The Marek Group For Fuzzy

Direct Mail Services: A 90-Day CTO Plan

Fuzzy, here’s your new Director of IT’s first 90 days. What to fix first, where AI pays off soonest, and what the hire should own.

If the IT seat can stay open another quarter, ignore this. If it can’t, the next two minutes are worth it.

What we noticed

More than 50 years in print, direct mail and promotion, new presses on the floor, and a software platform of your own, Triptych.

Your Director of IT posting went up on November 6, and it asks one person to run the network, security, the shop floor systems, the ERP and the marketing platforms, with after-hours support when something breaks.

Your own software Triptych is your content automation and execution platform, so IT supports a product your clients use as well as your own systems. Cross channel marketing automation page
Your production data Your inventory service reads live data from clients’ ERP systems to watch production and spot demand trends. That data path needs to stay reliable and secure. Vendor managed inventory page
Your shop floor New presses and inkjet systems mean more equipment on the network, each one tied to production schedules. News page
Your compliance promise You tell clients you work under tight compliance restraints, which makes IT’s security and records work part of what you sell. About The Marek Group

Seen in your stack: Microsoft 365 · Azure · HubSpot · Google Tag Manager · Google Analytics · Cloudflare · Triptych

What your posting asks for

“Lead and manage all IT operations including network infrastructure, cybersecurity, hardware, software, and telecommunications systems.”
“Provide direct support for print production systems, shop floor technology, and ERP/MIS platforms.”
“Partner with internal teams to support marketing technology needs including automation platforms, CRM systems, and web-to-print portals.”
“Administer and optimize enterprise systems including Microsoft 365, file servers, backups, and remote access tools.”
“Plan and execute technology upgrades, system integrations, and business continuity measures.”
“Identify opportunities to improve operational efficiency through technology automation or process improvements.”

From your Director of IT posting, posted November 6, 2026.

What changes for your new Director of IT

Your new Director of IT starts with a plan: which systems stop the presses if they fail, how to get backups and security measured, where automation and AI save your production and marketing teams time soonest, and a clear line between what they own and what a fractional lead can carry while they settle in.

Your new Director of IT’s first 90 days

Three phases, each item with the reason it’s there and where that came from.

Days 1 to 30

Walk the floor and learn what stops production

1
Walk the production floor and the offices with the people who use the systems
The role works across the production floor and the offices. The first list of problems comes from the people who live with them.
Source: Director of IT posting
2
Inventory every device, license and system, with who owns each
Asset inventory and lifecycle are named in the job, and nothing else can be planned without them.
Source: Director of IT posting
3
Test a restore from backup on the file servers
Backups are only real once someone has restored from them. The test shows where continuity stands.
Source: Director of IT posting
4
List the systems whose outage stops the presses
The posting expects after-hours support for critical outages. Naming those systems first sets the order for everything after.
Source: Director of IT posting

Days 31 to 60

Policies, vendors and the marketing platforms

5
Write the short list of IT policies and security basics
The role enforces policies for security, uptime and compliance. A short written set, signed off by the CEO, gives it authority.
Source: Director of IT posting
6
Review each IT vendor and consultant against what they deliver
Vendors and consultants are part of the role. A review shows which ones to keep, renegotiate or replace.
Source: Director of IT posting
7
Sit with marketing on the automation platforms, CRM and portals
IT supports marketing technology as well as production. Knowing what marketing runs and what breaks closes a gap.
Source: Director of IT posting

Days 61 to 90

Continuity, upgrades and first improvements

8
Write the business continuity plan for the systems that matter most
Continuity is named in the role, and the list of critical systems from the first month gives it a scope.
Source: Director of IT posting
9
Plan upgrades with the print MIS and ERP in view
The posting prefers someone who knows print MIS, ERP, prepress and digital print. Upgrades should be planned around how production runs.
Source: Director of IT posting
10
Pick two process improvements with a measure each
The role is expected to find automation and efficiency gains. Two with clear measures beat a long wish list.
Source: Director of IT posting

Where AI pays off soonest

Workflows from your own business, in the order they save your team time.

1 First-line help desk answers for staff, with IT stepping in on the hard cases
IT supports users across departments with troubleshooting and training. An assistant that answers common questions from your own how-tos frees time for the infrastructure work.
Source: Director of IT posting
2 Checks on web-to-print orders before they reach production
Orders through portals can carry missing files or wrong sizes. An automated first check catches them before they cost press time.
Source: Director of IT posting
3 Early warning on demand from the ERP data you already read
Your inventory service already tracks production and demand trends for clients. AI can summarize the signals into a weekly note for account managers.
Source: Vendor managed inventory page

What the hire owns, and what a fractional lead covers

Your Director of IT owns

Network, security, hardware and telecommunications
Print production systems, shop floor technology and the ERP
Email and office systems, file servers, backups and remote access
IT vendors, policies and business continuity
Day-to-day support for every department

A fractional lead covers

Where automation and AI pay off soonest in production and marketing
The data strategy across the ERP, CRM and Triptych
Tool and vendor choices for anything AI, reviewed with you first
This 90-day plan, run alongside the hire until it’s theirs

Your first 90 days of tech leadership, planned

The plan above is yours either way.

Email Kash

We build a handful of these a month, for founders hiring now.

90 days

from the first day to a written roadmap

What to fix first, with the reason
Where AI pays off soonest
What the hire owns and what a fractional lead covers
A roadmap your team can run

Who’s building it

Kash Badami was Chief Architect of a national health information network and closed the CMS deal behind Healthcare.gov’s data infrastructure. He runs his own company on AI today.

Chief Architectof a national health information network for HHS, aligning 23 federal agencies

$27MCMS deal that became core Healthcare.gov data infrastructure

“he was singularly responsible for the company’s single largest customer by revenue - the Center for Medicare & Medicaid within the US Department of Health and Human Services.”

RLRobert Liebowitz, worked with Kash on MarkLogic’s Public Sector team; now First Ascent VenturesLinkedIn recommendation, April 2026
“Kash and I built ERT Credit together in 2021. He took my MVP and turned it into a SaaS that hit $10M ARR in twelve months.”

Jordan Anderson, CEO, PayStreetgobridgehead.ai/about

The Marek Group sales playbook, in brief

The Marek Group offers print, direct mail, promotions and fulfillment, plus its own content platform, Triptych, with more than 50 years in the business.Cross channel marketing automation page, About The Marek Group

Its Director of IT posting asks one leader to run the network, security, production systems, ERP and marketing platforms.Director of IT posting

The first 90 days: walk the floor, inventory every system, test a restore, write the policies, then plan continuity, upgrades and two measured improvements.Director of IT posting

AI pays off soonest in first-line help desk answers, order checks on web-to-print portals and demand summaries from ERP data.Director of IT posting, Vendor managed inventory page

Prepared by Kash Badami at Bridgehead · November 9, 2026 · Every source

Questions

Why a fractional lead instead of waiting for the full-time Director of IT?

You don’t have to choose. The hire owns the product and the team; a fractional lead covers the AI and software side and runs this plan until it’s theirs, so nothing waits on the search.

What does it cost?

The first engagement is a fixed price, quoted on a call once we’ve seen what you need. After that there’s an optional monthly retainer, and you can stop at any point.

Will it get in the way of the Director of IT we hire?

No. The line between what they own and what a fractional lead covers is on this page, and the plan is handed to them to run.

Where does our data live, and is it secure?

In your own accounts. Nothing runs on our side, and every tool or vendor we suggest is reviewed with you before anyone connects it.

Is this only about AI?

No. AI is one part. Most of the first 90 days is the work your posting describes, and the AI items are the ones that save your team time soonest.