Kelly Cates-Thornton, CSPO

Senior Agile Product Owner / Manager / Scrum Master

336-***-****

**** * ********* *****, ********, NC 27012

ad38po@r.postjobfree.com

www.linkedin.com/in/kellycates

Certifications

SAFe Agile 6.0 Product Owner

SAFe Agile 6.0 Product Manager

SAFe Agile 6.0 Scrum Master

Scrum Alliance Product Owner (CSPO)

Writing.io AI Certification

ChatGPT Certification

Technical Proficiencies

Atlassian Jira/Confluence Power User Adobe family of products (AEM, Magento, Creative Cloud, Photoshop, Experience Manager, Premier Pro, etc.) Adobe Journey Optimizer Marketo Customer Journey Analytics SmartSheet Power User IBM Digital Analytics (CoreMetrics) Fred Hopper (on-site search, navigation, personalization, and merchandising) Bloomreach (omnichannel marketing automation and e-commerce search & merchandising) Microsoft .Net API IBM WebSphere Salesforce family of products (Tableau, SFCC, Slack, Einstein, MuleSoft, Digital Storefronts, etc.) Microsoft family of products (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, MS Project, Teams) Google family of products (Google Analytics, etc.) Core Media Content Manager (CMS) Figma FigJam Miro Zoom Gantt Chart Software MailChimp WordPress content development Power Reviews products Bazaar Voice products Docusign Power BI Kanban Scrum MS Project AI Services (ChatGPT, Writing.io) AI Model (GPT-4)

Areas of Expertise

Product/Project Management Continuous Improvement Stakeholder Engagement

Agile Methodologies Critical Thinking Problem Solving Market Analysis Strategic Planning Conflict Resolution Risk Management Digital Marketing Team Collaboration

Product/Project Management Continuous Improvement Stakeholder Engagement

Agile Methodologies Critical Thinking Problem Solving Market Analysis Strategic Planning Conflict Resolution Risk Management Digital Marketing Team Collaboration Omni-channel Marketing Social Media Integration User Acceptance Testing Strategic Planning Social Commerce Market Trends Brand Management Website Development Digital Sales/Strategy

Global Senior Product Owner/Product Manager/Scrum Master

May 2017 – Nov 2023

VF Corporation Remote - The North Face, Vans, Timberland, Smartwool, Altra Running, JanSport, and Napajiri Brands (North American and Europe) – Greensboro, NC

Responsible for maximizing the value of the e-commerce websites product through SAFe Agile methodology. Most Senior Global Product Owner working across continents (Countries represented with developers: Ukraine, Belarus, Belgium, India, Bulgaria, Malta, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Palestine, Morocco, Spain, Israel, Brazil, Canada, United States).

Daily supervision and contact with global Scrum teams numbering from 6 – 20 using Zoom and Slack. All team initiatives were delivered on time and often provided support to other teams whose projects were delayed. The teams I managed were always the "go-to" teams to get work completed during crunch time. I experienced a lay-off off due to corporate restructuring.

As a Sr. Global Product Owner, I implemented project management best practices, coached team members, removed roadblocks, and protected the team from any impediments that might interfere with their delivery.

I established and led agile scrum ceremonies such as daily stand-ups, backlog grooming, iteration planning, sprint reviews, sprint retrospectives and all reporting. Met with business owners/design/architecture to establish the roadmap and meet weekly to provide process updates. In addition, I assisted the Business Analyst with writing user stories and test scripts (often serving in both roles).

Experienced and results-driven professional with a proven track record in leading digital product management, website development, and agile methodologies across renowned brands in the apparel industry. Adept at deploying and optimizing cutting-edge technologies, including Adobe Experience Manager, Marketo, Fred Hopper, and Bloomreach Search, to drive enhanced customer journey analytics/platform functionality. Skilled in directing cross-functional teams, fostering collaboration, and championing Agile methodologies to deliver consumer-centric product roadmaps. Known for leading strategic initiatives, managing large-scale transitions, and mentoring junior product owners while ensuring the adoption of best practices. Committed to driving innovation, optimizing processes, and delivering tangible business results.

Proficient in Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) methodology, ensuring seamless integration of product management practices within broader development frameworks. Adept at driving customer journey analytics and platform optimization, leading and implementing innovation, optimizing processes, and delivering tangible business results.

Accomplishments

Led team of front-end, back-end, Adobe Experience Manager (AEM), (AJO), Marketo and Core Media content management (CMS) system developers from discovery through use acceptance testing (UAT) and product deployment. Quality assurance (QA) resources and lead engineering were also represented on my teams.

