Twenty years building, scaling and transforming enterprise operating platforms across distribution, manufacturing, and retail.
Two decades of leadership turning complex, multi-division businesses into focused operating platforms that scale.
Operating model redesign, value creation execution, governance, and large-scale change across multi-division platforms.
Market optimization, go-to-market planning, sales strategy, pricing architecture, org design, and integrated cross-functional execution across distribution, manufacturing, and retail markets.
People-led M&A integration from HR diligence and Day 1 readiness through stabilization, value capture, and business-as-usual handoff — across people, operations, systems, and governance in acquisition-driven and PE-backed businesses.
Over 2 decades of experience leading enterprise transformation, HR, and operational strategy.
Two decades of enterprise transformation.
Distribution | Manufacturing | Retail | Wholesale | PE-Backed | Multi-Site | Acquisition-Driven
- Built and shipped a student-worker scheduling app end-to-end for a state university — 75 users, 99% adoption, ~10 scheduler hours saved weekly (Claude Code + Lovable)
- Led two confidential trade-association engagements — board interviews, voice-of-customer research, and go-to-market proposals for member-facing shared services
- Built first Strategic Initiatives Office; lifted success rate from 47% to 91%
- Led operating model transformation across markets — $100M EBITDA initiatives
- Directed HR transformation, shared services, and people analytics — $50M EBITDA
- Led $13M enterprise data program, BI, & analytics program
- Built first regional workforce strategy & people analytics framework (2,500 employees)
- Implemented HR shared services — reduced operating costs by $5M
- Led post-merger integration and org design through $5B → $10B growth
- Designed operating model and org structure — profitable within 12 months
- Workforce and operational frameworks drove 50% revenue growth
- Reduced variable labor costs 20%; held shrink below 1.5%
- Built and led global PMO across 20+ countries
- Led global shared services, ERP, and infrastructure consolidation
- Implemented change strategies affecting 60,000+ employees
Enterprise transformation at a $7B distributor & manufacturer — plus current delivery at Strategic Execution Group
Complex, acquisition-driven businesses often outgrow local support models before the operating structure catches up.
- Fragmented processes drive cost and risk
- Local variation makes service harder to scale
- Execution discipline turns strategy into results
- Capability building makes the model sustainable
- HR, IT, AP, and AR fragmented across locations
- Duplication, uneven service, and limited role specialization
- Centralized support work into a scalable shared services model
- Built governance, service model, transition plan, and career paths
- Delivered $50M annual savings
- Reduced risk through stronger functional competency and career pathing
- Acquired brands operated separately in the same markets
- Sales, pricing, logistics, and leadership models were misaligned
- Built market GTM plans across priority geographies
- Aligned leadership, pricing, sales coverage, logistics, and supplier strategy
- Delivered $100M EBITDA impact
- Improved operating leverage, revenue capture, and field execution
- High-value initiatives needed stronger governance and accountability
- Leaders needed clearer visibility to value, risk, and progress
- Built transformation cadence, dashboards, decision rights, and issue escalation
- Drove cross-functional alignment from strategy through execution
- Delivered EBITDA improvement across tech, data, operations, and workforce strategy
- Created repeatable execution discipline
- State university ran student-worker scheduling across scattered Google docs
- Manual coordination created administrative burden and errors
- Owned end-to-end product strategy, PRD, design, and full-stack build with Claude Code and Lovable
- Ran testing, deployment, and launch to production users
- Deployed to 75 users with 99% adoption
- Saved ~10 scheduler hours and 1.5 user hours per week
Bottom Line: I build operating models that lower cost, reduce risk, strengthen capability, and convert strategy into measurable business results.
Three ways I plug in. One execution discipline.
Where I Create the Most Value — Distribution, Manufacturing, Retail, and PE-Backed Environments
Step into complex, multi-site organizations to align strategy, operating model, and execution. Lead enterprise transformation initiatives that improve EBITDA, simplify operations, and accelerate decision-making.
- 01Assess & Align›
- 02Prioritize & Launch›
- 03Execute & Embed›
Lead end-to-end go-to-market planning and market optimization across distribution, manufacturing, and retail. Build integrated GTM plans that align sales, pricing, product, org design, and change management.
