Vice President, IBM Global Business Services (GBS)

Kristen Pederson is currently leading IBM’s Value Creation programs, which focus on defining and delivering solutions to clients which provide measurable, bottom-line improvements to their business. This outside/in perspective begins with rigorous benchmarking, shareholder analysis, and target setting.

Pederson manages IBM’s benchmarking programs and partnership with APQC, a leading benchmarking organization, and spearheaded IBM's leadership of the Open Standards Benchmarking Collaborative including the Open Innovation Index. She led IBM’s strategic growth programs for GBS Americas with functions including: strategic planning, marketing, sales operations, business solutions, and transformation projects for the services business. Focus was the establishment of a top accounts program, account planning, pricing initiatives, competitor programs, and services led, cross-brand selling efforts. In this role she led the strategic planning process for 2006 and 2007 for GBS Americas, a $7B revenue business unit. She led a 40 person team and managed an investment budget of over $100M and continues to play a key advisor role to the general manager of the Americas as she completes the tour of duty assignment in Value Creation.

Pederson has been consulting to large, global organizations for the past 17 years and has managed engagements for clients in industries including telecommunications and high technology. She served as the GRP (global relationship partner) for Qwest and has partnered project work at AT&T Wireless, AT&T Local, Sprint, StorageTek, Sun, Lucent, Cheap Tickets and Rhythms NetConnections.