Krishna is available for hire
Hire KrishnaKrishna Venkatraman
Verified Expert in Product Management
Product Manager
Location
Laredo, TX, United States
Toptal Member Since
December 20, 2019
For the past 18 years, Krishna has successfully launched software products in various industries as a product manager. He has experience in applied machine learning, business intelligence, SaaS, mobile apps, IoT, CRM, and ITSM markets, to name a few. Having worked in both startups and Fortune 500 companies, Krishna is well-versed in end-to-end product lifecycle management with a highly effective and influential leadership style.
Product ManagementData AnalyticsStakeholder ManagementB2B Product ManagementB2BSaaSSaaS Product ManagementData Product ManagerWeb Product ManagementTechnical Project ManagementMinimum Viable Product (MVP)Software as a Service (SaaS)CloudBusiness Process AutomationDocumentationVP AnalyticsProduct ConsultingProduct ManagerAnalytics Director
Project Highlights
Brand Abuse Monitoring System with Infringement Detection Engine and Graphical User Interface
Developed an advanced analysis platform concept with projected first-year sales of $10 million. Provisional patent pending.
Conversational AI Chatbot
Assisted a large healthcare insurance provider in the definition and rollout of their NLP-based chatbot for desktop and mobile.
Expertise
Work Experience
Principal
2017 - PRESENT
ThreeIron Consulting
- Provided specialized consulting services focused on helping clients with their inbound and outbound marketing needs.
- Served as the product owner, assisting a major healthcare insurance company in the buildout of their NLP-based conversational AI chatbot persona for desktop and mobile created to increase customer engagement for better health and lower costs.
- Assisted with the design and execution of email marketing programs to propel prospects and customers on their online website journey, including nurturing, onboarding, engagement, purchase, and retention.
- Assisted the founder of a stealth-mode consumer home services marketplace startup with product strategy and go-to-market planning.
- Assisted an AI/ML test data annotation-focused startup with a product strategy for an on-premise offering.
- Implemented NLP extractive summarization and named entity recognition of medical research PDF reports.
Client-facing Product and Program Manager
2023 - 2024
Algomarketing Ltd
- Led program management, requirements gathering, and communication between clients and internal teams. Managed a variety of stakeholders, including senior business team members.
- Developed product roadmaps and collaborated with engineering in the development of innovative AI applications to optimize sales and marketing efforts.
- Applied generative AI via LLMs (ChatGPT/Llama) to prioritize accounts to ensure sales focused on the highest-value accounts.
- Utilized generative AI via LLMs (ChatGPT/Llama) to identify the next best actions provided for each account and an ideal timeframe for action.
- Implemented generative AI via LLMs (ChatGPT/Llama) to forecast sales pipelines, which were fed back into the account prioritization process.
Technical Product Manager
2023 - 2023
Chris Chapin
- Identified the MVP version 1.0 product concept with UX mockups.
- Worked with the founder to identify the MVP concept of a revolutionary product that would enable big box sporting goods retailers to reduce losses from unsold inventory while concurrently increasing revenue from the sales of that unsold inventory.
- Identified the personae, major epics, and stories for the MVP and documented these so that it is easy for a development team to execute the vision.
VP of Product
2022 - 2023
Evvnt
- Oversaw the cross-functional launch and product strategy for Evvnt, a leading cloud-based white-labeled event ticketing and marketing solution provider.
- Translated product vision into an executable product strategy and defined a process to drive product tactical and strategic roadmap planning efforts.
- Drove key features, such as integrated eCommerce with ticketing to sell event-related merchandise, a gate app to drive ticket sales at event gates and ticket offices, and a consumer-focused app for enhanced event discovery.
Director of Product Management
2020 - 2022
Property Meld
- Translated product vision into an executable product strategy for this property management maintenance solutions provider whose target market is 3rd-party professionally managed single-family residential property management companies.
- Drove the definition of a public API for our customers and partners to build a platform supporting a rich ecosystem of add-ons and apps.
- Played a crucial role in tracking the company's annual goals of 60% or more revenue growth and 90% or more customer retention.
