About AlignOps

Walker Fenton is a seasoned product leader with more than 25 years of experience building and leading high-performing teams to solve complex challenges. His expertise lies in developing and scaling enterprise SaaS products, with a proven track record of defining global product strategies that drive growth and deliver real value to customers. Throughout his career, Walker has held leadership roles at companies ranging from innovative startups to established tech firms. He was Head of Product at SingleFile, Chief Product Officer at TrackVia, and previously held key positions at NewsGator Technologies. Walker brings a thoughtful, customer-first approach to product development, combining deep technical understanding with a sharp business mindset.

Tara Gish is a customer service leader who brings more than five years of AlignOps experience to the leadership team. Tara began her AlignOps journey as a technical trainer and moved quickly through the professional services team to begin delivering customer consulting, implementation, data analysis, and integration expertise. Tara is committed to providing a stellar customer experience from the point of sale through the entire customer life cycle.

Adam Harshman is a dynamic leader at FleetWatcher, spearheading initiatives that transform operational inefficiencies into profit-enhancing solutions. With more than eight years at the company, starting as a sales representative and advancing to Executive Vice President and COO, Adam has been pivotal in expanding the company’s reach and impact across North America. He developed the asphalt market and launched the go-to-market strategy for FleetWatcher’s material management solution, enhancing its industry presence. Prior to this, Adam managed key operations at Mission of Hope Haiti, overseeing business processes, inventory management, and operational enhancements that supported the mission’s goals and expanded its influence. Adam’s leadership is marked by a commitment to operational excellence and strategic growth, making him a cornerstone of FleetWatcher’s success.

Jim Hutchins serves as Chief Information Security Officer at AlignOps, bringing more than three decades of experience in SaaS technology and a strong focus on information security. With a lifelong passion for innovation in software solutions, Jim began his career in 1988 at Indianapolis-based RDS in operations and software development roles, transitioning into technology leadership in 2000. After RDS was acquired by Open Solutions in 2004, Jim became General Manager, where he managed technology mergers and acquisitions. In 2007, Jim joined T2 Systems as CIO and was later promoted to CTO and EVP, where he led significant technology growth, culminating in the company’s acquisition in 2016.

Jim joined FleetWatcher, now an AlignOps company, in 2017 as CTO, overseeing technology strategy and security initiatives as the company more than quadrupled in size. Jim earned a BS in Computer Science from IUPUI, where he has served on the Science Alumni Board of Directors since 1999. Recognized for his contributions to the field, he was named J. Everett Light Career Center Alumni of the Year (2007), CTO of the Year by the Indianapolis Business Journal and TechPoint (2015), and received the Maynard K. Hine Award from IUPUI (2018).

Outside of work, Jim is deeply committed to community engagement and mentoring future tech leaders. He has been married to his wife,  Lilia, since 2006, and has two children, Allison and Conner. He enjoys 3D printing, home improvement projects, and practicing Shorei Kai Karate with Conner in his free time.

Lara Kadera is an experienced finance executive in growth-mindset technology organizations. After starting in public accounting with KPMG, Lara held several leadership roles with Merge Healthcare, an electronic medical imaging company, as they grew from a small/mid-cap firm to a billion-dollar sale as IBM Watson Health's second acquisition. Most recently, Lara provided financial leadership at Zywave, a SaaS provider to the insurance industry, growing their product portfolio through acquisitions. Lara brings a customer-centric approach, with success in streamlining processes while maintaining strong controls.

Jay Martin is an accomplished executive with 25 years of progressive leadership experience in the technology industry and more than a decade with private equity-owned organizations.

Before AlignOps, Jay served as the Chief Operating Officer at EagleView, a leading provider of aerial imagery-based data analysis products for the insurance, construction, energy, and government sectors, and Aquasana, the largest direct-to-consumer water filtration company in the United States.

Earlier in his career, Jay served as VP of SMB and Software Sales at Sungard Availability Services, a cloud-based disaster recovery services provider and SAAS offerings, and held multiple leadership roles at Dell Technologies.

Candace Rhymer is an experienced executive leader who is passionate about fostering employee growth, empowering leaders, and scaling internal practices required for healthy team expansion. She is the connective tissue between people, strategic initiatives, business management systems, company culture, and tactical execution. She leverages her depth of experience in human resources, operations, corporate strategic projects, and client services to support a team of high-performing professionals to be efficient, productive, and effective.

Derrik Shakespear is an accomplished executive with more than 20 years of leadership experience in scaling sales teams within the fintech, security, renewable energy, and ConTech industries. Derrik’s expertise in go-to-market strategies has significantly enhanced several growth-stage companies, driving rapid and sustainable expansion. Notably, as VP of Sales and Marketing, he spearheaded efforts at a renewable energy company, catapulting it to the 27th and 29th fastest-growing company in America in 2016 and 2017, respectively.

Joining BusyBusy as the Chief Revenue Officer, Derrik orchestrated a transformative growth strategy that increased the client base from 200 to over 10,000 active clients in seven years, culminating in the company’s acquisition by AlignOps, a Riverside Company. Derrik is recognized for his commitment to ethical practices, ability to implement easy-to-follow processes, data-driven decision-making, employee retention, and ability to deliver substantial business results.

Robert Stephens serves as chief technology officer, with more than 35 years of technology solution development and 20 years in private equity-owned organizations. Robert brings a deep commitment to building high-quality, innovative solutions that meet the evolving needs of customers. Before joining AlignOps, Robert held key positions as CTO for Modern Hire and HireVue, where he spearheaded the company's platform growth, modernization, and consolidation efforts. Prior to this, he served as CTO at SHL (acquired by CEB), started and grew a mergers and acquisitions consultancy, and held various leadership roles across prominent AI and SaaS platform organizations.