Our leadership team
Spotlight on the people leading the way for Avanade and our clients.
Spotlight on the people leading the way for Avanade and our clients.
As CEO of Avanade, Pamela Maynard is passionate about building a people-first culture for Avanade’s 60,000+ global employees while driving sustainable, responsible growth centered around client success. Under her leadership, Avanade has put its purpose of making a genuine human impact at the forefront of the work we do for our clients, their employees and their customers. She’s also tied our purpose to the contributions we make in our communities and the planet.
A veteran of the technology industry, Pamela has dedicated her 25+year career to helping clients rethink their business strategies by harnessing the power of digital innovation to renew and grow their businesses.
Prior to being named CEO of Avanade in Sept. 2019, Pamela was Avanade’s President of Product and Innovation, focused on defining and delivering innovative solutions for our clients. Earlier in her Avanade career, she served as President of our European organisation and as General Manager of Avanade UK.
Under her leadership, Pamela has continued to expand and sharpen Avanade’s commitment to creating a culture where everyone is welcome to bring their authentic selves to work and where diverse perspectives, backgrounds and skills are valued as critical differentiators in our ability to support our clients. Pamela also serves as executive sponsor of our Technology for Social Good initiative, through which we bring the power of our cloud and digital technology skills and expertise to non-profit organisations, digitally transforming their work and accelerating their social impact.
Pamela sits on the boards of the Royal Horticultural Society and Junior Achievement Worldwide. As a world traveler, Pamela draws inspiration from the varied backgrounds and cultures she’s experienced. When she’s not meeting with clients or inspiring our teams, you will find her enjoying time with family and friends in her native London.
As Chief Growth Officer, Craig Gorsline is responsible for driving the Avanade strategy and critical growth initiatives across all areas of our business. Craig also oversees our Global Technology Business Group, bringing together our world-class technology capabilities and expertise to deliver greater value to our clients and strengthen our position as the Microsoft services market leader.
Previously Craig was President, co-CEO and Chief Commercial Officer of ThoughtWorks, a global technology firm with a digital engineering focus, where he was accountable for driving revenues of more than $500 million in technology and consulting services. Prior to ThoughtWorks, Craig spent time as a senior executive at JPMorganChase in the Treasury Services Technology Group, as well as with a boutique technology consulting firm in Canada.
Craig holds a degree in criminology and psychology from Simon Fraser University and an MBA in digital technologies from Royal Roads University.
As Chief Sales Officer, Michael Roughsedge is responsible for sales execution, strategy, programs and governance for our global sales organisation and client account leadership programs. Michael is an inclusive, people-first leader who builds teams that are skilled at expanding our market leadership and bring the best of Avanade to our clients, from the first conversation to every interaction that follow.
Michael joined Avanade in 2019 as General Manager for the West Region in North America before stepping into a role as General Manager for the South Region in 2022. Prior to joining Avanade, he held leadership roles in sales and delivery at Adobe, HPE, Microsoft and Unisys.
Michael holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Vermont and resides in Snohomish, Washington with his wife and two sons. He is a car enthusiast, and in his free time, he enjoys cooking, traveling and playing golf.
Chief Marketing Officer Ruth Rowan is responsible for Avanade’s overall global marketing strategy, brand and corporate communications. She works closely with teams around the world to support our growth ambitions through building a differentiated brand, value proposition, client experience, demand generation, and engaging external and internal communications.
Ruth has 25 years of experience leading marketing teams across all parts of the technology industry, including cloud, SaaS, security, applications, services and telecommunications. She joined Avanade in February 2022 having previously held senior marketing roles for NTT, Dimension Data and British Telecommunications (BT).
Ruth holds a Master of Human Sciences degree from Oxford University and a Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) diploma. She has lived on two continents and traveled extensively throughout her career, which has fostered her love of discovering new places, peoples and cultures. An outdoor enthusiast who enjoys running and walking with her rescue dog, Ruth brings her #growthmindset to her personal and professional life with a passion for continuous learning. During quarantine she took steps to become a certified sommelier.
As Chief People Officer, Laura Sewell focuses on creating an employee experience that makes people feel inspired, confident and cared for at Avanade. She leads Avanade’s global human resources organisation and is responsible for the full scope of people programs, including talent acquisition, employee engagement, inclusion and diversity, leadership development and more.
