Kenny Fakunle, Project Manager in Atlanta, United States
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Kenny Fakunle

Verified Expert  in Project Management

Project Manager

Location
Atlanta, United States
Toptal Member Since
April 24, 2019

Kenny is a highly experienced Agile project manager and management consultant with 15 years of expertise in IT operations, software development, and management consulting. He has e deep understanding of various project management methodologies and frameworks and has a proven track record of success in helping organizations improve their project performance, operations, and processes. Kenny's expertise also extends to agile software development and business transformation initiatives.

Project Highlights

Software Engineering Manager (Aurea Software)
Led the delivery of several customer deployments and solution enhancements of the ResponseTek product line.
Agile Project Management Consultant (Project Swami Consulting)
Facilitated the transition from Waterfall to Agile as a coach, while also acting as the scrum master for multiple teams.
Project Manager (Openfiler)
Led several customer implementations, deployments, and upgrades.

Expertise

Work Experience

Scrum Master

2018 - PRESENT
Project Swami Consulting LLC
  • Worked closely with product owners, coordinating product backlog grooming and story estimation.
  • Managed multiple stakeholders' insights and opinions and helped ensure all stakeholders agreed with the current scope and roadmap of the product and service initiatives.
  • Implemented project management and organizational best practices to enable operational efficiency and maximize productivity.
  • Regularly reported project artifacts to senior management.
  • Conducted regular weekly meetings between clients, vendors, and development teams for timely project deliveries on project initiatives.

Scrum Master

2023 - 2023
Volvo Car USA - Digital Relationship Products
  • Facilitated stakeholder workshops to identify key business objectives and KPIs.
  • Established and maintained positive relationships with project stakeholders.
  • Collaborated with the UI/UX team to design a user-friendly interface.
  • Led product discovery sessions with key stakeholders to identify and prioritize new features.
  • Created and maintained project documentation, ensuring all project deliverables were adequately documented.

Scrum Master

2022 - 2022
Volvo Car USA - Digital Relationship Products
  • Prioritized the feature backlog and set the development roadmap based on user feedback and our analysis.
  • Modified the existing vendor solution to meet the client's specific needs.
  • Conducted regular sprint retrospectives to identify areas of improvement and optimize team performance, increasing productivity.
  • Facilitated daily stand-up meetings to ensure cross-functional collaboration and progress tracking.
  • Implemented Agile methodologies and best practices.

Scrum Master

2020 - 2022
Volvo Car USA
  • Communicated project updates and progress reports to stakeholders regularly, ensuring transparency and alignment.
  • Coordinated with the vendor to troubleshoot technical issues and ensure timely resolution.
  • Tracked and analyzed project data to identify areas for optimization and improvement.
  • Conducted regular product demos and presentations to internal and external stakeholders.
  • Coordinated with cross-functional teams, including UI/UX designers, developers, QA engineers, and project managers, to ensure the timely delivery of high-quality features and enhancements.

Scrum Master

2019 - 2020
Volvo Car USA
  • Developed a comprehensive project roadmap that guided the team in successfully delivering the customer experience survey management application.
  • Streamlined communication among cross-functional teams by implementing Agile methodologies, leading to increased collaboration efficiency and reduced miscommunications.
  • Identified and resolved bottlenecks in the development process by conducting bi-weekly sprint reviews, enabling the team to complete the project within the allocated project timeline and meeting all key milestones.
  • Increased customer satisfaction scores by incorporating user feedback and user experience testing throughout the development process, ensuring that the application met end-user requirements and addressed their pain points.
  • Coordinated successfully deploying the customer experience survey management application to over 200 retailers.
  • Facilitated the continuous improvement of the application by overseeing a post-launch feedback loop, which led to the implementation of critical feature enhancements.

Scrum Master

2019 - 2019
Volvo Canada
  • Developed the project timeline and budget to ensure the successful completion of the employee experience portal within the allocated timeline and budget.
  • Managed a team of five remote developers to ensure the successful launch of the portal on time.
  • Monitored and reported on the progress of the project weekly to stakeholders, providing updates and highlighting areas for improvement.
  • Directed product development and design to align with project goals and objectives.
  • Established a process for quality assurance and testing of the portal prior to launch.
  • Coordinated with 3rd-party vendors to ensure the integration of the portal with existing systems.
  • Generated detailed post-launch reports to evaluate performance and suggest areas for improvement.
  • Developed and implemented an effective training program for users of the portal.
  • Ensured compliance with relevant standards and regulations during the development and launch of the portal.

Software Engineering Manager

2018 - 2019
Aurea Software
  • Introduced process improvements, focusing on project reporting and communication practices that reduced project slippage.
  • Coached, mentored, and developed the team to improve performance.
  • Directed and managed daily team operations and aligned team operations with management directives.
  • Guided ongoing operational improvements to reduce waste and increase efficiency.
  • Analyzed relevant data to make business recommendations and resolve critical project blockers.

Management Consultant

2017 - 2018
Crossover for Work
  • Provided ongoing support to help executives achieve set goals and create success for themselves, their teams, and their organizations.
  • Developed and maintained relationships with internal client groups and kept them informed on the status of organizational effectiveness initiatives while ensuring alignment with business goals.
  • Facilitated a one-on-one session with individual clients, adopting styles and methods suited for the particular session.
  • Developed learning materials for manager training and published thought leadership articles for the internal blog.
  • Helped identify and resolve cross-team bottlenecks and issues.
  • Provided guidance and coaching to managers to facilitate post-merger integrations and transformation for their teams.
  • Conducted comprehensive assessments, collaborated with client organizations to target and identify areas of challenge, and designed and tailored strategies to meet unique client needs.
  • Assisted in workflow and business process re-engineering to increase and optimize productivity targets and goals.

