SARA GORDON
Elmira,NY
Summary
Results-driven professional with over 20 years of expertise in strategic thinking, business growth, and exceeding expectations, including a decade of experience in Commercial Card. Demonstrated proficiency in product and process management, resource allocation, and leveraging technology as a strategic asset. A skilled coach and mentor, adept at partnership development, with a charismatic communication style that fosters strong stakeholder relationships. Proven ability to excel under pressure in dynamic environments, effectively manage multiple priorities and lead transition projects with a creative, innovative approach. Consistently maintains the integrity of strategic plans while driving impactful results.
Overview
17
17
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
SVP, Commercial Card Product Manager
Wells Fargo Bank
2024.05 - Current
- Leading end to end rollout of new middle market "One Card" solution, including development of detailed project plan with timelines and milestones to ensure successful launch by coordinating all phases of concept to deployment tracking processes against KPIs such as time to market and adherence to budget.
- Define and establish parameters for the new card offering including setting quantifiable criteria for product features (e.g., virtual card, digital wallet integration) and ensuring all compliance risk and fraud controls meet regulatory standards monitor and report on the performance and adoption rates post launch.
- Collaborate with key stakeholders to develop a comprehensive fee structure, rebate and rewards program aiming to achieve target profitability and customer satisfaction metrics measure success through customer retention rates rebate utilization and reward redemption statistics.
SVP, Commercial Card Expense Management Transition Director
Wells Fargo Bank
2022.09 - Current
- Lead the transition of nearly 6,000 Commercial Card customers (over 1.3B users, representing more than $10.4B in transactions YTD 2024) from a legacy platform to a new third-party expense management platform. Ensured successful migration for existing customers of all sizes by developing a detailed transition plan resulting in the completion of the project ahead of schedule by a full quarter, representing a staffing savings of $400M per month.
- Restructured the transition team to reduce overhead and improve efficiency, adding leadership roles to enhance quality control this effort led to an operational readiness (OR) rate exceeding expectations achieving 82% by a key interval in 2023, surpassing the targeted 70%. Collaborated with IT to develop and implement measurement tools, dashboards, and reports to track key performance metrics.
- Implemented new strategies and policies to achieve project objectives, including establishing governance meetings with senior business leaders and stakeholders to discuss strategy, initiatives, and progress. Managed the project budget and monitored the financial health of the expense management transition ensuring optimal staffing levels. Recognized for the project's success by receiving the only Product Management annual Partnership Award.
SVP, Commercial Card Strategies Senior Lead
Wells Fargo Bank
2021.05 - Current
- Collaborated with Card Sales and Executive teams to evaluate potential overlap of initiatives: Identified and streamlined 15% of overlapping initiatives, leading to a 12% increase in operational efficiency and $1.5MM in annual cost savings
- Maintained and delivered quarterly roadmap for all of Commercial Card Products: Ensured the on-time delivery of quarterly product roadmaps, directly contributing to a 20% increase in product launch success rates ad a 5% increase in annual revenue
- Collected competitive intelligence, market insights, white papers, and articles from industry publications, conferences, and webinars: Provided the sales team with actionable insights that resulted in the successful launch of a new product line, as well as contributing to the success of the impending transition project, generating an additional $2MM within the first year.
- Enabled sales team with relevant industry insights and value propositions: Supported the sales team with targeted industry insights, allowing us to realize a nearly 10% year-over-year increase in sales, contributing to an overall revenue growth of $3.8MM.
SVP, National Commercial Card Sales Support Leader
Wells Fargo Bank
2014.01 - Current
- Led decentralized national Commercial Card sales support leadership team in production, partnership, and professional development: successfully managed a multi-level team of over 75 employees, driving a 17% increase in annual revenue and a 10% boost in profitability through strategic leadership and targeted professional development initiatives
- Acted as trusted liaison between sales and sales support across the country: Facilitated communication and best practices sharing across sales and account management teams, resulting in a 20% improvement in cross-team collaboration and an 11% increase in client retention and attrition rates.