Prior to joining Avanade in 2018, Laura spent more than 20 years at IBM, where she most recently served as Global Executive HR Director for IBM’s Digital Strategy and iX business unit within Global Business Services. At Avanade, she previously served as Executive for North America HR, leading the end-to-end experience for more than 4,000 employees across the U.S. and Canada. She’s passionate about shaping employee experiences that drive innovation and collaboration, as well as meaningful business growth.
Laura holds a bachelor’s degree in science education from North Carolina State University. She resides in Florida and enjoys spending time with her family, playing the piano, taking photos and exploring new areas along the coast. Laura is also proud to be a donor and fundraiser for Ronald McDonald House Charities, which provides housing and assistance to families with critically ill children.
As Chief Financial Officer, Sonia Webb is responsible for Avanade’s global investment strategy and management, as well as its financial operations, including accounting, budgeting, tax, internal audit, financial planning and treasury.
Sonia joined Avanade in July 2019 as Global Finance Lead bringing 25+ years of experience, including 22 years with Accenture. At Accenture she most recently had served as Finance Director, North America, where she drove strategic financial priorities across the company’s largest market. Previously she was Finance Director for Accenture’s Communications, Media & Technology business in North America and earlier, a member of the Corporate Development Transaction Services team, where she provided critical financial deal shaping guidance across a variety of industries and offerings.
Sonia holds an MBA in finance and accounting and degree in economics. An avid horseback rider, when she isn’t working, you’ll find her out in nature with her family.
As Chief Operating Officer of Avanade, Amy Wright is responsible for the company’s operating performance and global business operations worldwide.
Amy joined Avanade in 2019 as North America COO after more than 20 years at Accenture, where she started her career in consulting before holding a number of leadership roles in the Commercial Director organisation. There she developed a global, cohesive Operations team on three continents, as well as directing account strategy and planning.
Amy holds a bachelors degree in biochemistry and a Ph.D. in molecular biology. Although you will no longer find her in a laboratory, when she’s not working, you may catch her on the tennis court or enjoying a beautiful day at the beach.
As Executive and Lead for the Integrated Go-to-Market Function, Santina Franchi is responsible for leveraging Avanade’s core areas of expertise for the company’s existing and new clients, helping them build market share, relevance and reputation via Microsoft tech solutions.
Santina joined Avanade in 2023 having spent her career innovating ways for clients to implement technology as a tool for growth. Most recently, she served as Global Vice President for Business Applications for Microsoft, where she led digital transformation for clients and stakeholders using Microsoft Business Applications, Dynamics 365 and Power Platform, and prior to that she led Microsoft Enterprise and Partners business in Western Europe. She previously held senior positions at IBM and SAP, including Vice President for Information Management for IBM Europe and SVP for HANA at SAP EMEA.
Santina holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, computer science and telecommunications from Sapienza University of Rome. She’s lived across the world – including the U.S., U.K., France, New Zealand and Italy – and speaks fluent English, French and Italian, plus some German. Outside of work she enjoys staying active and spending time outdoors through yoga, skiing, waterskiing and tennis.
As our Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and Responsible Business Lead, Innes Grant shapes the programs that drive Avanade’s ESG goals, including Corporate Citizenship and our focus on making a social impact through digital transformation. His work oversees initiatives such as our Tech for Social Good program, working closely with Microsoft to deliver repeatable IT solutions for the nonprofit sector, IGOs and other humanitarian and environmental organisations.
With a career at Avanade spanning more than two decades, Innes most recently served as Chief of Staff to the CEO and Global Non-Profit Sector Lead. He’s also held positions as UK Health & Public Sector Lead, UK COO and Head of Growth and Strategy for Avanade in Europe. Prior to joining Avanade, Innes worked at Accenture with clients across a range of industry sectors consulting on ERP and other aspects of core technology delivery.
Innes holds a bachelor’s degree in Laser Physics from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, Scotland and completed continuing studies in Strategy and Innovation at the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford.
As Global Avanade X Lead, Jason Hunt brings together award-winning solutions, capabilities and market-leading expertise to drive relevant and enduring experiences that accelerate growth for clients across the world.
