“Change isn’t a challenge—it’s an opportunity for lasting impact.”

Kelli Pierce is a transformative operations executive whose career has been defined by her ability to lead organizations through complex, global change. With over 15 years of experience spanning Fortune 500 companies and private equity ventures, she brings both the vision and discipline required to navigate large-scale transformations. Kelli’s professional journey reveals a consistent pattern: wherever she goes, operations become more efficient, risk diminishes, and value expands.

Her professional narrative began at Nielsen, where she quickly established herself as a rising star through the company’s prestigious Emerging Leaders Program. From there, she progressed rapidly into leadership roles, each carrying greater responsibility and impact. Over her nine-year tenure, she served as Director, Vice President, and ultimately Senior Vice President of U.S. Media Operations. In these roles, Kelli managed multimillion-dollar budgets and led thousands of associates, continuously delivering measurable savings and quality improvements. Her leadership was instrumental in retiring legacy systems, revamping client delivery frameworks, and launching scalable solutions that positioned Nielsen for sustained success.

Kelli’s influence grew as she transitioned to Mastercard in 2019, where she assumed the role of Senior Vice President of Operational Excellence. At Mastercard, she spearheaded the creation of an entirely new organization focused on transforming operations. Through her efforts, client onboarding processes were streamlined, call center efficiency was dramatically improved, and technology-enabled resolution models were deployed, resulting in millions of dollars in sustainable savings and revenue protection. Her work didn’t just fix problems—it reimagined how Mastercard could scale operations while protecting customer value and mitigating risk.

One of Kelli’s most defining accomplishments at Mastercard was her leadership in vendor governance and automation. She partnered cross-functionally with legal, sourcing, and security teams to design controls that safeguarded sensitive data while enabling innovation. Establishing a low-code automation Center of Excellence (COE), she drove $4M in efficiencies in under two years, all while elevating customer and employee satisfaction. This kind of foresight and integrated leadership is what sets her apart in today’s operational landscape.

Beyond the corporate world, Kelli serves as a trusted voice in advisory and board roles. As a founding member of the Global Advisory Board at 3Pillar Global and a current board director at the Glazer Children’s Museum, she offers strategic insights that bridge innovation with social impact. She also contributes to the academic ecosystem as a board member for the University of Florida’s Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering, helping shape the next generation of engineering and operations leaders.

In April 2024, Kelli began her current chapter as Principal at FCM, where she partners with private equity investors to evaluate acquisition targets and execute turnaround strategies. In this role, she has already led initiatives that unlocked over $60M in operational savings across heavily regulated industries. Her ability to evaluate, design, and execute within tight compliance frameworks makes her a key asset in the world of M&A and transformation consulting.

What makes Kelli’s leadership style exceptional is not just her command of operations, but her capacity to lead people through ambiguity. She combines data-driven decision making with a human-centered approach to change management. Whether managing complex technology deployments across six continents or turning around underperforming divisions, she cultivates trust and alignment among stakeholders at every level.

Her global acumen is further demonstrated by her international deployment experience, having launched new platforms in Hong Kong, Ukraine, Puerto Rico, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, and Venezuela. She also laid the groundwork for scaling these deployments to the Balkans. This international lens reinforces her belief that successful transformation must be culturally intelligent and tailored to diverse operational environments.

While deeply technical in expertise—certified in Six Sigma and fluent in Lean methodology—Kelli is ultimately guided by purpose. She believes that operational excellence is not just about reducing cost, but about enabling people and systems to perform at their very best. Her professional mantra—”Change isn’t a challenge—it’s an opportunity for lasting impact”—reflects her belief in transformation as a catalyst for long-term value creation.

As a leader, mentor, and strategist, Kelli Pierce embodies the traits essential to effective board leadership. She brings not only financial and operational discipline, but also a collaborative spirit, a commitment to ethical leadership, and a relentless drive to turn complexity into opportunity. She is actively seeking board roles where she can further leverage her experience to guide organizations through meaningful change and sustainable growth.

Character:
Kelli approaches every challenge with integrity and a deep sense of accountability. She is widely regarded for her resilience, her unwavering professionalism, and her ability to galvanize teams during times of uncertainty.

Knowledge:
With a foundation in industrial engineering and an MBA from UNC Kenan-Flagler, Kelli brings both academic rigor and real-world experience to the table. Her breadth of knowledge spans financial management, strategic planning, vendor governance, and global operations.

Strategic:
Whether steering due diligence in private equity or reengineering enterprise-wide workflows, Kelli sees the big picture while managing intricate details. She excels at aligning operational strategy with business goals to deliver long-term value.

Communication:
Kelli communicates with clarity, purpose, and empathy. Her ability to influence stakeholders—across cultures, departments, and seniority levels—has been central to her success as a change leader.