Experience
Engineering Manager, Ecosystem – Harvest, Remote
September 2020 – Present
• Accountable for the successful outcomes of Harvest’s Ecosystem team, which focuses on billing, backend services, API, and integrations
• Providing ongoing mentorship and oversight in engineering teams’ day-to-day execution
• Fostering a learning culture through encouraging growth mindset and creating a psychologically safe environment for growth
• Aligning strengths and areas of development for direct reports with business goals and opportunities
• Interviewing, recruiting and onboarding of new talent and team-building
Engineering Manager – Abstract, Remote
September 2019 – August 2020
• Providing ongoing mentorship and oversight in engineering teams’ day-to-day execution
• Career growth of individual team members, establishing a one-on-one relationship to foster the development of talent
• Interviewing, recruiting and onboarding of new talent and team-building
• Project management and department liaison for cross-functional squads in an Agile environment: daily scrum, biweekly sprints, planning, grooming, and retrospectives
• Responsible for Atlassian Jira administration: design of project workflows, user management, and integrations with 3rd party tools
• Transitioned all company documentation from Dropbox Paper to Atlassian Confluence and provided companywide training on using Confluence
Engineering & Techdegree Success Manager – Treehouse, Remote
May 2017 – September 2019
Responsible for managing Engineering and Techdegree Success teams and initiatives including:
• Establishing and reporting on quarterly OKRs to achieve business outcomes
• Continuous product evaluation and program management of Techdegree product based on user feedback, NPS scores, and enrollment, engagement, and attrition metrics
• Agile project management: leading cross-functional teams, project kick-offs, weekly scrums, Jira story writing, blameless retrospectives, ensuring proactive communication about project status and recording documentation in Confluence
• Interviewing, recruiting and onboarding of new hires, creating apprenticeship playbooks, and providing ongoing mentorship
• Coaching on career growth of individual team members with weekly one-one-ones to establish trusted relationships and foster the development of talent
• Creating employee engagement through team-building strategies and fostering a culture of innovation
• Managing contractors, vendors, software licenses, and tool audits
Adjunct Instructor, Career & Technical Education – McHenry County College, Remote
Part-time, January 2017 – Present
Responsible for facilitating online courses for:
• CDM-111 Computer Literacy for the Mac,
• WEB-115 HTML & SASS,
• WEB-105 Web Fundamentals, and
• PRG-147 Intro to JavaScript Programming
Software Engineer – Articulate, Remote
February 2015 – May 2017
Responsible for front-end development of web applications and marketing including five customer-engaging WordPress blogs, three marketing web sites, HTML e-mail campaign templates, and landing pages.
• Web Application Development: Ruby on Rails, Coffeescript, React.js, HAML, SASS, Object-Oriented CSS (OOCSS) with BEM syntax, Internationalization via YAML
• Landing Pages: Salesforce API and Marketo API integration, jQuery and vanilla Javascript
• HTML E-mail template design and development with Litmus testing
• WordPress Blogs: PHP, custom theme and child theme development, WPEngine Multisite Network environment, integration with Salesforce, Marketo , and Digesto Perkuto to schedule e-mail digests of blog posts
• A/B Testing, Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager
• Collaboration: GitHub, GitHub Issues, Pivotal Tracker, Trello, Slack, Zoom, ScreenHero
Production Engineer Contractor – Jellyvision, Chicago, IL
February 2014 – January 2015
Responsible for the UI/UX, front-end design, and back-end programming of several applications using various technologies including:
• HTML5, CSS3, LESS, Javascript, jQuery, Mustache.js
• Atlassian Stash, Atlassian Confluence, Github, Versions, GitX, Amazon Web Services
• Netflix’s Gibbon API, Jellyvision’s TalkShow and Playback Factory Software
• Custom WordPress Themes and Plugins
• Node.js, Backbone.js, and Amazon DynamoDB applications
Director of Programming & Analysis – Human Kinetics, Champaign, IL
July 2008 – April 2012
Directed Human Kinetics’ e-Learning Unit and the production of over 60 e-learning courses and hundreds of ancillary products: instructor resources (presentation packages, image banks, podcasts, video, SCORM-conformant test banks) and student resources (courseware and online study guides).