- 01Assess & Map›
- 02Design & Align›
- 03Launch & Execute›
Support acquisitive and PE-backed businesses from diligence through Day 1 and beyond. Lead HR diligence, Day 1 readiness, and post-merger execution across people, operations, systems, and governance — so acquired employees experience a clear, compliant, practical transition.
- 01Diligence & Day 1 Readiness›
- 02Deliver Day 1 & Stabilize›
- 03Integrate & Capture Value›
Also Available // Chief of Staff · PMO & Strategic Initiatives · HR Operating Model & Workforce Strategy · ERP / Systems Transformation · PE Portfolio Transformation · Shared Services Design
Transformation
100-day operating model to identify and execute the priorities that must deliver measurable results.
Listen first. Understand the business, build executive trust, and identify the few transformation priorities that matter most.
- Learn the business model, strategy, financial drivers, and operational pain points
- Build relationships with executive leaders and key functional owners
- Assess current initiatives, governance, risks, and delivery capacity
- Clarify what success means for transformation in this business
- Meet executive leaders and key functional owners
- Review strategy, financials, operations, and major initiatives
- Assess transformation portfolio, risks, and delivery capacity
- Identify quick wins and sources of execution friction
- Strong executive relationships established
- Shared understanding of biggest business issues
- Clear view of what is in flight, what is at risk, and what should change
Move from assessment to action. Prioritize the few initiatives that will drive the biggest business value and put the governance in place to deliver them.
- Prioritize initiatives based on business value and feasibility
- Align leaders around outcomes, sequencing, and accountabilities
- Put governance, tracking, and communication mechanisms in place
- Launch quick wins to build credibility and momentum
- Prioritize the highest-value transformation initiatives based on business impact and feasibility
- Align leadership on outcomes, ownership, sequencing, and success measures
- Establish governance: operating cadence, decision rights, and reporting
- Launch quick wins and begin first-wave initiative execution
- Executive team aligned on priorities and pace
- Owners assigned with clear accountability
- Governance operating consistently
- Early wins visible and building momentum
Move from planning to disciplined execution while embedding transformation into how the business operates day-to-day.
- Drive execution of priority initiatives with clear ownership
- Build the operating cadence (reviews, escalations, decisions) that sustains progress
- Track value realization against KPIs and milestones
- Embed transformation discipline into business-as-usual
- Move priority initiatives into active execution with clear governance
- Stand up regular operating reviews and resolve cross-functional barriers
- Track KPIs, risks, and value realization against business case
- Confirm next-wave priorities and begin sequencing
- Priority initiatives advancing with measurable progress against milestones and KPIs
- Leaders actively engaged, owning decisions quickly, and owning outcomes
- Transformation gaining traction and visible to the business
Operations
100-day operating model to turn fragmented commercial operations into integrated, market-ready platforms.
Understand the current market structure, commercial model, and performance gaps before designing the integrated GTM plan.
- Map the current-state GTM model: sales, pricing, product strategy, and customer support
- Review business plans, market performance, and cross-functional workstream status
- Identify gaps, risks, and quick wins to baseline for early execution
- Interview market leadership, sales leaders, supply chain, finance, and manufacturing partners
- Review current sales plans, pricing models, and customer and product segmentation
- Assess manufacturing and supplier alignment to market strategy
- Identify cross-functional dependencies and integration gaps
- Current-state GTM assessment complete with key gaps documented
- Cross-functional stakeholder alignment on priorities and scope confirmed
- Quick wins identified and baselined for early execution
Build the integrated GTM plan across all workstreams — business case, sales strategy, pricing, product alignment, org structure, and change management.
