Richard Keenlyside: Global CIO - Advisory & Transformation

North East, Business Consultant, Expert, Transformation, Middlesbrough, York, Management Consultant, Near Me, Yarm, Expert, Fractional, Advisory Role, Non-Exec Director NED, Programme Manager, Due Diligence, Interim, Freelance, J Sainsburys IT Director/CIO, Endava TAC/CIO, Yarm Business Consultancy, Highly Experienced Facilitator, Business Solutions, Process Optimisation, Cost Cutting, Cost Savings, Target Operating Model, a digital innovator, 80+ start-up businesses in the past 8 years, Azure, AWS, Agile, AI & ML, IT Strategy Development, Business Strategy Development, BSS/OSS

PROFESSIONAL PROFILE

Global CIO | Digital Transformation Leader | Change Management Expert

Executive Summary

A highly accomplished Fractional CIO, Transformation Director, and Strategic IT Leader with over 30 years of experience spearheading complex technology and business change across global organisations. Proven expertise in digital transformation, change management, and stakeholder engagement, delivering enterprise-wide initiatives that align IT with core business objectives to drive operational efficiency, innovation, and competitive advantage.

Richard has successfully operated across multiple sectors including manufacturing, retail, logistics, engineering, financial services, and private equity. He has led global teams of 600+, managed IT budgets exceeding £120M, and driven multimillion-pound cost savings through cloud migration (Azure, AWS), ERP transformation (SAP S/4HANA, Infor, Epicor, Oracle Fusion, NetSuite), and AI-driven automation and RPA. A seasoned IT strategy consultant, he is also highly experienced in M&A integration, cybersecurity strategy, and data governance.

With a solid reputation as a trusted advisor to boards and C-level executives, Richard excels in high-impact interim CIO, fractional CTO, and non-executive director roles—consistently enabling scalable IT growth, resilience, and innovation through effective governance, process optimisation, and business alignment.

Personal career highlights include

Led Global teams of 600+ personnel across multiple time zones.
Work with/for consulting firms such as Deloitte, KPMG, Endava, and Accenture.
Global CIO for the LoneStar Group.
Total change portfolio's £5.1m to £20.1m
Proven experience as an IT Director, CIO, and in similar leadership roles.
Extensive experience in fifteen global Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and carve-out across multiple sectors.
Background in Private Equity-backed businesses, ideally with exposure to the entire business lifecycle, including exit.
Experience in running large and small businesses through to trade sale exits.
Business/Tech Start-Up advisory.
Managed budgets of over £120M.
Driven several transformation programmes across all business domains for major Global companies, including change management, business process improvements, budgeting and planning.
Extensive digital strategy and transformation experience.
Providing CTO/CIO Advisory.
Developed 'Same Day Delivery' Strategy for Argos.
Author of several eBooks on Transformation and Cyber Security.
Developed maturity models for IT and Data capabilities, introducing best practices, governance, and efficiency measures.
I am experienced in delivering RPA and AI automated solutions to support business transformation further.

Extensive procurement experience across multi-sourcing, outsourcing and offshoring. Negotiated over £20M in vendor savings while maintaining IT service levels and performance.
Experienced Project and Programme Management, Programme Due-Diligence & Recovery.
Solid understanding of process management, optimisation, data analytics and implementation.
Strong internal and external stakeholder management and ability to lead and work within high-performance teams.
I have extensive experience in business integration and IT enablement, for example, with clients such as Mothercare and Game Station acquisitions.
Regularly delivered industry papers and insight on transformation, strategy, technology, artificial intelligence, and machine learning.
Experience in Preparing Businesses for Sale, with a solid understanding of process management, optimisation, data analytics and implementation.
The development and implementation of Target Operating.
Lead the development and implementation of a comprehensive technology and data strategy, ensuring alignment with business goals.
Understanding of Data-Driven Businesses, managing data governance and data management.
Excellent leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
Strategic mindset with the ability to align technology initiatives with business goals.
Worked with 80+ start-up businesses in the past 8 years.

Outcomes Delivered

35% reduction in BI reporting.
Headcount reduction by 12% driven by efficiencies.
Reduction of technical debt £0.7m - £2.5m driven by off-premise and consolidation platforms and systems.
Reduction in operating debt c. £40m driven by BPO.
Reduction in process waste by %11.
Compliance & efficiency savings ~75,000 hours.
Negotiated over £20m in vendor savings.
Business Process Outsouring (BPO) delivering £2m saving (Year 1)
Received in 2001, "North East Teesside Business Technology Award" for the e-2-e removal of paper across warehouse and supplychain using voice recognition in the warehouse's and RF devices in store, Bells was the first UK retailer to achieve this. Saving £0.3m in costs.

Blog Update

My Kindle Publications

I am an experienced professional with expertise in the fields of Ecommerce, Transformation and Cybersecurity and currently work as a freelance consultant

I also write frequently in my LinkedIn blog, where I share my insights and experiences in the world of AI, Ecommerce and transformation. I have published several books on the topic, which can be found below to download.

I am passionate about helping people and businesses to succeed in the increasingly digital world.