Abinethri Sankaran, MBA, PMP
San Ramon,CA
Summary
Value-driven PMO leader and a hands-on program management professional bringing over 16 years of highly credible leadership to direct impactful technology programs/projects across hi-tech, Fortune 500 enterprises, and non-profit healthcare sectors. Expert at Strategic execution with a strong bias-to-action and positive influence on teams. A go-to PM with an MBA (Systems & Finance) and PMP certification, adept at building highly productive global cross-functional (cross-cultural) teams, delivering results with a strong customer focus.
Overview
21
21
years of professional experience
Work History
SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER, IS
Five9, Inc.
San Ramon, CA
03.2019 - 01.2021
- Directed Five9's Corporate IT project/program portfolio, supervising 15 strategic initiatives within 2 years, boosting project intake by over 60%, as Program Leader.
- Led program roadmap for large 'Quote to Cash'; achieved 95% process automation, resulting in annual savings of $650k across 10+ sub-projects.
- Incorporated diligent vendor management and practical proof-of-concept techniques to successfully rescue a legacy application upgrade.
- Implemented robust program governance to establish partnerships with 4 vendors and 100+ distributed teams from various departments such as IT, Cloud Ops, Sales Ops, Product, and Operations.
- Developed proactive strategies to enhance overall project success, ensuring timely project delivery and 'Five 9' system availability (99.999%).
- Oversaw system deliverables for the enterprise 'Product Offer Strategy' initiative, simplifying offerings and reducing quote-to-cash processing time by over 50%.
SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER (III), IS TECH SERVICES
Sutter Health
Sunnyvale, CA
05.2010 - 05.2017
- Acted as a Program Leader, overseeing multi-year technology programs across 4+ service lines.
- Planned and executed the inaugural SaaS rollout pilot at Palo Alto Medical Foundation (PAMF) in a record time of 3 months.
- Created a detailed deployment strategy for mapping 10,000 workstations, monitoring SLAs and OLAs on a $10 million initiative, and rationalized 1000s of clinical apps.
- Assisted the Strategic Innovation team in medical device deployment initiatives, along with the Medical Director and vendors, leading to a perfect CSAT score and a 50% increase in patient retention rate.
- Oversaw successful implementation of cancer registry software, resulting in increased accuracy and compliance to meet a 98% confidence level, positively impacting patient care outcomes.
- Streamlined the change management process, leading to prompt CAB approvals and ensuring near 100% uptime.
- Implemented project intake process for efficient tracking of hundreds of project requests, business case reviews, and approvals.
PROJECT MANAGER, PRACTICE LEAD, CUSTOMER SUCCESS
Saama Technologies Inc.
Campbell, Mountain View, CA
10.2007 - 12.2008
- Successfully implemented three essential tracks for Symantec's high-value Product Data Hub initiative, completing the project three months ahead of schedule and generating savings of $250k.
- Collaborated with 50+ geographically dispersed teams, including Deloitte, to condense vast amounts of data into measurable metrics for CX-level status reports.
- Oversaw the onboarding and training of Business Objects' end client base, leading to an outstanding CSAT score.
PROGRAM MANAGER, CUSTOMER SUPPORT
TATA Consultancy Services (TCS)
05.2000 - 12.2006
- Directed the execution of strategic programs for key Fortune 500 clients like ACNielsen Retail, Barclays Bank, and Qwest Communications while serving as a Program Leader Consultant.
- Took on diverse responsibilities to ensure successful program delivery, resulting in $500K in annual savings for Barclays Business Banking Operations.
Education
Masters in Business Administration (MBA) - Systems & Finance
Anna University
Chennai, IndiaLeadership for Strategic Execution - Converting Strategy into Action
Stanford University
SAFe 4.6 Scrum Master course - Global Scrum team
Aleph Technologies
Project Orange Belt 2007 - Microsoft Project
International Institute For Learning, Inc.
ITIL Foundation -
Skills
- Portfolio/Program/Project Management
- Program Strategy
- Risk/Issue/Change Management
- Budget Management
- Stakeholder Management
- Program Governance
- Project Methodologies (Waterfall, Agile)
- SDLC
- Data Analysis & Reporting
- Decision Support
- UAT
- Smartsheet Wrike MS-Project Mondaycom
- Slack Zoom Google MS-Office
- ITIL /ITSM: Cherwell Remedy Jira
Core Competencies
- CEO of Projects: Owned the execution of 25+ large complex strategic programs and 100+ sub-projects in hi-tech/IT services, delivering >95% on-time, within scope & budget, and high-quality results.
- 360-Degree Stakeholder Engagement: Primary liaison for all stakeholders and executives, consistently achieving over 90% engagement through enhanced transparency and collaboration.
- Communication: Facilitated 100+ focused sessions to align teams with program goals, address obstacles, and craft actionable plans, significantly enhancing executive meeting efficacy by over 50%.
- Team Player: Effectively guided matrix cross-functional teams unaccustomed to project approaches, to adopt custom/bespoke project methodologies throughout SDLC.
- Data-Driven Decision: Assembled and processed complex project & technical data from multiple sources and repositories, enabling data-driven problem-solving and effective risk mitigation.
- General Management: Recruited and managed 10 to 15 contract technology, administrative, and vendor resources, nurturing key relationships and ensuring productivity.
- PMO Kick-Start: First PM to catalyze the inception of PMO functions within three IT organizations, expanding program portfolios and mentoring over 20 PMs, Project Coordinators, and BAs to drive professional growth.
Volunteering, Passion Project
During a personal sabbatical focused on health and family from Feb 2021:
- Volunteer at Bay Area Cancer Connections, coaching newly diagnosed patients and survivors, and building meaningful connections, as Buddy Program Specialist.
- Completed freelance project for KLOZE.ai, contributing to project management and customer support.
- Reviewed AI tools for project management and authored content on medium.com, including project recipes and PM topics.
- Mentored aspiring project managers, providing guidance and sharing expertise.
Timeline
SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER, IS
Five9, Inc.
03.2019 - 01.2021
SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER (III), IS TECH SERVICES
Sutter Health
05.2010 - 05.2017
PROJECT MANAGER, PRACTICE LEAD, CUSTOMER SUCCESS
Saama Technologies Inc.
10.2007 - 12.2008
PROGRAM MANAGER, CUSTOMER SUPPORT
TATA Consultancy Services (TCS)
05.2000 - 12.2006
Masters in Business Administration (MBA) - Systems & Finance
Anna University
Leadership for Strategic Execution - Converting Strategy into Action
Stanford University
SAFe 4.6 Scrum Master course - Global Scrum team
Aleph Technologies
Project Orange Belt 2007 - Microsoft Project
International Institute For Learning, Inc.
ITIL Foundation -
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