The Power of Networking

The Power of Networking

October 8, 2009

Hello, my name is Alex Charles Elie, aka ACE, and welcome to my first blog.  I’m 46 years old and I’ve been through a lot in my life.  I’ve always wanted to write a book about my many experiences,    figuring someone could learn something from my successes, failures and everything in between. I’ve started a few times and I have stories here and there and I decided to start compiling them in a blog so I could get feedback and see if anyone would be interested in what I had to say, so here goes nothing…

I figured I’d start working backwards and tell you what happened to me last night, but first a little background on the ACE man.  I was born in Brooklyn in 1963 to Gerald & Jacqueline Elie, who named me Alex Charles Maurice Elie.  My two middle names came from my two Grandfathers.  Being the first born, they both wanted dib’s as a namesake, so I got them both.  When I was young, I  noticed an ACME truck in a parking lot and realized that those were my initials. Being a huge Bugs Bunny/Road Runner fan I thought how cool is that and started using those initials.  In 7th grade, I was writing stuff on the blackboard before my math teacher arrived and he asked me why I wrote ACME on the board and I told him that they were my initials.  He then put his hand over the ‘M’ and said, if you drop the ‘M’, your initials would be ACE, and then my nickname was born.  It really wasn’t my true nickname until I went to StonyBrook University in the fall of 1981.

National Lampoon’s Animal House was a big influence for many college bound   students in 1981, and the students’  in Langmuir dorm were no exception.  We had a naming ceremony and all the      incoming freshmen were given nicknames.  If you already had a cool nickname, and we all approved, that’s what was used, if not, you were assigned one, with most of them from the movie with names such as Belushi & Flounder.  So when they came to me, I offered up ACE and it was unanimously approved, and from then on I was known as ACE.

Anyway, back to last night.  I’m an IT (Information Technology) Executive, formally working for Citibank, NA.  I was a Vice President working as a Group Manager and was instrumental in setting up their CBNA Project Management Office.  I was transferred to a newly formed Audit & Compliance team and set up new processes and procedures to ensure that Citibank pass their 2009 internal audit before   getting laid off earlier this year.  I was given a six month severance package which included outplacement services at Right Management.  The 3 most important things I learned from them and my training as a Licensed Real Estate Agent is Networking, Networking and Networking.  I was already members of PMI and AITP and they both had networking parties at the FOUR Food Studio in Melville.         

(515 broadhollow road, Melville , NY 11747 631.577.4444 http://www.fourfoodstudio.com/)

I’ve been there a few more times and last week the owner sent me an invite to a free party last night to kick off their TGFM   promotion, Thank Goodness Four      Mondays, with free drinks until 9:00. After the free drinks were over, I ordered a 4 cheese flatbread appetizer with shrimp which the barmaid accidentally gave to someone else.  20 minutes later they apologized and gave me a free beer and another pizza. They also delivered a pizza to the couple next to me.  Being alone, I offered to share and we all shared all 3 pizzas. We introduced ourselves and it turned out that Bob has a band called Copycat that plays at the Riverview in my home town of Oakdale.  They are an all white band that play Soca, Calypso, Reggae, Top 40, 80s and Rock-n-roll.  I looked up their website on my PALM Treo, www.copycatband.info and found out they are playing next at Macarthur Park in Rockville Centre on Oct 17th and at El Mariachi in Rockville Centre for a Halloween party on the 31st.  Then I asked him what he did in real life and he told me that he ran an  IT (Information Technology) Department for an Aerospace company and asked me what I did.  I told him that I just got my Real Estate License to cover myself between IT Consulting jobs and that I was a Senior IT Project Manager.  His eyes lit up as I handed him my ACE Consulting Expeditors IT Networking card and we talked shop for a bit.  I told him that I used to work for Loral Fairchild Systems and the next thing I know, we are setting up time for an interview later this week.  I’ll let you know what happens on my next blog.  Please feel free to leave comments with your networking success and failures…

Thanks…

The Blogging ACE

Alex C. Elie, Realtor, MBA
Licensed Sales Associate
Century21 Prevete Real Estate

70 Manetto Hill Mall
Plainview, NY 11803-1302

Tel/Fax: 800-223-1670
(C) (H) 631-504-2637
Email: RealtyACE@Optimum.net

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ACE Consulting Expeditors, Inc.
Alex C. Elie, MBA
Principal / Senior Project Manager
169 Commack Road - Suite 374
Commack, New York 11725-3442
Tel/Fax: 800-223-1670
(C) 631-504-2637
EMail: C21RealtyACE@gmail.com

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