Christopher Kraus

Recruited as CIO for a high-growth company to scale the technology footprint and enable rapid business expansion. Own enterprise IT strategy and execution, driving increased maturity, improved operational performance, new digital capabilities, and reduced enterprise risk. Lead all technology across Manufacturing, Supply Chain, S&OP, and enterprise platforms including ERP, WMS/TMS, CRM, cloud/infrastructure, and cybersecurity. ENTERPRISE TURNAROUND: Orchestrated an enterprise system turnaround that stabilized operations and served as the foundation for increased manufacturing capacity and margin improvement. OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE: Led technology across manufacturing and supply chain to improve plant execution and yields while modernizing warehouse and transportation systems. AI INNOVATION: Championed company-wide AI adoption, including vision-based operational monitoring and employee productivity platforms with measurable business impact. SCALE: Expanded the internal technology organization across all functions of IT and established dedicated offshore development capabilities to support sustained growth. BOARD GOVERNANCE: Serve as the primary technology liaison to the Board and Audit Committee on matters of cybersecurity, enterprise risk, and SEC-compliant reporting.

Responsible for modernizing the technology landscape from legacy systems to cloud-based platforms and repositioning IT as a strategic enabler. LEGACY TRANSFORMATION: Directed the transition of core operations from a customized legacy IBM environment to a modern, high-reliability cloud platform. DATA-DRIVEN CULTURE: Delivered enterprise Business Intelligence and standardized KPIs to improve executive visibility and real-time decision-making. GLOBAL LEADERSHIP: Scaled and led a global IT organization across the U.S., Europe, and Asia, maturing service delivery and operating discipline. SUPPLY CHAIN OPTIMIZATION: Enhanced enterprise-wide visibility through the modernization of supply chain and finance systems to support better planning and scalability.

Established the entire global IT organization and enterprise technology portfolio from the ground up following a corporate carve-out. STRATEGIC ROADMAP: Defined a multi-year technology roadmap and built globally distributed teams across the U.S., Germany, UK, and China to reduce operational complexity. GLOBAL MODERNIZATION: Directed a global ERP rollout across China, India, Germany and US and deployed a unified cloud environment to improve executive planning and decision-making. DIGITAL GROWTH: Partnered with Sales and Marketing to build D2C e-commerce capabilities and digital storefronts to increase revenue share. CYBERSECURITY AND COMPLIANCE: Established a global governance program, achieving ISO 27001 certification and alignment with NIST, GDPR, and PCI standards.

Board Member - Werhahn A.G. Technology Advisory Council for IT Security, Governance, Data Privacy, I.T. Policy, and Audit

Oversaw global enterprise platforms and financial systems strategy for a leading global marketing and communications company. SYSTEM HARMONIZATION: Directed initiatives across ERP and core business applications to consolidate fragmented systems and improve global operational efficiency. FINANCIAL MODERNIZATION: Partnered with divisional CFOs to modernize financial systems (Dynamics 365) and strengthen IT governance and audit readiness. GLOBAL DELIVERY: Managed a multi-national IT organization responsible for enterprise platforms and infrastructure critical to global operations. M&A INTEGRATION: Supported post-acquisition integrations and system consolidations, aligning technology with regulatory and security standards across global regions

ARCHITECTURE STANDARDS: Led the design and global support of enterprise platforms while defining scalable technology architecture standards to ensure long-term sustainability. BUSINESS PARTNERSHIP: Partnered with business leaders to translate complex operational requirements into enterprise-ready technology solutions. GLOBAL ENGINEERING: Managed cross-functional onshore and offshore engineering teams to deliver global ERP, Business Intelligence, and integration platforms. LEGACY MIGRATION: Orchestrated the migration of legacy environments and streamlined data integration to improve reliability and enable system consolidation. SYSTEM FOUNDATIONS: Established foundational technology frameworks that streamlined integration flows and supported future organizational growth.