Jason has more than 20 years of experience leading sales, delivery and transformation initiatives across the technology industry, including CRM, SaaS, AI, digital marketing and data. He joined Avanade in 2010 and most recently served as the North American Avanade X Lead. Prior to his time at Avanade, he held positions at MicroStrategy, Microsoft and Ascentium. He also flew drones in the U.S. Army and completed deployments to Croatia and Bosnia.
Jason lives in Seattle and enjoys traveling, driving fast cars, eating good food, drinking wine and cocktails and spending time with his family and friends.
As Avanade’s General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, Julia Jessen is responsible for leading the company’s global legal function. Besides being a leading voice in building our thought leadership and reputation in the market around topics like digital ethics, she transformed our legal department’s deal making approach to be client centric and value based, while facilitating growth with best-in-class business lawyering across Avanade.
With a career that spans Germany, England and the United States, Julia has been designing and leading international legal teams for over two decades with a strong emphasis on innovation and simplification. Before joining Avanade as our General Counsel Europe in 2012, Julia was General Counsel EMEA at Sony Mobile Communications and an Associate General Counsel at Amazon. She started her career working at Intel, where she held several legal leadership roles, including supporting Intel’s global Software and Solutions Group.
Julia studied Law at the Ludwig Maximilian’s University in Munich and holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) from University College London. She joined the Munich bar association in 1999. In her free time, you will find Julia outdoors on long-distance hikes or hosting dinners for family and friends with delicious food and great conversations.
As Global Delivery Lead, Guy Mather is responsible for Avanade’s global Delivery organization, ensuring that Avanade delivers on its promises to clients through its engagements worldwide.
Prior to his current role, Guy led Avanade’s Europe Delivery team, creating a center of excellence to support improved performance across European engagements. Over the course of his career, which began as a systems engineer at IBM, Guy served as partner in a variety of leadership roles at Accenture, led platform deployment services as a vice president at Capgemini and spent several years as an independent advisory consultant.
Guy holds a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Bristol. He is passionate about combining walking with his love of history and riding his Peloton bike, not necessarily in that order.
Jillian Moore leads Avanade’s Global Advisory organization, with responsibility for creating and executing Avanade’s advisory strategy, developing and leading our global advisory offerings and capabilities, and managing our strategic engagements with Avanade advisory clients. Jillian is also executive sponsor for both Avanade’s go-to-market strategy for sustainability as well as for our wellbeing initiatives.
Jillian came to Avanade from Atos, where she led the company’s Global Digital Transformation practice. Prior to that she was a client services partner and Customer Engagement practice lead at Slalom Consulting in the U.K..
She holds a master’s degree with honors in advanced computing from Imperial College, London, and a bachelor’s degree with honors in computer science from the University of York. Passionate about mental health and the role physical activity plays, Jillian is chair of the board of trustees of London Sport, a social service non-profit whose mission is to encourage the people of London to be more active. She sets a good example. Jillian is an avid scuba diver and instructor, with a particular interest in underwater photography.
Simon Thomas leads Avanade’s global data and applied intelligence (AI) business, which harnesses the combined power of AI, analytics and intelligent automation to help our clients apply data-driven intelligence into everything they do. Avanade’s data and AI group encompasses data platform modernisation, intelligent industry solutions and intelligent automation.
Simon joins Avanade from IBM where he held regional and global leadership roles in the areas of CRM, business analytics, Digital, IoT and AI, driving sales, strategic growth and delivery excellence. In his most recent role, he was responsible for growing its AI and Cognitive Consulting practice. Prior to his AI work, Simon led business analytics for IBM’s growth regions and built the company’s digital consulting practice in Asia Pacific.
Simon began his career as a consultant and retains a passion for building and nurturing strong consulting practices that earn client trust and deliver value. Simon holds a degree in music, music production and engineering from Berklee College and a master of science in manufacturing engineering from Boston University.
Rodrigo Caserta, president of Growth Markets, is responsible for Avanade’s business operations in Australia, Brazil, Greater China, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore.
Previously Rodrigo was general manager of Avanade Brazil, where he delivered consistent year-on-year double-digit growth, expanded Avanade’s presence in the Brazil market and developed a solid partnership with both Microsoft and Accenture, building a strong collaboration model across the three companies that led to years of significant business success.
Rodrigo joined Avanade in 2015 following a career in technology that included 10 years with Accenture. Passionate about leading people and celebrating their development and success, Rodrigo serves as a mentor and coach at Endeavor, a global non-profit organisation that encourages entrepreneurship and supports start-up businesses.
