Heather MacKinnon-Miller

Enigma
DISC Type : Dic

VP, Global Head of AI at Apex Systems

Greater Chicago Area, United States

Overview

Heather is the VP, Global Head of AI at Apex Systems, leading the companys AI strategy. With a background transitioning from over a decade in manufacturing and aerospace engineering to AI, she specializes in creating scalable, real-world solutions. She holds an MA from Harvard Extension School and an MBA. Colleagues describe her as intelligent, organized, and thoughtful.

Her unique career began in mechanical and aerospace engineering, where she co-authored publications on miniature probes for hypersonic propulsion environments before pivoting to technology and AI.

Personality Overview

Persuasive & Assertive

Fast Follower

Hard To Convince

They can sound friendly and charming but can quickly change gears to become inquisitive and probing  They are generally strong communicators and are not easy to convince. They are likely to ask many questions and look heavily for supporting proof as well as information.

Topics They Care About

Applied AI Value
Focuses on building AI that delivers measurable business impact and moves beyond prototypes to solve real-world challenges, as seen in her recent posts and articles.
Autonomous Agents
Emphasizes the potential of trained, autonomous agents over foundational LLMs to "move the needle" in business applications, highlighted by a recent partnership announcement.
Go-to-Market Strategy
Her current role involves defining and executing the go-to-market strategy for AI services, a key responsibility noted in her employment history.

Media Appearances

Apex Systems Announces Availability of Peak CX‑AI in the New AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools Category. Featured in Business Wire

See Now

Work History

1-2025
VP, Global Head of AI at Apex Systems
10-2023 - 1-2025
Principal Technical Specialist, AI Services - OpenAI - Global Black Belt Team at Microsoft
4-2023 - 10-2023
Manager of Data Science & Machine Learning; Applied AI Architect at UPS
9-2022 - 4-2023
Principal Autonomous Systems Architect at Microsoft
5-2021 - 10-2022
Senior Autonomous Systems Solution Architect at Microsoft

Education

1-2023 - 6-2027
Master of Arts - MA from Harvard Extension School
2004 - 2006
MBA from University of Colorado

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 21 Location : Greater Chicago Area, United States Job Level : Senior Designation : VP, Global Head of AI at Apex Systems
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Insights For Selling To Heather

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Let them lead the discussion, create opportunities for them to speak if they are not very forthcoming
  • Use a combination of data as well as stories for your pitch, a ppt might not be necessary
  • Leverage 'negging', or the art of asking negative questions like "you must not be convinced yet..."

DONT's

  • Avoid long presentations and just 'high-level' value proposition, dive into the details
  • Avoid making offhand commitments, understand the root of their concerns first
  • Don’t rely excessively on your relationship with them to win the deal even if you come to form one

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Heather is

  • Proven value, strong objective evidence are important for them, rapport can impact decisions a little.
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Heather

  • They are practical and friendly, but can give a clear response with a little prodding

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Heather move?

  • They like to be detailed, so unless they develop strong conviction, they can take their time to arrive at decisions
  • Can Heather take some risk or not?

  • They evaluate their decisions systematically and do not take risks that often, unless you can get them to develop strong conviction

You And Heather

Personality Compatibility


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