Devendra Natekar

Led the complete overhaul of the student portal for one of the largest 100% online universities in the US. The product features included dynamic personalization, push and pull chatbot and chat-based capabilities, ML-based nudges, risk scoring-based personalized support, and tools to improve financial and academic resilience.

Product managed the development of multiple ML tools:
1) Led scoring and MQL/SQL: Used omnichannel activity to determine propensity to convert on outreach.
2) Next best channel: Best channel, content, and creative for improved engagement and conversions based on prior engagement and self-professed choices.
3) Retention risk and proactive outreach: Combined financial, transactional (omnichannel), and behavioral data into a retention risk score, which was used to determine the priority of proactive outreach (digital, agent-based). The ML tool also recommended content to be discussed with the customer.
4) Financial resilience: Spend pattern, available aid, and other data was used to assess financial risk and used to create proactive outreach for support to ensure the financial health of the customer.
5) Agent performance: CSAT, conversational transcripts (NLP), and supervisory feedback was combined to create an agent quality score that helped supervisors better address and improve agent performance.

Established and grew high-performing product management teams (7-16 FTEs) at multiple organizations. Established design as a key capability across the product lifecycle. Hired and upskilled high-performing FTEs. Defined necessary processes and established governance. Owned the change management to establish product mindset as a key capability within the organization.

1) Walden University: Established and grew a new agile product and portfolio management office (PMO) that managed the product pipeline, portfolio governance, including demand intake, prioritization, demand planning, and resourcing. Worked with the CIO to implement Scaled Agile (SAFe) processes. Moved the IT organization and funding approach to be epic-oriented, improving resource allocation and flexing. This enabled the launch of 250+ features across 20+ products/platforms–a 2X+ jump over prior years.
2) Capital One: Part of the team that implemented Scaled Agile process. I managed and participated in the portfolio prioritization, including the QBRs with key executives to facilitate investment decisions and track progress.
3) Healthcare client: Transformed the team from project-specific implementation to a Scrum of Scrum model to improve speed and quality.

Owned the revamp and scale-up of the chatbot capability. Reduced defection to phone from 25%+ to <10%. Integrated digital channels (chatbot, email, SMS) seamlessly with agent channels (phone, chat) to create a unified approach to CX and improve UX–all of which reduced digital channel defection and abandonment to <10% from 25%+

Integrated chatbot into IVR to create engaging and conversation IVR, improving engagement and resolution and reducing call volumes.

Consolidated and revamped communications strategy (cadence, creative, content, channel management). Launched automated SMS. These efforts delivered engagement KPIs that beat industry standards.

Leveraged Einstein for Action Capture Insights and Send Time optimization. Included actions within the email to improve CTA engagement which upped engagement by 2X+ for critical CTAs such as on time bill-pay. Implemented video and screen sharing to improve service.

Supported and/or owned the digital transformation with a focus on five main pillars:
1.) Leveraged the business strategy to create a vision and paint the target state for the customer experience and digital experience.
2) Created a product and services roadmap with a clear ROI for each initiative. Developed OKRs and KPIs for each product/service and assigned accountable executives.
3) Highlighted the key capability gaps (technology, skillset, organizational, governance, and process) and defined the investment needed and roadmap.
4) Established product management, portfolio management, and program management functions.
5) Worked with IT (VP, CIO level) to create and align the technology roadmap, develop the necessary architectural runway, and implement new processes and methodologies (e.g., Agile).
5) Worked with and/or supported change management to ensure a successful and sustainable transformation.

Facilitated multiple sprints involving user interviews (attitudinal), in-home user studies (behavioral), design thinking, and ideation sessions to assess new product opportunities, new feature exploration, improve existing products, and explore experience improvement opportunities.

Defined and scaled a VoC program (surveys, panels, CSAT/NPS, NLP-based analysis) to derive explicit and implicit customer insights from omnichannel touchpoints. The team also facilitated design thinking workshops with customers and partners to define new product opportunities and improvements to the current portfolio.