- Develop the market business plan, financial business case, and stakeholder approval package
- Define sales strategy: customer segmentation, books of business, and commission structure
- Align product, pricing, branding, and manufacturing to the integrated market plan
- Design org structure and change management plan for market transitions
- Build market business plan and financial business case with RVP, PGM, and FP&A
- Define sales plan: cross-selling strategy, books of business, segmentation, and commission structure
- Develop pricing architecture and product alignment for the market
- Design org structure, reporting changes, and change management plan
- Business plan and business case approved by RVP, PGM, and VP Operations
- Integrated GTM workstream plans defined with owners, milestones, and dependencies confirmed
- Cross-functional alignment confirmed across sales, pricing, product, and org design
Drive integrated market launch — activate sales, pricing, branding, and org transitions while embedding KPI tracking and change management to sustain results.
- Execute against the integrated market launch timeline with clear milestone accountability
- Activate sales strategy, pricing model, product alignment, and branding in market
- Stand up KPI dashboards and performance review cadence
- Drive change adoption and manage org transitions
- Launch integrated market plan: sales activation, pricing rollout, and org transitions
- Execute branding, marketing, and market activation plan per approved plan
- Stand up KPI tracking and performance reviews with market and RVP leadership
- Monitor change adoption, address resistance, and resolve cross-functional blockers
- Market launch executed against integrated milestone timeline
- KPIs live, tracked, and reviewed on cadence by market and leadership
- Sales, pricing, product, branding, and org transitions complete
& Value Creation
100-day operating model from HR diligence and Day 1 readiness through integration, stabilization, and value capture.
Get the people side right before close. Lead HR diligence, surface human capital risk, and build the Day 1 plan so acquired employees know what changes, what doesn’t, and where to get help.
- Lead HR diligence: workforce, org structure, compensation, benefits, payroll, HRIS, policies, and employment compliance
- Identify human capital risks: workforce liabilities, cultural risk, retention needs, and transition complexity
- Build the Day 1 readiness plan across payroll, benefits, system access, onboarding, and employee support
- Stand up integration governance and pressure-test the deal thesis against operational reality
- Run diligence data requests and workforce analysis with Legal, Finance, and Corporate Development
- Translate diligence findings into integration assumptions, required decisions, and Day 1 requirements
- Stand up the cross-functional People integration pod: HRIS, payroll, benefits, compliance, L&D, IT, and operations
- Name retention and leadership risks early and assign mitigation owners
- Workforce, compliance, payroll, benefits, talent, and culture risks surfaced early — each with an owner
- Day 1 readiness plan approved, with employee communications drafted
- Integration pod operating with clear cadence, decision rights, and escalation paths
Land Day 1 without surprises, stabilize operations and the employee experience, and build the integration roadmap that captures committed value.
- Deliver Day 1: accurate first paychecks, benefits live, system access on, and employee support ready
- Stabilize operations and monitor the employee experience with pulse checks and feedback loops
- Map talent, confirm org design and reporting-line transitions, and assess culture
- Build the integration roadmap with synergy targets and named owners
- Execute the Day 1 plan; publish employee FAQs, manager talking points, and transition guides
- Run office hours and issue-routing so employee questions get answered fast
- Complete talent mapping, retention planning, and leadership alignment
- Lock the integration roadmap, future operating model, and change plan with executive sponsors
- Day 1 milestones completed on time — minimal first-paycheck, benefits, or system-access issues
- Employee questions resolved within agreed service expectations
- Integration roadmap approved with workstream ownership and synergy commitments clear
Execute the integration with discipline, capture committed value, and hand off a stable business — leaving behind a playbook that makes the next deal faster.
- Drive workstream execution against committed milestones and track value against the business case
- Integrate talent, culture, and operational processes into business-as-usual
- Enable field and frontline managers to lead acquired teams through change
- Codify a reusable People integration playbook: checklists, trackers, templates, and dashboards
- Run a disciplined operating cadence; report value capture and variance to executives
- Partner with operations so people processes work for technicians, supervisors, and site leaders
- Deliver manager enablement, culture onboarding, and change adoption support
- Capture lessons learned after the deal and update tools, timelines, and governance
- Synergy capture tracking to or ahead of the business case
- Critical talent retained; leaders equipped to support acquired employees
- People workstream running in business-as-usual with a clean handoff
- Playbook improved — the next integration starts faster
Realization
100-day operating model from initiative to impact — the discipline of tracking, owning, and delivering the benefits that justify the investment.
