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MARA GU
SR. IT PMO
Sarasota, FL 34232,FL
Summary
Experienced Project Manager with 15+ years in the Information and Communication industry. Proven success in leading high-performing teams to achieve product vision, roadmap, and business goals. Exceptional technical expertise, leadership skills, and a talent for delivering stellar results. Skilled in implementation and project management, overseeing daily milestones across high-performance teams. Proficient in migrations planning and deployment, with a highly organized and methodical approach.
Overview
16
16
years of professional experience
3
3
years of post-secondary education
1
1
Certification
Work History
Technical PMO
American Express
Sarasota, FL
02.2023 - Current
- Reported RAG status, milestones, and roadblocks to stakeholders and leadership.
- Issued metrics for sprints, PIs, and monthly updates, factoring in engineering capacity.
- Tracked and monitored clients, analyzing engagement, migration, and retention metrics.
- Created Tableau reports to track risks, issues, actions, and escalations across business units.
- Developed RAID (Risks, Assumptions, Issues, Dependencies) reports for senior leadership.
- Maintained dashboards to track project phase status (QDC), RAID elements, and key metrics.
- Generated actionable insights, enhancing project health and resource allocation.
- Proactively followed up with Project Managers for timely project updates.
- Used Tableau for compliance tracking and monitoring unupdated fields in projects.
- Supported Virtual Payments by prioritizing downstream team requirements.
- Implemented robust governance frameworks and adhered to risk management processes.
- Led daily stand-ups across 9 domains, tracking progress and user story alignment.
- Facilitated key team meetings, including launchpad and solution management sessions.
- Organized Confluence documentation for standardization and accessibility.
- Assisted in demo sessions and pre-demo preparation.
- Developed and executed IT change management plans, including timelines and communication strategies.
- Coordinated cross-functional teams for effective change implementation.
- Monitored and reported key performance indicators and mitigated risks.
IT Program Manager
Amazon
New York, New York
09.2015 - 12.2022
- Verified achievement of practical Business Value Realizations by each operational team, suggesting alterations to meet goals
- Oversaw development and implementation of improvements to support and network operations
- Led and assisted technical upgrade projects for clients by working and coordinating with consultants and developers for integrations
- Conducted one-on-one training sessions for employees in Microsoft Office, Windows Server, and Amazon Web Services
- Played a key role in ongoing network design, reevaluation, and optimization to keep pace with company growth.
- Negotiated contracts with vendors for cost-effective solutions without compromising on quality or performance.
- Oversaw software development life cycles, from requirements gathering through deployment, ensuring maximum functionality and user satisfaction.
- Reduced project completion time by effectively delegating tasks and closely monitoring progress.
- Implemented risk mitigation strategies, resulting in fewer project roadblocks and smoother execution.
- Recommended process improvements that led to significant cost savings across various IT programs.
- Developed comprehensive project plans to ensure timely completion and adherence to quality standards.
- Championed change management initiatives, effectively transitioning staff members into new technologies and procedures.
- Worked closely with other departments to better understand product features and develop appropriate training materials
- Supported implementation of warehouse management system software applications to enable centralized management of tasks
- Served as the primary interface between business channels and internal departments, aligning the wishes of sales and finance departments with customer service realities
- Worked closely with management teams to plan, develop, and execute technical strategies aligned with the client's vision
- Confirmed operational teams achieved prescribed Business Value Realizations, suggesting alterations to remedy unmet goals
- Communicated regularly with customers concerning data exchange and technology integration
- Resolved problems, improved operations, and provided exceptional service
- Interfaced with internal IT development teams to integrate new technologies, streamlining the use of existing systems to reduce operational timelines by 35%
- Experienced implementing system integration and migrations: Managed large-scale initiatives involving the transition of projects to new platforms and the merger of disparate systems from acquired client companies
- Oversaw AWS Managed services installation and onboarding process for clients' employees.
