IT Director  ·  Fortune 500  ·  AI Strategy

William "Bill" Shipman

Turning emerging technology into measurable business value

0+
Years in Tech
0K+
Users Enabled
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Value Created
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Bill Shipman
BS Computer Science Drexel University · Magna Cum Laude
West Norriton, PA Eastern Time Zone

About

Data strategist.
AI evangelist.
People multiplier.

I'm an IT Director at Newell Brands with 25+ years of experience leading enterprise data, AI, and people initiatives. My work sits at the intersection of technology and human capability — I don't just build platforms, I build the teams and skills that make those platforms matter. I serve as a forward-deployed AI engineer and AI Navigator on Newell's enterprise AI initiative, targeting $110M–$130M in savings.

I've grown Power BI and Azure adoption from zero to thousands of users, trained thousands of employees globally, and built an 8-person global analytics team from scratch. Within the AI initiative I helped stand up the AI FDE (Forward Deployed Engineer) team — specialists embedded across 9 business functions — and run the AI Architecture Review Board. I believe the best technology investment is always the people who use it.

AI & Modern Work

Claude / Claude Code ChatGPT / GPT-4o Microsoft Copilot NotebookLM / Gemini Custom GPTs & Agents Make.com LLM APIs

BI & Data

Power BI Databricks Azure Tableau SAP BW / BEx SQL Server

Development

Python C# / .NET SQL JavaScript HTML / CSS

Recent Wins

Impact at scale

A selection of high-impact initiatives from the past two years.

2026

Claude, ChatGPT & Copilot Enterprise Rollout

ClaudeChatGPTMS CopilotAPIs
6,000+ Users Enabled

Enabled 100+ use cases and 10,000+ hours saved annually through an enterprise-wide AI adoption program spanning three platforms.

2025

Jira AI Automation Enablement

JiraChatGPTMake.com
25% Faster Sprint Planning

Migrated 50 developers to Jira with AI automation, cutting sprint planning overhead by a quarter.

2024

Data & Analytics Week

Power BIBeautiful.aiPowerPoint
800 Participants Trained

Hosted and led training for 800 participants across 80 sessions on data and analytics capabilities.

2023

Supply Chain Reorg (OVID)

Power BIAzure
23→1 Network Consolidation

Delivered the reporting infrastructure enabling consolidation from 23 distribution networks to 1.

Portfolio

Work that moved
the needle

Enterprise solutions built and delivered across two decades at Fortune 500 scale.

2025–Present AI Transformation

Newell Enterprise AI Initiative

Forward-deployed AI engineer and AI Navigator on Newell's enterprise AI transformation, targeting $110M–$130M in annual savings. Helped build and lead the AI FDE (Forward Deployed Engineer) team — AI specialists embedded across 9 business functions to drive adoption where the work actually happens. Built the company's AI skills and prompt discovery portal. Run the AI Architecture Review Board (ARB) governing AI adoption across the global organization.

ClaudeMS CopilotChatGPTCustom AgentsGitHub
Outcome $110M–$130M target · 9 functions · AI FDE team live
2018–2025 BI Platform

Enterprise Power BI Platform

Built and scaled the company's BI platform from zero to 5,000+ active users across every major function — finance, sales, supply chain, HR, and e-commerce.

Power BIAzureDAXSQL Server
Outcome 5,000+ users · Multi-million $ in savings
2005–2017 ERP / Integration

SAP Platform & Enterprise Integrations

Over a decade of SAP leadership spanning platform implementations, post-merger integrations, and global reporting infrastructure. Most notably, co-led the data integration effort following Newell's $10B Jarden merger — unifying 30 ERPs onto SAP BW and delivering a single global daily sales report to C-suite leadership. Also drove divisional IT roadmap, 20+ cross-system integrations, and the global RightNow CX rollout across all business units.

SAP ECCSAP BWBExSQL ServerETL
Outcome 30 ERPs unified · 20+ integrations · Global exec visibility
2023 Supply Chain

OVID Supply Chain Reorg

Architected the reporting and analytics layer that powered a 23-to-1 distribution network consolidation — one of the most complex operational transformations in the company's recent history.