Implemented AEM across global platform for eight e-commerce brands over one year.

Integrated Bloomreach Search across global platform for four e-commerce brands over one year.

Led daily scrum stand ups, back-log grooming, retrospectives, sprint plannings, story refinements and acted as Scrum Master in their absence.

Oversaw Business Analyst (BA) requirements gathering, writing of stories, test cases and gap analyses. Performed BA role in their absence. Participated in end-to-end testing.

Point of contact across the globe that included: End to End features design and development from backend to front-end, consistent consumer facing experience improvements across multiple journeys, touchpoints and devices, personalization of experiences across multiple customer personas.

Worked daily with Product Managers, Product Owners, Project Managers, Technologists, 3rd Party Vendors, Software-Engineering, Design, UX/UI, Architects, Testers, Quality Assurance, Analytics, Release Train Engineers, and Brand representatives.

Aligned daily with all stakeholders while driving the product roadmap with a consumer centric view to ensure technologies, delivery schedule and capabilities decisions are always done to maximize customer experience and business value proposition.

Leading member of multiple scrum teams within a SAFe Agile 6.0 development framework

Mentored entry level Product Owners and various assigned company personnel

Championed and implemented product organization best practices.

Led Continuity of Practice (CoP) for the product teams.

Participated in UAT and product delivery demonstrations.

Acted as a bridge between users and development teams, ensuring clear understanding of business needs and IT practices.

Senior Manager - Digital Product Marketing, Website Development Manager, Brand Liaison and Project Manager Feb 1994 – Oct 2016

Hanesbrands, Inc, Winston-Salem, NC – Hanes, Champion, Bali, Playtex, Just My Size, Maidenform, Barely There, Hanes Hosiery, L’eggs Hosiery, Winston-Salem, NC

Technical project management leadership. Initially wrote code for Hanesbrands websites, managed all aspects of maintenance and promotion of 10 brand marketing websites. Strategically planned the future of the social e-business with internal partners. Partnered with brands to ideate and source all online activities, developed roadmaps for implementing new and innovative social e-com features, championed the migration to e- commerce websites and oversaw all relevant vendor relationships and contracts (working with legal representation).

As a Project Manager, I was responsible for day-to-day management of projects considering scope, schedule, finance, risk, quality, and resources that had definite outcomes, time limits and stayed inside a defined budget. I implemented project management best practices, coached team members, removed roadblocks, and protected the team from any impediments that might interfere with their delivery. I met with business-owners/design/architecture to outline roadmaps and met regularly with senior management to provide process updates.

Accomplishments

Strategically planned the future of social e-business with internal partners: forecasting, sales, product planning, product development, fulfillment, and information technology.

Digital Marketing expert with a focus on Social Commerce. Saved $$ by efficient community management, best practices implementation and recommendations for continued improvements.

Developed and implemented internet media strategies and budgets to meet brand sales and marketing goals and objectives.

Liaised with vendors to optimize brand equity and brand awareness campaigns leading to significant cost savings (to include e-commerce, ad display, SMS/MMS, rich media, OLV, SEO, affiliate programs, word of mouth, social media, and custom content management.)

Developed Omni-Channel online marketing recommendations for integrating B2C and Brands. Identified and managed potential channel conflicts.

Results driven Product Owner between multiple internal and external agencies (daily). Provided project management for all digital initiatives.

Coordinated brand website development, maintenance, and content development activities.

Champion of digital sales and marketing by educating others about online opportunities that integrate traditional marketing and online distribution channels.

Established social marketing/research strategy for a database of 14 million+, while maintaining positive ROI.

Assessed the health of the online businesses and worked directly with key retailers on increasing sales via promotions and premier online placements.

Met with major retailers, including Dillard's, Sears, Macy's, Kohl's, and JC Penney, advised re: HBI product additions, online brand merchandising, cross-sale opportunities, and website navigation.

Identified social audiences to leverage, implement, monitor, and analyze social commerce initiatives using CRM strategies.

Spearheaded groundbreaking "live web fashion shows," featuring top intimate apparel brands and renowned artists, reaching global audiences through multiple online platforms.

Led innovative online marketing initiatives, maximizing audience engagement and brand awareness through strategic utilization of viral video content and advanced SEO techniques.

Additional Experience:

As Agile Business Analyst and Agile Scrum Master at VF Corporation, I handled various responsibilities: filling in for Business Analysts, training new team members, and serving as backup Scrum Master. Attending Release Train Management meetings, I supported multiple teams, contributing to VF's Agile success.

Education

Bachelor of Arts in Communications – completed 20 hours

Jacksonville University, Jacksonville, Florida

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