Meko Kofahl
Verified Expert in Project Management
Project Manager
Rome, Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, Italy
Toptal member since January 10, 2019
A rabid generalist, Meko has sought highly varied challenges throughout her technology-focused career, from software delivery management and Agile/Scrum coaching to building divisions and executing digital transformation with AI. Her industry experience started with large tech companies (Compaq, BEA, Etnoteam), but aggressive growth-stage tech startups are her current area of focus and her true passion. Meko thrives in chaos and seeks out roles that defy simple titles and classification.
Project Highlights
Expertise
- Agile
- Agile Project Management
- Agile Transformation
- Agile Workflow
- Process Design
- Process Optimization
- Scrum
- Technical Project Management
Work Experience
Program Manager
Agentio srl
- Conducted competitive analysis to identify opportunities in the Italian market for AI agentic workflows for SMEs and departments in larger organizations.
- Created product plans for two potential products for the Italian SME market that could be rapidly developed and inexpensively deployed, generating subscription revenue for the company.
- Developed business plans and grant applications to secure funding for the pre-seed and seed stages of the company.
Business Development Lead
Boostmychild
- Joined Boostmychild as a consulting business development lead for potential expansion into the UK and Europe. Researched requirements for logistics, taxes, sales, and other topics.
- Prepared expansion plan for the primary target country of England, with secondary target countries of the Netherlands and Italy.
- Developed grant and other funding applications for Boostmychild, along with the development of investor decks and coordinating investor meetings in London. Attended investor meetings on behalf of Boostmychild.
Delivery Manager
Toptal
- Joined a process-improvement initiative as the process manager to document and streamline delivery processes.
- Collaborated with the technology lead to design an AI-based estimation process using Gemini GEMs for proposal and WBS definition, with plans to develop a full retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) in the near future.
- Prepared extensive discussion and training documents on the streamlined process from pre-sales through to delivery and post-mortem.
Project Manager
Reward Gateway, Limited
- Co-authored the playbook for international rollout of the Reward Gateway platform to Edenred's participant countries, beginning with Italy and France.
- Led the implementation program of the RG platform to Edenred Italy, comprising training, customization, localization, cross-country coordination, and issue management. Implementation was completed in six months and was client-ready immediately after.
- Served as primary liaison between Edenred Italy and Reward Gateway for the duration of the implementation, coordinating meetings at all levels, publishing documentation and project plans, and proactively addressing issues as they arose.
Chief Operation Officer
HERST BV
- Partnered with the CEO to clarify project management, scheduling, and resource management needs. Evaluated the current tool (Bouwsoft) and designed an integration with Microsoft Project, rapidly providing all required functionality.
- Developed a document for potential future automation of the integration to reduce the need for manual data importing/exporting, should it be needed as the company grows.
- Conducted personalized training for the CEO, who had some experience with Gantt charts. Provided an operations manual with more detailed instructions that could be used to train someone in the future to assume the scheduler role.
Project Manager
Babbel Inc.
- Joined the team as an agile coach working to mentor product owners and engineering managers and help the organization become more data-driven. Reviewed four teams' agile capabilities and provided feedback and concrete action plans for the teams.
- Coached the IT department with their migration from in-house Jira to Jira Cloud, including advising and testing. During the process, I streamlined all workflows for the growth team to simplify and standardize.
- Created a data backlog for use with onboarding the new data analysis team, which included key metrics (and where the data needed to come from) and process information for ensuring that data requirements are considered when reviewing "Ready to Take."
Project Manager | Scrum Master
Biogen - Main
- Coached the prototype development team and product owner through the successful delivery of a very short-timeline deliverable that needed to go live in concert with a service launch. The team received kudos from the C-suite as a result of their work.
- Served as a scrum master for three development teams, each working on a different product with different stakeholder needs.
- Streamlined workflows, coached teams in conducting effective scrum meetings, and supported product owners through prioritization and MVP definition.
Chief Product Officer
To the Power of
- Created, prioritized, and maintained the product backlog for this seed funding-level startup.
- Managed the development team and served as the liaison between them and the CEO/CTO.
- Implemented development best practices in the areas of quality and testing.
- Managed project timelines and development budget.
- Developed grant applications and prepared other funding materials.
Head of Change Management
Ixaris Systems Ltd. (purchased by Nium)
- Designed and implemented change management plans related to the implementation of Scrum methodology and process improvement.
- Applied change management plans to facilitate the culture of transformation, including a shift to the use of OKRs (objectives and key results) for most staff.
- Defined an implementation plan for metrics and worked with the Executive team to prioritize appropriately.
