Bio
Michael Firlie is a 1992 graduate of the ITP program and is a Managing Partner of EDEL Consulting GmbH, based in Zurich, Switzerland, which he co-owns with his wife, Leslie (Zimmer) Firlie, also a 1992 graduate of the ITP program. EDEL Consulting provides international OSS and defense telecommunications expertise; concentrating in strategy development, system integration and project management services. While at CU, Michael wrote his thesis on the rebuilding of the telecom infrastructure of the Czech Republic, while working at the Austria Academy of Science in Vienna, Austria.
Michael has been consulting in Europe since 2003 in the field of telecommunications. He oversaw business development for Spirent Communications, a global test and measurement Company based in the UK, where he was responsible for the DACH region (Germany, Austria and Switzerland). Most recently, he served as Deputy Program Director of the OSS/BSS Integration Program for SITA, a global provider of telecom services to airlines worldwide, based in Geneva, Switzerland. He has worked as a research analyst for Frost & Sullivan in the area of defense communications and is a member of the Gerson Lehrman Council of Advisors.
In 2004, Michael retired as a Lieutenant Colonel from the US Army after 20 years of service. In his last assignment, he served as U.S. Exchange Officer to the German Army, Deputy Director for Communications Operations. Prior to that Michael served in various positions in the XVIII Airborne Corps and the 82d Airborne Division where he deployed to such locations as Somalia and Haiti.
Education
In addition to an MS in Telecommunications from CU, Michael also holds a BS in Accounting from Frostburg State in Maryland. He is also a graduate of the US Army's Command & General Staff College, the DoD's Joint Forces Staff College, and the Defense Language Institute.