Erica Gasparini
Verified Expert in Project Management
Project Manager
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Toptal member since September 5, 2018
Erica is an agile project manager and product owner with a decade of experience. She worked on a multitude of different topics and products. Erica is a quick learner with strong networking, communication, and organizational skills, and she loves working with international teams.
Project Highlights
Expertise
- Agile Project Management
- Agile Workflow
- Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO)
- Jira
- Product Roadmaps
- Team Productivity
- eCommerce
Work Experience
Agile Manager
Freelance Clients
- Led the two teams in rebuilding the website and native apps of the football club Internazionale Milano, including implementing a new CMS.
- Managed project deliverables and scope and delivered most of the requested functionality within the agreed-upon ambitious timeline.
- Set up processes and workflows with the different teams, such as refinements, sprint planning, retros, client demos, and, most importantly, internal deployment processes.
- Managed the content migration from the previous CMS to headless Contentful.
Marketplace Product Owner
Press Pad
- Prepared the product roadmap for both the soft and hard launch.
- Tied loose ends and identified issues and risks to be addressed before product launch.
- Worked closely with the founder, operations, marketing, and development to align product launch strategy and timelines.
- Configured projects and automation on the Monday boards, used by different teams.
Product Owner
PVH
- Defined strategy and roadmap for implementing the in-house built eCommerce API gateway.
- Charged with upgrading our CMS (Core Media) to the newest, headless version.
- Joined a demotivated, disillusioned team and left in the background into a motivated, excited team, and received the visibility and recognition they deserved from the business.
- Put processes such as weekly planning, refinements, and demos for a team that was resistant to it, and soon they recognized the benefits of having this structure.
Agile Project Manager
Sports Card Investor
- Joined the team post-MVP to bring structure, solidify processes and support the development team through Agile best practices.
- Set up boards and backlog in Asana. I was in charge of backlog management and grooming and facilitating refinements, sprint planning, and weekly demos.
- Onboarded new developers, especially on the mobile team, which was formed after a few months and grew significantly over time. Set up processes and work guidelines for the team.
- Helped with making mobile UI mockups that the team used as a reference to build our mobile apps.
- Supported and was in charge of developing two different mobile apps in React Native, which were released in the Google Play Store and Apple Store.
- Set up multiple project boards in Asana used for tracking weekly development sprints, priority lists across multiple departments, and a high-level company roadmap.
Marketing Project Manager
Polaroid
- Managed the marketing campaigns and launch of the Polaroid Mandalorian edition.
- Coordinated and collaborated with creative teams, logistics, marketing, and Disney to produce best-in-class key visuals and media assets.
- Coordinated product launch activities from a marketing perspective.
- Handled multiple parts of the organization to align product launch timelines across markets and channels.
Project Manager
SocialNewsDesk
- Managed the backlog in Asana and ensured that the developers were working on what was most important for the business.
- Supported the release process by coordinating testing and identifying and removing blockers.
- Managed a team of three developers to deliver new functionality in an agile way within the timeframe desired by the client.
- Coordinated and facilitated some Scrum ceremonies, such as daily scrums, refinements, and showcases.
- Liaised with stakeholders to gather feedback on a newly built functionality and carry that back to the development team.
- Worked closely with the client to ensure new topics were fleshed out enough for the team to get started.
- Set up multiple project boards in Asana for tracking weekly development sprints, priority lists, and high-level roadmap views.
Agile Project Manager
Simple Online Health
- Led a two-week lightning-start project to identify business needs and MVP scope.
- Worked closely with the client, tech lead, and design lead to ensure a successful outcome.
- Managed the lightning-start project deliverables on a daily basis.
Agile Project Manager
HealthJay, Inc.
- Led lightning-start discovery sessions to identify business needs and MVP scope.
- Put together a project plan with deliverables spread across the given timeline and what could possibly be achieved beyond that period.
- Managed the backlog and priorities and wrote epics and user stories based on business requirements.