Rodrigo holds a degree in production engineering from Rio de Janeiro Federal University.
Anna Di Silverio, president of Europe, is responsible for guiding strategy, business operations, talent development, sales and delivery across Europe. Anna has a deep commitment to building a diverse and inclusive workforce, supporting our collaborative partnership with Accenture and Microsoft, and providing our clients with innovative digital and cloud services, business solutions and design-led experiences within the Microsoft ecosystem.
Prior to her current role, Anna served as president of Growth Markets, where she was responsible for business operations in Australia, Brazil, Greater China, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore. Under her leadership, Growth Markets experienced consistent double-digit sales, revenue, and headcount growth, and regions in Growth Markets were recognised for gender equality and progressive workplace practices. Earlier she was Growth Markets’ chief operating officer, responsible for executing Avanade’s strategy and operational excellence across its regions in Asia Pacific and Brazil.
Anna joined Avanade in 2010 as general manager of Avanade Italy. She began her career as a networking architecture researcher and holds a degree in computer sciences from the University of Pisa. When she is not working, she enjoys horticulture, tennis and books on technology and gender gap issues.
As President, North America, Eric Miquelon is responsible for guiding the sales, delivery and operations of Avanade's largest business. Working closely with the United States and Canada leadership team, Eric ensures delivery of consistent, high-quality results for Avanade's North American clients.
Previously, Eric led Avanade’s global solutions and delivery teams, as well as our applications and infrastructure business. As part of that portfolio, he led Avanade’s network of digital innovation studios and managed our partner ecosystem.
Eric joined Avanade from Accenture more than 18 years ago, holding a number client-facing, business leadership and partner management roles, including serving as Chief Operating Officer of Avanade Europe.
While he was born and raised in Chicago, you'll find Eric with a mug of Yorkshire tea in the afternoon, a habit he picked up when he lived in the UK a few years ago.
As head of Avanade’s global Advanced Technology Center network, Sailaja Bhagavatula is responsible for all the Microsoft work we do across our global ATC delivery centers and centers of excellence, including studios that specialise in experience design and digital, cloud and agile technologies. The global ATC team includes 30,000+ technology experts, a backbone of Avanade’s delivery capability.
Sailaja is a member of the Accenture Advanced Technology Centers in India (ATCI) leadership team and the Accenture Microsoft Business Group (AMBG) Executive Committee. She also serves as the Inclusion and Diversity program sponsor for Accenture in India. She is passionate about the I&D agenda and has a deep commitment to creating inclusive and diverse workforces.
Before assuming her current role, Sailaja led the Intelligent Platform Services group at ATCI, with responsibility for driving growth, innovation, sales enablement and solution support, as well as overseeing project delivery and helping clients achieve enterprise-wide transformation. She has 23+ years of deep technology experience in the IT services industry, including leadership roles across sales, solution architecture, delivery, practice development and asset/IP building across multiple platforms and technologies.
Sailaja has multicultural work experience across India, Japan and the United Kingdom. A fitness and travel enthusiast, she enjoys swimming and playing badminton with her family, as well as music, singing and playing the guitar.
As Chief Technology Officer, Aaron Reich is responsible for Avanade’s technology strategy, driving innovation across the business and incubating emerging technologies to bring them to clients across the globe. He manages Avanade’s global R&D function, oversees Avanade’s participation in the startup ecosystem and drives our responsible technology approach and digital ethics practice, including for our client work with generative AI.
Aaron joined Avanade in 2012 and most recently served as the company’s Emerging Technology Lead. Under Aaron’s leadership, Avanade has embraced and scaled emerging technology capabilities including the reality continuum, 5G, digital twin, open source, robotics, and OpenAI, working closely with multiple product engineering teams at Microsoft. Prior to Avanade, Aaron worked across the high-tech, non-profit and telecommunications industries.
Aaron holds a Bachelor of Arts in business from the College of William and Mary and currently resides in Seattle. He grew up spending too much time on his family’s Apple IIC computer, which led to his love of technology and its ability to make a positive difference in people’s lives. Aaron coaches and mentors start-up entrepreneurs and has served as President of the board of The Healing Center in Seattle. He was an avid runner before twin boys came along and looks forward to getting back on the trails.