- Presented regularly at all-company town hall meetings on progress/next steps and personally conducted customized training sessions.
- Managed PMO and the project management team, addressing transition issues from waterfall-style reporting to more Scrum-appropriate metrics.
Contract Project Manager
Vodafone Malta (Contract)
- Successfully completed a distressed Siebel CRM Implementation which had been mismanaged by underqualified internal resources.
- Served as technology team liaison to the Oracle consulting team for a major technology project.
- Conducted initial billing project requirements definition for the technology team.
Contract Project Manager
Government of Malta (Contract)
- Led the planning for a €10 million overhaul of the national Pitkalija farmer’s market. Aspects of the project included the technology, location, construction, logistics, workflow, and staffing aspects of the market, as well as comparative analyses of other national markets in Europe.
Interim CIO
Hili Ventures
- Developed and maintained a groupwide 3-year IT strategy and budget for Hili Ventures (serving as interim director of IT) and began building a PMO to support the implementation teams across the group.
- Hired and mentored junior PM staff and led the technical contract teams. Converted strategic plans into prioritized project and action plans and worked with various companies, teams and departments on implementation. Developed and reported multiple sets of corporate KPIs to senior management and at board level on overall performance.
- Led the implementation of Prophix software deployed for groupwide financial consolidation (€150,000 budget).
- Led rollout of Office 365 software for all Hili group companies to facilitate collaboration and other goals (700 licenses deployed over 6 months). Included installation, training, and ongoing consulting on department usage and development of intranet sites.
- Filled in for the COO directing the execution of his operational strategy while he was occupied with an aggressive acquisition schedule.
- Conducted multiple process redesign projects for PTL Limited (included Software Development processes, Help Desk processes, Billing/Invoicing processes). Introduced Agile software development methodology to PTL.
- Guided the PTL software team to receive first-ever ISO 9001 certification, helping them define appropriate processes and document them sufficiently.
Senior Project Manager | Process Manager
BEA Systems
- Created the project office for a start-up telecommunications-focused division of about 50 people, delivering three new products and miscellaneous other projects (maintenance packs, etc.) on an annual timetable using Agile methodologies.
- Delivered strategic projects included annual budgeting and planning, risk assessments for moving an entire product’s development offshore, and implementation of that offshore move to a 100-person Beijing-based team. Oversaw the Beijing team to ensure successful delivery.
- Managed two critical early implementations: one for AT&T with a value of $2 million, and one for Cingular in the range of $5 million.
- Created and managed an early-adopter beta programme designed to provide early access to our software in exchange for customer feedback and personalized implementation support.
- Onboarded the initial department offering, a SIP Server product purchased from a Japanese company. Served as liaison with the Japanese vendor, created initial documentation and installation packages, and worked to set up an internal test environment to allow for internal training and development experience.
Contract Project Manager
Personix (now Fiserv)
- Managed the data integration project for Personix’s major client, Verizon. Worked extensively with Verizon personnel to coordinate data formats, testing, reporting, and planning.
- Led the internal development team for the migration of 10 disparate COBOL systems to a rules-based EAI (Mercator) system.
Operations Project Manager
H3G
- Managed the testing and operational readiness of the application teams, including the flagship Italian go-to-market application “VideoGol”. This application, was the first video sports highlight application delivered by any major telco at the time.
Technical Project Manager
Etnoteam s.P.a. (Contract)
- Led the team of 25 Italian developers delivering 10 discrete WAP and website applications on behalf of Omnitel and Etnoteam for the global launch of Vodafone’s Vignette-based Vizzavi portal.
- Served as liaison to Etnoteam's client (Vodafone's Vizzavi CIO) with a smaller onsite installation team of ten resources, responding to customer requests, changes, and operational requirements.
Director of Technology
Modaexchange.com
- Led development of the original business plan which resulted in a successful seed investment of $1.25 million.
- Designed the integration architecture for combining the inventory and production data across multiple disparate designers' technology systems.
- Negotiated the use of QRS software, representing use of a multi-million dollar system on a revenue-sharing basis with no upfront cash investment.
eCommerce Lead | Technical Project Manager
Baker Robbins & Company
- Managed two major e-business projects for clients – one Fortune 50 company and one Fortune 500 company. Both projects were firsts in their respective industries and are among the “success story projects” listed on the company’s webpage.
- Managed the Y2K testing and performed some process design for a major division of a Fortune 10 company.
- Led a small development team to build a web-based interface to a CICS system for the purpose of online auto loan applications for a Fortune 10 company.
- Created new legal XML service offerings for Baker Robbins to market to current clients.
