Frank A. Russell
Encyclopedia
Frank A. Russell was formerly the president, CEO and founder of GeoLearning
, a managed learning services company offering on-demand Software as a Service
(SaaS) learning management system
(LMS) solutions for corporate internal training, talent management
and external initiatives
, headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa
.
in the late 1970s with the PLATO System, one of the first commercially viable CBT authoring systems. He has also worked as the director of training for a Fortune 500
company, Massey Ferguson
, and as the head of training for the State of Iowa.
Russell received his master's degree
from the University of Illinois and his bachelor's degree
from Southern Illinois University
.
Russell was named CEO of the Year at the 2009 Prometheus Awards sponsored by the Technology Association of Iowa. He was voted to Training Industry's 2007 list of the "Most Influential Training Professionals" by his peers in the industry and was the 2006 Entrepreneur of the Year by the Des Moines Business Record. In 2005, Russell received the Ernst & Young
Entrepreneur of the Year award in the Business Services category for the Central Midwest Region and was named Small Business Person of the Year for the State of Iowa by the U.S. Small Business Administration.
GeoLearning
GeoLearning, Inc., is a US company headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa, offering on-demand Software as a Service learning management system solutions for corporate internal training, talent management and external initiatives. GeoLearning is a pioneering company in the SaaS-focused approach to...
, a managed learning services company offering on-demand Software as a Service
Software as a Service
Software as a service , sometimes referred to as "on-demand software," is a software delivery model in which software and its associated data are hosted centrally and are typically accessed by users using a thin client, normally using a web browser over the Internet.SaaS has become a common...
(SaaS) learning management system
Learning management system
A learning management system is a software application for the administration, documentation, tracking, and reporting of training programs, classroom and online events, e-learning programs, and training content...
(LMS) solutions for corporate internal training, talent management
Talent management
Talent management refers to the skills of attracting highly skilled workers, of integrating new workers, and developing and retaining current workers to meet current and future business objectives. Talent management in this context does not refer to the management of entertainers...
and external initiatives
Extended Enterprise
An extended enterprise is a loosely coupled, self-organizing network of firms that combine their economic output to provide products and services offerings to the market...
, headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa
West Des Moines, Iowa
West Des Moines is a city in Polk, Dallas, and Warren counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 46,403; a special census taken in the spring of 2005 counted 51,744 residents and the United States Census Bureau estimated that 53,889 residents lived there in...
.
History
Russell has worked for more than 25 years in the training and learning technology industries. Prior to founding GeoLearning, he was president and co-founder of Excellence in Training Corporation, a producer of video-based training. Russell's extensive experience in the computer-based training field also includes research at the Center for Advanced Computation at the University of Illinois where one of the first Internet browsers was invented. He worked for Control Data CorporationControl Data Corporation
Control Data Corporation was a supercomputer firm. For most of the 1960s, it built the fastest computers in the world by far, only losing that crown in the 1970s after Seymour Cray left the company to found Cray Research, Inc....
in the late 1970s with the PLATO System, one of the first commercially viable CBT authoring systems. He has also worked as the director of training for a Fortune 500
Fortune 500
The Fortune 500 is an annual list compiled and published by Fortune magazine that ranks the top 500 U.S. closely held and public corporations as ranked by their gross revenue after adjustments made by Fortune to exclude the impact of excise taxes companies collect. The list includes publicly and...
company, Massey Ferguson
Massey Ferguson
Massey Ferguson Limited was a major agricultural equipment manufacturer which was based in Canada before its purchase by AGCO. The company was formed by a merger between Massey Harris and the Ferguson tractor company in 1953, creating the company Massey Harris Ferguson. However in 1958 the name was...
, and as the head of training for the State of Iowa.
Russell received his master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
from the University of Illinois and his bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
from Southern Illinois University
Southern Illinois University
Southern Illinois University is a state university system based in Carbondale, Illinois, in the Southern Illinois region of the state, with multiple campuses...
.
Russell was named CEO of the Year at the 2009 Prometheus Awards sponsored by the Technology Association of Iowa. He was voted to Training Industry's 2007 list of the "Most Influential Training Professionals" by his peers in the industry and was the 2006 Entrepreneur of the Year by the Des Moines Business Record. In 2005, Russell received the Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young is one of the largest professional services networks in the world and one of the "Big Four" accountancy firms, along with Deloitte, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers ....
Entrepreneur of the Year award in the Business Services category for the Central Midwest Region and was named Small Business Person of the Year for the State of Iowa by the U.S. Small Business Administration.