Set up the value scorecard discipline. Define expected outcomes, baseline the current state, and lock ownership before initiatives launch.
- Establish the benefits realization framework and operating principles
- Document 3 to 5 expected outcomes per initiative
- Capture baseline metrics, target metrics, timing, and dependencies
- Assign named business and finance owners to each initiative
- Build the initiative value scorecard template and dashboard
- Run scorecard workshops with each initiative team and business owner
- Lock target metrics, timing, dependencies, and assumptions
- Launch executive review cadence for portfolio-level benefits oversight
- Every active initiative has a documented value scorecard
- Business owners named and have accepted value accountability
- Finance partner aligned to validate benefit calculations
- Executive review cadence live and operating
Transition accountability from implementation delivery to business realization at each go-live. Activate the review cadence with real performance data.
- Shift ownership from delivery team to business owner at every go-live
- Activate the 30/60/90/180/365-day value review cadence
- Separate implementation status from benefits status in all reporting
- Surface at-risk value early and assign corrective action owners
- Run formal go-live handovers from delivery to business ownership
- Confirm business owners accept responsibility for adoption and results
- Launch the value review meetings at the agreed cadence
- Stand up executive benefits dashboards with live performance data
- Ownership transitions completed at each go-live with signed handover
- Review cadence operating consistently across initiatives
- Executive dashboards live with both implementation and benefits status
Make the operating model self-sustaining. Report transparently on realized value, intervene where value is at risk, and embed the discipline into business-as-usual.
- Report expected annual value, realized value to date, and value at risk
- Identify root causes of gaps and define corrective actions with owners
- Intervene where adoption or results are off-track
- Embed benefits realization into the standard business operating model
- Report at portfolio and initiative level: expected, realized, and at-risk value
- Run root-cause analysis where realized value is short of plan
- Define and track corrective actions with named owners and timelines
- Transition benefits oversight into standard business governance
- Realized value reported transparently against expected value
- At-risk value identified early with corrective actions in flight
- Executive team actively reviewing and resolving blockers
- Benefits realization model embedded in BAU governance
AI as a force multiplier for execution.
Personally Fluent · Practically Applied · Responsibly Embedded
AI tools are part of my standard kit for moving faster from analysis to decision to execution.
- Recently designed, built, and shipped a full-stack student-worker scheduling app end-to-end using Claude Code and Lovable — deployed to 75 users at 99% adoption
- Use AI assistants (e.g., ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot) to synthesize research, draft executive communications, and produce first-draft deliverables — specs, project plans, scorecards, and comms
- Build AI-assisted dashboards, reporting templates, and analysis models to speed up benefits tracking and decision support
- Use AI to model scenarios and stress-test assumptions before they reach the executive table
- Continuously evaluate new AI tools for fit, accuracy, and time savings across transformation, HR, and GTM workstreams
AI adoption sticks when it's embedded into how the business already runs — not bolted on as a side project.
- Identify where AI can accelerate reporting, analytics, customer service, and GTM execution within the existing operating model
- Build practical AI adoption roadmaps into the 30-60-100 day plan, with named owners and success measures
- Train and upskill teams on responsible, everyday use of AI tools — not just pilots and proofs of concept
- Establish governance guardrails for AI use: data privacy, accuracy review, and change management for AI-enabled processes
Beyond using AI as a personal tool, I’ve built and operate a workforce of specialized AI agents inside my consultancy — each one owning a functional area. I set the direction and hold accountability; the agents do the execution, so a lean practice delivers at the capacity of a much larger team.
Market and competitive research, data synthesis, and scenario modeling that feed decisions.
Content, executive communications, and brand and campaign material, drafted and refined at speed.
Reporting, dashboards, benefits tracking, and back-office execution kept current and consistent.
"AI is a force multiplier for execution — not a replacement for judgment, ownership, or accountability."
Let's talk.
Two decades of enterprise transformation, HR, and operational strategy — ready to plug into your business.
Three Modes. Two Decades. One Execution Discipline.
More perspectives coming. Follow along on LinkedIn — linkedin.com/in/lorijanke