Lara Nichols
Lara. Nichols, senior director of IT sourcing and assets strategies at Tyco International, has a strong background in technology management, business process improvements, program design, change management, global project leadership, supplier management, budgeting, risk management, financial analysis, performance metrics, regulatory compliance, and merger activities. She has held key executive leadership roles that have contributed significant value and ROI to multimillion-dollar organizations, including Fortune 200 companies. At Tyco, she is credited with founding and institutionalizing an inaugural IT supply management program. This role included both design and reengineering expertise for such initiatives as creating the company's first training program for supply management practices for IT and transforming the corporate culture to strengthen the impact of the new program. Results included a 10-50% return to the corporate bottom-line, supplier discount increases as large as 50%, and a single project operational expense reduction of more than $6 million. Previously, she was vice president/director of IT architecture competency centers and chief IT sourcing/procurement officer with Wachovia Corporation. She also held several executive and management positions in the Advanced Technology Group (ATG) of First Union Corporation.
LeadershipLink This | Email This | Comments (0) Responsibility: It’s More Than What YOU DoHere is an interesting anecdote from the book “Developing the Leader within You (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1993) by John C. Maxwell: The sales manager of a dog food company asked his salespeople how they liked the company’s new advertising program. “Great! Best in the business!” the salespeople responded. “How do you like our new label... MoreLink This | Email This | Comments (0) The ‘Afterward’As a leader, you are a vital link to the company. You spend your day talking to people. Leadership meetings, business reviews, phone calls and email. You have a view of the company that your staff and colleagues may not see. Your view is broader and longer; encompassing perspectives from the business, the corporate functions and top leadership. What you see and... MoreLink This | Email This | Comments (2) The Myth of Multi-TaskingPicture this: You just arrived at your desk and you are ready to begin your day. After logging in you join the first meeting of the day - a conference call. Referencing your calendar you notice, with a sinking feeling, that this meeting is followed by another call and another. In fact, you will be on the phone until lunch. You greet the call participants and... MoreLink This | Email This | Comments (1) Leaders Never Fly SoloHave you noticed that, as responsibilities expand, time spent as a practitioner decreases and time spent working relationships increases? It is a natural progression. As you begin your career, and for the first few years, your focus is 90 percent functional and 10 percent relationships. Each step up the career ladder represents a shift as functional focus decreases and... MoreLink This | Email This | Comments (0) Leaders Who FollowAllison, my six-year old daughter, recently told me that she has come to realize that there are distractions in her life. Specifically, the lullabies she enjoys as she drifts off to sleep are keeping her awake. I learned from my daughter to pay attention to the details, to recognize distractions and to do something to remove them. I am following Allison’s example of... More |
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