- Identified, applied, and selected the optimal ML model to predict customer churn to increase customer retention. Classifier models included logistic regression, Gaussian Naive Bayes, k-nearest neighbors algorithm, decision trees, and random forest.
- Drove product vision for a smart-home-based maintenance solution with IoT devices and home automation networks for 3rd-party property management companies managing a single family, aka professionally managed residential real estate.
CPO
2018 - 2019
SkyAlert
- Reported to the CEO and oversaw product strategy, development, and launch for SkyAlert, which provides earthquake early warning (EEW) solutions. Created a culture of transparency, collaboration, and commitment to excellence.
- Drove integration of the US Geological Survey's ShakeAlert system into a platform for EEW alert delivery to US customers. Assisted sales in pilots and deal closure. Drove the development of a consumer-focused B2C smartphone app.
- Drove migration to AWS from Azure, re-architected the platform for enhanced scalability and resilience, and conducted FCC certification of IoT receivers.
- Managed a team of 15 developers, UX, QA, IoT hardware, and DevOps engineers in a roadmap and product definition, design, and delivery. Developed Agile product development processes to support the effective definition and delivery of products.
- Shipped one major upgrade, rewritten from the ground up, and 12 minor releases to the IoT device software.
- Drove a digital product strategy for desktop and mobile visitors to skyalertusa.com to assist in inbound lead generation programs aimed at both businesses and consumers. Led website design and copy, including blog content.
- Developed product documentation, including installation, administration, and user guides for receivers and customer consoles. Wrote product data sheets for administration and customer consoles.
- Drove the FCC certification for the SkyAlert Epicenter IoT-based receiver for businesses and defined and drove the development of the SkyAlert consumer phone app.
VP of Product Management
2016 - 2017
FusionOps
- Led a product strategy for FusionOps, a company specializing in cloud-based machine learning-driven supply chain intelligence solutions. Oversaw defining and delivering roadmaps that generated products close to $10 million in recurring revenue.
- Managed three product lines that applied machine learning in pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, and retail supply chains.
- Headed a team of five product managers collaborating with engineering in product delivery.
- Defined Agile processes for release planning and execution to support organizational growth and evolution to CI/CD.
- Shared informal development team oversight with CTO over a 24-person developer, QA, UX, data science, and DevOps team.
Senior Director of Product Management
2014 - 2016
MarkMonitor
- Served as a senior director of product management at MarkMonitor, a cloud-based online brand protection solution vendor.
- Managed a machine learning-based solution for fighting counterfeiting in apparel, accessories, and shoe verticals. Revenues totaled $2 million.
- Developed an advanced analysis platform concept with projected first-year sales of $3 million. The patent-pending technology is titled "Brand Abuse Monitoring System with an Infringement Detection Engine and Graphical User Interface."
- Conceived a machine-learning solution for fighting the online sales of fake prescription drugs. Collaborated with engineering, UX, product marketing, and sales teams to deliver the solution, which led to first-year revenue of $1.5 million.
Senior Director | Director | Senior Product Manager
2005 - 2013
Actuate
- Oversaw a product strategy for the open-source Eclipse Business Intelligence and Reporting Tools (BIRT) project and commercial value-add product line. Owned product licensing, packaging, and server scalability. Led usability studies for all products.
- Drove the definition of the enterprise mobile app strategy, including application creation, management, distribution, extension services, and app analytics.
- Assisted in driving the definition and rollout of BIRT onDemand, a platform as a service (PaaS) solution for BI and reporting in the cloud. Ensured the deployability of the server into private and public clouds.
- Built BIRT into one of the most popular projects within the Eclipse ecosystem, ranking among the top five. Achieved double-digit growth in license revenues each year.
- Launched two products that delivered $2 million in new revenue. Produced double-digit growth among all four product lines each year. Facilitated tens of millions of dollars in license and product revenues.
- Improved visibility and downloads among the BIRT community each year by authoring white papers, case studies, newsletters, technical articles, and promotional materials.