- Collaborated with the team and presented the sprint progress on a weekly basis, including an overview of any existing risks or blockers, open actions, and project status.
- Aligned regularly with the client on any changes in priorities and promptly adjusted the backlog and the team to reflect them.
Product Owner
Bugaboo
- Served as the product owner of the data feeds team and Bugaboo's B2B platform.
- Implemented the data feed API from Bugaboo's internal systems to external parties, such as ChannelEngine, Content Analytics, and Bazaarvoice.
- Managed stakeholders and prioritized the backlog based on business requests and feature impact.
- Followed a Scrumban approach, using elements of both Scrum and Kanban.
- Collaborated with developers from different backgrounds, such as Node.js, Intershop, JavaScript, and Salesforce.
Product Owner
Eccentrade
- Managed and prioritized the product backlogs of four different products to ensure the team is always working on what brings the most value.
- Provided stakeholder management and education on Agile and Scrum methodologies.
- Performed market research, identified personas, held story mapping exercises, and prepared business canvases.
- Facilitated scrum ceremonies such as daily standup meetings, refinement, and weekly show and tell.
Product Owner | Site Optimization
Adidas International
- Managed and prioritized the product backlog to ensure the team was always working on what brought the most value.
- Educated stakeholders on Agile principles and conducted business impact workshops to improve transparency in the prioritization process.
- Wrote epics and user stories, focusing on the definition of done.
- Worked alongside the scrum master to facilitate scrum ceremonies and improve internal processes.
Product Owner | Internal Tools and HRIS
Booking.com
- Managed the product backlog and wrote epics and user stories.
- Prioritized the backlog to ensure the team was always working on what brought the most value.
- Performed data analysis on the usage of internal tools using MySQL.
- Educated the HR department on Agile principles and established the first scrum team in HR.
- Oversaw the second phase of the global transition from SAP to Workday as the HR system. Implemented the absences functionality in APAC, US, and LATAM. Gained experience in the compensation and talent modules.
- Participated actively in multiple data migrations and systems integrations.
IT Coordinator
Booking.com
- Coordinated all operational activities in the technology department.
- Organized and facilitated technical and soft skills training sessions in the technology department.
- Planned department events and organized company attendance at conferences for recruitment purposes.
- Coordinated and ensured the R&D tax credit process (WBSO) was successful.
- Mentored and coached a team of three coordinators and two external consultants.
Project History
Website and App Redesign for Inter FC
http://www.inter.itLed two development teams in rebuilding the website and native apps, including implementing a new CMS for the football club Internazionale Milano,
The development work was done in about four months by a large development team composed of five front-end, two back-end, two iOS, and two Android developers.
At a high level, the scope included implementing a new headless CMS solution, data migration, integration with a video streaming OTT provider, and the new branding of both the app and the web.
MY ROLE
• Setting up processes and workflows with different teams, such as refinements, sprint planning, retros, client demos, and, most importantly, internal deployment processes.
• Writing epics broken down into user stories and tasks.
• Managing project deliverables, scope, and timelines.
• Creating manuals and training the client on how to use the new CMS.
Thanks to outstanding teamwork, we delivered most of the agreed-upon functionality within the very ambitious deadline.
Project Manager Bazaarvoice
https://www.bugaboo.comImplemented and deployed Bazaarvoice across Bugaboo's 23 different locales in less than eight weeks.
My main responsibilities included:
• defining requirements
• assessing potential risks and road-blockers
• liaising with internal stakeholders, such as the marketing department, customer service, product development, etc.
• prioritizing user stories across different development teams
• providing regular status updates
• maintaining the Bazaarvoice config hub
Within six weeks from the start of the project, we were able to do a soft launch in our pilot market. We deployed to the remaining 22 locales two weeks later, making it one of Bazaarvoice's fastest implementations.
Agile Project Manager and Scrum Master, HealthJay
From a business idea in the healthcare industry to a fully functioning mobile app in only eleven weeks.
