Technical Project Manager | Scrum Master
2020 - 2022Valence Enterprises, Inc- Led the team in implementing new features and improvements to the company's website.
- Implemented the scrum framework for the execution of all discovery and development processes.
- Managed communications and stakeholders and supported technical discussions to clearly define requirements, integrations, and overall expectations for all involved parties.
Agile Project Manager
2019 - 2020Insurance Broker (via Toptal Projects)- Led and supported the development team daily on their work to enhance and maintain the broker platform.
- Managed project planning and delivery through Scrum and Kanban.
- Exercised servant leadership with a strong focus on removing impediments from the other squad members.
- Worked closely with key stakeholders to discuss, define, and follow up on requirements.
- Collaborated with carrier insurance third parties to ensure proper data transfer from the platform into their systems.
- Reported weekly status and led sprint showcases.
- Supported the client through their Jira support desk.
Project Manager
2010 - 2019IBM- Managed over 30 projects, much of the time handling five projects simultaneously.
- Worked with clients, subject matter experts, and technical leads to analyze business needs.
- Generated solution proposals that were aligned with the business strategy.
- Wrote, negotiated, and closed service contracts—resulting in engagements ranging from US$ 5,000 to US$ 400,000.
- Led all project planning, scope management, and time estimation activities.
- Facilitated scrum meetings, sprint planning, and removal of impediments—ensuring that the team could perform at their best.
- Controlled the project budget, safeguarding the proper tracking and utilization of resources invested in the project lifecycle.
- Drove negotiations and the overall communication with sponsors and product owners.
Brand Manager
2007 - 2010avVenta- Managed projects involving website redesign, customer engagement, and digital marketing.
- Led interdisciplinary teams ranging from five to 20+ members.
- Owned the process to secure resource allocations by properly identifying skill sets and levels of expertise needed for the project.
- Coordinated with other departments, such as creative design and quality assurance, to ensure proper estimations and ideal workflow across resource collaboration.
- Managed work queues for steady-state engagements while working on small enhancements and defects.
Project Manager
2006 - 2007Alienware- Led the creation of an onsite software development team.
- Captured high-level requirements and expectations from the stakeholder.
- Aided developers with the process and procurement-related needs.
- Led team checkpoints to gather progress status, risks, and concerns.
Ruth Madrigal
Project Manager in Heredia, Costa Rica
Member since October 25, 2018
Since 2006, Ruth has led several software development projects at companies ranging from medium-sized digital production agencies to multinational enterprises such as IBM. She has extensive experience in both Waterfall and Agile / Scrum methodologies and has collaborated with multicultural teams worldwide. Ruth enjoys freelancing because it allows her to bring her expertise to new clients, discover fascinating projects, and meet new people in the industry.
Ruth is now available for hire
Project Highlights
- Led the development of a mobile app that allows sales representatives to manage their clients' portfolios on the go.
- Led the development team through the steady-state phase of the project, working on enhancements and maintenance through continuous delivery.
- Led the project to completely redesign the website for a major American automotive brand.
Expertise
- Agile
- GitHub
- Jira
- Microsoft Project
- Software Project Management
- Technology
- Waterfall Delivery
- Waterfall Methodology
Education
- Universidad Latinoamericana de Ciencia y Tecnología
Select Certifications
- Scrum Alliance
- Project Management Institute (PMI)
Employment
Project History
- Client Management Mobile AppLed the development of a mobile app that allows sales representatives to manage their clients' portfolios on the go.
I managed the project for the development of a mobile app that would allow sales representatives and their executives to access their clients' records on the go. This enabled the sales team to review and manage their clients' needs and expectations regardless of where the sales representatives were at that moment.
The app was expected to display high amounts of data and the design focused on making the best of the area available on small screens by including interactive graphs and expandable areas. Data querying was improved to ensure fast data loading.
This project was implemented with a team of 15 collaborators, was extended for two years, and involved several iterations delivered through the Agile method. - Insurance Broker PlatformLed the development team through the steady-state phase of the project, working on enhancements and maintenance through continuous delivery.
This was a very fast-paced environment that required a lot of flexibility, communication, and the ability to "wear many hats."
Since then, the platform has grown to support hundreds of clients and thousands of their employees, connecting them with several different insurance brokers. - Marketing Website RedesignLed the project to completely redesign the website for a major American automotive brand.
I managed the project for the complete redesign of an automotive brand website. The goal of this project was not only to apply a new design but to implement a standardized design format that would, later on, be applied to all the other brands within the company
This project involved over 30 team members and five months of work. The redesign included not only a new aesthetic but also the introduction of new functional features such as product filters, build-your-own configurators, and price estimators.
Since this was the first execution of this plan, it also acted as a pilot that helped discover the pain points and areas of improvement for the next brands in line for the implementation.
Education
- Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration2014 - 2017Universidad Latinoamericana de Ciencia y Tecnología - San José, Costa Rica
Certifications
- Certified Scrum MasterJUNE 2015 - PRESENTScrum Alliance
- Project Management Professional (PMP)SEPTEMBER 2011 - SEPTEMBER 2023Project Management Institute (PMI)
