Strategic Procurement and Vendor Governance Leader

KENNETH J. LARSON

Everett, MA 617-***-**** ***********@*****.*** LinkedIn:

linkedin.com/in/kenneth-larson-29b716314

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

Strategic Procurement and Vendor Governance Leader with 20+ years of experience in enterprise sourcing, contract negotiation, third-party risk management, and operational performance across highly regulated financial services environments. Manages $100M+ vendor portfolios, drives compliance and regulatory alignment, and delivers multimillion-dollar cost savings. Proven leader in vendor transition programs, SLA performance, and procurement process transformation. CORE CAPABILITIES

Strategic Sourcing • Procurement • Vendor Management • Third-Party Risk Governance • Contract Negotiation • Risk & Compliance Operations • Cost Optimization • Financial Analysis • Supplier Relationship Management • KPI Reporting • SLA/Scorecards • Budgeting & Forecasting • Operational Scaling • Project / Program Management • Stakeholder Management • RFP/RFI Management • Transition & Change Management

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Strategic Procurement Lead / Vendor Governance Manager Equity Trust Brokerage Services / Innovayte.com LLC — Westlake, OH / Remote Sept 2024 – Oct 2025

- Led procurement, sourcing, performance management, and TPRM governance across a $100M+ vendor portfolio.

- Developed and implemented third-party governance framework improving vendor compliance, audit readiness, and risk reporting.

- Managed contract negotiations and renewals generating $2M+ annual cost reductions without degradation to service performance.

- Built vendor SLAs, scorecards, compliance tracking, and operational metrics delivering 35% improvement in vendor performance.

- Directed cross-functional teams (Legal, Risk, Procurement, Operations) to improve onboarding, due diligence, and performance monitoring.

- Managed major vendor transition impacting 25,000+ accounts; ensured continuity, regulatory compliance, and stakeholder alignment.

Operations Program Manager / Vendor Operations Lead Fidelity Investments — Boston, MA / Smithfield, RI Feb 2010 – Jun 2024

- Managed operational strategy for clearing operations vendor ecosystem including integrations, contracts, and compliance functions.

- Oversaw vendor financials including budgeting, P&L; planning, and forecasting for third-party spend.

- Collaborated with Legal, Risk, and Compliance to ensure adherence to regulatory requirements, audit controls, and policies.

- Built vendor reporting dashboards and KPI frameworks for senior leadership improving visibility into performance + spend.

Procurement / Sourcing Manager / Supplier Relationship Manager Fidelity Investments — Boston, MA

Aug 2006 – Feb 2010

- Executed strategic sourcing for IT, professional services, facilities, and corporate functions.

- Led RFP/RFI cycles; managed pricing analysis, vendor evaluation, and contract negotiations.

- Managed $100M in vendor contracts (IT, HRO, Payroll, Retirement, Health Services).

- Reduced vendor costs by $2M annually through governance improvements and pricing management.

- Improved vendor SLA performance by 35% through scorecards, escalation processes, and performance reviews.

- Enhanced procure-to-pay cycle, reducing cycle times and improving invoice accuracy. Senior Business Analyst – Fidelity Personal Investing Fidelity Investments — Boston, MA

Mar 2005 – Jul 2006

- Supported rollout of FRIA product expansion across 200+ client deals.

- Developed reporting and analytics for 3.5M+ mailings and campaign performance.

- Built client scorecards tracking guidance interactions, rollover dollars, and new plans. Project Manager & Consultant – Fidelity HR Services Fidelity Investments — Marlboro, MA

Jan 2003 – Mar 2005

- Managed national rollout of First-Person Communications Platform across 100+ enterprise clients.

- Led teams of up to 60 analysts/managers during deployment cycles.

- Built reporting infrastructure, rollout schedules, and database tools to scale operations. Content Management Program Manager – The Agency at Fidelity Fidelity Investments — Boston, MA

Jan 2000 – Dec 2002

- Managed digital content platforms and CMS deployments.

- Served as SME on Interwoven Teamsite CMS and enterprise content workflows.

- Executed content infrastructure improvements and systems enhancements. EDUCATION

Bachelor of Science, Management — Bridgewater State University TECHNOLOGY

Procurement/ERP: Coupa, Ariba, SAP

Risk & GRC: Archer, ProcessUnity

Data & BI: Excel, Power BI, Tableau

Project Mgmt: MS Project, Asana, JIRA

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