Leroy Burns
CTO | Cloud & Infrastructure | Cybersecurity
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About
I am a technology executive with over 15 years of experience leading enterprise IT transformations in the hospitality and gaming sectors, specializing in aligning complex IT ecosystems with strategic business objectives. I have a proven record of building high-performing teams, implementing scalable cloud and ERP/HCM solutions, and modernizing digital infrastructures to deliver measurable ROI, operational resilience, and improved customer experience. My approach combines strategic foresight with hands-on leadership, ensuring IT initiatives directly support revenue growth, regulatory compliance, and enterprise scalability.
Throughout my career, I have led multimillion-dollar infrastructure modernization projects, negotiated complex vendor agreements, and deployed high-availability systems that reduce downtime, enhance cybersecurity, and optimize operational efficiency. I excel at bridging executive strategy with technical execution, translating organizational goals into actionable technology roadmaps, and fostering cross-functional collaboration across IT, operations, and business units. My expertise spans cloud transformation, disaster recovery, PCI/SOX compliance, enterprise architecture, and service management, enabling organizations to thrive in highly regulated and competitive environments.
Experience
- Spearheaded the successful execution of a $10M enterprise-wide infrastructure modernization initiative at Harrah’s, reducing overall operating costs by 30%.
- Negotiated complex vendor agreements and managed procurement strategy at Harrah’s, delivering $2M+ in cost savings while generating $500K+ in additional revenue.
- Built, developed, and led a 48-member IT department at Harrah’s, significantly improving system resilience by reducing downtime by 35%, accelerating incident response by 25%, and decreasing annual security breaches by 70%.
- Led a comprehensive overhaul of Harrah’s wireless infrastructure to eliminate coverage gaps, increase bandwidth capacity, and ensure seamless high-speed connectivity, resulting in 99.99% network uptime and a 75% reduction in guest Wi-Fi complaints.
- Reinforced disaster recovery capabilities at Atlanta Marriott by executing rigorous semi-annual DR drills, safeguarding 77 mission-critical systems from data loss and reducing system recovery time by 40% across all business units.
- Directed the end-to-end deployment of a VMware high-availability infrastructure at Westin Peachtree, improving system stability, reducing failure incidents by 90%.
Education
Master of Science (MS) in Information Security & Assurance, Western Governors University
Bachelor of Science (BS) in Information Technology, Western Governors University