- Led cross-functional Scrum teams, facilitating daily stand-ups, sprint planning, backlog grooming, sprint review, and retrospective meetings, resulting in improved team productivity and delivery of successful projects
Technical Project Manager
Kandy.io
New York, New York
10.2012 - 08.2015
- Company Overview: (TX)
- Was responsible for managing high-impact technical projects at an international scale, from idea to delivery
- Created and managed project plans and SDLC: identified, documented, and managed project milestones, tasks, dependencies, and timelines
- Managed internal and external stakeholder management
- Served as a team leader capable of motivating staff
- Developed a project management roadmap to define project objectives, timelines, and milestones
- Outlined work plans, determined resources, wrote timelines, and generated initial budgets as part of project scope determination
- Led and managed a staff of 35 team members engaged in administering complex IT infrastructure
- Developed project plans identifying key issues, approaches, and performance metrics
- Planned, designed, and scheduled phases for large projects
- I am able to work under pressure and manage multiple projects simultaneously
- Used MS Project to plan project initiatives, milestones, and tasks and communicated project goals and scope to all project stakeholders; provided continuous updates on progress
- Provided detailed technical and operational direction in project challenges, consistently meeting deliverables according to deadlines
- Demonstrated skill at creating process and procedure documentation and overseeing the maintenance of the project and program documentation
- Coordinated with cross-functional teams to resolve project issues and mitigate risks
- Facilitated UAT, ensuring that all errors were tracked and reported to development and management teams
- Developed, maintained, and tracked the Data Migration project plan, cutover plan, and resource assignments
- Managed multiple Infrastructure Projects simultaneously, keeping Project Stakeholders informed of project milestones and progress via various internal tools, reports, and periodic status meetings
- Led and coordinated new office and IT room deployment projects, including managing logistics, timelines, and budgets
- Collaborated with internal teams and external vendors to plan and execute IT room upgrades and relocations
- Developed project plans and schedules for relocating IT rooms to new locations, ensuring minimal disruption to operations
- Managed the deployment of 10,000 devices within Colorado, overseeing inventory management, installation, and configuration processes
- Contributed to generating risk reports for senior management, aiding effective decision-making and strategic planning
- Provided regular updates to stakeholders on project progress, milestones, and any changes in scope
- Ensured compliance with regulatory requirements and industry standards for IT infrastructure deployments
- (TX)
- Facilitated strong team collaboration through effective meeting management, open communication channels, and timely resolution of conflicts or issues.
- Demonstrated strong leadership skills by effectively managing diverse teams and maintaining high levels of motivation, even during challenging periods of significant change or tight deadlines.
- Managed 5 project teams in Agile environment, realizing success through application of SDLC methodologies and exceptional leadership skills.
Associate PM & BA Analyst
Chase
New York, New York
08.2008 - 09.2012
- Company Overview: (NY/REMOTE)
- Supported senior project managers to help them meet project milestones in several markets around the country
- Provided customers with progress updates during customer-facing calls and assisted managers in answering questions
- Took meeting notes and maintained weekly trackers in Excel, Word, and Salesforce
- Assisted in planning/scheduling major or long-term projects
- Facilitated routine meetings with key groups for business/IT remediation to ensure project timeline and coordinated external resource dependencies to resolve ongoing issues
- Met with stakeholders to analyze requirements and determine the impact on business rules
- Provided internal IT support for hardware and software applications for the department
- Used business intelligence solutions to provide consistent and transparent access to information
- (NY/REMOTE)
Education
PMP PROJECT MANAGEMENT CERTIFICATE -
PMI INSTITUTE
Remote 02.2022 - 02.2022
BACHELOR IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION -
DEVRY COLLEGE OF NEW YORK
New York, NY 09.2007 - 06.2010
Skills
Project portfolio management
Power BI
Smartsheet
Tableau
Agile & Waterfall
JIRA
Salesforce CRM
Workday
Microsoft Office
Zoom
Microsoft Azure DevOps
Zendesk
Google Workspace
Slack
Microsoft Visio
SAP ERP
Stakeholder Management
Microsoft Project
Confluence
Mondaycom
Figma
PlanView & OPPM
Scheduling and coordination
Project documentation
Scope definition
Report preparation
Agile project management
Stakeholder communication
Cross-functional team coordination
Project leadership
Risk mitigation
Release planning
Resource coordination
Requirements analysis
Scrum master
Product roadmapping
Sprint planning
Project budget allocation
Team leadership
Problem-solving
Project planning
Change management
Multitasking
Project tracking
Client relations
Root-cause analysis
Multitasking Abilities
Organizational skills
Adaptability and flexibility
Problem-solving aptitude
Scrum methodology
Conflict resolution
Task delegation
Self motivation
Risk management
Task prioritization
Decision-making
Project team coordination
Coaching and mentoring
Effective communication
Performance monitoring
Relationship building
Documentation management
Requirements gathering
Active listening
Problem-solving abilities
Risk assessment
Team building
Deliverable tracking
Budget control
Team collaboration
Status reporting
Vendor selection
Time management
MS office
Resource planning
Cost analysis
Professionalachievements
- CRITICAL INITIATIVES, AMAZON, Received leadership recognition for managing critical projects with tight schedules.
- CLIENT AWARD, KANDY, Received a recognition letter from a customer - appreciating my dedication, program governance, and PMO structure.
- VP AWARD, AMERICAN EXPRESS, Recognized by THE VP, for outstanding data visualization in client reports, earning praise for presenting complex data in an insightful and impactful way.
Certification
PMP
Interests
Painting
Singing
Timeline
Technical PMO
American Express
02.2023 - Current
PMP PROJECT MANAGEMENT CERTIFICATE -
PMI INSTITUTE
02.2022 - 02.2022
PMP
02-2022
IT Program Manager
Amazon
09.2015 - 12.2022
Technical Project Manager
Kandy.io
10.2012 - 08.2015
Associate PM & BA Analyst
Chase
08.2008 - 09.2012
BACHELOR IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION -
DEVRY COLLEGE OF NEW YORK
09.2007 - 06.2010
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