Scrum Master

2015 - 2017
SunObject Solutions
  • Managed project deployments and rollouts using Agile and Waterfall methodologies.
  • Planned and outlined project requirements and resources, maintaining the project and deadlines.
  • Developed, designed, and implemented workflows to optimize business processes and operations.
  • Used organizational change management and Lean Six Sigma methodologies to develop plans for user adoption, platform optimization, and continuous improvement.
  • Researched and provided business analysis, advising customers on best-fit tool selection for their process and needs.
  • Developed proof of concepts and design prototypes for the requirement and design validation with the stakeholders.
  • Managed relationships with clients, partners, and vendors to maintain a pipeline of steady project work.

Project Manager

2010 - 2015
Openfiler
  • Utilized Lean principles to implement process improvements and streamline the development and deployment lifecycle.
  • Ensured effective communication and relationship between key stakeholders were maintained by proactively building strong customer relationships and meeting project timelines.
  • Identified, tracked, and monitored the project and communicated project-related issues, scope changes, variances, constraints, and contingencies that may arise during project implementation.
  • Led remote project staff across multiple regions; managed project plan, resources, and budget.
  • Established standard project documentation, tools, and processes for project lifecycle (SDLC) for the software development team.

Partner Manager

2008 - 2010
Openfiler
  • Oversaw acquiring new integrated partnerships, handled contract negotiations, and nurtured partner relations.
  • Designed and deployed processes and systems for partner acquisition.
  • Created and implemented a comprehensive inbound marketing strategy and a partner/reseller management platform.
  • Conducted presentations and demos for channel sales engagements.

Account Representative

2006 - 2008
J.B Hunt Transportation
  • Maintained, supported, and monitored all EDI load requests for assigned accounts and ensured profitable, timely order processing and dispatch.
  • Ensured customer satisfaction and optimized on-time delivery by collaborating with fleet and account managers.
  • Managed trailer and resource pools for assigned customers to ensure efficient equipment utilization.
  • Provided quotes and solicited business from new and existing customers.

Software Engineering Manager (Aurea Software)

Led the delivery of several customer deployments and solution enhancements of the ResponseTek product line.

This project focused on the delivery of a customer experience software solution. As the software engineering manager, I managed a team of 12+ developers, design managers, delivery managers, integration managers, QA's, and consultants to deliver several implementations and enhancements of the ResponseTek customer experience management solution. The team was responsible for configuring and managing users, groups, roles, permissions, security, customer surveys, reports, and insights for clients.

Agile Project Management Consultant (Project Swami Consulting)

Facilitated the transition from Waterfall to Agile as a coach, while also acting as the scrum master for multiple teams.

I trained teams to write good user stories, prioritize the work based on business value, and handle the organization's tasks. I focused efforts on team member role training, time-boxing, and providing strong metrics for all players and helped facilitate the adoption of Lean principles and best practices in the product development lifecycle.

Project Manager (Openfiler)

Led several customer implementations, deployments, and upgrades.

This project focused on delivering, deploying, and managing unified storage solutions (SAN/NAS) on customer infrastructure. I managed a team of 10+ remotely based developers, system administrators, solution architects, and DevOps.

Virtual Farmers Market (Direct Farmer to Consumer Platform)

Led the development of the MVP for the virtual farmers market.

• Guided non-technical founders through the development process.

• Scoped out project requirements, use cases, and user stories.

• Ensured the end product met functional and quality requirements.

• Managed outsourced development vendor in terms of budget, deliverables, and timelines.

Worker Dispatch Application Built on the Force.com Platform

Led the end-to-end development and deployment of web and mobile logistics for a SaaS application.

This project focused on designing, developing, and deploying a SaaS application for a catering business. The app allows restaurants to upload menus for large orders, users to order based on available menus, and catering managers to dispatch and track drivers to pick up and deliver orders.

Learning Management Software Implementation Project

Led the evaluation, selection, implementation, and management of an organization-wide LMS platform.

This project involved the end-to-end implementation of an LMS system that eventually grew to 1000+ users. The project was divided into four phases:

1. Evaluation of a suitable LMS vendor that met most of the criteria and features required by the key stakeholders.
2. Implementation and deployment of the system, including automation, workflows, uploading and configuring the content, etc.
3. Training of the user and system administrators.
4. Operation and management (user onboarding/offboarding, tracking user adoption, training progress, etc.) across the organization.
2010 - 2012

Master's Degree in Project Management

Keller Graduate School of Management - Georgia, USA

2010 - 2010

Graduate Certificate in Project Management

Keller Graduate School of Management - Georgia, USA

2001 - 2006

Bachelor's Degree in International Relations

University of Arkansas - Arkansas, USA

SEPTEMBER 2022 - PRESENT

SAFe 5 Agilist

Scaled Agile

JULY 2022 - PRESENT

Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO)

Scrum Alliance

JUNE 2022 - PRESENT

Certified Scrum Master

Scrum Alliance

APRIL 2016 - PRESENT

Six Sigma Champion

Management and Strategy Institute

APRIL 2016 - PRESENT

Lean Six Sigma Black Belt

Management and Strategy Institute

APRIL 2016 - PRESENT

ITIL v3 Foundation

APMG International

APRIL 2016 - PRESENT

PRINCE2 Foundation

EXIN

NOVEMBER 2015 - PRESENT

Salesforce Certified Administrator

Salesforce.com

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