Building a new home is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for many consumers. Fred Baptiste understands that, which is why he is so excited to be working for a company that strives to make the home-buying process the best it can be.

As Vice President of Information Technology for AVID Ratings — which provides enterprise-level surveys, organizational consulting, and proprietary solutions that help builders create their own avid homebuyers — Fred is responsible for all operational aspects of IT, as well as strategic planning and IT initiatives. He ensures that data is presented in a way that is easiest for homebuilders to understand and put to use. “I like being able to help businesses be more profitable,” Fred says. “That’s a key motivator for me.”

What makes Fred unique among IT professionals is his ability to grasp the big picture and see “people solutions” to problems. “I’m able to look at a problem in an abstract, objective way, which helps to simplify the problem,” he says. “That approach also tends to produce the simplest, most logical solutions.”

Fred, along with the rest of the IT team, has a knack for getting at the heart of a builder’s problem. For example, instead of focusing narrowly on what a builder is asking for, team members look broadly to discover what are the real underlying concerns. Then they are able to not only provide the information the builder asked for, but also information the builder may not have known he needed. It’s all part of the company’s customer service approach to helping clients.

Prior to joining AVID Ratings, Fred was a Senior Developer and Project Manager for Northwoods Software. There he managed and collaborated on a variety of software development projects for Visa, Briggs & Stratton and the Medical College of Wisconsin in Web-based content management systems and workflow management. Fred also worked for one of the largest tour operators in the United States, The Mark Travel Corporation, and was involved in data analysis, revenue management, data warehousing, and airline inventory systems.

“I’ve always been interested in science and math,” says Fred, who earned an undergraduate degree in Mathematics and Applied Mathematics from the University of Pretoria in South Africa, and later a  Ph.D. in Mathematics (Functional Analysis) from University of Strathclyde, located in Glasgow, U.K. “I like the logical aspect of it. I like looking at specialized problems from a broader perspective and connecting the dots in a way that reveals generalized solutions.”

Fred is also passionate about technology. “Not for the sake of technology,” he says, “but for how it can help day-to-day work and activities. I love using technology to help clients realize their full potential — which usually means turning average homebuyers into lifelong and loyal customers.”

Close Window