As Avanade’s Chief AI Officer, Florin Rotar drives the global AI strategy and execution across all parts of our business, spanning leadership, sales, solutioning, delivery, capability and our partner ecosystem. He also accelerates Avanade’s internal transformation, identifying new ways AI can disrupt – and improve – how we work, operate and deliver for our clients.
Florin previously served as Chief Technology Officer at Avanade, where he led the strategic development of a portfolio of solutions and services centered on emerging technologies and innovation. He is a member of the Forbes Technology Council and was recognised by Entrepreneur Magazine as one of the Top 10 CTOs to Watch in 2023. Florin is passionate about people-first AI innovation and co-authored the book “We the People: Human Purpose in a Digital Age: A Guide to Digital Ethics for Individuals, Organisations and Robots of All Kinds.”
Florin holds a master’s degree in telecommunications engineering from Lund University. He is a world citizen, having lived and worked in 10 countries across three continents, and now calls the Pacific Northwest home. When he’s not busy raising young children, he loves running while listening to EDM.
Stefan Smolka has been General Manager for Germany, Austria and Switzerland since January 10, 2022. He is responsible for Avanade’s business in the DACH region and driving forward the company’s strategic alliance with its parent companies, Accenture and Microsoft.
Stefan joined Avanade after more than 16 years at Accenture where he most recently led Accenture’s Microsoft Business Group in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. In this role he was responsible for defining and implementing and executing the strategy for the region. Prior to that he held several other leadership positions at Accenture, including Market Growth Lead & COO SAP Business Group DACH and Head of Sales & Operations Resources Industries DACH. Stefan brings with him a unique background, which includes business and leadership experience both within and outside of Accenture.
“I personally believe that leveraging technologies and the corresponding solutions can help address and solve a lot of challenges we face in these times, be it at companies or in society. The portfolio of Microsoft will play a vital part in solving these challenges. I´m looking forward to be part of that journey together with our partner and friends form Microsoft and Accenture.”
Christiane Noll has been Country Manager of Avanade Austria since October 2016 and in this role is responsible for business development in Austria. Her focus is on supporting customers in their digital transformation with IT solutions and consulting and the associated expansion of the team. Prior to her engagement at Avanade, Christiane Noll held leading positions at Microsoft Austria for six years and before that at the digital communications agency update, where she was reponsible for sales and branch office development.
"Digital transformation is becoming a decisive competitive advantage for companies from and in Austria. Together with my team I would like to accompany the leading companies and show them new possibilities with innovative technologies."
Andreas Schindler has been Country Manager at Avanade Switzerland since May 2018. He is responsible for Avanade's business development in Switzerland, further developing the collaboration with Accenture and Microsoft, and personally supporting customers in their digital transformation. Prior to his role as Country Manager, Andreas Schindler was responsible for sales in Switzerland and parts of Germany at Avanade. Andreas Schindler brings with him many years of experience in the IT industry through his previous role as Head of IT Strategy & Architecture Consulting at IBM. As mechanical engineer by training, he completed his Master of Science degree at the ETH Zurich in 2000.
Antonio Stöckel has been managing Avanade's business in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg since 2015. With a degree in computer science, he has passed through various positions in consulting in the last 20 years of his career. He delivered multiple large transformation and consulting projects for Accenture for over 10 years and joined Avanade Germany in 2011.
"Ensuring the sustainable success of our clients is based on a trustful and transparent collaboration. Bringing about the right decision today and being proud of having done the right thing after many years motivates our team."
As Chief Operating Officer for Avanade Germany, Austria and Switzerland, Carsten Neuhaus has been responsible for the management, control and organization of all operational processes and operational services since October 2019. He started his career at all4net GmbH in Darmstadt and continued from 2005 at Siemens Financial Services GmbH in Munich, where he held positions in Service Management and Program Manager. In 2012, he joined Avanade as Program & Project Manager with a focus on CRM systems implementation. The experienced computer scientist and consultant graduated in 2004 as an engineer (BA) for information technology at the DHBW Mannheim.
Christian Mattheis has been Modern Workplace Lead at Avanade in Germany, Austria and Switzerland since September 2017, and is responsible for Avanade's business in North Rhine-Westphalia. Since 2005, he has held various roles in security, collaboration and communication at Avanade.
