Sharada Patil - BFSI & Telecom - Strategy, Data, Risk & Compliance

With over 20 years of experience in Telecom, BFSI, and FinTech, I specialize in driving operational excellence, digital transforma tion, and customer engagement. I leverage data-driven insights to enhance experiences, strengthen risk management, and imple ment automation-led solutions for efficiency and profitability. A strategic leader, I have led large-scale initiatives, positioned organi zations as industry thought leaders, and delivered actionable strategies for sustainable growth. I now provide consulting solutions in  digital transformation and risk management. I have a double masters in Economics and Finance.

Strategic Risk Management: Developing robust frameworks that drive long-term profitability and organizational resilience  • Process optimization and cost-saving initiatives  • Automation and technology integration for enhanced efficiency  Customer Lifecycle Management: Enhancing acquisition, retention, and loyalty through data-driven strategies  • Acquisition and loyalty program design  • Customer experience enhancement through data analytics and insights  Digital Transformation: Enabling businesses to optimize processes, integrate innovative solutions, and deliver exceptional cus tomer experiences  • Framework development for risk assessment and regulatory compliance  • Strategic integration of risk management into business operations  Thought Leadership: Providing actionable insights through research and industry collaborations to position clients as leaders in  their domains  • Industry-specific research and thought leadership content creation  • Strategic consulting based on market trends and data-driven insights  Talent Development: Delivering structured training modules to help executives effectively drive insights-led go-to-market strate gies. Provide guidance and mentorship to help young professionals develop key skills and navigate their careers with confidence.  • Tailoring training and mentorship programs to individual and organizational needs for maximum impact.  • Equipping professionals with actionable strategies to enhance decision-making and market execution

CAREER

TransUnion CIBIL : 5years 4months

Vice President and Head - Research and Consulting ; Business Head - Debt Management Solutions and Services| Joint Vice President and Head - Solution Consulting (FinTech, NBFCs, HFCs, SFBs and Telecom)

I lead Research and Consulting for TransUnion India. In this role I was responsible for delivering thought leadership with the pur pose to position TransUnion as a trusted advisor by leveraging our data assets, research capabilities to deliver industry-level ac tionable and differentiated consumer insights, thus enabling trust within the financial services community. I achieve this by working  closely with international and regional stakeholders, regulators, and key entities in the lending industry - in an open dialogue to bet ter identify areas of focus and re-evaluating the foundational purpose. Some key themes that I focus on  • Enhancing lender’s long term profitability and organisational resilience through effective risk management frameworks  • Sales Enablement by leveraging data and insights across verticals (Retail, Commercial, Fintech, Agri, MFI) and themes  such as Fraud, Debt management, Financial Inclusion  • Insights-led content and actionable strategies that supports TU global initiatives and to help deliver on the business plans  • Represent TU CIBIL in industry forums and events such as Fintech Festival India, Global Fintech Fest, FIBAC, etc.  • Strengthen role of TU CIBIL as the industry Thought Leader by delivering Insights through our flag ship properties such as  Credit Market Indicator, MSME Pulse and other periodic releases which are often quoted in the press

IDFC FIRST Bank (erstwhile Capital First Limited) 3 years 9 months  

Senior Vice President - Planning and Strategy (Reporting to COO) | Deputy Vice President - Collection Strategy

During my stint with IDFC First Bank, I had the opportunity to work with the founding CEO and COO. In the years in this organisa tion, I led the strategy function for IT, Risk, Operations and Collections and worked closely with the Audit functions  • This gave me an opportunity to lead the integration (merger) process for IT, Asset Operations and Enterprise Service  group during the reverse merger of Capital First Limit (second largest NBFC in the consumption-led products lending) with  IDFC Bank resulting in the new entity IDFC First Bank which is the seventh largest private sector Bank in India.  • This included the responsibility to ensure automation initiatives, oversee risk assessment processes, building compliance  functions within the verticals, process adherence and documentation as per Regulatory requirements and Internal Audits   • Collaborated with senior leadership to integrate risk management into strategic planning and facilitated cross functional  collaboration to deliver organisation level projects  • Monitored and reported on risk indicators, providing actionable insights to senior management  • During the pre-pandemic period it was the first lending entity to launch new payment integrations with Banks, payment  partners (Wallets) and payment aggregators led by me, driving over 25% payments through digital modes before the  economy adopted this method.  • Cost savings initiatives included moving field collections to 300-agent call-center with three different partners for pan-India  reach and collection communication strategy leading to 24% contribution of payment through self-help modes resulting in  20% cost savings.

Vodafone India Limited  9 Years 9 months  

Senior Manager - Marketing Operation – Acquisition Head, Mumbai |  Manager - Credit Operations – Credit Risk Head, Mumbai |  Deputy Manager - Billing Operations, Payment Management | Assistant Manager - Collection and Customer Communication strategy

Vodafone was the largest telecom in India for over a decade with revenue over INR 4 lakh crore in Fy13-14. During my 10 years in  Vodafone, I managed multiple roles across functions of Debt management, Risk underwriting and Acquisition marketing.  • As the marketing acquisition head, I led the Slum Acquisition Strategy for Mumbai which involved identifying the address able market, designing relevant plans, and coordinating with network team to ensure network availability. This helped us  improve the market share in the Slum segment which was dominated by low- priced players.  • With the shut-down of an incumbent operator, I launched and led the product strategy for Customer Acquisition resulting in  34% market share highest across operators. This acquisition strategy was supported by driving Vodafone RED (a flagship  family plan) through product innovation, training cross functional teams resulting in highest incremental marginal average  revenue per user (ARPU) and highest revenue across India. Designed and launched dedicated 24*7 Call Centre for ac quisition of number portability customers leading to the highest share of this segment.  • In my role as Risk underwriting head for Mumbai region – the largest Post-paid region in India, I was instrumental in  launching the first telecom collaboration with a Credit Bureau for profiling Post-paid customers resulting in improved cus tomer experience and higher revenue generation with greater credit limits.  • To further drive automation, my team engaged with a FinTech company for handheld device-based Credit Verification,  resulting in a 50% reduction in TAT and 98% accuracy.  • Effective credit and fraud control strategies designed by me were adopted nationally (Switch Based credit limit for MNP,  Data pack up-selling, relaxation of deposit matrix, night monitoring for data, IR monitoring) and resulted in reduced verifi cation costs by >30%.  • Automated Collection allocation using earlier experience in VB-ASP based program - reducing TAT from 1day to 2 hrs.  and 50% workforce reduction with zero errors  • Bill delivery process revised to improve delivery accuracy as well as TAT, through engagement  and trainings of vendor  staff  • Delivered on the cost saving initiative by driving Go green i.e., bill on email for Mumbai resulting in 50% email penetration  within 8 months  • Supported diversity and inclusivity by appointing a courier agency which had differently abled staff - Mirakle Courier – first  of its kind partnership across Industry in 2009

ICICI Bank Ltd    2 Years 6 Months

Regional Coordinator for Customer Service, Mumbai | Operations In-Charge for Solapur, Osmanabad, Latur, Baramati based at Solapur