- Initiated, planned, and created a team in Bangalore, India: Established a new offshore team to handle overflow and routine tasks leading to a 35% reduction in operational costs and enabling the US staff to focus on high-value tasks, contributing to a 40% increase in productivity.
- Hired, created procedures, and trained all new staff: Successfully onboarded and trained 100% of new hires, reducing the ramp-up time by 40% and improving team efficiency, which contributed to an additional $3MM in annual revenue.
- Partnered with leadership in Bangalore, India to monitor, assign work, coach, and the mentor team: Enhanced team performance by over 40% through continuous coaching and mentoring, leading to improved support for the US Commercial Card sales team and an increase of overall customer satisfaction by nearly 15%.
- Streamlined business processes and boosted productivity: Established performance goals, outlined achievement processes, and leveraged existing relationships with sales, product, service, and implementation partners, resulting in an 18% reduction in inefficiencies and a 10% increase in successful coordination of complex customer programs, contributing to an additional $5MM in revenue.
Vice President, Treasury Management Sales Support Leader
Wells Fargo Bank
2008.11 - Current
- Managed Treasury Management Sales Support team: Led a team of 25 analysts and one manager, improved team performance during my tenure consistently by 15% and driving a 13% increase in Treasury-related revenue through optimized support processes.
- Oversaw hiring and training: Successfully hired and trained all new team members during my tenure, reducing onboarding time nearly 30% and increasing team efficiency. These training developments contributed to a 10% rise in revenue consistently year over year.
- Developed and delivered Treasury Analyst training program: Designed a comprehensive training program that was implemented nationwide resulting in a 25% improvement in analyst competency and contributing to an approximate 12% increase in customer satisfaction.
- Managed workflows to include complex customer issues, proposals, RFPs, customer communications, and division/market initiatives by streamlining workflow process and reducing response time by more than 42% and increasing proposal win rates by 27% leading to an additional $12MM in revenue.
- Proactively built effective relationships with Sales, Line, Product, and Implementation partners: Ensured successful coordination and completion of complex sales and implementation projects.
Assistant Vice President, Treasury Management Sales Analyst II
Wells Fargo Bank
2007.08 - Current
Education
Bachelor of Business Administration - Finance
Florida International University
Miami05.2000
Skills
- Strategy & Execution
- Written communication
- Flexible & adaptable
- Servant Leadership
- Product management
- Risk analysis & management
- Decision making
- Treasury Management
- Product development and life cycle
- Leadership development
- Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging
- Process management
- Innovative thinking
- Implementation
Certification
- Certified Treasury Professional
- APPSC, Procure to Pay Solution Consultant
- CPCP, Certified Purchasing Card Professional
- Cornell University, Executive Women in Leadership, Complex Decision Making, Product Management
Affiliations
- IOCP (fka NAPCP)
- AFP
- Rochester Women Leaders
- BSA
- Women in Banking
- Junior League of the Twin Tiers
- Horseheads School District parent representative to the Superintendent
- Member, Career Development Council, GST BOCES
Timeline
SVP, Commercial Card Product Manager
Wells Fargo Bank
2024.05 - Current
SVP, Commercial Card Expense Management Transition Director
Wells Fargo Bank
2022.09 - Current
SVP, Commercial Card Strategies Senior Lead
Wells Fargo Bank
2021.05 - Current
SVP, National Commercial Card Sales Support Leader
Wells Fargo Bank
2014.01 - Current
Vice President, Treasury Management Sales Support Leader
Wells Fargo Bank
2008.11 - Current
Assistant Vice President, Treasury Management Sales Analyst II
Wells Fargo Bank
2007.08 - Current
Bachelor of Business Administration - Finance
Florida International University
- Certified Treasury Professional
- APPSC, Procure to Pay Solution Consultant
- CPCP, Certified Purchasing Card Professional
- Cornell University, Executive Women in Leadership, Complex Decision Making, Product Management
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