Petroleum Marketing Group
Petroleum Marketing Group (PMG) owns, operates, and supplies over 800 gasoline, food service, and convenience store retail and wholesale locations across eleven states, but primarily in the Mid-Atlantic region. Over 1,600 employees are part of the PMG team that makes all of this work, and our Information technology (IT) team has earned its reputation as top notch within that PMG family. Our company manages hundreds of thousands of purchase transactions routinely; a gasoline delivery is made by our transportation company every five minutes around the clock and 365 days a year from New Jersey to Tidewater, Virginia, and all aspects of information technology and related support are provided by Support Functions. Support Functions superbly manages all of this through highly skilled professionals, a positive and uplifting approach, and they treat this company as their own!
Two years ago, and prior to Support Functions joining the PMG team, we had an IT infrastructure that had evolved very quickly through aggressive growth and acquisitions over a short period of time. Although the people within that group were dedicated and hardworking, the size, scope, skill set requirements, and tempo of that environment clearly called for us to be at a greater level of overall proficiency. In addition to the day to day operational requirements, we have successfully completed over twelve major acquisitions within the past ten years, with four of those executed last year alone. With this type of aggressive growth model being the future norm, we realized the need for a cohesive infrastructure that is “task organized”, flexible, and innovative to manage both the acquisitions and the maintenance of those assets and functions. The depth of knowledge, infrastructure, leadership, and IT vision Support Functions offered was the solution.
Support Functions, under the leadership of Barry Kamrad, stepped up quickly and demonstrated one of their greatest attributes, “getting things done as a team”! With several major acquisitions pending at the time, over twenty major IT projects on hold but needing to be completed, and the need for stabilizing the department’s infrastructure, Barry Kamrad and the entire Support Functions team met, and continue to meet those challenges head on. Within the first year they produced major impactful process and infrastructure improvements, and many of the delayed projects were able to be started. Our infrastructure was bolstered, our information backup and security was duplicated and protected, and automation was begun. Of particular note was that the Support Functions’ leadership style was executed in a manner that allowed all of our employees and leadership team to see Support Functions as “part of PMG”, not a typical “9-5” third party contractor! The tremendous operational need for IT leadership, direction, vision, technology and implementation enhancement, and dedication have all been met or surpassed by the Support Functions team, and to go above and beyond the normal scope of responsibilities willingly, constructively and always with the intention of helping.
It has been a sheer pleasure to work alongside the Support Functions team! They are one of the most efficient, professional, proficient, caring, and “heartfelt” groups I have had the privilege of knowing. The team is results driven, they produce consistently, they normally surpass their timeline deliverables and objectives, they truly care, and they are dynamic. We cannot say enough about this group that would accurately reflect their value to this company, and to express their level of dedication and contribution both strategically as well as in day to day.Truly a superb group of go getters and IT professionals with a higher calling and who love what they do, and do what they love very well!
Andre L.
V.P. Operations
Petroleum Marketing Group
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