This Toptal project started with a two-week lightning start, during which the lead developer, the lead designer, and myself worked closely together with the client to get to the core of the business idea. We expanded on it to understand the bigger picture and then narrowed the scope to a limited set of features that bring value to customers (MVP).
We focused on building the product during the following eleven weeks using the lightning start findings as our first building block. We further refined and adjusted the initial ideas as they matured into a concrete product in this period.
My responsibilities included:
• Facilitating scrum ceremonies
• Tracking risks and blockers until resolved
• Maintaining the backlog up to date and prioritized
We had a fully functioning app ready to be released to the App Store by the end of the project.
Agile Project Manager and Scrum Master, Lightning Start
https://www.simpleonlinepharmacy.co.uk/Led a two-weeks Lightning Start aimed at building a mobile app for an online pharmacy.
Through Lightning Start, the lead developer, lead designer, and I worked closely with the client to understand business requirements and challenges.
During these two weeks, we put together the epics and user stories for an MVP, user flows, wireframes, personas, and a proposal for a recommended tech stack.
Project Manager Data Feeds
http://bugaboo.comImplemented multiple data feeds to scale Bugaboo's online presence.
The goal is to make it possible for Bugaboo to increase its online presence by expanding the operational work necessary when partnering with retailers, e-tailers, advertising channels such as Google Shopping or AdRoll, and social media.
Within a few months, we saw an outstanding 10% increase in traffic via Google Shopping.
HRIS - APAC Absences Management
Launch Workday absence management functionality to 16 countries in the APAC region including integrations with other systems.
Together with three HR administrators representing the business, two payroll specialists, three Workday consultants, and two data experts, we implemented a tailor-made solution for employees working in 16 countries in the Asia Pacific.
From a technical standpoint:
• we implemented absence rules according to the different legal requirements of each country,
• functionality was developed and released in an agile way, with small iterative steps
• before rolling out the new functionality, we performed an intensive data clean up the process and migrated data from the existing SAP system to Workday
• user acceptance tests and user training for admin users
• to support payroll processing, we created customized absence payroll reports
• to support the business and operations, we developed a two-directional systems integration with the existing workforce management tool
From the discovery phase to full completion, the project took around 11 months.
The HR operations team saw a decrease in employees' requests by 70% after the new absence management system went live.
Streamline Online Payments
Aligned Adidas online payment systems and implemented Klarna in Germany, which quickly grew to represent 47% of all transactions in that country.
The analysis phase was very extensive, and it included a thorough review of requirements, risks, and possible points of failure.
Multiple teams across the business were in charge of the front-end side and integration with back-end systems, including the agile development team I was PO of.
Unfortunately, the functionality was never rolled out because the project leads couldn't get the buy-in from all stakeholders involved.
Product Owner of the Messaging Engine
Improved scalability and resilience of Booking.com's messaging engine.
Once the system was stable again, I was put in charge as the product owner of a newly formed team of senior developers to ensure the outage's root cause was solved; the system was strong, scalable, and resilient.
Once it was clear that we needed to significantly increase the number of servers and lines, we took the chance to challenge the relationships with our existing suppliers. We sent out an RFP to existing and new suppliers, and at the end of the process, one of the existing suppliers was let go of in favor of a new one.
As part of this process, we tested supplier performance per country and added that dimension to routing rules, which initially were only based on costs.
The team involved in this project was composed of three senior developers and one system admin, and we worked in close cooperation with our data center engineers.
