OUR SERVICES
Advisory Services
Operational Design
We work with leadership teams to examine how work and information flows across the organization—where decisions stall, where accountability blurs, and where systems quietly shape outcomes. The focus is not marginal efficiency gains, but creating clear, scalable processes that support growth, enable better decision-making, and reduce organizational drag.
AI & Technology Advisory
AI is reshaping how organizations operate, compete, and allocate resources — but most leadership teams are navigating it without a clear framework. We help senior executives develop practical roadmaps for AI adoption that align with strategic priorities and existing infrastructure, cutting through vendor noise to focus on where AI creates real operational leverage. Beyond AI, we evaluate and align broader technology systems with operating needs, ensuring the tech stack supports sound decision-making.
Growth & Scale Strategy
Growth introduces new layers of complexity — across operations, systems, and leadership capacity. We help organizations clarify priorities, assess readiness, and sequence initiatives so expansion strengthens the business rather than amplifying risk or fragmentation.
ABOUT
Novara is led by Brent Schackmann, an executive with over a decade of experience building the teams, technology platforms, and information architecture organizations rely on to operate, scale, and make better decisions.
The throughline of Brent’s career has been designing how information moves through an organization—and turning that movement into a strategic asset. From enterprise data infrastructure and analytics to AI strategy, his work consistently sits at the intersection of technology and executive decision-making.
Most recently, Brent served as Chief Data Officer at PGIM Real Estate, the real estate investment arm of Prudential Financial, overseeing data strategy and technology modernization across a global portfolio of approximately $250 billion in assets. He led a comprehensive overhaul of PGIM’s information architecture and technology stack to meet the demands of an increasingly data-driven investment environment. Brent also chaired RealAssetX, an internal initiative composed of PGIM’s CEOs and senior leaders focused on advancing AI use cases in partnership with leading universities worldwide.
Prior to PGIM, Brent served as Senior Vice President at RPM Living, where he held a dual mandate spanning both technology and corporate growth. On the technology side, he built and led the teams responsible for enterprise-wide information management—designing the systems that governed how data was captured, integrated, and operationalized across the business. On the growth side, he led M&A strategy and execution, overseeing both organic and inorganic initiatives. During his four-year tenure, RPM grew from 30,000 units to over 250,000. While that trajectory was driven by strong business development and operations, it was materially enabled by the data strategy and technology infrastructure his teams put in place.
Earlier in his career, Brent built an enterprise analytics platform from the ground up that consolidated more than 400 independently operating business units into a single, real-time decision environment. The platform did more than automate reporting—it fundamentally changed how the organization operated, freeing regional leaders to spend the majority of their time on strategy rather than assembling data.
That kind of transformation—where technology, information architecture, and process design reshape how an organization actually works—is what Novara was built to support. Whether the challenge involves AI adoption, operational complexity, or preparing a business for its next stage of growth, Brent brings the perspective of someone who has designed and led these initiatives from inside the executive team—not from a slide deck.
Before entering the private sector, Brent began his career as an educator, teaching AP Economics and Government and earning recognition as Most Inspirational Teacher of the Year. He holds an MBA and a Master of Public Policy from the University of Texas at Austin.
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Let’s Talk
If you're navigating a growth challenge, operational shift, or strategic decision around AI and technology, we'd welcome the opportunity to discuss how Novara can help.