As a graduate engineer, he began his career in the energy industry before switching to information technology.
Today, his focus is on consulting customers in partnership for future-proof IT and the joint development of innovative solutions.
Davide Guglielminotti has been Head of Finance for Avanade Germany, Austria and Switzerland since February 2018 and is thus responsible for the economic and financial management of the region. Before becoming a part of the DACH team, he was Finance Lead of Avanade Italy and responsible for various internal business activities (e.g. Facilities, Procurement, Travel). Before joining Avanade in 2002, Davide worked in the audit department of E&Y and other asset management companies. Davide holds a degree in Business Administration from Bocconi University in Milan.
"I believe that each individual can achieve outstanding results. That's why I'm very supportive of employee development. My goal is to build strong and reliable finance teams, able to lead the finance journey from pure service provider to business partner of key stakeholders of complex organizations."
As Delivery Executive, Hans-Peter Lichtin is responsible for delivering Avanade's services in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Together with his experienced team, he ensures that our services ideally exceed the expectations of customers and Avanade. Hans-Peter Lichtin has been with Avanade since 2008 and has already held various management positions; Among other things, he was Country Manager Switzerland and Chief Operating Officer for Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Prior to joining Avanade, he was with Accenture. The experienced computer scientist and consultant graduated from the ETH in Zurich with a degree in computer science in 1990.
“I stand for achieving ambitious goals: As a consultant for the leading service provider for innovative digital solutions in the Microsoft ecosystem, I support our customers and our teams. Deliver the right solution together with our experts from Avanade, but also from Accenture and Microsoft. "
As the Regional Capability Lead for Austria, Germany and Switzerland, Jasmin defines and implements the strategic workforce plan to forecast and meet medium and long-term skill needs across all talent sources. It is her ambition to continuously improve hiring, training, scheduling and performance management within the Avanade DACH region, keeping a firm focus on employee engagement/satisfaction.
After studying business informatics, she began her career in 2005 as a trainee at Accenture. As Test & Communication Manager and later as Change Management Lead, she gained a lot of experience in IT and Management consulting. After successfully completing her master's degree in business psychology, she joined Avanade in 2014 and has been working continuously on building a future-ready workforce ever since.
Heiko Leicht leads Avanade's Cloud Solution Area in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. In this role, he drives the "Journey to the Cloud" for our customers, i.e. all topics that revolve around the shift of applications and infrastructure components to the Microsoft Azure Cloud. Prior to assuming the Solution Area Lead role in January 2021, he led numerous transformation and managed service projects for our customers. He began his career at Avanade in 2001, prior to which he graduated from the University of Hamburg with a degree in Physics.
"My goal is to successfully implement cloud projects at our customers to help them achieve their business goals. Cloud and digital offer our customers new ways to implement innovation, lower costs and reduce time to market."
Michael Schleuss has been in charge of business development, sales and marketing for Avanade in Germany, Austria and Switzerland since October 2014. He thus has overall responsibility for sales and develops new and existing business contacts with his team. The industrial engineer passed through various stations in the IT industry in the more than 25 years of his career. Among other things, he led M&A, outsourcing and sales at IBM and was Managing Director at Atos before joining Avanade in 2012.
"Close and trustful cooperation is the basis for successful projects to help our customers achieve their business goals. With our expertise, industry knowledge and portfolio, we provide customers with holistic advice and support during technical implementation."
Nadine Hermann joined Avanade in June 2015. Her professional career path started in 2007 in Human Resources at Accenture. Since then, she has worked in various roles for Accenture as well as Avanade. From 2015 to 2018, she acted as HR Manager for Avanade Germany, Austria and Switzerland. As HR Lead, she has been responsible for the entire HR function including recruiting, HR development as well as HR initiatives since December 2018.
"Our talents make the difference. Our goal is to offer them an exciting work environment and to accompany them on their career path at Avanade in the long term. This includes clear career paths, further development opportunities and an international, diverse network."
Dr. Rainer Bamberger heads the Business Applications market unit at Avanade in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Business Applications implements agile application solutions for companies across all business units. Until the merger of Infoman AG and Avanade Deutschland GmbH, Dr. Bamberger was founder and CEO of Infoman AG. In the course of his career, Rainer Bamberger has held various positions, including consultant for Mercedes Benz and PriceWaterhouseCoopers, and acted as head of the "Information Systems" competence center at the Fraunhofer Institute IAO Stuttgart. As a lecturer at the University of Stuttgart, he also imparts his experience to students in the field of international technology management. Today, Dr. Bamberger is a trustee of the University of Munich, among other positions.
