Dynamic and results-oriented professional with a proven track record of driving business growth and achieving strategic objectives. Possessing a diverse background in project management, business development, and technology solutions, I thrive in fast-paced environments where innovation and collaboration are valued. With a keen eye for identifying market opportunities and a passion for leveraging emerging technologies, I am committed to delivering measurable results and exceeding client expectations. Known for my ability to build and nurture strong relationships, I excel in cultivating partnerships that drive mutual success. Seeking new opportunities to leverage my skills and expertise in contributing to impactful projects and driving organizational success.
Overview
18
18
years of professional experience
10
10
years of post-secondary education
3
3
Certifications
2
2
Languages
Work History
Managing Director (Starlet Technology Spinoff)
Nesine.com
10.2023 - Current
Nesine.com is Turkey's leading online betting and gaming platform.
As part of the global expansion plans, I am leading the transition of the internal project office with roughly 80 employees into a spinoff company (Starlet Technology) which is positioned as a product development and service provider to a sister company in Malta, Starlet Entertainment.
Shaping the organizational structure of the new company, I have built a team of directors for HR, Product Management, IT/Engineering, Customer Operations and Business Development departments.
While under challenging project deadline, I have reformed the software development methodology from an outdated waterfall model to a modern agile structure, building cross-functional squads consisting of product managers, business analysts, graphic designers, software developers, QA engineers, DevOps engineers.
EMEA-South Regional Vice President and MD
Emarsys (an SAP company)
01.2022 - 05.2023
Leading GTM team for the newly formed region EMEA-South after the Emarsys acquisition by SAP
Managing regional new business sales and existing business sales teams
Collaborate with SAP CX team to position Emarsys as the SAP solution for Customer Engagement
Achieved 168% of sales (high 7 figure ARR) and 150% of revenue target in 2022
Manage a diverse GTM team in multiple countries in a hybrid working environment.
Managing Director
Emarsys Turkey
01.2016 - 05.2023
Spearheading growth of SaaS based marketing platform in Turkish market to establish a market leading position
Ownership of P/L and budget of local entity with local signatory rights
Manage cross-functional teams of New Business Sales, Existing Account Sales, Technical Support and Professional Services such as Implementation Consulting and Strategic Consulting as well as external sales and integration partners
Success Summary: The Austrian company Emarsys is a globally leading provider for marketing automation software and the sole successful global player in the Turkish Market
The local office had been established in 2012 and after an initial phase of growth, in 2015, key clients had been lost to local competition which led to my recruitment
My task was to turn-around the business to growth again
After a rebuilding year in 2016, I have achieved 14% growth in 2017 and 53% in 2018
The dollar retention rate has been improved from 70% to approx
130% in local currency
The operational costs have been reduced and the entity has turned cash-flow positive as of 2017
Employee retention has been improved from ~60% in 2016 to 100% in 2018
Achieved a 25% CAGR over the past 6 years.
eCommerce Solutions Director
NCR Corporation (Turkey)
07.2013 - 12.2015
Leading business development to grow market share for NCR's eCommerce and digital marketing solutions (CRM, email marketing, big data analytics and recommendation engine) in Europe and Turkey with revenue and margin targets (P/L)
Leading account management of NCR's eCommerce Solutions/SaaS customers in Europe and Turkey
Definition and execution of business strategy to enter Turkish market of cloud-based, cross-channel (email, mobile, self-service terminals etc.) e-marketing software and digital marketing consultancy services
Provide professional services and consultancy around direct marketing campaign management, email marketing, email deliverability, software customization and integration
Supporting sales activities for marketing software and leading a team of pre-sales, after-sales, client support and solution management functions
Success Summary: In my role I have been responsible for managing the successful market entry of NCR's SaaS enabled eCommerce products and services in Turkey and Europe, fulfilling challenging regular revenue targets in a highly competitive market by successfully executing self-developed strategies to gain market share against established players
I focus my work mainly on identifying new business opportunities in Turkey, engaging with decision makers at potential clients and managing relationships with online and offline marketing and IT managers to retain business
The consultancy services I provide to clients include digital marketing, data-based CRM and email deliverability to help them improve their ROI on their marketing spending.
Section Head Customer Service Software
bwin.party digital entertainment plc (Vienna)
11.2010 - 07.2013
Heading software product management, development and quality assurance teams (15 employees)
Planning and execution of IT and product strategy and tactics in online gaming sector
Technology and business architecture consultancy in e-commerce environment
Stakeholder in all company projects including new market entries, product launches, CRM activities
Group-wide product marketing and evangelism
Ensuring software capabilities for Customer Service operations as part of excellent overall customer experience of the world's leading brands in online gaming
Directly reporting the Group Customer Service Director of a multinational industry leader
Representing the department in the local management board and several cross-location IT-, project- and product management related councils and initiatives
Success Summary: In this position I have been responsible for heading up a section that consists of 3 teams and 15 employees (including budget ownership) with the objective to provide customized software that was used by more than 1500 employees in 6 locations worldwide, mainly by the Customer Services, Call Center, Payment Operations and Risk Operations departments
Our tailored application reflected all customer related business processes and thus it has been key for a highly productive operations with splendid quality of the world's leading online gaming company
Under my leadership, all business processes of the Customer Service operations and selected CRM workflows have been modeled, formulated as standardized software requirements and implemented and configured under strict quality assurance guidelines and in competitive time to market conditions
Furthermore, my section has been responsible for the selection and acquisition of necessary standard software.
Team Leader Customer Service Product Management
bwin Interactive Entertainment AG (Vienna)
07.2009 - 10.2010
Product management, strategic planning and positioning of Customer Service software in online gaming
People management and IT project management
Business analysis, requirements engineering and B2B and B2C stakeholder management
Success Summary: In this position I had the task to establish and lead a team of software product managers responsible to provide tailored software for the Customer Service department so that it can reach all operational targets and KPIs
The multi-tenant, web-based application is designed to serve B2B and B2C customers in over 20 languages, it supports all products offered by the company and is used by over 1000 employees for daily work.
Customer Service Product Manager
Bwin Interactive Entertainment AG (Vienna)
01.2006 - 06.2009
Starting as a Customer Service agent, I have quickly moved into a product owner role
Product responsibility and support of internal users of the software implemented for the customer service operations, indirect management of development and testing teams, project management.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Project Management And Information Technology
University of Applied Sciences Bfi Vienna
05.2002 - 05.2006
No Degree -
Technical University of Graz
05.1996 - 05.2002
Skills
Executive Management
Certification
Lead&Win ("Management Training Program" at Bwin Entertainment AG)
Personal Information
Citizenship: Austria
Date of Birth: 06/20/77
Current Residence
Istanbul, Turkey
Timeline
Managing Director (Starlet Technology Spinoff)
Nesine.com
10.2023 - Current
EMEA-South Regional Vice President and MD
Emarsys (an SAP company)
01.2022 - 05.2023
Managing Director
Emarsys Turkey
01.2016 - 05.2023
eCommerce Solutions Director
NCR Corporation (Turkey)
07.2013 - 12.2015
Section Head Customer Service Software
bwin.party digital entertainment plc (Vienna)
11.2010 - 07.2013
Team Leader Customer Service Product Management
bwin Interactive Entertainment AG (Vienna)
07.2009 - 10.2010
Customer Service Product Manager
Bwin Interactive Entertainment AG (Vienna)
01.2006 - 06.2009
Bachelor of Science - Project Management And Information Technology