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Bill Johns has extensive experience with all major aspects of organizations
through his service as an employee, consultant, and entrepreneur.

Although Bill was an entrepreneur most of his childhood, his professional
background began in operations in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1989, when he worked for Baxter Healthcare in one of the nation's first healthcare-efficient consumer response (ECR) centers. There he managed the cross-docking, distribution, fulfillment, and carrier management activities of this key facility and gained early knowledge of the beginning of logistics solutions associated with critical-parts management, reverse logistics, kitting, and other value-added services. Memphis was making supply chain history during this time as companies such as FedEx innovated logistics services, and Bill was exposed to these modern techniques.

In addition, while in Memphis Bill spent time working in the public and non-profit sectors by working for the City of Germantown in various capacities
associated with planning, community development, and recreation. He also worked in marketing and brand management for Ducks Unlimited, the nation's leading wetland conservation group.

During this time, Bill offered consulting services on security products and organizational performance, and also served as a consultant for the Tennessee Quality Award Program.

While pursuing an MBA in Supply Chain Management, Bill worked for General Motors in Detroit, Michigan, where he was responsible for developing supply chain strategies for GM's North American Operations group's strategic Custom Xpress Delivery (CXD) program. These activities included the developing of an activity-based costing / forecasting model to support the $13.5B dollar CXD program for Cadillac, GMC, and Chevrolet, managing intermodal carrier relationships, and evaluating supply chain management software and other technologies.

After earning his MBA in 1998, Bill worked in various roles for i2 Technologies, the leading supply chain and eBusiness software company of that time in various roles associated with his work in developing i2's Logistics and Transportation business practice. Bill developed i2's Logistics Strategic Opportunity Assessment (LSOA) methodology and served as the Director of the LSOA Group, which provided consulting solutions to a global territory.

From 1998-2001, Bill deployed the LSOA methodology in over 120 engagements of the Fortune 500 and/or strategic lead logistics providers (LLPs). In 2000, Bill led i2's account consulting team in winning the company's largest logistics and transportation contract for $25M. This achievement was during same the year i2 was recognized by Sales and Marketing Management as a "Top 25 Sales Force."

In 2001, Bill was i2's global Strategic Account Manager for its United Parcel Service (UPS) account where he expanded i2's solutions. While at i2, Bill's clients included UPS, FedEx, Barnes & Noble, Ryder Logistics, Crowley, APL, Matson, Frito-Lay, Wal-Mart, Goodyear, Cooper Tire, GM, Caterpillar, Toyota, Johnson & Johnson, North American Logistics, and many others.

Since 2001, Bill concentrated on building Bluewater Consulting™, a strategic business, technology, supply chain, and marketing service firm which operates in strategic markets and offers a wide range of solution offerings to most major industries.

Bill is an advisor to the various programs of the University of Tennessee's College of Business. He is a past speaker to the Council of Logistics Management (CLM), i2's Planet, and the University of Tennessee's Supply Chain Forum. He is the current President of CLM's East Tennessee chapter and an officer of the American Society of Public Administration's East Tennessee chapter. He is also a member of the American Marketing Association, Society of Manufacturing Engineers, and the National Defense Industry Association. Bill is also quite active with local economic development organizations and chambers of commerce.

Bill holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from The University of Tennessee at Knoxville and a Master of Public Administration (MPA) and Bachelor of Arts (BA) degrees from The University of Memphis. His focus of studies have included supply chain management, technology, global business, strategic management, leadership, quality management, public administration, city planning, public policy, counter-terrorism, criminal justice, military studies, history, and political science.

Bill's personal interests include organic gardening, traveling, scuba diving, paleontology, astronomy, and aeronautics. He and his wife and their golden retrievers reside in Farragut, Tennessee, a suburb of Oak Ridge and Knoxville, located in the valley west of the Smoky Mountains.