About me

"Change is inevitable. Growth is optional." – John C. Maxwell This quote perfectly mirrors my career journey, defined by continuous growth, innovation, and transformation. From starting as a Sales Consultant and Business Analyst to becoming a seasoned Product Specialist and Functional Consultant, I’ve embraced change as a catalyst for progress. Hi, I’m Manawendra, an award-winning Product specialist, growth storyteller, and lifelong learner. With advanced degrees in Marketing, HR, and Finance and credentials from Kellogg Northwestern in Product Management, an executive certification from MIT in Design Thinking, I bring a deep understanding of creating customer-centric, value-driven products and solutions. My expertise lies in Digital Omnichannel consumer experiences and disruptive digital solutions, with a proven track record across eCommerce, digital, retail, FinTech, IT services, start-ups, and consumer electronics industries. 🎖️ Strategic Leadership & Operational excellence - I recently led large-scale product and technology transformation initiatives for one of the world’s most iconic retail brands, driving measurable business impact and accelerating revenue growth. In this role, I managed the delivery of digital products and led a diverse team of cross-functional professionals across engineering, product, UX, and store operations, ensuring successful program execution within budget and scope. 🦾 Transformation & Innovation specialist - Adept at transforming strategic visions into actionable outcomes, I deliver results by integrating brand strategy, AI-driven insights, performance optimisation, and customer-centric transformation. My collaboration with global leaders—including CEOs and CIOs—has allowed me to validate outcome-driven products and growth strategies focused on value creation. 💡 Specialties: Product Strategy · Product Vision & Strategy · Customer Experience (CX) · Artificial Intelligence · GenAI · Cross-functional Team Leadership · Inspiring Leadership · Data-Driven Insights · Data Privacy · Product Operations · B2C, B2B · Business Transformation · Business Metrics · Program Governance - Project planning, budgeting, and reporting · Stakeholder management · Building high-performing & cross-functional teams 🥇 Achievements: - "Individual Achievement award" - 2019 Annual award - felicitated by VP, IT Services - "Fiserv Innovation network business case award" - 2018, acknowledged by former CEO Jeff Yabuki - “Excellence in Organisational efforts”, 2016 Annual award - felicitated by LGE CTO