Transformation & Operations Leader

Joshua Karpinski

Director, Business Services Transformation  ·  Liberty Utilities

15+ years turning complexity into accountable, measurable operations — in the regulated utilities and energy industries that can't afford for it not to work.

15+ Years Regulated Utilities SAP S/4HANA P2P · M2C · Shared Services
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Process to results illustration
$11B+
Annual billing operations overseen
100+
Cross-functional team members led
$9.6M
Revenue growth enabled
15+
Years in utilities & energy
About

Who I am.

I'm a transformation and operations leader with 15+ years of experience across utilities, energy, and shared services — helping organizations move from implementation to execution and from dashboards to real, sustained outcomes.

My work has included stabilizing complex SAP S/4HANA environments, redesigning Procure-to-Pay and Meter-to-Cash processes, and embedding data-driven operating models using tools like Celonis, Power BI, and intelligent automation. I'm known for bridging strategy and execution, aligning executive teams around clear priorities, and building accountability into how work actually gets done.

A few examples of outcomes I've helped lead:

  • Reduced 10% of a $112M operating budget while enabling $9.6M in revenue growth
  • Oversaw $11B+ in annual billing operations, improving accuracy and customer experience
  • Designed enterprise P2P and M2C frameworks adopted across multi-utility services
  • Selected as one of 10 U.S. leaders for the Customer Service LeadNext Program
  • Featured speaker at the Operational Excellence World Summit on customer-centric transformation
Experience

Career.

Current
Director, Business Services Transformation
Liberty Utilities
Leading enterprise business services strategy across procurement, accounts payable, vendor governance, and shared services. Resolved $8M unapplied cash backlog, restored on-time payment performance to 96%, and cleared 900+ aging AP items in 60 days while rebuilding the operating model for sustained performance.
Business Services Strategy $8M Backlog Cleared 96% On-Time Payment
Director, Transformation Process Strategy
Liberty Utilities
Built enterprise process ownership design, KPI systems, and operational adoption programs for regulated utility services. Focused on SAP post-go-live performance stabilization and sustainable governance frameworks across operations.
SAP S/4HANA KPI Systems Process Governance
Chief of Staff, Global CIO Office
National Grid
Executive liaison across a global CIO portfolio spanning enterprise transformation, shared services governance, and technology-enabled business change. Operated at C-suite level across cross-functional strategic initiatives and organizational change programs.
CIO Portfolio Enterprise Transformation C-Suite
Billing & Account Maintenance Lead
National Grid
Named COVID-19 collections organizational lead during the national emergency response. Coordinated 5 union-represented operations groups across collections and account maintenance — held operational continuity through the crisis while delivering 10% cost savings.
COVID-19 Crisis Lead 5-Union Coordination 10% Cost Savings
Meter-to-Cash Strategic Planning & Support
National Grid
Built the strategic plan for end-to-end Meter-to-Cash performance — billing accuracy, exception queue reduction, and revenue protection across gas and electric operations. Aligned billing, customer operations, and field execution into a single performance model overseeing $11B+ in annual billing operations.
M2C Strategy Gas + Electric $11B+ Billing Ops
Process Excellence & Intelligent Automation
National Grid
Led process excellence across back office, field operations, gas, and electric — embedding intelligent automation into core workflows. Redesigned premise validation: 75%+ manual step reduction and 11-day cycle time improvement. Identified $1.4M in automation ROI across 34 candidate processes; delivered the first 3 automations in 90 days with zero control failures.
Back Office + Field 75%+ Step Reduction $1.4M Automation ROI
Capabilities

What I bring to teams.

SAP S/4HANA Stabilization
Post-go-live performance recovery, exception queue reduction, and sustainable operating governance.
Procure-to-Pay (P2P) Design
End-to-end P2P framework design, AP workflow optimization, and shared services governance for multi-utility environments.
Meter-to-Cash (M2C) Design
Billing cycle optimization, premise validation, and revenue accuracy across gas, electric, and water operations.
KPI System Design
Building metric trees tied to named process owners — replacing dashboard theater with actionable performance intelligence.
Change & Adoption Architecture
Designing for behavior change at the moment of friction — not just training completion rates.
Intelligent Automation
Process mining with Celonis, Power BI dashboards, and automation scoping — stabilize first, then automate.
Shared Services Optimization
Operating model design for multi-function shared services spanning AP, billing, compliance, and customer ops.
Post-ERP Performance Governance
Installing the governance layer that makes transformation stick — after the consultants leave and before the plateau sets in.
Executive Alignment & Operating Cadence
Building leader routines as decision infrastructure — the weekly cadence that turns strategy into sustained accountability.
Recognition

Selected & featured.

Leadership Selection
Selected as 1 of 10 U.S. leaders for the Customer Service LeadNext Program
Featured Speaker
Operational Excellence World Summit — Customer-Centric Transformation in Regulated Utilities
Insights

What I write about.

Process
Why Your Post-ERP Process Owners Don't Own Anything
The accountability gap nobody maps in the cutover plan — and three moves that close it in 30 days.
Read on LinkedIn →
Performance
The KPI That's Lying to Your Executives
Aggregate cycle time tells you nothing actionable. Here's the segmentation that changes the conversation.
Read on LinkedIn →
Utilities
The 18-Month Problem: What Happens After the Consultants Leave
The post-transformation performance plateau is predictable, consistent, and preventable.
Read on LinkedIn →

Let's connect.

LinkedIn is the best place to follow my work, reach out directly, or start a conversation.

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