I founded Xcel Ventures in 1998 after a successful run as a product manager at a software startup that IPO’d, followed by a role as Product Marketing Segment Leader at Apple, where I developed the business case, led go-to-market execution, and helped drive $600M in revenue within three years.

SInce then, I have always offered fractional product management, product marketing and innovation services to companies targeting B2B and B2C audiences with SaaS and mobile applications across diverse industries. In the early days I worked with enterprise clients like Dun & Bradstreet Software, Oracle, INPUT Market Research, and Ross Systems, as well as startups and high-growth companies such as 2Order.com, CallCenter Technologies, WebTone, Sevista, AirSage, ComputerJobs.com, and Knowlagent. The business grew rapidly, and I eventually launched a tech incubator - GreenMachine - that became a leading innovation hub in Atlanta and attracted venture funding. 

Despite the success, I realized I missed hands-on product work — so I sold the incubator and moved to California to return to my true passion: working on product full-time, collaborating, leading  cross-functional teams and innovating. I took on full-time roles at:

• At Intuit, I served as a Senior Product Manager for TurboTax, leading product-led growth (PLG), launching three innovative product and business models, and driving growth across acquisition, retention, and freemium revenue. I was later promoted to lead Open Innovation, accelerating the development of new business models, emerging technologies, and strategic partnerships.

• After nearly six years at Intuit, I was recruited to return to the East Coast as VP of Product at LexisNexis, leading a startup division to launch a new SaaS solution in the U.S. After gaining business case approval to expand into EU and AU markets, I joined Citrix as Director of Product Line Management for ShareFile in regulated markets. When my husband and I relocated to the North Carolina coast in 2017—and Citrix did not support remote work—I re-engaged in fractional work through Xcel Ventures.

Since 2017 Xcel Ventures I have continued to provide product management, innovation and product marketing leadership to clients that have included Pendo, Hatch Early Learning, Storable, CPA.com, Samara’s Village, and Gourmet to Go, and also pursue full-time engagements.

• One of those fractional roles evolved into a permanent position at Storable, where I created and aligned a cross-functional team around a strategic, outcome-focused roadmap serving 25,000 businesses, 100,000 users, and 10M consumers. This work drove a 53% increase in new MRR, 46% increase in customer acquisition, and 25% improvement in customer retention.

• In 2022, amid a move to the Nashville area, I had an opportunity to join Twilio as a Principal Product Manager, focused on strategy and product management. I led market analysis and defined product strategy for omnichannel AI, personalization, and workflow capabilities within the Customer Experience Platform (CXP) and Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS). I also developed business cases and product requirements for analytics and workforce optimization, and led OEM vendor evaluations to accelerate delivery.

• And most recently, I serve as VP of Product at Lingraphica, a mobile healthtech company, where I led a team of 10 across product management, UI/UX, support, research, training, and analytics. Highlights include:
  • Defining strategic direction and KPIs for healthcare software and iOS apps, aligning teams to deliver on 2024 product objectives
  • Coaching teams on Agile, Lean Innovation, and Six Sigma, accelerating the roadmap by 50% and improving NPS by 20%
  • Leading a Generative AI product initiative that boosted user engagement and reduced support cases by 20%
     

Now I am focusig more time on fractional product management, innovation and product marketing leadership engagements through Xcel Ventures — where I can make an immediate difference for companies that need senior leadership without the overhead of a full-time hire - or if their is a full-time opportunity we can discuss that too!