Kenneth D. Tuchman | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1959 (age 65–66) California, US |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Known for | Founder, chairman and CEO of TTEC (formerly TeleTech) |
| Spouse | Debra Mautner |
| Children | 2 |
Kenneth Darryl Tuchman (born October 23, 1959) is an American entrepreneur who is the founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of the outsourcing company TTEC, formerly known as TeleTech. [1]
Born in California in 1959, Tuchman worked various jobs as a teenager, including operating an automotive lot that evolved into his first business venture. He later worked in his father’s construction business in California, where he developed the idea for a centralized customer service platform. [2]
In 1982, he founded TeleTech in Los Angeles [3] . Following the breakup of AT&T in 1984, TeleTech was hired to monitor customer transitions, which preceded further contracts with MCI, Inc. and United Telecom (subsequently Sprint Corporation) [4] .
By 1995, the company reported $50 million in revenue and relocated its headquarters to Denver, Colorado [5] . That year, investor Sam Zell acquired a 17% stake in the company, and in 1996, it completed an initial public offering on NASDAQ [6] .
Tuchman briefly left the company in 1999 but returned as CEO in 2001 to lead a restructuring. On January 9, 2018, TeleTech officially changed its name to TTEC [7] .
In 2025, TTEC had operations in 70 global locations. [8]
In 1996, Tuchman and his wife, Debra, co-founded the nonprofit Tuchman Family Foundation [9] , which supports innovations in education, medical research, environmental sustainability, and social equity, according to the foundation website [10] .
The foundation’s philanthropic efforts have included donating “Supplies For Success” to public school districts serving predominantly low-income families [11] [12] and funding the $110,000 transformation of a school bus into a food truck/mobile teaching kitchen for high school students at Cherry Creek School District’s Innovation Campus in Colorado [13] .
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Tuchman and the Tuchman Family Foundation provided more than 50,000 meals to frontline healthcare workers [14] .
Tuchman’s foundation has also contributed to medical treatment and research organizations such as National Jewish Health, which named its pulmonary care division in the Tuchman family’s honor [15] . Tuchman's wife Debra has served on its board of directors since 2003 [16] .
In 2007, Tuchman launched the TeleTech Community Foundation [17] , later renamed the TTEC Foundation, an employee-driven nonprofit that supports charitable initiatives in communities where TTEC operates. The foundation awards grants to nonprofit organizations across the globe that support educational growth for students of greatest need [18] .
In 2024 the TTEC Foundation donated $325,000 to education-related organizations in the Bulgaria, Canada, Honduras, India, Mexico, the Philippines, South Africa, and the United States [19] .
In 2016, the Colorado I Have a Dream Foundation presented Tuchman with a Dream Maker Award, recognizing him as “a community leader whose commitment to quality education has had an enduring impact on area youth." [20]
In 2022, he was named one of the Denver Business Journal’s “Most Admired CEOs.” [21]
Tuchman is married to Debra Mautner. They have two children.