Ryan Schmelz is a senior executive and consultant with over 30 years of experience. His employment history includes key positions in software and information services, technology, financial services, market research, and legal services organizations.
Ryan is a team builder, experienced in leading large and small organizations and varied functional units, including marketing, sales, systems development, finance, operations, administration, human resources, and legal. He has led IT organizations of over 300 and managed operating budgets in excess of $50MM. He has supported organizations with over 15,000 users worldwide and worked with organizations of less than five people.
Ryan’s management consulting experience encompasses strategy, restructuring / M&A, outsourcing, organization effectiveness assessment and design, turnaround management, business process reengineering, information technology management and litigation support / electronic data discovery. Some of his consulting activities and accomplishments include:
- Served as strategic advisor to CEO of a global knowledge process outsourcing firm regarding Electronic Data Discovery [EDD] acquisitions; acted as CEO’s liaison with internal and external stakeholders regarding one such acquisition.
- Served as interim COO for a software startup during their business planning and funding phase.
- Served as key strategic advisor to CEO of an EDD vendor seeking to be acquired: supported their investment bankers, developed pro-forma financials, participated in meeting with prospective buyers.
- Performed due diligence consultation for acquirer of a national EDD vendor.
- Provided ecosystem channel development services for a start-up provider of a litigation records management software + hardware “appliance”, including definition of required partner certifications and training elements to effect the certifications. This assignment evolved to the point where Ryan served as Vice President, Business Development.
- Provided business structure and business development counsel for an international financial services industry training software and services company, serving as financial advisor and coordinator of acquisition strategy.
- Provided EDD counsel, including facilitating numerous “meet and confer” conferences for plaintiff legal team (dozens of lawyers from numerous law firms), in a large-scale antitrust class action [federal Multi-District Litigation consolidated case].
Ryan co-founded and managed [marketing, sales, finance, and administration] a successful IT management consultancy that provided assessment, turnaround management, strategic process improvement, and/or sourcing strategy & facilitation services. Ryan sold and led engagements for numerous clients, including Intuit, Legato Systems, Amdahl, Airlines Reporting Corporation, PMI, US Peace Corps, Business Mail Express, and NISH.
Ryan’s prior employment positions included IT executive management roles with a national computer services company, Merrill Lynch, A.C. Nielsen, and Freddie Mac. He also led the Enterprise re-engineering initiative Program Office for Freddie Mac.
Ryan has served as interim CEO, COO, and/or co-head of several start-ups, several of which provided valuable learning experiences in their lack of success / failure.
Ryan’s board-level experience includes a professional services consulting firm; a mortgage industry processing services company; a financial services industry software and services company; two non-profits [art education / artist services foundation and community orchestra].
As an IntelliVen Principal, Ryan provides strategic services to senior executives and private companies, including serving as interim CxO. He specializes in strategic transformation for companies seeking to move to the next stage of their evolution. Consulting services are crafted to individual needs and may include strategic planning; governance; functional management policies, practices, and metrics; service offering definition; strategic client development; enterprise-wide leadership development; or M&A activities.
Ryan has a BA degree in Government / Political Science [Economics minor] from the University of South Dakota; an MBA with concentration in Organization Development from San Jose State University; and a JD from the University of California’s Hastings College of the Law.