Zena Brand
Founder & Principal
I’ve been a product person my whole career. I've had different titles but the responsibility, and my focus, have centered on building portfolios of products that clients will buy on a recurring basis without being locked into a contract. That means that these solutions have to be easy to adopt, rewarding to use, deliver value to cost, and be continuously relevant to the needs of the users.
The two things I really care about are developing products that people love and building fabulous teams to support them. I start with business strategy and drive growth by building a compelling view of user needs, deep market understanding, effective partnership with Agile development teams, well planned product launches and productive partnerships. I've successfully defined new products and refreshed established ones to improve value, simplify implementation and enhance client retention.
I’m fortunate to have the capability to “get” new domains quickly and identify market opportunities along with a keen understanding of the SaaS business model to deliver successful and profitable outsourcing solutions. I'm known for asking different questions and, generally, thinking differently.
My product portfolio includes human capital management (HCM), wellness, time and attendance tracking, education technology, telematics and supply chain solutions. I appreciate being recognized as a thought-leader in human resources technology, global payroll, HRMS and B2B outsourcing business strategy. Even more, I appreciate being valued for building quality product teams who continue to drive successful outcomes.
My methodology includes Jobs-to-be-Done (JTBD), effective user interviews and a well-defined end-in-mind approach that drives better productivity with Agile development processes. I recently implemented this methodology in an Agile environment, resulting in significant increases in sales and better implementation results across the board including for some previously struggling products.
Before fulfilling my dream to found a consulting firm, I was with ADP for over 21 years. As SVP for Product Strategy, I led development of two partnerships with SAP AG and the highly successful product launch of GlobalView®, ADP’s multinational HR/Payroll solution. I managed strategy across product teams in 12 countries where we increased sales and client retention, contributing to doubling International division revenues in 6 years to $1B. In the US market, my team and I launched 11 new products in a 5-year period, all of which achieved significant commercial success.