- Increased brand awareness by designing and delivering webinars, promoting the product at international conferences, and contributing content for the top BIRT developer community sites. Built market share to 6% in the first two years.
- Wireframed v1.0 of BIRT-Exchange.com, the primary community for BIRT developers. Led online marketing like content SEO and purchasing ad words. Led a site redesign to accommodate a 'try-and-buy' self-service sales model for commercial products.
- Contributed to inbound lead generation by developing/delivering webinars. Co-authored BIRT newsletters and technical articles for various e-zines. Created data sheets, white papers, case studies, and Actuate BIRT ad copy for online and print media.
- Built Bass diffusion models to analyze BIRT adoption rates based on viral marketing plans. Contributed to share-of-voice studies, the definition of programs, and channel selection to increase product awareness via webcasts and analyst engagements.
VP of Product Strategy
2011 - 2012
Esperient PTAV
- Oversaw a product strategy for a startup that uses 3D game engine technology for CAD data visualization in interactive training use cases.
- Developed product roadmaps and processes to support effective engagements.
- Assisted in closing deals with large enterprise customers such as SAP, Boeing, and Raytheon.
Senior Product Manager
2004 - 2005
Saba
- Served as the product manager in charge of the LMS (e-learning) platform and defined the features for the next generation of the LMS. Collaborated with engineering to implement these features and assisted in its launch.
- Collaborated with customers to understand the pain points related to their e-learning needs and defined a product roadmap.
- Worked cross-functionally to launch new releases and monitor their adoption.
Product Manager
2002 - 2004
Remedy Corporation
- Pioneered the help desk and customer service automation software. Developed roadmaps and prepared new data sheets, FAQs, and marketing collateral.
- Took citizen response and quality management products from stagnant sales to $3 million in annual revenue.
- Designed new product positioning for Remedy's CRM suite of products.
Product Manager
2001 - 2002
Seaprende
- Assisted the CEO of this LATAM e-learning startup in defining a product strategy and presentations to VCs leading to the first round of funding of $5 million.
- Analyzed the competitive landscape for the e-learning market in LATAM, including technology providers and content developers.
- Defined the features and worked with engineering to develop and roll out a learning management system (LMS).
- Assisted in pricing and licensing definition for the LMS platform and in-house developed content.
Principal
1998 - 2000
ThreeIron Consulting
- Assisted SMBs with business process definition, development, deployment, and operational support automation.
- Identified optimal business workflow, KPIs, and appropriate resources for workflow implementation.
- Averaged annual revenues of $500,000 from client engagements.
Senior Strategic Accounts Lead | Senior Software Engineer
1993 - 1998
Remedy Corporation
- Contributed to Remedy's growth from a 55-person early-stage startup through a successful 1995 IPO to 1998 revenue of $158 million with 600 employees.
- Acted as team lead for Strategic Accounts between 1997 and 1998.
- Rewarded the Customers' Advocate award for exemplary service to strategic accounts.
- Led a team of four professionals in managing strategic accounts.
- Oversaw project as the senior project manager between 1995 to 1997.
- Streamlined internal licensing, contract renewal, and order entry processes, increasing revenue by $6 million.
- Served as a senior software engineer from 1993 to 1995.
- Gained revenues from full-text search products in the first year, which totaled $5 million.
- Led feature definition, development, and rollout of a text search product.
Staff Software Engineer
1989 - 1993
Oracle Corporation
- Served as a member of the technical staff in the Office Automation Group. Contributed to the development of the GUI for Oracle*Mail.
- Contributed to the integration with Oracle Office Calendar/Scheduler, directory services, and document management.
- Assisted IT operations in the deployment of Oracle Office, administration, and monitoring.
Project History
Eclipse Business Intelligence and Reporting Tools Project
https://www.eclipse.org/birtAchieved double-digit growth for license revenues per year. Built Business Intelligence and Reporting Tools (BIRT) into the top five most popular Eclipse projects.
I oversaw all product strategies for the BIRT product line, including analytics, mobile, and PaaS. Also, I led the development of product strategies and managed multiple releases, as well as hired, trained, and supervised a team of five product managers with an over $1 million budget.
