevate collaboration to the next level. The team engaged in strategic whiteboarding sessions, refined key initiatives, and built rapport. The energy that came from being physically present in a room together was unmatched.

The Benefits of In-Person Engagement

While the company’s remote operations had proven effective, in-person sessions offered unique advantages by fostering enhanced communication through dynamic conversations and non-verbal cues that made discussions more productive and solutions more accessible. Strategic planning sessions benefited from spontaneous brainstorming, encouraging innovative problem-solving. These gatherings also strengthened client engagement by enabling focused discussions on improving portfolios and service offerings, building a solid foundation for future success. Additionally, being physically present fostered stronger interpersonal relationships, with team-building activities and shared moments boosting morale and longterm productivity.

Catalyst ensured that work travel to Chicago was both productive and enjoyable, providing a seamless balance of work and leisure. The team engaged in a range of activities after productive workdays, including savoring the city’s culinary delights, which offered opportunities to relax, connect, and recharge. The Chicago office was equipped with top-tier technology and comfortable meeting spaces to facilitate seamless collaboration, while thoughtful accommodations and convenient transportation options ensured that staff could focus on their tasks without distractions.

Bringing the team into Chicago wasn’t just about meetings and work sessions; it rejuvenated collaboration, connection, and creativity. Catalyst looks forward to hosting more of these in-person engagements to continue growing, delivering excellent results across teams, and strengthening client relationships.

Together, Catalyst proved to be stronger—both virtually and in person—and Chicago served as the perfect place to make it happen.

 

 

Washington State Patrol Celebrates One-Year Anniversary of Groundbreaking Firearms Background Check System

Posted on September 3, 2024

Catalyst Consulting Group is proud to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the Washington State Patrol’s (WSP) centralized Firearms Background Check (FBC) system. This milestone marks a year of significant achievement, where technology has played a crucial role in enhancing public safety
and operational efficiency across Washington State.

Over the past year, the FBC system has transformed the process of conducting firearm background checks, managing over 600,000 checks annually with newfound consistency and accuracy. By unifying data from federal, state, and local sources through our innovative “Federated Query” system, WSP has been able to close critical loopholes and significantly reduce processing times, enabling law enforcement agencies to focus on what matters most—keeping our communities safe.

The system’s impressive 40% auto-adjudication rate, surpassing the initial goal of 25%, has led to a 15% reduction in staffing needs and a substantial increase in daily processing volumes. Federal Firearms Licensees (FFLs) can now process up to 300 checks per day, a significant improvement from the previous 50, thanks to the seamless integration of retail POS systems and the digitization of standard forms.

This anniversary is more than just a celebration of a successful system launch; it’s a reaffirmation of our commitment to leveraging cutting-edge technology to solve complex challenges. We are honored to have partnered with WSP on this journey and look forward to continuing our work to support public safety initiatives across the nation. As we reflect on the past year, Catalyst remains dedicated to innovation, collaboration, and the continuous improvement of solutions that make a tangible difference in the communities we serve. Here’s to a year of success and many more to come.

Catalyst Consulting Group Wins 2023 Salesforce Partner Innovation Award for Education

Posted on September 8, 2023

The Catalyst team is honored to announce we have been awarded this year’s Salesforce Partner Innovation Award for the “Education (Consulting)” category. Our team is being recognized for its research-driven implementation of Salesforce Marketing Cloud for the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE). The award will be presented at Dreamforce in San Francisco, California on September 11, 2023.

This marks Catalyst’s fourth Partner Innovation Award win, previously taking home honors in the Public Sector category in 2019 and 2022, and Transportation in 2020.

This award-winning engagement exemplifies Catalyst and Salesforce’s shared commitment to driving innovation in education. Focused on Arkansas’ statewide Reading Initiative for Student Excellence (R.I.S.E.) campaign, Catalyst leveraged Marketing Cloud to deploy customized emails and text messages to nearly 170,000 Arkansas families. This mass outreach aimed to direct parents and caregivers to the R.I.S.E. website for early literacy resources.

In partnership with the ADE and academic researchers, Catalyst systematically tested how different communication strategies influenced family engagement with the R.I.S.E. website. Key findings showed adding text messaging, beyond just email outreach, increased click rates to the website by over 6 percentage points. The research also revealed gaps in digital access correlated to economic disadvantages, underscoring the importance of accessible means of communication, like texting.

“Government technology takes many shape, and our various Partner Innovation Award wins over the years reflect such possibilities.” said Arvin Talwar, Founder and CEO of Catalyst. “It’s an honor to contribute to an initiative centered around something as critical as early literacy and sparking a love for reading.”

We thank the ADE for the opportunity to work together, and we send our gratitude to Salesforce for the recognition. This win speaks to the nimbleness and innovation we as a small business bring to the Salesforce Partner ecosystem!