Describe your industry experience:
Donna has over 25 years of experience leading global organizations ranging in size $2M to $40B in both private and public sectors. Donna has spent the majority of her career in diverse roles with increasing levels of leadership which include functional responsibilities such as strategy, business development, sales, marketing, engineering, operations, analytics, business excellence and transformation, quality and general management.
Donna’s industry experience in these leadership roles include the following global offerings: High Tech/IT, Telecom network services, Healthcare, Retail, Media/Entertainment, Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), Banking/Investments, Legal/Regulatory (to include export control, SOX, OSHA, FARs, SSAE (SOC 1, SOC 2 & SOC 3), SAS 70, ISAE3402 and other compliance regs), Tax/Audit/Accounting, Financial Services, Human Resources, Utilities, Nonprofit/NGO, State and Local Government, Federal Government/Contracting, Consulting, Transportation, Manufacturing, and Education. Most of leadership experience has been in operations with about 10 years in general management experience.
Describe your functional experience:
Donna has the transitional responsibilities of federating all of Xerox’s quality assurance, quality control, analytics, environmental health and safety, and quality management systems. Donna was a transition leader with operations assurance for $19B BPO company (Xerox). Other key roles she has had include a Senior Program Manager with P&L for $2.3B (Federal Government business value) – in a $3.4B, product/manufacturing firm (Boeing), and as an International Program Manager/Capture Manager – (trail blazed new business) delivered $53.8M firm fixed-price contract to the Saudis with a return on sales of 22.4% — a $40B systems integrator company (Lockheed Martin).
In addition, Donna has led and managed major transformations which include:
• Starting up a quality assurance, analytics and internal audit program (and sustaining it for 5 years) within legacy ACS organization to improve customer experience Xerox which yielded the identification of 33 best practices, $121M in cost savings, $10M YOY savings.
• Implementing an Enterprise Resource Program (world’s largest PeopleSoft implementation) to replace 38 payroll, benefits and HR systems with 976 sites, impacting 280,000 lives (active employees and retirees), and reducing 4800 employee base to a single shared shares group in Florida of 98 employees for Lockheed Martin. The yield was a YOY cost savings of $240M. The system is still in operation today; went operational in 1999.
Currently, Donna is the Chair of the Executive Steering Committee for 100 Women Who Care – Frederick, a nonprofit philanthropy group, and sits on the Board of Directors for St Luke’s Cemetery Association. Donna understands the legal responsibilities of a board direction and the governance processes of a public company.
Donna is also an active member in the Women in Technology’s Mentor-Protégé program. Previously, Donna was the President of the DC/NOVA and Maryland Chapter of the Women’s Alliance, A Xerox-sanctioned affinity group for developing women personally and professionally for upward mobility.
Describe your key business transactional experience:
Donna has a history of delivering record breaking P&L performance. Donna stands out among her peers for being able to accomplish what others think is impossible. She is quick to assimilate into new cultures, industries, market segments and business models with a reputation of being able to get it done. Several C-level leaders have said that Donna has been known for taking on new challenges that require tough, decisive actions to accomplish significant results. Donna was been recognized for tangible and intangible results by being awarded restricted stock and President Club awards.
In Donna’s working experience, she has been involved with two successful start-ups: Wisor Telecom and RoxTel Corporation. For Wisor, Donna developed a plan, strategy and set of processes that enabled them to develop a stronghold in the market and make them a golden acquisition target by a company that is not publically traded as Synchronoss. For RoxTel, Donna was able to set up the plan, strategy and processes as well as develop the product and services, sell them and managed operations and services, to convert the start-up into a serious business concern during an economic slump. She was able to outlast many of her competitors in the market and sell the company, which is still maintained as a boutique firm. During both of these experiences, Donna presented strategy and the business plan to the Board of Directors and Advisors and also potential investors. Donna was involved intimately with reviewing term sheets and issuing stock.
At Xerox, Donna has consulted on technology assessments for mergers and acquisitions, participating in key bids and proposals which involved start-up technologies, and recommended candidate companies for acquisition and merger. In addition, Donna often introduced new technologies and projects she was involved in with her research at University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Donna also consulted and participated in transition planning for company split. Donna has been very active in giving input and feedback on how the affinity groups would need to be funded and run concerning the split. Donna also provided assessments for offshoring development and test. Donna was also involved in assessing current IT infrastructures and providing recommendations for updates and maintenance. Also, when ACS was acquired by Xerox, Donna was the branding champion for ACS to ensure smooth customer experience results.
What is the most important skill you bring to a corporate board?
Donna excels in developing innovative strategies and execution plans that provide shareholder value. While being at Xerox, Donna was able to put a global footprint on quality in results she created through innovative winning strategies. With Donna’s leadership, the customer retention rate improved from 32% to 85%, and the customer experience ratings has significantly improved.
Donna has the unique gift of being both strategic and operational, and can speak both languages in sharing the measures coming out of her analytics operation. She is a critical thinker and a quick learner with the ability to swiftly assimilate data and information to make sound decisions in highly complex situations. She has a reputation for building relationship with clients and colleagues at all levels of management, and successfully negotiating beneficial outcomes with troubled accounts. She is adept in working collaboratively among cross-site functions and sites globally, and in a matrix structure to gain expertise, diversity of thought and a consensus in turning strategic goals into reality.
Donna’s working knowledge of operations, analytics and strategy development enables her to deliver commitments on-time, within cost and meet the customer requirements as expected.
