Diane Thomason
Community Relations Specialist
A successful entrepreneur and seasoned senior executive, Diane has spent the past 17 years leading and managing four regional IT services companies. The companies served a variety of industries in the middle market, with an emphasis on medical and health services. Offering total client solutions, Diane's companies' services included developing and purchasing hardware and software, network design and installation, security, troubleshooting, and a full range of ongoing services related to network and desktop computing. Diane's particular expertise involved working closely with client executives to design, develop, and implement technology solutions, serving as a network administrator and outsourced provider for many clients either too small for a full-time IT department or large enough (and with a significant dependence on IT) to warrant a permanent external provider. At Wallace Business Systems, for example, which Diane bought in 1998, she created an outsourced technology services department for the East Texas Medical Center and Trinity Mother Frances Hospitals in Tyler, Texas.
Besides her extensive sales and client servicing experience in the corporate sector, Diane has played a key role in numerous nonprofit and charitable institutions. These include Bethesda Health Clinic, a healthcare organization for the working uninsured, for which she facilitated the donation of a medical records software application and donated the computer installation of the application; Greater East Texas IT, a regional IT professional association; the Executive Advisory Council of The University of Texas at Tyler School of Business and Technology; The Women’s Fund, an area philanthropic group; and the Tyler Executive Women’s Network, an organization for professional women. In addition, Diane serves as co-chair of the technology committee for the Tyler Area Chamber of Commerce, which promotes economic development while helping existing businesses take advantage of local technological capabilities. Diane’s most recent volunteer accomplishment was overseeing the telemarketing effort in the election campaign for her city's new mayor, Barbara Bass.
Educated at The University of Texas, Austin, Diane is a certified Novell Network Engineer (CNE).