Isobel Cowell

Head of Social @Kurogo | Creating Thought Leaders Through Personal Branding | Founder of Dear Future Marketer | LinkedIn Top Voice: Next Gen

Building engaged communities in-house at fashion and beauty brands.

Hi, I'm Isobel, Social Media Manager at Tropic Skincare.

At 21, I joined a personal branding start-up as 1 of 3 full-time employees. 6 months in, we'd grown to 8 and I was quickly promoted to Head of Social, growing our clients brands whilst managing my incredible team of content writers and account managers.

But as much as I loved start-up life, fashion and beauty was my calling.

I joined a growing luxury fashion reseller as Social Media Lead, leading the strategy and content for an audience of over 2 million on TikTok, and 600K on Instagram, averaging 1 million views on TikTok weekly. I also assisted in the launch of the #1 TikTok Live Shop in the UK, hosting and moderating shows weekly.

I now work at a growing luxury beauty brand, leading the strategy on all social platforms, working amongst an incredible brand team of 25 to bring the brand vision to life.

So follow along for all things career growth, and fashion and beauty marketing insights.

Founder

An Instagram page teaching you how to grow your personal brands and LinkedIn accounts

Kyndryl

Responsible for various aspects of financial execution, savings initiatives, error identification and recovery, and collaborative relationship management related to the Transition Services Agreement (TSA) between IBM and Kyndryl.  This role encompasses a mix of financial oversight, operational efficiency improvement, error detection and resolution, and relationship management. 

Financial Oversight
Responsible for managing financial execution of a substantial TSA valued at $541 million between IBM and Kyndryl.  Working with a cross-functional matrixed team to monitor and ensure financial aspects of the agreement are executed correctly.

Financial Risk & Opportunity Management
Successfully identified and recouped $19M in billing errors through detailed analysis of our TSA financial execution.  Forecasted to achieve a substantial cost savings target of $175M through an accelerated reduction of the application and IT infrastructure and services portfolio and rigorous cost optimization efforts.

Management System Design & Execution
Created a management system to proactively identify and prevent future invoicing errors, leading to reduced back-end workload for TSA Operations at both IBM and Kyndryl with focus on process improvement and efficiency.  Implemented management system improvements resulting in a 75% reduction in meeting hours, a new data taxonomy which virtually eliminated asynchronous data errors across systems of record, and a streamlined change approval process with 25% reduction in approval cycle time.

Relationship Management
Playing a significant role in nurturing an ongoing collaborative relationship between the TSA Operations teams at IBM and Kyndryl, fostering effective communication and cooperation between the two entities which is crucial for the smooth execution of the TSA and achieving financial and operational goals.

Director, CIO Transformation Program Management

A pivotal, high-visibility role in the CIO organization with widely diverse responsibilities contributing to the effective implementation of CIO's goals and organizational alignment to Kyndryl's overall strategy and culture objectives.

Force Multiplier & Strategic Partner
A strategic partner supporting the day-to-day operations of the Office of the CIO, helping to ensure the CIO's strategic goals were effectively implemented and executed.

Management System Design & Execution
Developed a sustainable operations management system and processes for the CIO's executive office, improving overall efficiency and organization.  Led cross-organizational efforts to develop an annual cadence calendar for core operational events, ensuring a well-sequenced and coordinated approach to critical events.

Communication & Engagement
Led a team of CIO senior leaders to craft our IT Transformation Position Paper and develop our CIO Transformation Story, creating tailored chart decks and talking points for diverse audiences.  Established a community for Chiefs of Staff and Senior Executive Support Staff, fostering knowledge sharing and collaboration.  Oversaw daily CIO IT Ops Leaders scrum meetings, managing 40 participants across 8 focus areas in 4 geographies.  Orchestrated 3 global, cross-functional teams to execute 15 town halls and 5 on-site visits, featuring diverse engagement activities.  Managed core communications and events for the CIO's office, ensuring consistent and effective messaging both internally and externally.

Client & Partner Support
Provided background research and intelligence to support critical client and partner engagements, contributing to the success of these interactions.

Gatekeeper & Sounding Board
Acted as gatekeeper to the CIO, managing access and interactions.  Provided a trusted sounding board for ideation and creative problem-solving across the senior leadership team.

