Bios

Jane Burke - Senior Vice President

Jane Burke is Senior Vice President of Serials Solutions, a Seattle-based business unit of ProQuest. Jane was appointed to this position in June, 2005. Prior to joining ProQuest, Jane co-founded and served as President/CEO of Endeavor Information Systems. In addition to working as a librarian at Cook Memorial Library in Libertyville, Illinois early in her career, Jane served as President of NOTIS Systems.

Jane earned masters degrees in Library Science from Dominican University (formerly Rosary College) and in Management from the Kellogg School of Northwestern University. Always an involved member of the library community, she now serves on the Board of Governors for the Northwestern University Library and on the Board of Directors for the Dominican University Graduate School of Library and Information Science. Among her many awards, Jane was inducted into the Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame.

Robert Mercer - Vice President and General Manager

Robert Mercer is the Vice President and General Manager of Serials Solutions reporting to Jane Burke. He has nearly 20 years' experience in customer-facing executive positions in technology companies, consistently increasing customer satisfaction and developing value-added products and services. He joins Serials Solutions from Ex Libris, where he led the North America Group as President. He has worked around the world for both Dell and SAS, developing a global orientation that is expected to contribute to Serials Solutions continued expansion across the world.

Mr. Mercer holds a bachelor's degree in engineering from University College, Cardiff, in Wales, UK.

John Law - VP, Discovery Services

Joining Serials Solutions in 2008 after more than a decade at ProQuest looking after search platforms and the user experience, John Law conceived the ground-breaking Summon web-scale discovery service and directs its development and market introduction. With over 20 years of experience in multiple high-tech industries, including online media, consumer products in telecommunications, automotive and aerospace, John has contributed considerable leadership and ingenuity to the Summon service team.

Mr. Law oversees business, technical, and project leadership for building information solutions aimed at getting librarians and end-users to their information "discovery moment" effortlessly. He has conducted multiple studies examining academic researcher behaviors and barriers in access to library resources. John is also a frequent speaker at industry conferences about topics related to technology, user center design, and product development, both from a library market perspective and in relation to new product management practices.

Mr. Law holds a Masters in Engineering from Columbia University in the City of New York.

Michael Platt - Director of Library Client Services and Quality Assurance

Michael G. Platt, Director of Library Client Services and Quality Assurance, comes to Serials Solutions with over 14 years of successfully providing and managing technical systems and support.  Prior to joining Serial Solutions, he led organizations with different technical environments. His goal was always the same: to provide the end-user with the best possible service and systems to allow for the greatest productivity. In his previous positions, he built and managed global technical support and systems for end-users at CBS MarketWatch.com and was Vice President in charge of technical support & services for various software-development companies specializing in health information, payment processing and inventory tracking systems.

Michael earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from Minnesota State University.  He is a member of the Help Desk Institute and has a certification for Support Center Management and IT Services Management (ITIL).  Michael is also a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer.

Harry Kaplanian - Director of Technology

Harry Kaplanian was appointed Director of Technology in May 2009 after serving as Serials Solutions Director of Product Management for two years. Prior to joining Serials Solutions, he worked for Microsoft developing Live Search Books.

He also served as Vice President of Development at Mandarin Library Automation and previously Director of Development at SIRS Publishing. Harry graduated from Florida State University with a degree in Computer Science with an emphasis on mathematics.

Harry works with Serials Solutions Product Managers to develop new features and enhancements for Serials Solutions e-resource access and management services. His team collaborates with customers to understand the demands of the library market as it evolves and create products that answer the needs of digital librarians today.

Matt Hall - Director of Sales, Asia Pacific

Matt Hall, Director of Sales, Asia Pacific for Serials Solutions, leads the company’s Asia Pacific sales efforts and has played a critical role in the growth and development of Serials Solutions.

Since 2001, Matt has orchestrated the company’s growth to include over 2000 libraries, played a crucial role in the development of all services, and is now a member of Serials Solutions’ executive leadership team.

Prior to becoming one of Serials Solutions’ original staff members, Matt consulted organizations in the areas of technology and resource allocation.

Matt Drury - Sales Director, EMEA

Matt Drury, Sales Director, EMEA for Serials Solutions, leads the company’s EMEA sales efforts and has played a critical role in the worldwide expansion of Serials Solutions. Since joining Serials Solutions in 2008, Matt has helped unify the company's global sales force and establish a strong presence in libraries in the European, Australian, Asian, and other markets.

Before coming to Serials Solutions, Matt served as Regional Sales and Marketing Manager for Emerald Group Publishing. Matt has extensive experience in technology, publishing, and library services. He is based in the Serials Solutions Cambridge offices.

Maria Stanton - Director of Editorial Content

Maria Stanton, Director of Editorial Content, joined Serials Solutions in March 2008 with close to 20 years experience in the information industry leading editorial and technical programs. Prior to joining Serials Solutions, Maria served as Executive Editor at CCH (a business unit of Wolters Kluwer), leading the editorial team responsible for tax research publications in both print and electronic formats. Maria's career includes eight years at Gale, where her responsibilities included both product development and editorial standards for online offerings, including some of the first Resource Centers. Maria also served as the Director of Product Development for Comtex News Network in Alexandria VA, where she introduced the company's first XML data feed in 1999. Maria started her career in the editorial department at ProQuest, then known as UMI, in 1989, eventually supporting the first release of ProQuest Online.