He joined the Katz faculty in September 1997, after five years with Federated Investors, one of the largest mutual fund complexes in the country. As an Assistant Vice President in the Advanced Information Systems division at Federated, he was responsible for information technology development and support for systems used by over 1,500 people. Before joining Federated, he consulted for Westinghouse, Alcoa, and U.S. Steel. Before entering the business and technology world, he was a full-time professional musician for over 15 years.