Stephanie Wernet

Experience

• 

  General Motors

  Jan 1985 - Jan 1986

  Summer Intern

  Two summers working in the Robotics & Artificial Intelligence (AI) R&D department.

• 

  IBM

  Sept 1988 - Aug 1991

  Senior Associate Engineer

  Built military training simulators for the Federal Systems Division (since sold to Loral, since sold to Lockheed).

• 

  Trilogy

  Jun 1992 - Aug 1992

  Director of Sales

  Summer position developing the new telecommunications equipment vertical.

• 

  McKinsey & Company

  Sept 1993 - Sept 1997

  Engagement Manager

  Served clients in automotive, steel, electronics and other manufacturing industries, focusing on marketing strategy for revenue growth and process re-engineering for cost savings.

• 

  Reynolds & Reynolds

  Oct 1997 - Jan 2000

  Senior Director of Marketing and E-Commerce

  Hired to turn around struggling partnership with Microsoft to deliver CarPoint.com. Held P&L responsibility for a multi-million business managing all dealer-related activity. Grew customer base 500% and doubled monthly net sales run rate in 2 years.

• 

  EyeVelocity

  Feb 2000 - Sept 2001

  Vice-President of E-Commerce, Product Development and Operations

  Recruited to this dot-com to expand the business model onto the Internet and new vertical markets. Sold directly to corporations and at industry trade shows. Led design of Internet application in 4 months.

• 

  Goodyear

  Oct 2001 - Dec 2008

  Led a global IT organization of 1,000 staff worldwide, supporting a $20 billion manufacturing organization with 72,000 employees. Reduced annual global spend 15% in spite of acquisitions, SOX, and scope increases.• Turned 9 independent IT organizations into a cohesive global function. Established global hardware standards and set worldwide IT strategies.• Gained business support for a strategy of global standardization focused on common data, processes, and systems including a master data initiative, while supporting global business models and ROI cases. SAP designated Goodyear a Global Alliance Account.• Reduced annual cost of outsourced Akron mainframe by two-thirds in 6 years.• Created Vendor Management to manage IT suppliers, saving multi-millions over 3 years.• Sponsored a volunteer organization tasked to improve project management by developing a Goodyear-specific curriculum which counted towards PMP certification. Became profitable when outside corporations were willing to pay to attend. 500 attendees in 3 years.• Let IT priorities in the design of the new Goodyear HQ complex, including a multi-million dollar data center.•Won the CIO 100 award from CIO Magazine in 2006. Show less

  • Vice-President of eCommerce

    Mar 2008 - Dec 2008

  • Vice-President of Information Technology and CIO

    Aug 2003 - Feb 2008

  • Director of Customer Service for North American Tire

    Jan 2003 - Jul 2003

  • Director of eBusiness for North American Tire

    Oct 2001 - Dec 2002
• 

  Takai & Company

  Jan 2010 - Jul 2024

  CEO

  Launched a consulting firm, specializing in marketing including branding, websites, SEO, SEM, email campaigns, and trade shows. Served 20 clients with annual revenues up to $100 million. Managed up to 5 employees and a dozen subcontractors.• Developed marketing strategy and designed booth for small business’s first trade show. Selected and managed vendors for rebranding and booth decor. Won Best Booth against 300 other vendors.• Designed, built, and managed marketing and e-commerce websites, including an Ohio chapter of a healthcare provider organization, whose website placed 2nd in an annual national competition.• Created online advertising campaigns on Google, Yahoo!, Bing and LinkedIn.• Managed client trade shows using a disciplined end-to-end process that includes show selection, marketing, booth design, sales staff training, lead generation, and 100% follow-up activity. • Mentored VP Information Technology of a $500 million automotive assembly manufacturer and distributor. Show less

• 

  Cuyahoga Community College

  Aug 2010 - May 2011

  Adjunct Professor of Medical Assisting

  Taught administrative procedures for Medical Assistants including fundamentals of billing, customer service, insurance, law, ethics, patient records, scheduling, and computer use.

• 

  Innovative Devices

  Dec 2013 - Oct 2016

  CEO

  Launched flagship product, the Mycestro, a patented, finger-wearable computer mouse. Managed all business functions including business development, marketing, customer service, QA, finance and HR while providing direction to R&D.

• 

  Breakthrough Schools

  Jan 2016 - Aug 2024

  Chief Information Officer (CIO) and VP Purchasing

  Recruited to turn around and lead IT department supporting up to 500 staff and 4,000 scholars across 9 buildings with 7 full-time staff. Developed IT strategy and transformed department within 4 years, just in time to weather major disruption from COVID.• Prioritized security and presented strategy to Board. According to Education Week, 80% of K-12 schools were hit by ransomware last year; Breakthrough was one of the 20% who were not hacked.• Increased internal customer satisfaction with IT, from lowest-ranked function to highest-ranked.• Simplified and standardized tech environment: reduced 48 makes / models of PCs to 1, and 4 multifunction vendors to 1 via rigorous RFP process. Migrated all phones to single Mitel system. Integrated separate LANs into one MPLS.• Reduced costs by bringing outsourced functions in-house and initiating disciplined purchasing, including centralized buying, volume discounts, competitive negotiations, and long-term vendor relations.• Led multiple system rollouts, including strategic selection, purchasing, and implementation. Largest system launch, Salesforce, is Breakthrough’s first CRM system; selected as a “Lighthouse Account.”• Deployed technologies to support external customers (scholars and families) when pivoting to 100% distance learning during COVID. Procured and distributed Chromebooks / iPads / hotspots to all scholars. Created a Virtual Call Center (VCC) to support families, handling up to 150 calls per day: built queues and hunt groups, trained staff on telephonic customer service. Built public-facing website to provide families with self-service support.• Improved family experience by launching AI chatbot in 2023, replacing the VCC at lower cost. Provides answers to families with technical and other questions.• Due to IT team’s small size, acted as lead programmer and integration engineer. Wrote utilities in PowerShell for Microsoft Active Directory and Exchange, VBA for Excel, and Google Apps Manager. Show less

• 

  City of Cleveland - City Hall

  Aug 2024 - now

  Chief Innovation and Technology Officer (CITO)

  Responsible for* Information Technology Services* Urban Analytics & Innovation* 311 call center