A.J. Hartley

Whether it’s helping an employee who is locked out of her computer or heading a massive undertaking to roll out new technology across the newsroom, AJ adeptly handles any challenge or task with efficiency and professionalism. He successfully works across departments and shows strong leadership, challenging the status quo and asking, “How can we do this better?” He’s a strong voice at the table and someone who helps set the agenda at the Free Press. Any organization would be lucky to have AJ.

I worked with AJ during a newsroom content management system rollout at the Free Press. I came in as a consultant to conduct training and provide end user support. AJ was my main point of contact for this project. I was impressed in every way with AJ’s skills and professionalism. He was knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the project. He knew the newsroom staff extremely well and was able to provide crucial knowledge to help ensure the success of their training and a smooth rollout. Besides his technical skills, journalistic knowledge and his project management credentials, it is a genuine pleasure to work with AJ. He is extremely responsive to staff concerns and is dedicated to finding solutions to any issues that arise.

AJ comes with the highest recommendation from me and anyone who has worked with him or benefited from his expertise, his patience and his strategic thinking.

AJ has handled technology, communication and the integration of just about every medium imaginable and he does that through some of the most stressful, taxing and urgent news events and corporate situations imaginable. I have always simply been in awe of his problem-solving and smarts.

Along with AJ’s incredible skills comes a remarkable human being — which in any business setting, is as important as the skills. It would be a privilege to work with AJ again and any company will profit immensely in so many ways by his all-in and can-do performance. Truly a gem

I was a colleague of A.J.’s for 20-plus years at the Detroit Free Press, where he basically guided the newspaper into the digital age, managing huge and constant changes in computer and communications technology; patiently assisting a staff that required instruction, correction and, too often, emergency help; and managing a crew of productive technicians who clearly enjoyed working for him. In a sea of swirling changes, A.J. was a major navigator for the Free Press and freep.com, dealing daily with everyone from top executives to copy aides, all with the same even and helpful hand. He works hard, works smart and works well with others.I was a colleague of A.J.’s for 20-plus years at the Detroit Free Press, where he basically guided the newspaper into the digital age, managing huge and constant changes in computer and communications technology; patiently assisting a staff that required instruction, correction and, too often, emergency help; and managing a crew of productive technicians who clearly enjoyed working for him. In a sea of swirling changes, A.J. was a major navigator for the Free Press and freep.com, dealing daily with everyone from top executives to copy aides, all with the same even and helpful hand. He works hard, works smart and works well with others.

AJ is a visionary project engineer who brings a great mix of creativity and structure to his work. He has the courage to resist “easy” and to keep pushing for “excellent.” He’s capable of pragmatic solution, but his most impressive quality is his dogged pursuit of hardware, software, and systems that exceed expectations. On large projects and small, he often surprised me, and it was never an unpleasant surprise. I also admired the high degree of personal and professional respect that he allowed every colleague, at every level.

Some of the things I learned from AJ Hartley:
The project team is more important than the software, the hardware and all the other elements you can think of.
None of the above matters if they don’t serve the mission.
Patience is only a virtue when it’s not an excuse to tolerate inaction.
(And, of course, how to use a Palm, how to use a Blackberry, how to think about network security and integrity, etc. The list is long.)
AJ was a trusted colleague, advisor, subordinate and expert whose excellence improved the performance and capacity of the entire organization.

I had the pleasure of knowing and working with AJ for a number of years while I was in Detroit. The project that we worked most closely together on was the 300+ seat installation of a CCI NewsDesk editorial system for the Detroit Free Press. I was the V/P of Information Technology for Detroit Media Partnership and responsible for coordinating the installation. The project involved numerous departments, and presented significant challenges; it required implementing workflow changes, software customization and significant end-user training. It was a challenging project that involved coordination and collaboration among DMP, the software vendor, and the Detroit Free Press. AJ was the project leader for the Free Press, and was tasked with the greatest challenge; implementation of the new system had to be seamless, as there is no “downtime” when you publish a major metro newspaper every day. AJ was responsible for insuring that the new system workflows would work in the newsroom, and he was responsible for insuring that the entire newsroom was trained and ready to go on Day 1. AJ demonstrated professionalism, leadership and teamwork on the project. He was an integral part of the CCI implementation team and worked effectively and cooperatively with DMP and CCI personnel during this project. AJ’s participation on the team was the major reason CCI was seamlessly implemented for the Detroit Free Press both on time and under budget.