I drove the definition of the enterprise mobile app strategy, including application creation, management, distribution, extension services, and app analytics. Finally, I successfully launched two products that delivered $2 million in new revenue and facilitated the generation of tens of millions of dollars in license and product revenues.
I drove the definition of the enterprise mobile app strategy, including application creation, management, distribution, extension services, and app analytics. Finally, I successfully launched two products that delivered $2 million in new revenue and facilitated the generation of tens of millions of dollars in license and product revenues.
Brand Abuse Monitoring System with Infringement Detection Engine and Graphical User Interface
Developed an advanced analysis platform concept with projected first-year sales of $10 million. Provisional patent pending.
Collaborated with customers to identify needs and prioritize requirements. Worked closely with data scientists, UX, developers, services, and sales force.
Patent pending: "Brand Abuse Monitoring System with Infringement Detection Engine and Graphical User Interface."
Developed an advanced analytics platform with projected first-year sales of $3 million. Filed a provisional patent ("Automated Identification of High-Value Targets from Incidents Online"). Conceived and collaborated with engineering, data science, and product marketing to deliver a machine-learning solution for online brand protection in the pharmaceutical industry that resulted in $1.5 million in first-year revenues—managed a machine-learning-based solution for fighting counterfeiting in apparel, accessories, and shoe verticals. Revenues totaled $2 million.
Patent pending: "Brand Abuse Monitoring System with Infringement Detection Engine and Graphical User Interface."
Developed an advanced analytics platform with projected first-year sales of $3 million. Filed a provisional patent ("Automated Identification of High-Value Targets from Incidents Online"). Conceived and collaborated with engineering, data science, and product marketing to deliver a machine-learning solution for online brand protection in the pharmaceutical industry that resulted in $1.5 million in first-year revenues—managed a machine-learning-based solution for fighting counterfeiting in apparel, accessories, and shoe verticals. Revenues totaled $2 million.
Business Process Automation
Streamlined internal licensing, contract renewal, and order entry processes increasing revenue by $6 million.
Worked with licensing, contract renewals, and order entry teams to identify opportunities for process improvements and KPIs for operational success and implemented the KPIs. This effort resulted in increased revenues by $6 million.
Conversational AI Chatbot
Assisted a large healthcare insurance provider in the definition and rollout of their NLP-based chatbot for desktop and mobile.
The goal was to increase customer engagement for better health and lower costs. As the product owner, I researched the market and competition and identified, planned, prioritized, and defined key features.
I developed chatbot utterance similarity tools in Python to enable the definition of new intents. I assisted in the migration from the RASA NLP platform to the IBM Watson NLP platform. I also collaborated with a team of eight onshore/offshore engineers.
I developed chatbot utterance similarity tools in Python to enable the definition of new intents. I assisted in the migration from the RASA NLP platform to the IBM Watson NLP platform. I also collaborated with a team of eight onshore/offshore engineers.
Education
2000 - 2002
Master's Degree in Business Administration
University of California - Berkeley, California, USA
1986 - 1988
Master of Science Degree in Computer Science
University of Illinois at Chicago - Chicago, Illinois, USA
1982 - 1986
Bachelor of Engineering Degree in Electronics and Communications Engineering
Coimbatore Institute of Technology - Coimbatore, India
Certifications
AUGUST 2019 - PRESENT
Neural Networks and Deep Learning
Coursera
AUGUST 2019 - PRESENT
Structuring Machine Learning Projects
Coursera
AUGUST 2019 - PRESENT
Sequence Models
Coursera
AUGUST 2019 - PRESENT
Improving Deep Neural Networks: Hyperparameter tuning, Regularization and Optimization
Coursera
AUGUST 2019 - PRESENT
Deep Learning Specialization
Coursera
AUGUST 2019 - PRESENT
Convolutional Neural Networks
Coursera
JULY 2013 - PRESENT
Product Launch Essentials
Pragmatic Marketing
JULY 2013 - PRESENT
Effective Product Marketing
Pragmatic Marketing
Collaboration That Works
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