Thomas (Tom) L. Cardella, Chief Executive Officer, has been a pioneer and successful entrepreneur in the Contact Center industry for 30 years. He has two successful start-ups behind him. His first company, Access Direct, founded in 1995, grew to 2200 employees in five years, and was sold to Interactive Corp (IAC) in 2000. Access Direct was #8 on the Inc 500 list in 2000, and Tom Cardella was an E&Y Regional Winner in 1998. Tom was an E&Y Entrepreneur of the Year Award finalist in 2011, 2019, and 2020. In 2021, Tom earned the People Focused CEO of the Year Bronze Stevie Award from the International Business Awards and the Contact Center Leader of the Year Gold Award from the Stevie’s as well. After selling Access Direct, Tom went on to run PRC LLC, one of Interactive Corp (IAC) companies, with 15,000 employees around the world. In 2007, he founded TLCx. While Tom is the only investor in TLCx, he issued over 33% of the company stock to the initial leadership team and other employees. TLCx operates BPO centers in seven communities in the United States, and also maintains international operations in India, The Dominican Republic, Colombia, and The Philippines. The Company employs approximately 3,500 team members globally Fortune 1000 clients. Tom completed his Executive MBA at the University of Iowa. He is actively involved as an Adjunct Professor at The University of Iowa College of Business. Tom also actively supports and is involved with charitable organizations such as Ronald McDonald House, Special Olympics, Big Brother Big Sisters, and other organizations. TLCx is a certified Veteran-owned business by the National Veteran Business Development Council (NVBDC) based on Tom’s military service.

Bryan Gray, Chief Commercial Officer, brings over two decades of expertise in business transformation outsourcing and professional services leadership to TLCx, where he drives growth through AI-powered strategies that augment human platforms to elevate customer service innovation. With a strong background in scaling businesses, developing go-to-market strategies, and forging transformative partnerships, Bryan delivers exceptional results across multiple industries. He has successfully expanded commercial partnerships and client advocacy across sectors such as banking, fintech, retail, energy, technology, healthcare, and consumer packaged goods. Understanding and propelling relationships that significantly increase relationship value are at the core of Bryan’s focus. He further holds expertise in the area of BPO capabilities assessment and M&A strategy engagement. Bryan has a degree in Marketing Management from Rutgers University, an Executive Education Certification from University of Cambridge in Fintech Innovation, and AI learning platforms. Bryan resides in the Philadelphia area and a personal passion is mentoring and coaching multi-stage career professionals across marketing and brand positioning disciplines.

Dr. Ries is a Board-Certified Orthopedic Spine Surgeon with nearly eighteen years of clinical experience, currently practicing in Des Moines, Iowa. Born and raised in Dubuque, Iowa, he attended the University of Iowa for his undergraduate studies, medical school, and a five-year Orthopedic Surgery residency. He then completed an intensive fellowship in Spine Surgery at the prestigious Norton Leatherman Spine Center in Louisville, Kentucky. Known for his deep commitment to patient care, Dr. Ries brings a rare blend of hands-on medical expertise and visionary thinking to the healthcare call center industry. “I feel this is an outstanding opportunity to bring a different perspective to the TLCx team,” said Dr. Ries. “Having been in the medical field for nearly eighteen years, I understand the unique challenges facing medical practices and their patients and look forward to assisting the TLCx team in navigating the evolving healthcare landscape.” Based in Iowa, Dr. Ries continues to practice medicine, ensuring that a physician’s insight remains central to every decision at TLCx. Outside of work, he is an avid golfer, an outdoorsman, and enjoys spending quality time with his family.

Myka Gilchrist PHR, Director of HR, has been with TLCx for eight years. Ms. Gilchrist began on the phones and worked her way up as a Supervisor and Recruiter. After receiving her Bachelor’s Degree and PHR (Professional in Human Resources Certification) in 2016, she has become the Director of Human Resources for TLCx. Her areas of expertise include recruitment and recruitment marketing, employee recognition, employee relations, and labor law. Ms. Gilchrist has been very successful at creating a culture of collaboration and teamwork where employees can feel empowered and valued.

Kim Fox, Senior Vice President of Customer Experience, has over 15 years of experience in the contact center industry, supporting various industries including retail, telecommunications, financial services, education and publishing across inbound and outbound channels. Ms. Fox has valuable experience in operations, client services, training development and quality assurance. This level of experience enables Ms. Fox to lead highly functioning teams, focused on providing clear and accurate assessments. She works closely with clients to benchmark performance, ensuring alignment in measuring each and every transaction.

Michael Matejka, SVP Client Services, is a dynamic client services executive with 20 years of proven success in launching, managing and growing client campaigns across multiple industries. He is recognized as an expert in leading sales and care programs and understands how to engender superior performances from our associates. Prior to joining TLCx, he was regional operations manager at Access Direct, reporting to Mr. Cardella. Michael is a founding member of TLCx and consistently demonstrates his abilities to coordinate and direct new and existing business opportunities.