Senior Systems Analyst
Compaq Computer Corporation
- Responsible for the requirements definition, planning, prioritization and project management of all Internet projects within North America, as well as representing North American requirements in Global projects.
- Managed a portfolio of 100+ projects, with individual project budgets up to US$11 million. Total portfolio value exceeded $160 million.
- Delivered a customer configurator to allow the online customization of consumer-level machines and SME servers.
- Worked with an external graphic design firm to deliver an award-winning customer service portal.
Project History
Scrum Transformation for Financial Services Company
Meko led Ixaris through a major initiative to transition its Engineering and Product teams to a more fully Scrum methodology.
Over the course of six months, 90% of all 115 staff were trained (including executive management), a transition backlog was defined and executed, and the team was making significant progress towards greater efficiency and delivery of value. Revenue during this period was the company’s highest ever and we were rapidly approaching profitability despite the disruptive nature of Scrum implementation.
Several Communities-of-Practice were established to ensure wide agreement on technical decisions and process, town hall meetings were regularly convened, and improved metrics and KPIs were developed and put in place.
Siebel CRM Implementation Project for Vodafone
Delivered a major Siebel upgrade after a series of internal resources had been unable to successfully complete the work.
The three-month effort included a review of this project-in-distress, revised launch planning, evaluation and revision of technical plans, executive communication, coordination across the entire company to minimize downtime of the related call center, and communication to the international Vodafone Center of Excellence on progress. Because the upgrade had been postponed multiple times, only certain steps could allow for a rollback in case of an emergency, making the project somewhat risky and challenging. The upgrade went smoothly during an overnight launch, to schedule, and with no major issues arising post-upgrade.
EU-funded Open Payments Ecosystem Project
Led a development team of 40 developers to successfully conclude a €4 million EU-funded innovation project.
With six months left to completion, the €4M EU-funded Open Payments Ecosystem project lost its project manager and brought Meko on to finish the effort. An assessment was done shortly after engagement showed the run rate of the project to be much higher than previously reported and offshore staffing was cut to reflect the actual budget. The scope of the project was carefully evaluated and re-prioritized. All major deliverables were successfully concluded by the deadline, and the project passed all subsequent audits and EU reporting requirements.
Education
Master's Degree in Anthropology (Underwater Archaeology)
Texas A&M University - Texas, USA
Bachelor's Degree in Humanities
Washington State University - Washington, USA
Certifications
Artificial Intelligence: Business Strategies and Applications
UC Berkeley, Executive Education
Certified Agile Leadership (CAL-I)
Scrum Alliance
Professional Scrum Master Level III (PSM III)
Scrum.org
Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO)
Scrum Alliance
Professional Scrum Master Level I (PSM I)
Scrum.org
Professional Scrum Master Level II (PSM II)
Scrum.org
Advanced Project Management Certificate
Stanford Univeristy
Project Management Professional (PMP)
Project Management Institute (PMI)
Skills
Tools
Microsoft Project, Microsoft Excel, Jira, Office 365, Slack, Skype for Business, Project Management & Work Tracking Tools, Asana, Trello, Atlassian, Confluence, Zoom, Basecamp, Bugzilla
Paradigms
Agile Workflow, Agile Software Development, Scrum, Agile Project Management, Agile, B2B, Waterfall Delivery, Waterfall Development, Requirements Analysis, Lean Project Management, PMBOK, Rapid Prototyping, Agile Product Management, Kanban, Agile Leadership, Lean, Change Management, Organizational Change Management (OCM), Manual Testing, ITIL Continual Service Improvement (CSI), B2C, Microservices, Agile Delivery, Application Architecture, Database Design, DevOps, Business to Business to Consumer (B2B2C)
Industry Expertise
Telecommunications, Technology, Small & Medium-sized Enterprises (SME), Financial Services, Retail & Wholesale, Automotive, Government, Premium Content Subscriptions
Platforms
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), SharePoint, iOS, Windows, Windows XP, Linux, Android
Other
