KENNETH FARIS
Director Of Digital
Ithaca,NY
Summary
Visionary digital innovation and transformation strategist, consultant, and thought leader with 15+ years of experience in driving innovation strategy, leading cross-functional teams, advising C-suite leadership, and building strategic partnerships to deliver profitable, equitable, and sustainable innovation ecosystems and solutions at the local, regional, and national levels. Extensive experience in driving vision, strategy, and execution for digital innovation and transformation initiatives in enterprise, SMB, and start-up contexts by establishing data-driven, customer-oriented value propositions, business models, and operational processes. Creative, big-picture thinker with expertise in strategic planning, hands-on implementation, program management, problem-solving, and cross-functional relationship-building across the operations, product, customer experience, and technology functions. Innovation ecosystem builder with proven knowledge and experience in crafting strategies, programs, processes, and partnerships to develop multi-layered innovation business ecosystems encompassing enterprise, SMB, government, and community stakeholders. Excels in working with, advising, and influencing C-suite stakeholders and other executive leaders in global enterprise organizations to establish consensus and drive support for digital transformation and business model innovation/evolution initiatives.
Overview
15
15
years of professional experience
Work History
Director of Digital Engagement
EPAM Systems
Ithaca, NY
10.2021 - Current
- Provide strategic direction, program leadership, and technical expertise for large-scale digital innovation initiatives, with a focus on enhancing clients’ UX/UI capabilities and building new business ecosystem-driven solutions
- Convene, guide, and supervise cross-functional innovation teams to formulate and deliver digital innovation and transformation strategies tailored to clients’ unique business requirements and technology infrastructure
- Establish and maintain robust relationships across multi-layered local, regional, and national business ecosystems to gather and share insights/expertise that inform innovation and continuous improvement in client-focused business offerings.
Senior Engagement Manager
Tata Consulting Services
Battle Creek, MI
05.2019 - 10.2021
- Served in a multi-faceted leadership and consulting role with responsibility for driving strategies, programs, processes, and partnerships to enable complex, large-scale CX transformation initiatives for diverse enterprise clients
- Planned and executed multimillion-dollar, multi-site, and multi-brand CX innovation/transformation programs involving organizational restructuring, PMO setup and development, process improvement and automation, and new systems implementations
- Cultivated and maintained consultative relationships with clients to acquire a detailed understanding of their digital/CX transformation needs, set expectations on project timelines and deliverables, negotiate contract changes, and drive seamless solutions delivery
- Collaborated cross-functionally with internal stakeholders and executive leadership in client organizations to establish alignment and maintain clear communications on CX transformation roadmaps, goals and metrics, and change management processes
- Built a PMO Office from the ground up to deliver a comprehensive operational framework for a large-scale CX transformation project, in addition to crafting a new CX solution that enabled remote digital selling for a client during the pandemic
- Owned and streamlined all aspects of the project lifecycle (including budgets, scopes, schedules, issue management, and reporting) while ensuring adherence to PMO best practices to maximize cost reductions, quality improvements, and operational performance
- Developed a high-performing digital/CX consulting team by establishing clearly defined roles and responsibilities, integrating a robust performance management framework, and providing personalized mentoring and coaching.
Digital Transformation & Innovation Strategy Manager
Accenture Interactive
Chicago, IL
05.2014 - 05.2019
- Played a critical leadership role with accountability for driving strategic planning, tactical execution, and day-to-day management of digital transformation and innovation initiatives through close, consultative engagement with C-level executives in client organizations
- Led cross-functional, globally distributed teams in driving digital innovation strategy and solutions delivery while coaching junior team members on digital experience/content innovation technologies and best practices
- Defined and established comprehensive, customer-oriented digital innovation/transformation plans, including vision, goals, KPIs, go-to-market strategies, business models, capability maps, and delivery roadmaps
- Applied strong analytical, problem-solving, and relationship-building skills to collaborate effectively with C-level executives on business needs analysis, strategy formulation and project planning, and solutions delivery processes
- Leveraged insights from analysis of digital transformation trends and capabilities to provide thought leadership to client executives on optimal digital solutions offerings and secure funding and buy-in for digital transformation roadmaps
- Conducted detailed analysis of clients’ current business processes and systems to formulate future state vision, objectives, success factors, baseline costs, and savings targets for digital/business transformation programs
- Organized and facilitated all project-related meetings and communications (including kickoffs, design thinking workshops, and project management meetings) to facilitate stakeholder alignment and build solutions tailored to each client’s long-term goals
- Partnered with stakeholders across the innovation ecosystem to drive R&D efforts for rapid innovation pilot programs that resulted in high-level digital product prototypes that offered practical solutions to complex, multi-faceted business challenges.
