Kris Kilborn

About Kris Kilborn

Countless combinations of data, strategy, communication, and high-performance improvement find their way into every part of how I work and lead. This has looked different across my life and career- Running the warship’s navigation team in the Suez Canal- Communicating with aircraft launching off of the aircraft carrier for missions- Identifying potential inbound air threats to our forces in the Middle East‍- Pushing through an ultramarathon trail run in the mountains under the Phoenix sun🤝- Mentoring sailors & coworkers daily with personalized connection - Leading from the front as a Nationally Qualified Bodybuilder in my personal timeDifferent environments, same mindset: stay steady, stay curious, plan for best AND worst, communicate clearly, and always keep moving the team toward stronger outcomes-Today, that mindset shows up in my work at the intersection of analytics, AI, and operational modernization. I love taking complicated (and sometimes messy!) data, emerging technology, and operational complexity and turning them into something clear, useful, and actionable. I’m especially energized by the moments where I get to bridge the gap between clients, technical teams, and mission needs; translating across perspectives, surfacing the real problem, and helping build a roadmap that gets everyone moving in the same direction. Communication is central to how I lead. I care deeply about making complex things understandable, identifying concerns early, and bringing forward solutions with an executable plan. I work wholeheartedly with my teams\' strengths and my decision-makers\' concernsto create the ultimate operational, strategic, AND technical roadmap.I believe advocacy matters too - for the mission, for the user, for the team, and for the people doing the hard work behind the scenes. I’m willing to do the long, difficult work required that paves the way for all sides (technical/strategic/operational) to feel supported.I want to be the person who helps others feel informed, aligned, and empowered to move-I genuinely love this work. I love asking better questions, improving broken processes, shaping technical efforts into useful capabilities, and helping teams turn complexity into action. My goal has never been to do analytics for analytics’ sake. My goal is to help people use data, technology, and clear communication to move forward with confidence.Give me your questions, your priorities, and your toughest operational problems - and I’ll help turn them into action-

Experience

1. Data Scientist Technical Product Manager - Innovations

   M I Technical Solutions, Inc.

   Mar 2025 — Present · Chesapeake, VA, US

   I support U.S. Navy modernization efforts through the SCORE platform - a technology suite that applies advanced analytics, machine learning, and AI to improve operational readiness and maintenance outcomes. I lead and support AI initiatives, technical product management efforts, and data-driven modernization programs focused on predictive maintenance, anomaly detection, product integration, and decision-support capabilities. My work includes translating legacy and siloed datasets into scalable analytics products, partnering with cross-functional stakeholders to define requirements, improve adoption, and align technical solutions with operational needs. Through dashboards, data pipelines, and user-centered visualization tools, I help improve planning, reduce downtime, and drive mission-focused outcomes across multiple commands, helping drive smarter decisions across the fleet.Recent Highlights include:‣ Conduct exploratory data analysis and feature development to identify patterns, failure indicators, and operational drivers that improve model relevance and maintenance planning. ‣ Validate data quality, consistency, and integrity across disconnected systems to improve model performance, reporting reliability, and trust in analytics outputs.‣ Bridging technical development and mission needs by translating complex analytics into practical, Navy-relevant solutions that users can adopt and act on.‣ Advance stakeholder alignment and product integration by working directly with clients, engineers, and cross-functional teams to embed SCORE capabilities into operational workflows.‣ Drive product adoption through strong stakeholder communication, data storytelling, and user-centered delivery.

Education

• United States Naval Academy

  Bachelor of Science - BS, Political Science and Government with Engineering & Leadership Courses

  2012 — 2016

• University of Virginia Darden School of Business

  Master of Science - MS, Business Analytics