"Strengthening companies in their markets: I have personally been living this value proposition very actively for over 15 years. I have already accompanied numerous clients and projects and observe with a certain pride how these clients have taken on a leading role in their markets and have been operating very successfully for many years."
Robert Horndasch has headed the Advisory business for Avanade in Germany, Austria and Switzerland since January 2021. The consulting business at Avanade is globally positioned and combines classic management consulting with Avanade's implementation expertise in complex transformation programs and digitalization projects. With a degree in computer science, he has spent 25 years in consulting in various industries as a partner at companies such as Deloitte and BearingPoint.
"Avanade differentiates through the combination of established management consulting through the symbiosis with the technological and implementation-driven DNA. Microsoft plays a big role for Avanade as a technology partner, but in a world of open platforms we also need to be vendor agnostic in our consulting business with our clients to meet the challenges of digitalization."
Dr. Robert Laube is responsible for the Central Region (Saarland, Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse, Thuringia), as well as for banks and the public sector in Germany. He has been with Avanade since 2002 and has played an active role in the company's development in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Most recently, he led the business in the Microsoft Azure segment for all three countries. Dr. Laube graduated in mathematics and computer science from the University in Mainz and Universidad de Valencia (Spain) and holds a PhD in mathematics.
"Digital innovation is an important topic for any company if new business areas are to be developed. My aspiration is to accompany our customers in their transformations in a spirit of partnership - from strategy, through the development and introduction of new systems, and their subsequent operation. The topic of 'sustainability' is very important to me personally. Sustainable, so that our customers are optimally positioned for their future business in a partner ecosystem, and sustainable, so that we deal consciously, carefully and responsibly with everything we do on our earth."
Stephan Göbel is responsible for Avanade's business in Baden-Württemberg with its 3 locations in Balingen, Ulm and Stuttgart. His enthusiasm for driving innovation and successfully implementing it in companies was developed during his career at Fraunhofer IAO and Infoman AG as head of management consulting and as a member of the board of directors, and he finally brought it to Avanade. With the ongoing goal of strengthening Avanade customers and preparing them for the future, he works on identifying trends and market requirements of the digital transformation with regard to marketing, sales and service as well as the entire value chain and designs customer- and employee-centric implementation strategies.
"Supporting companies in partnership, successfully, continuously realizing better customer experiences as well as being able to act flexibly and efficiently across the entire value chain, based on reliable, secure and sustainable solutions: That is our goal."“
Karthik Narain, chair of the Avanade Board of Directors, currently serves as group chief executive – Technology at Accenture. His role spans cloud, data & AI, enterprise & industry technologies and security, as well as technology ecosystem partnerships and its Advanced Technology Centres. He is a member of Accenture’s Global Management Committee.
Prior to his appointment as group chief executive, Karthik served as the lead for Accenture Cloud First and the company’s Data & AI business. In these roles, he led teams helping clients move, shape and operate their businesses in the cloud and unlock the power of data & AI. Most recently, Karthik helped define Accenture’s approach and establish an early lead in generative AI through investments in its Generative AI Centre of Excellence; new, signature thought leadership pieces; new ecosystem partnerships; and a new data & AI strategy for the company.
Karthik, who joined Accenture in 2015, brings a diverse set of experiences to his role as group chief executive. Over his 24-year career, he has led many strategic and innovative programmes for clients across a variety of industry sectors, including Financial Services, High Tech and Software and Platforms. Karthik previously led Accenture Technology in North America, helping guide Global 2000 brands in using the power of the cloud and other technologies to transform their businesses. He is also an active sponsor in the Technology Women’s Executive Leadership programme, supporting the growth of Accenture’s most senior women leaders in Technology.
Deb Cupp is President of Microsoft Americas, a $70 billion business responsible for delivering the full product and services portfolio of Microsoft to customers based in the United States, Canada and Latin America. Deb is responsible for deepening collaborations with customers and partners across commercial and public sector industries, helping them evolve their digital transformation journeys.