Sales Director
Polyvista
Kalamazoo, MI
07.2012 - 03.2014
- Spearheaded the planning and execution of sales, go-to-market, and account management strategies to acquire, onboard, and retain Fortune 1000 enterprise clients for Polyvista’s cloud-based SaaS analytics solution
- Devised and implemented sales strategies targeting executive leadership (Directors, VPs, and EVPs) across enterprise organizations in diverse verticals, resulting in long-term business relationships and a multimillion-dollar pipeline
- Directed teams of up to 6 business development representatives, including providing regular training on sales and client engagement best practices as well as Polyvista’s product offerings to empower teams to effectively drive new solution sales
- Created and implemented new sales management processes and tools to accelerate the sales cycle, improve lead conversion rates, and optimize customer experience across all touchpoints.
Sales Executive
CFI Group
Ann Arbor, MI
12.2008 - 07.2012
- Strategized and executed business development and client acquisition initiatives for CFI Group’s cloud-based customer satisfaction analytics solution, resulting in the onboarding of multiple Fortune 1000 enterprise accounts with 100% client retention
- Secured and onboarded the company’s first-ever retail client, in addition to initiating, negotiating, and closing its first-ever co-branded engagement (with ACSI)
Sales Director
Shaun Jackson Design, Higher Ground Gear
Ann Arbor, MI
Mortgage Banker
Quicken Loans
Livonia, MI
Financial Advisor
American Express
Ann Arbor, MI
Education
Master of Business Administration (MBA) -
Bachelor of Arts (BA) - English Language & Literature
Corporate Innovation: Strategies for Leveraging Ecosystems MIT
Management Advanced Design Thinking Certificate IDEO U - undefined
Skills
Revenue and profit maximization
Customer satisfaction
New Business Development
Marketing strategy
Sales expertise
Vendor management
Territory Management
Staff Management
Account and territory management
Business development and planning
Team building expertise
Effective negotiator
Strategic planning
Excellent listening skills
Relationship building and management
Critical and creative thinking
Accomplishments
- Spearheaded the development and implementation of a PMO Office while at Tata Consulting Services to enable seamless execution of a large-scale CX transformation initiative covering 12 sites and 13 foundational capabilities
- Led onshore/offshore teams of up to 50 personnel in implementing multimillion-dollar (up to $15M+) digital transformation and innovation projects for enterprise clients while at Accenture Interactive, delivering ~30% digital revenue growth for clients
- Directed a 6-member business development team at Polyvista in acquiring and onboarding 14 Fortune 1000 clients (including the company’s largest account to date), contributing to 2.5x growth in new annual revenue
- Managed enterprise clients such as Harley Davidson, Brunswick Co, L’Oréal, Coca-Cola, Libbey Glass, PPG, Starbucks, Eaton, Zebra, Parker Hannifin, Carrier, Whole Foods, Schneider Electric, Saputo Foods, Reynolds Corp, and Thermo Fisher.
Work Availability
monday
tuesday
wednesday
thursday
friday
saturday
sunday
morning
afternoon
evening
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Timeline
Director of Digital Engagement - EPAM Systems
10.2021 - Current
Senior Engagement Manager - Tata Consulting Services
05.2019 - 10.2021
Digital Transformation & Innovation Strategy Manager - Accenture Interactive
05.2014 - 05.2019
Sales Director - Polyvista
07.2012 - 03.2014
Sales Executive - CFI Group
12.2008 - 07.2012
Sales Director - Shaun Jackson Design, Higher Ground Gear
Mortgage Banker - Quicken Loans
Financial Advisor - American Express
F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business - Babson College - Master of Business Administration (MBA),
University of Michigan - Bachelor of Arts (BA), English Language & Literature
- Management
Advanced Design Thinking Certificate IDEO U,