Who Is Tom Berliner?

     Now that’s a doggone good question. I’ve been trying to answer that for years.

     On this website, you are being introduced to Author Tom. I have always enjoyed writing. Before writing novels, I wrote or co-wrote several books on leadership, fitness and software. Talk about being eclectic! I also had a syndicated newspaper column on leadership. No matter what, I always loved utilizing my writing skills professionally as well as personally. [Carlene, my wonderful wife, knows that when she gets something in an envelope from me at holiday, anniversary or birthday time, it’s bound to make her cry because of its sentimentality.] My undergraduate degree was in English so that helped.

     Academic Tom is someone who has taught for a long time, mostly at the graduate level. I also have an MBA and a PhD, the latter in management science, specifically business policy & strategy/leadership. Aside from simply being on faculty, I was the MBA director at one university and the dean of the school of business at another. When I retired, I started teaching online for universities in California, Illinois and Wisconsin. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed teaching online. I expected to lose a lot of connection with the students but such hasn’t been the case. I continue to teach online for one California university.

     Business Tom has worked for several companies (IBM and Xerox among them), been president of another and been a director in the Arkansas Governor’s Office. However, most of my career has involved consulting around the globe, mostly for large organizations. My focus has been leadership (individual and team development) and strategic thinking. I’ve backed off consulting quite dramatically, mostly because I got tired of the travel. And, in today’s world, it’s even more difficult to travel.

     Sports Tom has loved baseball (in and after college), golf (my current passion), marathoning (I’m tired just remembering), martial arts (black belts in two different disciplines), scuba diving (around the world) and tennis (earning state rankings in the open division).

     Family Tom has an incredible wife, Carlene, who is so talented that it makes me pale by comparison. Julie, the oldest of the kids, lives just outside San Francisco, and has two girls, Samantha and Sydney, both out of college and in the workforce. Jason, the middle ‘child’ lives in Knoxville with his two girls, Mckenzie and Calliope. Bina lives in Illinois and I’m counting on her to eventually give me some grandsons…when she gets married. I’m not rushing her but, hey, I’m not getting any younger either.

     Retired Tom moved from Illinois to Crossville, Tennessee in September 2019. It is SO beautiful here. It’s known as the Golf Capital of Tennessee. We live in a resort community known as Fairfield Glade. Take a peek at https://fairfieldglade.net. We’ve made so many special friends since moving here that it’s remarkable.

     Faith Tom is my most important role. I came to the Lord in 2000. Although not a bad person by any stretch of the imagination, I, like everyone, needed forgiveness for my sins. I was blessed with an invitation from the Lord and accepted it immediately. The paths that I have taken since have been materially different from the ones I would have traversed. Carlene and I are blessed to be in His hands.

     That, then, is a quick overview of who I am, just in case you were interested. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, I am all ears, as the saying goes. You can reach me at thberliner@gmail.com. I will strive to get back with you as quickly as possible.

     Thanks for visiting this site. Thanks for your interest in my writing. And, perhaps, thanks for ordering one or more of my novels as well as sharing this website with others. You get gold stars for them all.

                                                                               Bless, Tom