Education
Master's Degree in Information Technology
Tilburg University - Tilburg, The Netherlands
Bachelor's Degree in Linguistics
Università degli Studi di Padova - Padova, Italy
Certifications
Become a Front-end Web Developer
LinkedIn Learning
Design-Led Strategy: Design Thinking for Business Strategy and Entrepreneurship
University of Sydney
Skills
Tools
Jira, Trello, Slack, Project Management & Work Tracking Tools, MySQL Workbench, Excel 2016, Atlassian, Asana, Figma, Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Slides, Google Analytics, MindNode, Terraform, GitHub, R
Paradigms
Agile Project Management, Scrum, Agile, Agile Software Development, Agile Product Management, Agile Workflow, Requirements Analysis, Agile Leadership, Kanban, DevOps, Design Thinking, Marketplace Platforms, B2C, Testing, Mobile App Design
Platforms
iOS, Bazaarvoice, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Android, MacOS, Contentful, Monday.com
Industry Expertise
Travel & Leisure, Sustainability, Sportswear, Healthcare, Fashion, Financial Services
Other
Remote Work, Project Coordination, Product Ownership, Scrum Master, Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO), Product Roadmaps, Agile Sprints, Technical Analysis, Startups, Scrum Coaching, Agile Program Management, Technical Business Analysis, Agile Coaching, Project Planning, Minimum Viable Product (MVP), Remote Team Leadership, Technical Project Monitoring, Web Project Management, Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC), Mobile/Web Project Management, User Stories, Project Timelines, Business Processes, Project Delivery, Project Management, Discovery Workshops, Data Migration, Product Strategy, Team Productivity, eCommerce, Mentorship & Coaching, Business Analysis, Communication, Technical Project Management, Leadership, Process Documentation, Team Leadership, Website Migration, Discovery, Automation, Process Optimization, Knowledge Transfer, Progress Reporting, Gantt Chart, Early-stage Startups, Integration, Client Delivery Management, QA Testing, Design Sprints, Team Mentoring, Coaching, IT, Product Owner, Website Optimization, Business to Business (B2B), Innovation, Product Development, Microsoft 365, Microsoft Teams, React Native, Wearables, Social Media, Facebook API, Broadcasting, Data Feeds, System Integration, Stakeholder Management, Business Process Refinement, Client Presentations, Story Mapping, Product Discovery, Product Vision, Business Model Canvas, Online Payments, Adyen Payments, Checkout, A/B Testing, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Objectives & Key Results (OKRs), Presentations, Workday, HRIS, Data Analysis, Distributed Team Management, Training, IT Recruitment, Events, Websites, React, Business to Consumer (B2C), Project Scoping, Scope Management, APIs, Requirements, Scope, Projects, Training & Training Content Development, MySQL, Fintech, eCommerce Payments, Workshop Facilitation, Backlog Grooming, Planning, Sprint Planning, Roadmaps, Feature Roadmaps, Product Reviews, Backlog Management, Feature Backlog Prioritization, Social Networks, Google Meet, Mobile, Mockups, Sprint Reviews, Demos, eBay API, Kong, API Gateways, Authentication, RESTful Microservices, Quarterly Reporting, Content Management Systems (CMS), Core Media, Upgrades, Team Building, Motivation, Product Launch, Launch Strategy, Coda, Documentation, Product Demonstrations, Estimations, Marketplaces, Vendor Management, HR Tools, SAP HR, Business Requirements, Payroll & Benefits, Reporting, Data Validation, CyberSource, Klarna, Apple Pay, Strategy, Scrum Product Owner, Risk Management, Telecom Equipment & Solutions, Vendor Selection, Messaging, Notion, Marketing, IT Projects, Kotlin, Brand Design, Video Streaming, Content Migration, Next.js, Agency, Workflow, Feature Prioritization, Social Media APIs, Project Tracking, Web & Mobile Applications, Mobile Applications, Mobile App Development, Mobile Development, Mobile Apps, SaaS, IT Project Management, Enterprise SaaS, SaaS Product Management, Software as a Service (SaaS), SaaS Design, StreamAMG, App Development, Headless CMS, Sports Websites, Website Redesign, Dashboards, Vendors & Suppliers, Influencers, Perl, Information Retrieval, Data Mining, Philosophy, English, French, German, Sociology, Business Law, Literature Review, Linguistics, Computational Linguistics
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