Power BIAzureSAP
Outcome 23 → 1 network · Major cost reduction
2013–2017 Sales Analytics

Global Sales & Retail Reporting

Built the analytics backbone for global retail sell-through and daily sales data. Led POS reporting across 70+ retail partners in 6 countries — saving 10,000+ hours per year — and co-designed the global daily sales report on SAP BW integrating 30 ERPs post-merger.

TableauSAP BWSQL ServerETL
Outcome 70+ partners · 6 countries · 10K hrs/yr saved
2018–Present People Development

Enterprise Training & Enablement

Led enterprise-wide training programs totaling 1,000+ hours of delivered instruction across thousands of employees globally. Hosted Data & Analytics Week five times — growing to 800+ participants across 80+ sessions. Built training content for AI tools, Power BI, and analytics that turned complex technology into self-service capability.

Power BIChatGPTVyondCamtasia
Outcome 1,000+ training hrs · 5x D&A Week · 1,000s enabled
2013 CRM / Data

Marketing CRM Platform

Implemented an enterprise Marketing CRM aggregating 50+ sources of consumer data across all brands globally — creating a unified consumer intelligence platform.

SalesforceSQLAPI Integrations
Outcome 50+ sources unified · All brands, all regions

Journey

The career path

2017 — Present
Newell Brands

IT Director — Information Delivery & AI

Lead reporting/analytics and AI roadmaps across the enterprise. Serving as a forward-deployed AI engineer and IT Navigator on Newell's enterprise AI initiative targeting $110M–$130M in savings. Manage multi-million-dollar budget and 8-person global engagement team. Run the AI Architecture Review Board.

AI Initiative Navigator AI Architecture Review Board AI FDE Team Power BI Platform
2012 — 2017
Newell Brands

Senior Manager — Information Delivery

Led full-spectrum application development and analytics for multiple business functions. Managed $1M budget. Built global POS reporting program and co-designed the daily global sales report following the $10B Jarden merger.

POS Reporting SAP BW Tableau 70+ Retail Partners
2005 — 2012
Newell Brands

Group Program Manager / Lead Analyst

Progressive SAP, CRM, and SharePoint leadership. Led divisional IT roadmap, global RightNow CX rollout, and 20+ system integrations. Spearheaded New Product Development workflow on SharePoint.

SAP CRM SharePoint 20+ Integrations
1999 — 2004
Contractor · Unisys · Gestalt

Developer

Website and application development while simultaneously earning a BS in Computer Science from Drexel University, graduating Magna Cum Laude.

Web Development Application Dev Drexel CS

Beyond Work

Outside the office

Leadership, community, and building — the things I do when I'm not on the clock.

Parent First

Three boys, three dogs — the full beautiful chaos. Before I'm a director, an engineer, or an AI evangelist, I'm a dad. It's the most important job I have and the one that keeps everything else in perspective.

Scouting America Leader

Pack and Troop leader for 8+ years in the local community, working with scouts aged 6–18. Grew the pack from 20 to 45 scouts, manage a $15K annual program budget, and guide kids through advancement, activities, and the kind of character-building you can't do in a classroom. My favorite application of the "people multiplier" philosophy.

Programming Teacher

Designed and taught an 8-week programming course at a local elementary school — 15 students, 100% completion rate. Proof that you don't need to be in a boardroom to make technology accessible to people who've never touched it before.

Building Free AI Tools

Running a side venture building free AI-powered tools for local communities — from parents navigating school systems to veterans accessing benefits. Live products already deployed and in use.

Parents ↗ Graduates ↗ Seniors ↗ Veterans ↗ Jobs ↗

Contact

Let's build
something great.

Whether you're looking to hire a data & AI leader, explore a collaboration, or just connect — I'd love to hear from you.

Email [email protected]
LinkedIn bill-shipman-AIBI
Phone (610) 507-0480