Rob Duchscher
Details
Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
Bachelor of Science - BS (cum laude)
Computer Science
University of North Dakota
HS Diploma
Devils Lake High School
Recruited to join Executive Team and play a key role in the turnaround of a company facing industry disruption and competitive pressures.
Quickly leveraged my background in ERP, MRP, cyber security and supply chain systems as well as on-site/cloud-based infrastructure to identify vulnerabilities and drive immediate improvement. Within the first year, developed and executed company’s strategic IT and cybersecurity plans.
Fielded numerous inquiries from former loyal colleagues eager to join team; filled critical talent gaps with these seasoned experts.
Stabilized IT ecosystem, including 3 major ERP systems supporting 20+ manufacturing plants in Mexico, the U.S., and Europe.
Orchestrated reduction in force to improve team’s efficiency and ROI. Guided team through transition to a new President/CEO.
Regularly presents to the Board of Directors. Member of leadership team driving strategy (e.g., M&A, divestitures, SG&A structure).
2017 : Present
SunOpta
Chief Information Officer/Chief Information Security Officer
2022 : 2023
Origina
Member of US Advisory Board
Privately held global hearing technology company
Chief Information Officer/Chief Information Security Officer, January 2010 – March 2017
Interim Senior Vice President, Manufacturing, September 2015 – March 2016
As the company experienced rapid growth, promoted by President to lead all IT functions and elevate team quality/execution worldwide. Directed 100+-member organization, data center operations, annual operating budget, and a capital budget. Team supported 5K+ employees. Member of executive management team. Following restructuring, served in a temporary COO/SVP of Manufacturing capacity. Reported to President.
Drew upon in-depth knowledge of the business to define a forward-looking IT strategy and prioritize key projects. Evaluated talent, vendor relationships, technologies, processes, and opportunities to enforce policies/controls. Restructured management team.
Establish team focus on internal/external customer needs, earning reputation for value and consistency across the company.
Prioritized, led, and delivered large-scale projects visible at the C-suite level (e.g., Oracle, CRM, and MRP systems).
Reached and maintained 99.9% system uptime across network, servers, storage, web, data center, and telecom systems.
Created a culture of rigorous IT governance. Guided teams and strategic partners through company’s significant legal and ethical challenges.
Served as a strategic advisor to C-suite/Board of Directors in determining if the best interest of the company was in continuing, course-correcting, or disengaging from various IT initiatives.
2010 : 2017
Starkey Labs
Chief Information Officer / Chief Information Security Officer
Vice President, Software Engineering/R&D PMO, April 2002 – January 2010
Promoted to scale the Software Engineering group to meet the company’s demand for R&D innovation and quality execution. Grew organization from 3 to 110 people worldwide. Managed annual budget.
Led teams in delivering industry’s first nano/digital product (Destiny), first receiver-in-canal product (Zon, featured in the Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum), first invisible-in-the-canal product (SoundLens), and first wireless product (Wi Series®).
Created a portfolio roadmap and put a formal R&D/product development process in place.
Established PMO and developed it into one of the most highly respected, productive, and ROI-driven groups within the company.
Technology lead for executive team that drove rapid expansion into European and Pan-Asian commercial/manufacturing markets.
Initiated negotiations with Apple in anticipation of a new product release with Made for iPhone® technology.
Key member of industry’s International Standards Task Force in collaboration with competitors worldwide.
Accompanied executive/clinical teams on numerous international Starkey Hearing Foundation mission trips to fit patients in developing countries with transformative hearing technology.
Engineering/R&D team received numerous honors including Edison, CES Innovation, Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA), Good Design, Red Dot, Stevie, and Cooper-Hewitt National Design Awards.
2002 : 2010
Starkey Labs, Inc.
Vice President, Software Engineering / R&D PMO
Director, Software Engineering, January 1999 – April 2002
Recruited to develop company’s first digital product and to direct all software engineering/testing, business analysis, and project management functions. Managed team of consultants.
Delivered company’s first digital product (Genesis) in 2001 and put the team on a trajectory for continued breakthrough R&D.
Created portfolio roadmap spanning fitting, measurement, office management, and manufacturing software products.
Member of Starkey’s Technical Council, significantly contributing to overall corporate technology strategy.
Formed internal software process improvement (SPI) group to elevate product quality and customer satisfaction.
1999 : 2002
Starkey Hearing Technologies
Director, Software Engineering
Skills
Agile Methodologies, Board/Investor Relations, Board of Directors, Bringing Order To Chaos, Bringing Together Disparate Teams, Building/Leading High Performing Teams, Business Intelligence, Business Process Improvement, C-Level Leadership, C-Level Negotiations, C-Suite Leadership, Collaborative Leadership, Continuous Improvement, Continuous Integration and Continuous Delivery (CI/CD), Corporate Sustainability, Creating Cultures Of Performance Excellence, Cross-functional Team Leadership, Cultivating Relationships Of Trust, Developing Future Leaders, Driving Revenue & Profit Growth, Elevating Team Performance, Forward-Looking IT Strategy, Global Strategy/Delivery, Integration, IT Governance, IT Operations Leadership, Large-Scale Business Transformation, Leading Large-Scale Change, M&A Due Diligence, Managing Complex Systems, Mitigating Operational/Financial Risk, New Product Roll Out, Operational Excellence, Organizational Effectiveness, P&L Impact, P&L Management, Product R&D/Lifecycle Management, Resource Allocation, ROI Optimization Strategies, SaaS, Scaling For Growth, Senior Executive Leadership, Simplifying The Complex, Software Development, Software Engineering, Stakeholder Engagement, Steady Leadership, Strategic Thinking/Leadership, Technology Innovation, Turning Around Underperforming Organizations, SDLC, C, Software Project, Microsoft SQL Server, NET, Data Warehousing, Product Development, Firmware, ERP, System Architecture, Process Improvement, Embedded Software, Cross-functional Team, IIS, Product Management, Visual Studio, SharePoint, Software Project Management
About
Computer and Cyber Security Geek, forward-looking strategist & change agent with demonstrated success in building, rebuilding and leading teams to move companies forward in revenue/profit growth.
I work to blend business acumen and steady leadership with a differentiating background in Cyber Security, Information Technology, manufacturing, software development, risk management, and process improvement to deliver results within U.S./global growth and turnaround environments.
I'm a fixer by nature and I have been sought out for multidimensional senior executive roles—CIO, CISO, Board Chair, and Head of R&D/Software Engineering for U.S. and global organizations.
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