4×4: Publicis Sapient
Get acquainted with KCTC member Publicis Sapient and their Senior Director, Engagement Lead Lukasz Karapuda.
ABOUT PUBLICIS SAPIENT
1. Give us your organization’s quick origin story.
Publicis Sapient began as Sapient, founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1990. Unlike other consulting firms at the time, they both advised on solutions and implemented them, and based compensation on client satisfaction rather than billable hours. The firm grew through the dot-com era, expanded globally, and in February 2015 became a division of French advertising giant Publicis. Today it operates as the digital business transformation hub of Publicis Groupe, with 20,000+ people across 50+ offices worldwide.
2. What problem are you currently solving in the KC tech industry?
We help large enterprises modernize legacy technology and operate as truly digital-first businesses, closing the gap between strategy and execution. Increasingly, that means moving organizations beyond experimenting with horizontal AI tools toward putting enterprise-grade AI into real production workflows, with the data foundations and governance needed to deliver measurable business outcomes rather than pilots that stall.
3. What can we expect to see from your company/organization in the next year?
A continued push into applied, production-scale enterprise AI, including platforms and accelerators that bring generative AI into engineering, modernization, and customer-experience work. Expect deeper investment in agentic capabilities, industry-specific solutions across our core verticals (consumer products, retail, financial services, auto/mobility, and manufacturing), and growing presence in the Kansas City tech community.
4. How can KCTC members get more involved?
Connect with our local team at KC tech events and meetups, reach out about partnership and collaboration opportunities on digital transformation initiatives, and explore career openings spanning consulting, engineering, product, and data/AI. We’re always glad to share perspectives on AI adoption, modernization, and martech with the KC community.
ABOUT LUKASZ KARAPUDA
1. If your office was The Office, what character would you be?
Jim Halpert
2. What’s an app you can’t live without?
MS Teams
3. What’s your favorite hidden gem in Kansas City?
Downtown Lawrence/Mass Street
4. What technology tip are you always giving your clients?
Build a martech governance council before your stack grows another tool. Assign ownership of each platform, define integration standards, and set a deprecation process. Tool sprawl is the silent killer of martech ROI
Increase Awareness of Your Organization
4×4 is a quick and digestible way to get to know KCTC member companies. If you’re a part of our membership, you have the opportunity to spotlight your organization in a future feature!
