Amber L Garcia

I build the operating foundation that lets ambitious organizations execute with clarity.

I bring structure without bureaucracy, strategic partnership without politics, and the kind of organizational clarity that turns a capable team into one that executes.

Amber L Garcia

Operating at the intersection of people, strategy & execution

I build the operating foundation that lets ambitious organizations execute with clarity. My work sits at the intersection of strategy, systems, and people — most often in organizations where complexity, growth, or change have started to slow execution. I bring structure without bureaucracy, strategic partnership without politics, and the kind of organizational clarity that turns a capable team into one that executes.

Particularly effective as a strategic partner to executive leaders navigating growth, transformation, or reinvention — translating strategy into execution, aligning the right people around the real constraint, and staying close enough to the work to ensure momentum sticks.

A decade at Experian has meant building operating systems from scratch, resetting how a 1,500-person organization plans and prioritizes, scaling an eight-figure marketplace business from proof of concept, and leading one of the company's highest-profile product launches. I've earned the Experian "Elite" Award (Top 2% globally) for impact that goes beyond the role.

Current Role

Senior Director, Head of Portfolio Delivery & Strategic Transformation · Experian

Education

  • MBA · UCLA Anderson School of Management
  • BS, Organizational Leadership · Biola University

Certifications

  • PMP · Project Management Institute
  • PROSCI Change Management
  • Working Genius Facilitator · Patrick Lencioni

Location

Orange County, CA

Recognition Experian "Elite" Award — Top 2% Globally North America Product Launch of the Year — Experian Boost Creating a Better Tomorrow Award Rising Women in Technology — Orange County

Four interconnected systems.
One accountable leader.

01

Portfolio Management & Measurement

Create the portfolio-wide line of sight that lets leadership make investment and staffing decisions based on actuals, not assumptions — spanning complex, matrixed product domains and dozens of cross-functional teams.

02

Delivery Orchestration

Restore execution traction across complex cross-functional initiatives by reducing organizational friction, clarifying ownership, and aligning teams around the highest-value priorities. Trusted escalation partner for stalled, high-risk, or politically complex work.

03

Operating Model Evolution & Change Leadership

Lead organizations toward outcome-oriented, AI-augmented ways of working — simplifying processes, improving decision-making, and driving the kind of sustainable behavioral change that actually sticks.

04

Governance & Structure

Design operating rhythms, governance structures, decision rights, and leadership reporting that improve prioritization, accelerate decision-making, and increase execution consistency across complex, interdependent organizations.

Over a decade of building, scaling & transforming

June 2025 – Present

Senior Director, Head of Portfolio Delivery & Strategic Transformation

Experian Consumer Services, North America · Costa Mesa, CA
20+ person department · $4–5M budget · 1,500-person org · 45–65 cross-functional teams · eight-figure portfolio across 5 matrixed product domains

Lead four interconnected organizational functions spanning portfolio strategy, execution coordination, operating model evolution, and governance.

  • Portfolio Management — Create the portfolio-wide line of sight that lets leadership make investment and staffing decisions based on actuals, not assumptions.
  • Delivery Orchestration — Restore execution traction across complex cross-functional initiatives by reducing organizational friction, clarifying ownership, and aligning teams around the highest-value priorities.
  • Operating Model Evolution & Change Leadership — Lead the organization's shift toward outcome-oriented, AI-augmented ways of working by simplifying processes, improving decision-making, and driving sustainable behavioral change.
  • Governance & Structure — Design operating rhythms, governance structures, and leadership reporting that improve prioritization, accelerate decision-making, and increase execution consistency.
April 2023 – June 2025

Senior Director, Strategic Transformation

Experian Consumer Services, North America · Costa Mesa, CA
3+ direct reports · $600K budget · Enterprise-wide portfolio across a 1,500-person org

Brought in to reset and rebuild how the organization planned, prioritized, and delivered — inheriting portfolio management, OKR practices, and quarterly planning processes that had grown too heavy to sustain. Assessed, right-sized, and rebuilt the operating foundation the organization now runs on.

  • Triage & Assessment — Identified execution breakdowns across planning, prioritization, and portfolio delivery; uncovered process complexity and decision friction as key drivers of organizational drag.
  • Process Right-Sizing — Redesigned quarterly planning into a lighter-weight, distributed cadence that improved leadership engagement, prioritization quality, and organizational adoption without sacrificing rigor.
  • Prioritization & Alignment — Aligned executives around a single prioritized initiative portfolio for the first time, bringing clarity to investment, staffing, and delivery decisions across a highly matrixed organization.
  • Operating Model Foundation — Introduced modern operating model and team design principles that improved ownership clarity, cross-functional coordination, and outcome-oriented execution.
  • Execution Momentum — Trusted escalation partner for stalled, high-risk, or politically complex initiatives — restoring clarity, alignment, ownership, and forward momentum across teams.
2018 – 2023

Director → Senior Director, Marketplace Operations

Experian Consumer Services, North America · Costa Mesa, CA
Individual contributor → 3 direct reports · $400K talent budget · Promoted to Senior Director 2022

Part of the founding operating team that scaled Experian Marketplace from proof of concept into an eight-figure, multi-vertical growth business spanning credit cards, personal loans, and insurance partnerships.

  • Scaling & Operational Integrity — Built the operating systems, planning structure, and execution discipline needed to scale a fast-growing multi-vertical business while maintaining stability and adaptability.
  • Business Building & Measurement — Built the operating and measurement infrastructure for a marketplace business that didn't yet have one — aligning fragmented market insights, funnel performance, and partner strategy into a coherent growth model that scaled to eight figures.
  • Special Assignment & Triage — Frequently tapped for high-visibility cross-functional initiatives including strategic innovation, consultant alignment, NPS improvement, and M&A integration work.
2015 – 2018

Senior Agile Project Manager / Program Manager

Experian Consumer Services, North America · Costa Mesa, CA

Core delivery lead on several of Experian's highest-profile consumer product launches during a period of rapid digital growth and organizational scaling.

  • Experian Boost — Program manager and delivery lead for the flagship launch as part of a four-person core leadership team; recognized with North America Product Launch of the Year.
  • Consumer Product Delivery — Led cross-functional delivery across major consumer products and mobile app launches, including Experian CreditWorks, supporting growth to more than 1M installs.

Want the full picture? Download my resume for complete scope details and key accomplishments.

Download Resume
Golden State of Mind

Transformation happens one person at a time.

Transformation and change happen one person at a time. Alongside my organizational work, I apply the Working Genius model to the individuals I mentor and coach — helping them understand how they're wired, where they create real value, and what environments bring out their best.

When people understand how they're naturally wired to contribute, work becomes clearer, more energizing, and more impactful.

Using Patrick Lencioni's 6 Types of Working Genius framework, I help teams strengthen collaboration and communication while helping individuals better recognize where they thrive, how they create value, and what environments bring out their best work.

Perfect for leadership teams, organizational change, career clarity, and role alignment.

Book a Discovery Call

Team Facilitation
Half-day and full-day Working Genius sessions that unlock how your team is wired — and where the gaps are costing you.

Leadership Teams
Ideal for teams navigating change, building new norms, or trying to move faster with less friction.

Individual Coaching
1:1 sessions for professionals seeking clarity on where they create real value and how to position themselves for what's next.

Let's talk about what's next.

Reach out if you're navigating complexity, building something meaningful, or trying to create momentum in a situation that feels stuck.