Deb is a collaborative and authentic leader whose focus on re-engineering and optimising processes has enhanced productivity and driven results for the businesses under her leadership. Deb is also passionate about client success and people development with a particular interest in mentoring women in business.
Deb holds a BS in business administration from the University of Richmond in Richmond, Virginia, where she was a Division One field hockey and lacrosse scholarship athlete. In addition, she holds an MBA from St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Paul Daugherty is Accenture's Chief Technology and Innovation Officer (CTIO), and is a member of Accenture’s Global Management Committee. As a visionary in shaping the innovation of technology, Paul leads and executes Accenture’s technology strategy, leveraging the company’s leading-edge capabilities and research and development to reinvent the future of business.
As CTIO, Paul also leads Accenture’s Innovation strategy and organisation, including Accenture Labs and The Dock in Dublin, Ireland. He directs Accenture’s global research and development into emerging technology areas such as generative AI, quantum computing, science tech and space technology. He leads a dedicated innovation group that not only designs and delivers transformational business and technology solutions, but also invests in, and partners with, pioneering companies to pilot and incubate new technologies. Paul also leads Accenture’s annual Technology Vision report, hosts its annual Innovation Forum event, and leads Accenture Ventures, which he founded to focus on strategic equity investments to accelerate growth.
Previously, Paul served as Accenture's Group Chief Executive – Technology, where he led all aspects of Accenture's Technology business. In this role, he led the formation of Accenture Cloud First to help clients across every industry accelerate their digital transformation and realise greater value at speed and scale by rapidly becoming “cloud first” businesses. Most recently, he helped lay the groundwork for Accenture’s $3 billion investment in its Data & AI practise to help clients rapidly and responsibly advance and use AI, including Generative AI, to achieve greater growth, efficiency and resilience.
Paul is a passionate advocate for gender equality in the workplace and STEM-related inclusion and diversity initiatives. For more than six years, he has been a member of the board of directors of Girls Who Code, an organisation that seeks to support and increase the number of women in computer science careers.
Chris Howarth is Senior Managing Director, Global Lead – Accenture Microsoft Business Group. In this role he is responsible for bringing the power of Microsoft, Accenture and Avanade together to develop and deliver industry leading technology solutions for our clients around the world. Chris is a passionate leader who believes in the strength of strategic partnerships to drive greater growth for our clients and deliver differentiated experiences for their customers.
Chris’ career at Accenture spans more than 25 years, where he’s driven incredible impact for clients and the telecommunications sector before stepping into the AMBG Lead role. As a Client Account Lead for one of Accenture’s largest accounts, Chris led major global transformation initiatives recognised across the industry for delivering both profitable and sustainable growth.
Chris is based in Wales and enjoys cycling and spending time with his family, including walks in mountains and trips to the coast. He is a massive rugby fan and looks for any opportunity to watch them at home or on tour.
As CEO of Avanade, Pamela Maynard is passionate about building a people-first culture for Avanade’s 50,000+ global employees while driving sustainable, responsible growth centered around client success. Under her leadership, Avanade has put its purpose of making a genuine human impact at the forefront of the work we do for our clients, their employees and their customers. She’s also tied our purpose to the contributions we make in our communities and the planet.
A veteran of the technology industry, Pamela has dedicated her 25+year career to helping clients rethink their business strategies by harnessing the power of digital innovation to renew and grow their businesses.
Prior to being named CEO of Avanade in Sept. 2019, Pamela was Avanade’s President of Product and Innovation, focused on defining and delivering innovative solutions for our clients. Earlier in her Avanade career, she served as President of our European organization and as General Manager of Avanade UK.
Under her leadership, Pamela has continued to expand and sharpen Avanade’s commitment to creating a culture where everyone is welcome to bring their authentic selves to work and where diverse perspectives, backgrounds and skills are valued as critical differentiators in our ability to support our clients. Pamela also serves as executive sponsor of our Technology for Social Good initiative, through which we bring the power of our cloud and digital technology skills and expertise to non-profit organizations, digitally transforming their work and accelerating their social impact.
Pamela sits on the boards of the Royal Horticultural Society and Junior Achievement Worldwide. As a world traveler, Pamela draws inspiration from the varied backgrounds and cultures she’s experienced. When she’s not meeting with clients or inspiring our teams, you will find her enjoying time with family and friends in her native London.