• Developed cost/sales estimates for the acquisition of new projects and prioritization of development
• Managed all stages of project design and development including staffing resources, instructional design, subject-matter expert relations, content acquisition, media acquisition (audio/video/art/photo), programming and analysis, database integration, publishing, and usability studies.
• Provided technical solutions to streamline production of courses utilizing Lectora, Articulate, and Adobe Presenter which resulted in cost savings of $185,000 per year
• Led web site development and social media marketing strategies including streamlining feeds across social networks (Twitter, Facebook, WordPress), and content curation.
• Programmed custom Facebook applications for headquarters and international subsidiaries to increase customer engagement.
• Analyzed web site statistics, using Google Analytics, to better manage viewers’ experiences and boost SEO (search engine optimization) through organic search results.
• Led several committees and large project initiatives including the ancillaries strategy team, corporate rewards program, and testing task force.
Web Application Programmer (Sole Proprietor) – Zabbo Communications, Coal Valley, IL
2000-2014
Specialized in UI/UX design and developing responsive, user-oriented, cross-platform compatible web-based applications utilizing HTML5, CSS3, Javascript, jQuery, PHP, MYSQL databases, and emerging web technologies.
Senior Developer & Project Manager – Leo Alliance, Champaign, IL
January 2000 – July 2004
Developed and managed multimedia projects including web-based applications, marketing campaigns, and e-learning courseware for a wide range of clients
• Founded the corporation’s annual ‘Conference on Strategic Growth for Businesses & Entrepreneurs.’
• Managed and developed computer-based and web-based training software utilizing various software including HTML, PHP/MySQL, Authorware, Flash, and other authoring tools.
• Designed, developed, and managed the production of four courses for a Fortune 50 insurance company totaling $840,000 in revenue. Worked directly with their Continuous Renewal Group to conduct Six Sigma process improvement, resulting in over $8,000,000 in savings corporate-wide.
• Designed, developed, and published over 80 websites for the corporation’s clientele as well as other various print and electronic multimedia ranging from kiosks to product packaging.
Internet Marketing Specialist – Business Partner Solutions (now Avnet), San Antonio, TX
January 1998 – January 2000
Produced training and marketing campaigns through the development of electronic advertising, a corporate training knowledge base, internal web-based training programs, branded presentations, educational trade show kiosks, screen saver programs, and national and international corporate websites.
• Produced over 50 websites for IBM business partners and solution providers
• Produced intranet applications utilizing Lotus Notes and the Domino Server
• Assisted in developing web-based marketing companies for the corporation and its partners
• Awarded newcomer of the year
Contracted Guide / Web Site Portals Manager – About.com (a subsidiary of The New York Times), Remote
November 1996 – December 2002
• Created instructional design of ‘how-to’ articles and all topic portal content
• Authored bi-weekly features utilizing HTML and various software tools
• Produced accompanying media (graphic design/illustration) for articles and bi-weekly e-newsletters
• Built and managed an online community through marketing, hosting, and moderating forum and chat discussions
Education & Training
• Mobile Media Programming B.A., Columbia College Chicago – GPA 3.981, Summa Cum Laude – December 2014
• Digital Media, A.A.S., McHenry County College – Crystal Lake, IL – GPA 4.0 with High Honors, Dean’s List – May 2013
• 3D Modeling and Animation Certificate – The Illinois Institute of Art at Schaumburg, IL – July 2012
• Internet Game Programming Certificate – McHenry County College – Crystal Lake, IL – May 2012
• WellCoaches Graduate – Wellness and Life Coach Training (https://wellcoachesschool.com) – 2005
• Fine Arts Program – York University – North York, Ontario, Canada – 1996
Other Experience
• 2016-2017: Served on McHenry County College’s Business and Industry Leadership Team
• 2012-2014: Volunteered for Assissi Animal Foundation, Crystal Lake, IL
• 2009 – Named by Central Illinois Business as one of 40 outstanding leaders under the age of 40 (Sherry Schuller)
• 2005-2006: Served on the Board of Directors for the Village of Savoy, IL’s Economic Development Corporation
• 2005: Co-authored this book: 222 Ways to Entrepreneurial Success
• 2004-2005: Served on the Board of Directors for the Champaign-Urbana Advertising Club
• 2004-2006: Co-founded the CUGROW Conference for Businesses and Entrepreneurs