Anthony (Tony) Briggs is the founder and President of Grey Matter Connections, Inc. He is a CIO who has survived many battles. He and his team are innovative thinkers who understand how technology can help unlock business value. With a collaborative, intuitive approach toward client service that values personal relationships, Anthony Briggs and his team helps to create practical roadmaps for corporations in accordance with business objectives and technology strategy, ensuring innovation and security at every turn. Foundational to Tony Briggs’ leadership is over 20 years’ experience operating in the CIO advisory and information technology governance space with award winning accomplishments that position client brands toward growth while mitigating inefficiencies and security compromises. Tony has also served as a leader, President and COO of a software company delivering SaaS products to the healthcare industry.

Mr. Briggs was recently the Vice President of IT Global Solution Delivery with Collective Brands, Inc., and the Divisional CIO of Payless ShoeSource Worldwide, Inc. within Collective Brands, Inc.  He brings to his current roles decades of industry experience that is both wide-ranging and deep.  A former board member of the CIO & Logistics Forum and published author of several computing textbooks and IT manuals, Mr. Briggs unites theory and practice in all the leadership roles he has held throughout a storied career.

Mr. Briggs graduated with a Bachelor of Science from the United States Military Academy at West Point with an additional Field of Study in German language, where he was the Equestrian Team Captain and President of the Cadet Fine Arts Forum.  In the Army, he was posted to various duties, from that of an infantry platoon leader to those of the battalion support & logistics officer and battalion air operations officer, earning both Army Commendation and Achievement medals.  Following his service, Mr. Briggs founded Star-Tel Enterprises, Inc., an IT consultancy, and worked as an MIS Director and Program & Project Manager for many firms over the course of eight years.  During this time, he also spent several semesters teaching computer science and data processing at Johnson Community College in Overland Park, Kansas.

Mr. Briggs next rose to become Best Buy’s Senior Director of Information Technology over Infrastructure, Security, Operations, HR and Finance Systems, where he would work for nearly a decade through 400%+ company growth as Best Buy expanded from an $8B regional consumer-electronics brick and mortar retailer to become a $40B international and multi-channel retailer.  He was honored in Chain Store Age magazine’s “Rising Stars: Top 40 Under-40 Retail Executives” feature in January of 2006.

Always active, Mr. Briggs recently founded Grey Matter Connections, Inc. in addition to keeping busy with the many philanthropic causes he champions, such as Gary’s House, which helps raise money to house the families of those receiving medical treatment at Mercy Hospital or the Maine Medical Center, as well as the Payless Foundation and the Best Buy Children’s Foundation.

Worldwide Association of Notable Alumni Member Anthony D. Briggs can be found on the Who’s Who Directory, where he is looking forward to networking with you.