Chief of Staff to the CIO

•	Managed a team of Agile professionals overseeing an application portfolio of best-of-breed developer tools including, Jira Software, Trello, ZenHub, GitHub, Tricentis qTest, & BrowserStack
•	Balanced priorities against team capacity and fostered strategic relationships to grow and maintain our portfolio, aligned to CIO Strategy and budgetary constraints
•	Created opportunities for team growth and cultivated a culture of caring during a global pandemic and social upheaval
•	Created and maintained an environment where my team could succeed and grow while bringing their whole selves to work
•	Built and nurtured user communities around our portfolio offerings, offloading basic how-to and best practice thought leadership to super users, empowering self-led end user learning and knowledge sharing

Manager, Toolbox@IBM DevTools

•	Owned and managed a portfolio of Agile project management Software as a Service (SaaS) tools
•	Managed and nurtured relationship with SaaS vendors, breaking through blockers with CISO, Procurement, and Legal to execute and operate SaaS contracts
•	Acted as the voice of our stakeholders, representing their priorities to improve employee productivity and satisfaction in a secure IT environment
•	Worked within a self-directed Agile team to set priorities and rapidly deliver high-value capabilities to our stakeholders

Product Owner & Squad Leader, Productivity Applications, Toolbox@IBM

•	Engaged in ongoing tracking and management of Workplace as a Service (WaaS) budget
•	Provided financial planning and forecasting oversight of 25-30 cost centers across 25 initiatives in support of key business deliverables 
•	Worked with initiative and project leads to track project and department budgets against Execution Plan
•	Ensured cost centers met quarterly spending objectives
•	Met financial challenges to support business growth 
•	Tracked financial results against Plan control totals 
•	Managed change to absorb financial risk

Financial Planning & Management Leader, BT/IT Workplace as a Service

•	Coordinated planning and management of Execution Plan for several transformation development and support teams
•	Coordinated development of the Spring Strategy and Fall Execution Plan 
•	Managed ongoing operations against Plan

Execution Planning and Management Leader, BT/IT Workplace as a Service

•	Focused on business process effectiveness 
•	Established and administered a management system to ensure IBM Software Group’s web activities achieved best-of-breed, well integrated, and unified Web Presence 
•	Defined and administered process effectiveness plan
•	Chaired SWG Web Review Board
•	Directed Web Presence Communications
•	Coordinated Executive Presentations 
•	Coordinated Monthly Operations Reviews

Web Business Operations Specialist, Software Group Global e-business Transformation

•	Developed and managed process for receiving, reviewing, and coordinating internal work requests across all of IBM Software Group’s Global e-business Transformation organization
•	Gathered high-level business requirements
•	Helped clients develop and submit business cases 
•	Coordinated and facilitated request reviews affecting multiple systems and/or development areas
•	Liaised between customers and senior management team
•	Assumed additional responsibilities as assigned

Work Intake Facilitator Software Group Global e-business Transformation

•	Received, reviewed, and coordinated requests for development and support of software products and solutions internal to IBM and Tivoli Systems
•	Gathered high-level business, technical, and functional requirements; 
•	Coordinated projects between multiple teams
•	Assigned and tracked projects
•	Liaised between customers and development teams to identify and track resources, milestones, and deliverables
•	Contributed to project technical reviews
•	Provided regular progress updates to management teams
•	Assumed additional responsibilities as assigned

Project Coordinator, Global Applications Development

•	Planned and managed events, varying in size from intimate roundtable discussions to large scale seminars
•	Coordinated internal marketing campaigns for multiple departments to fit within an overall organizational theme
•	Wrote and distributed internal technical announcements
•	Designed and produced internal marketing and communications collateral
•	Provided communications and administrative support for internal task forces and special projects

Marketing Communications Specialist, IT Worldwide

•	Provided administrative support for senior management in Tivoli’s Global IT organization, including calendar and correspondence management and office services and supply management, expense report preparation, submission and reconciliation
•	Collected and prepared operating reports, 
•	Maintained ongoing staff rosters and conducted monthly staffing analysis
•	Coordinated interviews
•	Planed and coordinated meetings and special events with related collateral

Executive Administrative Assistant, IT Worldwide

I am an enthusiastic Agilista, a Certified Scrum Master, and a facile facilitator known for leading through persistent and empathetic inquiry. My purpose is to bring clarity and order to complex situations, turning nonsense into common sense. With 15 + years of experience in project, program, and operations management, I excel in simplifying complexity and fostering collaboration. Specializing in Agile practices and cross-functional team dynamics, I've successfully led high-performing teams, ensuring efficient project execution. As a Certified Scrum Master, I bring a proven track record of implementing Agile methodologies, driving productivity, and aligning projects with organizational goals. My leadership promotes trust, collaboration, and continuous improvement, fostering a culture of agility and delivering successful outcomes within budget.

I bring to the table:
- Talent for turning complexity into clarity
- Ability to nurture strategic relationships with empathy and servant leadership
- Enthusiasm for community building, creating space for individuals and teams to grow and succeed
- Successful background in event planning, production, and management
- Team leadership experience: a conduit for creative collaboration who enables both strategy and culture
- Strong record of designing and executing management systems
- Expertise in financial planning, management, and reporting
- Proven skill in sustaining client relationships, delivering value to clients and stakeholders.

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Isobel Cowell

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