IT & AI Leadership with a Human Touch
Hi! I'm Ben McLendon – MIT-trained AI strategist, enterprise technologist, and lifelong maker. With over 30 years of leadership experience, I merge vision and velocity, blending strategy, engineering, and artistry to deliver outcomes that positively impact organizations broadly and their employees individually.
Why Me?
Most technologists offer only strategic insight or technical implementation. I uniquely offer both, drawing on 30 years of enterprise IT leadership and hands-on development experience.
- Executive Fluency: I translate complex tech issues into ROI.
- Engineering Mastery: I build tools, workflows, and automations that just work.
- Trusted Advisor: I guide with clarity and focus, leaning on data first and no magical thinking.
- Velocity + Vision: I build quickly and ship fast, with long-term value always in mind.
What I Do
- Evaluate, select, deploy, and manage complex vertical software solutions
- Full-stack software developer: Linux, Nginx, MySQL, PHP, Laravel(MVC), HTML, JavaScript
- Custom LLM/GPT/RAG systems
- AI-enabled workflow automations across documents, APIs, and emails
- End-to-end systems architecture: Plan, People, Process
Education and Certifications
Lifelong Learning is an essential habit developed throughout my career.
- Degrees
- 1993 - B.S. - Valdosta State University
- Executive Education
- 2025 - Executive Certificate in AI Strategy and Product Innovation - MIT
- 2025 - AI Strategy and Leadership Program: Thriving in the New World of AI - MIT
- 2025 - Designing and Building AI Products and Services - MIT
- Certifications
- 2024 - Certified in Cybersecurity - ISC2
- 2024 - Certified OKR Foundation - OKR Institute
- 2023 - Certified Entry-Level Python Programmer - Python Institute
- 2019 - ITIL 4 Foundation - AXELOS
- Previous Areas of Study
- Brocade Certified Virtual Router Engineer
- VMware Certified Associate - Data Center Virtualization
- VCE Certified Converged Infrastructure Associate
- Implementing the ShoreTel IP System
- Microsoft Certified Solutions Associate MCSA: Windows Server
Skills
AI / Technology Strategy & Innovation
Technology Leadership, Technical Leadership, IT Strategy, Digital Innovation, Technology Integration, Technology Trends, Concept Generation, Strategic Insights, Visualizing the Bigger Picture
Executive Leadership & Management
Executive Leadership, Sensemaking, Strategic Leadership, Strategic Planning, Strategic Initiatives, Tactical Planning, Partner Relationship Management, Relationship Building, Team Leadership, Team Building, Visioning, Social Influence
Business Strategy & Transformation
Business Acumen, Business Case Preparation, Business Process, Business Process Improvement, Business Requirements, Objectives & Key Results (OKRs), Key Performance Indicators, Capital & Expense Budget Management, P&L Management, Acquisitions, Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Business Continuity
Enterprise Project & Program Leadership
Project Management, Project Implementation, Project Portfolio Management, Scope Management, Process Improvement, Defining Requirements, Managing Complex Projects, Problem Solving, Decision-Making, Understand & Convey Complex Information
Cybersecurity / Compliance & Risk Management
Cybersecurity, Incident Response, Data Privacy, Privacy Compliance, Regulatory Compliance, Regulatory Requirements, ITIL 4, Service Levels, Business Continuity
Enterprise IT & Systems Architecture
Inventing, IT Infrastructure Management, IT Management, IT Operations, IT Service Delivery, IT Sourcing, Network Architecture, Systems Design, System Performance, System Implementations
Software Development & Engineering
Software Acquisition, Software Architectural Design, Software Engineering, Web Applications, Python, JavaScript, JSON, PHP, Laravel, SQL
Cloud Infrastructure & Platforms
Cloud Computing, VMware, Linux, Microsoft Office 365, Windows Server, VoIP
Real Estate / PropTech & Industry Expertise
Property Management, Property Management Systems, Proptech, Provider Contracting
Communication / Leadership Development & Influence
Coaching & Mentoring, Public Speaking, Presentations, Internal & External Communications, Customer Service, Customer Satisfaction, Cross-functional Team Leadership