Mahendra Vora
Chairman and CEO
Ascendum Worldwide
Mahendra Vora is a veteran entrepreneur who has over 20 years of experience in leading large cutting-edge software initiatives. He has helped co-found many high-tech startups and and merge with Fortune 500 IT companies. Some of the examples include, ICC (sold to Attachmate), Pioneer Systems (acquired by Unisys), SecureIT (sold to VeriSign) and Intelliseek (merged with Nielsen-Buzzmetrics). Vora has held senior executive positions at Fortune 500 IT firms and serves on the Board of Directors of many high-tech companies. Mr. Vora has extensive experience in working with and developing Information Technology solutions from small start-up to multi-billion dollar organizations across the world. Over the past 2 decades, Mr. Vora has contributed significantly to the computer industry in developing and delivering strategies, architecture and technologies to transition to distributed and Internet-based computing.
Mr. Vora was the recipient of the 2000 "Entrepreneur Deal Maker of the Year" award from the Association for Corporate Growth and the finalist for the 2001 and 2002 "Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year" award. In the past five years, Mahendra has appeared twice in the Inc 500 - list of America's 500 fastest growing companies.
Mahendra holds a Master's degree in Computer Science from the University of Michigan and a Bachelor of Science degree in Electronics and Communications from India.
Kris Nair
President and CEO
Ascendum EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa)
Kris Nair has over two decades of rich experience in various industries and across multiple disciplines. Kris has held leadership roles in many successful Indian and international corporations.
In his career he has led global business development, mergers and acquisitions, new business/practice initiatives, corporate strategy, etc. Kris was instrumental in driving the growth of three different IT companies during the last five years. An expert in corporate development, Kris has successfully managed many M&A deals in the software industry in India.
Kris founded a new software firm, Garnet Infosolutions, which is headquartered in Bangalore. Garnet has since merged with Ascendum. Before founding Garnet, Kris led the Indian operations of an IT services firm and served on the board of an Indian BPO company.
Kris is an Electrical Engineer and has completed various programs in Strategic Business Management at ABB Academy, Zurich, INSEAD and IIM, Ahmedabad. CII (Confederation of Indian Industry ) rated Kris among the top 10 young managers for the CII Young Managers Trophy 2000.
Jim Klimkowski
Vice President of Client Services
Ascendum North America
Jim Klimkowski is an entrepreneurial, innovative, professional services leader who routinely identifies and delivers solutions that revolutionize the way his clientele do business. Jim possesses over 18 years of experience developing, marketing, selling, and delivering complex, high-end consulting solutions to Fortune 1000 corporations and the middle-market. Because Jim has both a strong foundation in the IT field and has an excellent business acumen, Jim's key strength is his grasp of both the IT solution and the value it must provide. Jim's principle industry experience includes federal, consumer/industrial products, manufacturing, high-tech, and financial services. Jim's professional services experience includes major roles with Grumman Data Systems, Ernst & Young, Reynolds & Reynolds, CSC Consulting, Triple-I, and PDR.
As the VP of Client Services, Jim leads solutions development, client delivery, manages our solution practices, and contributes to the overall vision and direction of Ascendum Solutions. Jim holds an MBA from the University of Dayton where he was one of a select group presented a certificate for academic achievement. Jim also holds a BS in MIS from the University of Dayton.
Walt McLaren
President and General Manager
Koncert IT Solutions (A Vora-Kroger Joint Venture)
Walt McLaren is President and GM of Krosource LLC (dba Koncert IT Solutions) - a joint venture between Kroger Co. and Ascendum. He has over two decades of experience in the technology consulting industry working in the areas of strategic planning, M&A, sales and operational management. A demonstrated leader, coach, and mentor with a successful track record of motivating sales executives to exceed their goals, Walt's key strength is developing winning solutions to improve clients' business performance.
Walt began his career as a technical consultant working for organizations such as EDS, The Limited, Honda, CG&E, and The Kroger Company. A former Senior Vice President at CIBER, Walt has led organizations in size ranging from $5M to $325M.
Walt holds a BS in MIS from the Ohio State University.
Timothy S. Ryan
Vice President of Sales
Ascendum North America
Tim is a Senior Sales and Marketing Executive with over 23 years experience within the IT industry assisting organizations in developing strategic and tactical plans to achieve revenue and profit growth results. He has a proven track record developing and delivering on aggressive sales and profit targets. As a sales executive in both public and privately held organizations, Tim has built, led and managed highly effective sales teams to achieve challenging sales objectives.
Throughout the past 10 years, Tim has been engaged to build, manage and lead teams of sales and delivery professionals to achieve P&L responsibilities up to $400MM in revenue.
He has a successful track record building strong customer relations with Enterprise and mid-market clients through creative technology solutions solving challenging business issues. Tim has conceived and implemented smart strategies to support internal corporate goals, while his creativity, work ethic and passion help drive his team's successful achievement of their goals. He holds a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration from the University of Cincinnati. During his personal time, Tim devotes his time to his wife and three children. He enjoys volunteering and supporting key initiatives within the community. He currently volunteers as a Character Coach for "Winners Walk Tall" and is an active member of the Advisory Board for the Red's Community Fund.
Narasimha Murthy
Associate Vice President - Offshore Delivery
Ascendum EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa)
Narasimha has extensive experience of more than 15 years, as technical manager, delivery head and business leader in the field of IT. He has held senior management positions at various organizations like Microcon, IBM and Supervalu. He has a wide-ranging technical background and has developed and managed many products and projects. He has exposure and experience in managing multi-functional, culturally diverse and geographically spread teams. Narasimha has international experience of working across the world in countries including USA, UK, Singapore and Sweden.
In his role as Head of Delivery at our Bangalore Development Center, he leads all offshore development work and works closely with our clients on aligning our work with their development plans.
Narasimha holds an MS from BITS, Pilani, India. He has completed IBM's Project Management Certifications and PMI Certification.
Susan Ikeler
Human Resources Director
Ascendum Solutions LLC
Susan Ikeler has been providing human resource and administrative management for more than 15 years. Her career as a Human Resource Manager for small businesses and regional offices of publicly traded companies brings experiences that are valuable in both private and public sectors. She has successfully partnered with management by guiding employees through mergers and acquisitions. Industry experiences include outplacement consulting, business services, and technology. Susan worked for Mahendra Vora from 2000 through 2006 as the Human Resource Manager for Intelliseek, Inc.
Susan attended Marshall University and the University of Cincinnati and was awarded her SPHR certification in 2007. She is a member of the Society of Human Resource Management and GCHRA.
