Our Team

Bringing out the best in the best

Our team is comprised of leaders in their respective fields who share a spirit of dedication, collaboration and fun. As a result, we have a great time working together and it shows. It shows in the quality of our client partnerships and in the caliber of our work, which translates to high-quality, on-time deliverables for our clients.

Our Leadership team

Here are a few of our key players. Feel free to contact them to learn more about what they do and how Acclaro can help you localize your next project.

Michael Kriz, Founder & President
Dan DeFazio, Vice President, Finance & Administration
Ora Solomon, Vice President, Operations
Scott Cahoon, Technical Services Director
Stephanie Engelsen, Marketing Director
Rachel Ferris, Operations Director, East Coast
Emma Young, Operations Director, Europe

Michael Kriz, Founder & President

As Acclaro’s founding president, Michael is responsible for setting the vision and guiding the growth of Acclaro worldwide.

Michael founded Acclaro in 2002 and quickly grew the organization from a boutique New York firm into a global enterprise with offices and affiliates on four continents. With more than 20 years in the industry, Michael draws on experiences founding and managing localization endeavors — from his first foray into the industry creating a small translation company in Paris to working with leading global entities.

Michael holds an MBA from Babson College and a BA from Tulane University. Michael still enjoys frequent travel, plays soccer most Saturday mornings and windsurfs whenever the opportunity arises. Contact Michael at mkriz@acclaro.com.

Dan DeFazio, Vice President, Finance & Administration

In his role as vice president of finance and administration, Dan is charged with managing all financial operations for Acclaro.

Before joining Acclaro, Dan held several executive management roles, including chief financial officer at Velocity Express, chief operating and financial officer at VirtualCom and, most recently, as partner, financial management solutions, for Richards Capital & Associates. He began his career at PriceWaterhouseCoopers before moving on to business and financial planning positions at Pitney Bowes, Bernard Harris Publishing and Xerox. Dan has spent considerable time at the executive level, managing businesses throughout the Americas, Europe and Latin America.

Dan holds a BS in accounting from Ithaca College and is a Certified Public Accountant. When you can pry his fingers off company ledgers and balance sheets, he can be found skiing and kayaking. Contact Dan at ddefazio@acclaro.com.

Ora Solomon, Vice President, Operations

In addition to overseeing all Acclaro processes worldwide as vice president of operations, Ora is responsible for client satisfaction and achieving operational excellence.

As Acclaro’s 2nd employee (and proud possessor of the company’s most infectious laugh), Ora first crossed paths with Michael as senior staff at a large localization firm. Her experience with all aspects of localization — from project management to relationship marketing to account services and finance — uniquely qualify her to oversee the firm’s multi-faceted and demanding operational requirements.

Ora holds an MBA and a BA in Psychology from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. In addition to English, Ora is fluent in Italian, Spanish and Hebrew. She loves motherhood and enjoys a good ballet class, book and camera. Contact Ora at osolomon@acclaro.com.

Scott Cahoon, Technical Services Director

In his work as director of technical services, Scott is responsible for managing the technical side of all Acclaro localization projects, including Acclaro’s off-shoring efforts and building the firm’s presence in Asia.

Scott brings nearly two decades of technical and localization experience to his position. He entered the field while still a student as a software test designer on U.S. Air Force projects. After graduation, he held testing and management roles with a number of leading firms in the U.S. and eventually on-site as a globalization manager in Japan.

Scott holds at BA in Japanese Studies from Brigham Young University. He is fluent in Japanese and when he’s away from the computer and tech room spends his time SCUBA diving. Contact Scott at scahoon@acclaro.com.

Stephanie Engelsen, Marketing Director

As marketing director Stephanie drives Acclaro’s global marketing efforts — from strategy to creative direction and implementation.

With more than a decade of marketing, communications and localization experience to her credit, Stephanie has worked with some of the biggest names in business — Apple, L’Oreal and Harley-Davidson among them — both as an independent consultant and as a global marketing manager. A professed New York Times Crossword junkie, Stephanie brings her razor-sharp wit and creative intelligence to bear on branding and communications projects large and small.

A native of California, Stephanie has traveled extensively and lived in Peru, France and Cameroon. She earned her BA in World Arts and Culture, cum laude, from UCLA, and speaks French fluently, along with a smattering of Spanish and German. In addition to traveling as often as possible, Stephanie manages to read and practice yoga every day between jaunts through San Francisco with her German Shorthair Pointer, Stella. Contact Stephanie at sengelsen@acclaro.com.

Rachel Ferris, Operations Director, East Coast

As director of operations of Acclaro’s Boston office, Rachel manages all processes, quality and testing, and new business.

Rachel entered the localization field in 1996 and quickly took on leadership roles overseeing complex translation projects with responsibilities for ensuring on-time and on-budget delivery to recruiting translators, editors, publishers and other language professionals. She transitioned to Lionbridge as a manager of localization analysis and later knowledge manager, where she directed process development, implementation and evaluation.

Rachel earned her BA in American Studies from Siena College with a concentration in French, and graduated cum laude. She has a working knowledge of French and loves cooking and working in her garden with her three-year-old son. Contact Rachel at rferris@acclaro.com.

Emma Young, Operations Director, Europe

As director of European operations, Emma oversees all European accounts for Acclaro.

Prior to joining Acclaro, Emma grew from a testing and QA specialist with Berlitz to managing 70 people for a 20-language project for Lionbridge to overseeing the operations of a UK localizaiton firm. Today, she manages all European client relationships, localization endeavors and sales.

Emma holds a post-graduate certificate in conflict resolution and has pursued computer technology course-work at the Cork Institute of Technology. Contact Emma at eyoung@acclaro.com.

Exceptional people. Exceptional work. We get it.