Board of Directors

Brian Krzanich is President and CEO of Cerence AI and a member of the Company's Board of Directors. Brian joined Cerence AI in October 2024.

Brian is an engineer and business executive, best known for his tenure as the CEO of Intel Corporation. He joined Intel in 1982 as a process engineer and in his early career rose through the ranks in manufacturing, working on key projects involving the company’s factory operations and supply chains. His technical expertise, combined with his leadership skills, led to various senior roles, including overseeing Intel’s global manufacturing, supply chain, and infrastructure. In 2013, Brian was appointed CEO of Intel Corp. In this role, he faced the challenge of guiding Intel through a rapidly changing technology landscape, including the shift from PC-centric computing to mobile- and data-centric technologies. Brian focused on expanding Intel’s reach beyond traditional CPUs to areas like artificial intelligence, autonomous driving, and the Internet of Things (IoT), and was also known for championing diversity and sustainability initiatives, pledging to increase female and minority representation in Intel’s workforce, and committing the company to sourcing conflict-free minerals. In 2018, Brian joined CDK Global, a technology provider for the automotive industry, where he served as CEO from 2019 to 2022. During his tenure he led the technology company through a successful sale to investment firm Brookfield Business Partners for $8.3B. Brian graduated from San Jose State University with a degree in chemistry.

Ms. Matus has been an executive advisor to Thomas H. Lee Partners since 2017. From 2014 to 2016 Ms. Matus served as the Executive Vice President, Chief Financial and Administrative Officer at athenahealth, Inc. From 2012 to 2013, Ms. Matus served as Executive Vice President and Head of Governmental Services at Aetna, Inc. Prior to Aetna, she held several senior leadership roles at United Services Automobile Association, including Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer from 2008 to 2012. She began her career at Thrivent where she held various financial and operational roles for over a decade. Ms. Matus currently serves as a director at Ambac Financial Group, Inc., where she serves as chair of the compensation committee.

Marianne Budnik is an accomplished technology industry leader with extensive marketing and cybersecurity expertise. Ms. Budnik has served as Chief Marketing Officer for Talon Cyber Security since March 2022. Previously, Ms. Budnik served as Chief Marketing Officer for CrowdStrike from December 2020 through March 2022, where she also oversaw the company’s diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. From May 2017 through December 2020, Ms. Budnik served as Chief Marketing Officer for CyberArk, a leader in Privileged Access Management and Identity Security solutions. Her previous experience includes leadership roles with SimpliVity, Acme Packet, CA Technologies, and EMC Corporation. Ms. Budnik earned an M.B.A. from Boston University and holds a bachelor’s degree from Babson College. She also serves on the Board of publicly traded F5, and as a member of F5's audit and risk oversight committee.

Mr. Davis is a renowned and respected leader within the automotive, autonomous driving and IoT industries, having had an impressive 35-year career at Intel Corporation. Mr. Davis most recently served as Senior Vice President of Intel’s Automated Driving Group, where he formed the company’s automated driving business, established Intel as a leading supplier of chip technology for autonomous vehicles, and led the company’s acquisition of Mobileye. He has deep relationships with nearly every automotive OEM, automotive technology innovator, and Tier 1 supplier. Mr. Davis has a range of board experience and is currently a director for Oshkosh Corporation and for Verra Mobility. Mr. Davis holds a M.B.A. from the Arizona State University W.P. Carey School of Business and a Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering from New Mexico State University.

Marion Harris is a proven automotive and financial services executive, having completed an impressive 25-year career at Ford Motor Company. Mr. Harris most recently served as Chairman and CEO of Ford Motor Credit Company where he led a digital transformation that resulted in the highest consumer satisfaction in the industry. Mr. Harris also served as Vice President of Ford Mobility with operational responsibility for Ford’s startup digital and mobility businesses. His deep financial, capital markets, risk management, business development, and technology transformation experience reflect his many progressive leadership roles in automotive, captive finance, and banking. Mr. Harris currently serves on the advisory boards of Harbinger Motors and Mobility Impact Partners. Mr. Harris holds a B.S. and M.A. in mathematics from Mississippi State University.

Ms. Klevorn is a known and respected automotive and mobility industry leader, having spent 35 years at Ford Motor Company. During her tenure, she held varying executive and leadership roles within the company’s information technology organization, including global Chief Information Officer (CIO) and, previously, CIO of Ford Motor Company in Europe. Ms. Klevorn also served as EVP and President of Ford Mobility, where she oversaw Ford Smart Mobility LLC and its acquisitions and other investments that accelerated the company’s plans to design, build, grow, and invest in emerging mobility services. In this role, she also chaired the board of Ford Autonomous Vehicles LLC. Ms. Klevorn most recently served as the Chief Transformation Officer of Ford Motor Company, where she accelerated Ford’s transformation efforts by refining its corporate governance and fostering adoption of process improvements and agile teams. She also led partnerships with key technology partners and played a critical role in the company’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Ms. Klevorn currently sits on the Boards of Directors of Northern Trust Corporation and Humana and on the Provost Advisory Committee at the University of Michigan. She holds a bachelor's degree in business from the University of Michigan Stephen M. Ross School of Business.

Mr. Nietzel has been an independent consultant since 2017. From 2014 to 2017, Mr. Nietzel served as the Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President at CDK Global, Inc. Prior to CDK’s spin-off, Mr. Nietzel was with Automatic Data Processing, Inc. since 2001 and served as Chief Financial Officer for the Dealer Services Division, Chief Financial Officer for the Employer Services Division and ADP’s Corporate Controller. Prior to joining ADP, Mr. Nietzel served for 17 years with Proctor & Gamble Inc. in numerous financial management roles in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia. Mr. Nietzel holds a B.S. degree from Eastern Illinois University. He currently serves as chairman of the board for OneSpan.

Mr. Sarin served as Chief Executive Officer of Vodafone Group Plc from 2003 until his retirement in 2008. Mr. Sarin began his career at Pacific Telesis Group in 1984. He progressed through various management positions there and at AirTouch Communications Inc., which Pacific Telesis spun off in 1994, and was named president and chief operating officer of AirTouch in 1997. After AirTouch merged with Vodafone in 1999, he was appointed chief executive officer of Vodafone’s U.S./Asia-Pacific region. He left Vodafone in 2000 to become Chief Executive Officer of InfoSpace, Inc., and from 2001 until 2003, he served as Chief Executive Officer of Accel-KKR Telecom. After his retirement in 2008, he served as a senior advisor to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. for five years. Mr. Sarin currently serves as lead independent director at Accenture plc and as a director at The Charles Schwab Corporation and Ola Electric. He previously served as a director of Safeway, Inc. from 2009 to 2015 and Blackhawk Network Holdings, Inc. from 2009 to 2018; and Cisco Systems Inc. from 2009 to 2020. Mr. Sarin holds M.B.A. and Master of Science (Engineering) degrees from University of California-Berkeley and a B.S. from the Indian Institute of Technology in Kharagpur, India.