Path to Partner: Fred Brown

by Fred Brown on November 22nd, 2010

Fred Brown, recently promoted to Partner, discusses his path to partner at Kalypso. 

Fred! We heard the great news. Congratulations on your promotion to partner.

Thank you. I am grateful and feel privileged to be a part of this organization.

Tell us what your career path at Kalypso has looked like.

I started with Kalypso as a senior manager two years ago after meeting and working with George Young in several joint ventures while I was at Oracle Corporation. Since joining Kalypso, I have had the opportunity to lead several PLM implementations for food and beverage and medical device clients and learned a lot from players such as Mike Friedman, Lee Peterman, Chip Perry, Noel Sobelman, and of course, George. I have been able to develop stronger working relationships with our software partners, particularly with Oracle. Subsequently, we developed a proprietary methodology and approach to rapidly implement Oracle’s PLM for Process solution, called PLM Vivo. The Vivo practice has grown dramatically and we now have a very successful, focused practice.

What does being a Kalypso partner mean to you?

I have the highest regard for Kalypso leadership and the entire Kalypso family, and am honored to be a part of the community. When I came to Kalypso one of the first things that was discussed was a key firm objective - to grow from within. Kalypso has been true to their word, not just to me, but to other Kalypsonians as well. This is a young firm with great opportunity for every Kalypso employee to demonstrate leadership.

What areas will you be focusing on in your new role?

I will continue to focus on expanding the firm’s relationship with Oracle and growing our competencies in other Oracle PLM-related technologies. We are also working to apply the Vivo implementation approach to other industries. I want to ensure the Kalypso PLM technology practice is the industry leader in innovative and efficient approaches to solving product development and innovation challenges.

Where is the most interesting town/city you’ve been for a client project?

It’s a tie between Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, and Chaumont, France. Both towns are quaint and steeped in history and both offer interesting travel and logistics challenges. Lunenburg has beautiful vistas and a friendly community, but it’s hard to top France for their food.

What is your favorite Kalypso value?

My first response to that question has always been Leaders behind the Leaders. But I have come to appreciate the many individual talents and personalities that are so diverse in Kalypso. So, I have come to really embrace the Characters with Character value. This is not a cookie-cutter consulting firm.

In what ways have you grown professionally and/or personally at Kalypso?

When I came to Kalypso, I looked to the leadership team to provide work opportunities. But I quickly realized that every employee needs to dedicate some portion of their professional time at Kalypso to developing new business opportunities for him or herself and for others, either within our existing client base or with new potential clients. I learned from the professionals, George, Bill, and other Kalypso leaders that you have to step out and make things happen yourself. I have also learned the value of working with others as a team to accomplish individual goals. On a personal level, I have learned how to kid Chip Perry very efficiently.

Congratulations, Fred!

Topics: Blog, Careers, Characters with Character, Company Information, CPG, Food and Beverage, Fred Brown, Kalypso Values, Kalypsonians, Leaders Behind the Leaders, Leadership, Leadership Team, Life at Kalypso, Oracle, Oracle Agile, PLM, PLM for Process, PLM Implementation, PLM Partners