Chad Stilwell

Chad Stilwell

Technology Executive | CTO | AI & Data Science Leader

linkedin.com/in/chad-stilwell

Professional Summary

Innovative and results-driven technology executive with a proven track record of driving growth and scaling startups. Expertise in IT strategy, AI-driven product development, and team building. Recognized for delivering cutting-edge solutions, leading high-impact teams, and influencing industry advancements. Adept at fostering a culture of innovation and executing strategic initiatives that drive profitability and operational excellence.

Key Skills

  • Strategic Leadership –Drives vision and innovation that aligns IT strategy with business objectives.
  • Team & Culture Development –Nurtures a dynamic problem-solving atmosphere with remarkably low turnover rates.
  • AI & Data Science Expertise –Leads AI-driven product development, leveraging machine learning and generative AI models.
  • Decision-Making & Execution –Balances rapid execution with long-term vision.
  • Operational Efficiency –Spearheads transformations that improve scalability and profitability.
  • Security & Compliance –Maintained several years of unblemished SOC 2 Type 2 reports.

Professional Experience

Agora Data, Inc.

August 2019 - February 2025

Chief Technology Officer

July 2021 - February 2025

  • Led AI-driven product development and IT strategy, pioneering patent-pending AI technology.
  • Scaled the company from 15 employees to over 100, generating $50M in revenue and achieving positive EBITDA.
  • Spearheaded a technology-driven transformation, managing a team of more than 50 employees.
  • Directed and guided the product team to ensure alignment with business strategy and technological advancements.
  • Led IT security initiatives, achieving multiple years with a clean SOC 2 Type 2 report.
  • Cultivated a strong team culture that resulted in exceptional retention rates, maintaining an involuntary turnover rate of just 1.5% and a total turnover rate of 6.5%.

Senior Vice President - Data Science

August 2019 - July 2021

  • Established and led data science initiatives that shaped product innovation.
  • Developed scalable, data-driven solutions contributing to business growth.
  • Designed and implemented a primary ML model to predict auto loan performance over time, increasing model accuracy from 82% to 98.5% (MAE).

Alcon

September 2008 - August 2019

Director, U.S. Commercial Operations

2017 – 2019

  • Led the technology strategy for U.S. commercial operations, optimizing business performance.
  • Managed cross-functional teams to improve operational efficiency.
  • Fostered a data-driven decision-making culture by transforming the in-house data strategy, data science program, reporting, and analytics capabilities.
  • Developed a capital equipment quoting application that enabled the field force and contracts team to reduce quote generation time from over two weeks to an average of 48 hours (iOS and web platforms).

Associate Director, U.S. Surgical Sales Operations

2016 – 2017

Project Manager, U.S. Surgical Sales Operations

2014 – 2016

Sales Analyst, U.S. Sales Operations

2011 – 2014

Information Specialist, I.T. Front Office

2008 – 2011

Education

Texas Christian University (2008)

Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) – Business Information Systems

Awards & Recognition

  • Emerging Company CIO/CTO of the Year (2024, Tech Titans)
  • 40 Under 40 (2024, Auto Remarketing)
  • Two-time CEO Quarterly Excellence Award recipient for outstanding contributions to business strategy and operational efficiency. (Alcon)
  • Top 10 Startups (2024, LinkedIn News, Dallas, TX)