Project Delivery, Project Lifecycle, Project Planning, Software Development Management, Agile Transformation, Agile Sprints, Certified ScrumMaster (CSM), Certified Scrum Professional, Scrum Master, PMI, Archaeology, Startups, Early-stage Startups, Small Business, Project Management, Project Management Office (PMO), Mobile/Web Project Management, Analysis, Startup Consulting, Agile Program Management, Technical Project Management, Process Improvement Project Management, Project Rescue, Distressed/Special Situations, Applications, Web Applications, Mobile Applications, Business Applications, Web & Mobile Applications, Best Practices, Business to Business (B2B), Business, Budgeting, Lean Budgets, Business Cases, Business Logic, Global Business, Business Agility, Business Rules, Business Coaching, Business Solutions, Business Reporting, Business Processes, IT Business Analysis, Risk Analysis, Needs Analysis, Backlog Grooming, Backlog Management, Feature Analysis, Agile Practices, Agile Certified Practitioner, PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP), Scrum Coaching, Project Management Operations, Cross-departmental Collaboration, Cross-functional Team Leadership, Cross-functional Collaboration, Business Transformation Project Management, Business Transformation, Waterfall Methodology, User Requirements, Project Timelines, Project Management & Delivery, Program Management, Time Management, Team Management, Risk Management, Sprint Planning, IT Project Management, Project Scheduling, Sprints, Sprint Retrospectives, Client Delivery Management, Team Leadership, Communication, Stakeholder Management, Strategic Planning & Execution, Web Project Management, Detail-oriented, Digital Project Management, Vendor Management, Accountability, Planning, Operations, Project Tracking, Coaching, Project Coordination, Conflict Resolution, Meetings, Organization, Work Breakdown Structure, Cost Control, Scope Management, Software Implementation, Certified Project Manager, Resource Allocation, Scope of Work (SOW), Scope, Productivity Improvement, Complex Problem Solving, Software Project Management, Integration, Project Management Professional (PMP), Creative Thinking, Mentorship & Coaching, Prototyping, Project Estimation, Functional Requirements, Business Requirements, Web Platforms, Project Reporting, Release Management, Stakeholder Engagement, Creativity, Resource Management, Product Development, Complex Program Management, International Projects, SaaS, Software Development, Distributed Team Management, Delivery Management, PMO, Training & Training Content Development, Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC), Business Strategy, GAP Analysis, Systems Analysis, Process Optimization, Process Design, Governance, Mobile, QA Leadership, QA Automation, Business Analysis, Quality Assurance (QA), Training, IT Service Management (ITSM), Process Improvement, Workflow Optimization, Agile Coaching, Remote Team Leadership, Feature Backlog Prioritization, Apps, App UI, App Store, Application Monitoring, Beta Testing, Billing, Business Design, Online Business, Business Planning, Business Advisory, Business Research, Business Ownership, Feature-driven Development (FDD), Feature Planning, Test Cases, Agile Product Delivery, Lean Startups, Scrum Product Owner, Scrum Product Owner Contractor, Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO), Professional Scrum Product Owner (PSPO), Fintech Consultant, Business Management, Risk, Project Portfolio Management (PPM), Business Transformation Program Management, Digital, Digital Transformation, Digital Transformation Program Management, Management Consulting, Product Owner, Product Ownership, Enterprise Product Ownership, Software as a Service (SaaS), Waterfall Modeling, User Stories, Databases, Open Source, Product Management, Product Roadmaps, Minimum Viable Product (MVP), Roadmaps, Mobile App Development, Reporting, Leadership, Data Migration, Business Intelligence (BI), Forecasting, Financial Modeling, Initial Public Offerings, Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Investments, Discovery Workshops, Project Discovery, Portfolio Management, Dashboards, Analytical Dashboards, Facilitation, IT Projects, Business Operations, Team Mentoring, Hybrid Project Management, Discovery, Vendor Selection, Lean Portfolio Management, Enterprise Product Portfolios, COE, eCommerce, Technical Product Management, Mobile Apps, Objectives & Key Results (OKRs), Virtual Reality (VR), Customer Support, Business to Consumer (B2C), Business Transformation Project Management, Change Management, People Management, Large Language Models (LLMs), Metrics, ISO 9001, ITIL, Manual QA, Manual Software Testing, Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe), IT Security, Scrumban, Organizational Design, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Fintech, New Products, Feature Prioritization, React, RESTful Microservices, Documentation, General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), App Development, Wireframe to Product, Strategy, Process Documentation, Business Card Design, Agile DevOps, Agile Deployment, Professional Agile Leadership (PAL), Agile Release Training, Compliance, Chief Operations Officer (COO), HRIS, Business Development, Social Networks, Relational Databases, Data Modeling, Data Analytics, Machine Learning, Teams, Stakeholder Mapping, Process Flows, COO, Human Resources (HR), 3D, IT Program Management, Product Comparison, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Chatbots, Natural Language Processing (NLP), Facial Recognition, Healthcare IT, React Native, Augmented Reality (AR), Unity3D, Operational Assessments, Notion, Client Management, Neural Networks, Deep Neural Networks (DNNs), Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), Data Strategy, English, Anthropology, History, Writing & Editing, New Business Development, Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), Managed Services, Account Management
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