Eric Garza
Agile Delivery Leader
San Antonio,TX
Summary
Experienced professional with a strong track record in leading agile transformations and team development. Known for a leadership style that blends empathy with decisive action, I excel in guiding diverse teams and driving strategic initiatives. My expertise spans business analysis, Agile methodologies, and product lifecycle management. Skilled in translating complex business needs into actionable plans, I am committed to delivering innovative solutions and enhancing operational efficiency. Adept at fostering a culture of continuous improvement, I aim to deliver value-driven results and align technical projects with business goals.
Overview
20
20
years of professional experience
6
6
Certifications
7
7
Programming Languages
Work History
Senior Consultant (Release Train Engineer, Senior Scrum Master, Agile Coach, Product Owner)
Daugherty Business Solutions
San Antonio, TX
04.2022 - 01.2024
- Agile Transformation Leadership: Led a comprehensive Agile transformation by adopting SAFe® and Scrum at Scale methodologies, achieving a 90% on-time project delivery rate over 20 months. Demonstrated proficiency in Agile principles, crucial for backlog management and prioritization in a Product Owner role.
- Senior Scrum Master Excellence: As a Senior Scrum Master, mentored cross-functional teams, enhancing their Agile and Scrum proficiency. This experience honed skills in facilitating team collaboration and stakeholder engagement, essential for managing product development as a Product Owner.
- Strategic Agile Decision-Making: Actively contributed to strategic product planning, aligning Agile execution with business objectives. This strategic input led to a 15% reduction in program costs, showcasing my ability to balance technical and business perspectives as a Product Owner.
Senior Agilist (Senior Scrum Master, Agile Coach)
Cognizant – Digital Engineering
San Antonio, TX
02.2021 - 04.2022
- Product Backlog Management and Team Coordination: Oversaw multiple Scrum teams, focusing on rigorous backlog management and sprint prioritization, which led to a 50% decrease in production defects. Demonstrated a strong command of Agile methodologies, essential for effective Product Ownership.
- Product Vision and Team Collaboration: Renowned for Agile leadership and conflict resolution skills, fostering a collaborative environment conducive to innovative product development. This approach has led to improved team dynamics and successful project deliveries, closely aligning with the role of a Product Owner in maximizing product value.
- Product Strategy and Agile Advocacy: Instrumental in guiding the strategic direction of Agile transformation efforts, aligning team activities with broader business goals. This role in enhancing organizational agility and team efficiency underscores a strong capacity for driving product strategy and advocating for Agile best practices.
SAFe Scrum Master (SM, PO, Agile Coach, RTE)
Apex Systems / CPS Energy
San Antonio, TX
05.2020 - 01.2021
- Product Roadmap and Backlog Management: Directed Agile ceremonies and sprint planning, focusing on aligning the product roadmap and prioritizing the backlog. Ensured seamless execution that aligns with product goals and customer needs, fulfilling a key responsibility of the Product Owner role.
- Data-Driven Product Strategy: Key performance metrics within VersionOne were utilized to guide product strategy, adapting Agile practices to maximize value delivery and enhance product efficiency. This approach reflects a commitment to data-driven decision-making, a crucial aspect of the Product Owner's role.
- Financial Oversight and Product Strategy Alignment: Collaborated with project management to oversee budget management, aligning technical projects with financial targets. Successfully achieved a 5% cost saving on project delivery, demonstrating the capacity to balance technical and financial aspects of product development.
Lead Software Developer & Integrator (Systems Architect, Scrum Master, Developer, Technical Lead)
USAA
San Antonio, TX
03.2016 - 10.2019
- Agile Development & Collaboration: Played a key role in strategic planning with stakeholders, creating a detailed backlog for agile development and coordinating with product owners and scrum teams to ensure efficient program execution. Achieved a significant $5 million budget savings in the 2018 fiscal year through effective planning and integration of essential enablers.
- Proof-of-Concept Projects & Vendor Evaluation: Successfully led two major proof-of-concept projects to identify optimal investment strategies for digital growth. Managed agile teams for these projects, developed a structured vendor evaluation process, and provided comprehensive reports to executives, shaping the company's digital strategy for the coming decade.
- Strategic Design & Development Oversight: Oversaw the design and development of strategic projects, focusing on scalability and maintainability. Led the architect domain of 10 scrum teams, ensuring high-quality outputs and alignment with architectural standards. Regularly conducted reviews to guide design approaches and initiated the migration of legacy systems to a DevOps-oriented architecture, enhancing IT operations.
- Communication & Team Leadership: Fostered a culture of open communication within teams, significantly contributing to improved work quality and team morale, and ensured alignment of architectural strategies with broader business objectives.
Senior Software Developer & Integrator (Technical Lead, Developer, Project Manager)
USAA
San Antonio, TX
05.2007 - 02.2016
- High-Value Project Leadership: Spearheaded and delivered a critical financial reporting project valued at over $20 million. Successfully navigated challenging time constraints to ensure efficient and timely project completion.
- Strategic Team Management: Analyzed and revamped the approaches of software development teams on a high-stakes financial project, significantly improving the quality and performance of deliverables.
- Complex Solution Delivery: Played a key role in the timely delivery of a complex software solution, preventing potential delays and financial losses, thereby protecting crucial organizational assets.
- Team Leadership & Collaboration: Unified and led diverse project teams, enhancing team synergy and productivity, and contributing significantly to the success of various projects.
- Agile Project Management: Advanced rapidly to a senior role, leading a transformative agile project that converted key business processes from paper-based to advanced electronic systems, drastically improving operational efficiency.
- Development Team Formation: Twice led the formation of high-caliber development teams, selecting key personnel including architects and specialists, to drive innovative solution development and accelerate project timelines.
- Vendor Management & Solution Refinement: Directed the on-schedule delivery of vital business functionalities, utilizing vendor interactions and prototypes to refine solutions and boost project agility and stakeholder satisfaction.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Computer Science
05.2001 -
Skills
Leadership and Team Management
Business & Technical AnalysisEssential & Full SAFeScrumRetrospective & Risk ManagementVersionOneAzure DevOpsJiraMiroMuralConfluence
Emotional Intelligence
Communication
Problem Solving
TDD & BDD Testing
Continuous Integration & Continuous Deployment
Certification
Certified SAFe 5 Advanced Scrum Master, Scaled Agile Inc.
Timeline
Certified SAFe 5 Release Train Engineer, Scaled Agile Inc.
03-2024
Certified SAFe 5 DevOps Practitioner, Scaled Agile Inc.
01-2023
ICAgile Certified Professional, ICAgile
08-2022
Senior Consultant (Release Train Engineer, Senior Scrum Master, Agile Coach, Product Owner) - Daugherty Business Solutions
04.2022 - 01.2024
Certified SAFe 5 Advanced Scrum Master, Scaled Agile Inc.
08-2021
Senior Agilist (Senior Scrum Master, Agile Coach) - Cognizant – Digital Engineering
02.2021 - 04.2022
Certified ScrumMaster, Scrum Alliance
01-2021
Certified SAFe 5 Agilist, Scaled Agile Inc.
08-2020
SAFe Scrum Master (SM, PO, Agile Coach, RTE) - Apex Systems / CPS Energy
05.2020 - 01.2021
Lead Software Developer & Integrator (Systems Architect, Scrum Master, Developer, Technical Lead) - USAA
03.2016 - 10.2019
Senior Software Developer & Integrator (Technical Lead, Developer, Project Manager) - USAA
05.2007 - 02.2016
Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi - Bachelor of Science, Computer Science
05.2001 -