MARIE (Mater) ASHU
Houston,TX
Summary
People-centric and experienced Scrum Master with a proven track record of elevating team efficiency by 15% iteratively by coaching and supporting teams in developing high-quality software solutions on time and within budget, utilizing innovative and creative industry-leading tools. Skilled in multiple Agile methodologies, and stakeholder management. Highly organized in managing complex projects with multiple deadlines.
Overview
8
8
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Scrum Master/Project Manager
Fidelity Investments
05.2023 - Current
- Coached teams in Agile practices and provided the necessary training to create a positive mindset to Agile methodologies.
- Worked closely with the Product Owner and stakeholders in defining the product goal, roadmap, product backlog refinement, and grooming.
- Worked effectively within the Scrum Team to remove impediments and track them in Jira
- Effectively facilitated all scrum ceremonies including the Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, and Sprint Retrospective, using creative and innovative tools and techniques that increase collaboration, communication, and transparency within the team, elevating team efficiency by 15%.
- Communicated team velocity and sprint/release progress to the teams and management regularly during sprint retros
- Organize & facilitate Team and organization Agile maturity
- Facilitated retrospectives using creative game techniques and closure of action items on improvements
- Prepared various dashboards in Jira which reflect risks, dependencies, impediments
Agile Scrum Master
Liberty Mutual
02.2020 - 04.2023
- Coached teams in Agile methodologies and practices and conducted numerous workshops to create positive mindset to Agile methodologies.
- Organized and facilitated agile ceremonies such as sprint planning, daily scrum, sprint review, sprint retrospectives, and product backlog refinement
- Implemented a refined sprint planning process, resulting in 20% increase in sprint velocity and 15% decrease in sprint backlog carryover, enabling the team to consistently deliver more user stories and features by the end of each sprint
- Proactively identified and found ways to resolve issues to prevent distractions and keep projects on track.
- Ensured the team came up with and adhered to the INVEST criteria, Acceptance criteria, Definition of Ready (DOR), and Definition of Done (DOD) of user stories
- Coached Product Owner in designing achievable user stories and grooming the product backlog.
- Tracked and made transparent team’s performances using some reporting tools like the Velocity Chart, Sprint Report, and Burndown Chart among others using Jira, confluence
- Utilized Jira and confluence to organize, track and document project life cycle for transparency
Project Coordinator/junior Scrum Master
Tek Global
02.2018 - 01.2020
- Coached and empowered a self-organizing and cross-functional team to improve team performance and optimize team velocity.
- Implemented agile methodologies and facilitated agile ceremonies such as sprint planning, daily scrum, sprint review, sprint retrospectives, and product backlog refinement workshops
- Created and updated department calendars, files, reports, and records and managed workflow coordination using Microsoft Office 365
- Supervised multiple projects from project start through delivery by prioritizing needs and delegating assignments.
- Facilitated interdepartmental communication and kept appropriate parties updated on project developments.
- Serve as a liaison between the company and clients (both current and potential).
- Ensure all project deliverables are completed within the designated timeframes, meeting all quality standards and requirements.
Team Lead
PlanNet Marketing
02.2016 - 01.2018
- Supported teams to establish and maintain robust relationships and interests with clients.
- Facilitated initiatives, tasks, and activities aimed at meeting the customer’s personal individual needs
- Proactively plan, organize, and execute team brainstorming sessions to bring about innovations to improve team objectives
- Guide and coach the team to become self-organized
- Build a safe and trusting environment where conflicts are managed healthily without fear of blame
- Assisting with internal and external communication, improving transparency, and radiating information
- Provided all support needed to the team including using a servant leadership style and leading by example.
- Directed and supervised teams of 10 to 15 people engaged in customer support and user experience (UX) improvement project.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Business Administration: Marketing Option
University of New Hampshire
05.2015
Associate of Arts - Information Technology
Lynn Community College
08.2012
Skills
- Agile Framework
- Leadership, planning & creativity
- Coaching
- Agile tools: Jira, Confluence, Poker Planning, Miro
- Agile maturity improvement
- Teamwork & collaboration
- Servant leadership
- Shielding team members
- Strong decision-making and problem-solving skills
- Strong organizational and analytical skills
- Proactive with handling dependencies & impediments
- Transparency
- Project Management
- Presentation Skills
- Public Speaking
- Interpersonal Communication Skills
Agile Metrics Tracking
Sprint Planning
Agile Coaching
Stakeholder Management
Certification
- Professional ScrumMaster (PSM)
- Professional Scrum Product Owner (PSPO)
Timeline
Scrum Master/Project Manager
Fidelity Investments
05.2023 - Current
Agile Scrum Master
Liberty Mutual
02.2020 - 04.2023
Project Coordinator/junior Scrum Master
Tek Global
02.2018 - 01.2020
Team Lead
PlanNet Marketing
02.2016 - 01.2018
Bachelor of Science - Business Administration: Marketing Option
University of New Hampshire
Associate of Arts - Information Technology
Lynn Community College