Karen Sammon is a CEO, President, Management Executive, public company Board Member and committed Conscious Capitalist with successful record of spearheading turnarounds, driving corporate transformations including digital and culture transformations, and transitioning business models from transactional to recurring revenue. She delivers stability, strategically cultivating and empowering collaborative, engaged and high performing teams, through servant leadership and authenticity.
Karen is the former CEO, President and Board Member of PAR Technology Corporation (NYSE: PAR), an international company providing management technology solutions to the Company’s restaurant/retail and government customers worldwide, together with its subsidiaries. Across her roles, she led both company segments for the $240M revenue across Restaurant/Retail and Government, with its 1,100 employees in the US, North America, London, Dubai, Shanghai, Singapore and Sydney. Karen oversaw capital structure, corporate P&L, cash flow, investment oversight, and critical relationships with lenders and auditors.
With a focus on culture and values, Karen led the strategic turnaround of the company’s commoditized POS hardware and services business unit transforming it to a recurring revenue business model and a software restaurant management solutions powerhouse and preeminent leader in SaaS POS software and merchant services. She also transformed PAR’s Government business unit eliminating low margin business and focusing on highly profitable software development without impacting profitability. This transformation increased PAR’s valuation nearly 700% from $65M in 2013 to $500M in 2018.
Previously, Karen was the SVP of Operations for The CBORD Group, Inc. (NYSE: ROP; Roper Industries), overseeing full strategy and P&L for the US operation in one of six companies within the software applications segment, with revenues of ~$132M (2012). She led the largest number of SaaS solutions launched, introduced new partners and customers – adding 300bps to EBTIDA goals and setting revenue and contribution margins records in 2011 and 2012.
Karen is a Board Member of Conscious Capitalism, Inc., a global network of business leaders, entrepreneurs, and intrapreneurs, acted as the Governance Committee Chair, and currently sits on the Executive Committee and contributes to several Task Forces. She leads chapter growth in New York State, guiding organizations to define a higher purpose, ensuring equal value for all stakeholders, building servant leaders and a conscious culture.
Karen’s is a published, NACD member, thought leader, sought after to speak at across numerous conferences. She regularly speaks on topics related to corporate transformation, leadership and Conscious Capitalism and is a supporter of women in business including the Colgate Program on Women in Business. She earned Executive MBA credit from Harvard Business School, holds a JD from the University of Cincinnati, and is admitted into the Bar in the States of Illinois and New York. She holds a BA from Colgate University. She is committed to learning and is a member and adjunct at the Stagen Academy.
