Program Manager

ROMONA BENSON, MBA, PMP, CSM

PROGRAM MANAGER

Raleigh, NC 919-***-**** ************@*****.***

SUMMARY

Highly motivated and results-driven with ten plus years of experience successfully leading and delivering complex IT projects, with a strong focus on aligning IT solutions with business objectives across high-tech manufacturing, financial services and pharmaceutical and life sciences industries. Proven ability to build strong relationships with stakeholders, translate business needs into actionable IT initiatives, and drive successful project outcomes. Expertise in methodologies e.g., Agile, Waterfall, ITIL and a strong understanding of cloud platforms and emerging technologies. Seeking a challenging role as Program Manager or Associate Director.

KEY SKILLS

Business Transformation Systems Implementation Global IT Strategy Program & Project Management Executive Engagement Agile Development Process Improvement Vendor Management Risk & Issues Management Cross-Functional Collaboration Analytic Problem-Solving Detailed-Oriented Service Management (Onshore, Offshore) Change Management Scrum Planning Mergers & Acquisitions Excellent Communicator Team Motivator

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Program Manager, Transition & Transformation Integration & Engagement 8/2020 – 8/2024

IBM & Kyndryl, Inc. (formerly part of IBM) New York, NY

Managed multi-million-dollar Transition & Transformation (T&T) program budgets, overseeing and accountable for end-to-end program integration and success components.

Directed T&T elements for new business engagements, supporting all phases of the sales lifecycle, including RFPs, client oral presentations, solution development, cost case development, and contract content.

Earned a perfect Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 10 by leading the transformation team to complete the client’s separation from its parent company ahead of the TSA agreement deadline, despite scope creep challenges. The key to success included executive buy-in, well defined scope and change management process, active communication, documenting agreements and fostering a sense of teaming and ownership for all parties.

Secured a $4M, 2.5-year contract renewal by leading a transformation team engagement that effectively demonstrated the value of continued partnership with Kyndryl.

US Workwear Apparel & Footwear Manufacturer ($12M TCV): Directed the migration of the client’s distributed environment to Kyndryl’s data center, setting up data replication to a disaster recovery site, and implementing Process Interface Manuals (PIM), AIOps, Science Logic, Netcool, Rubrik Backup Services, Client Security Documents (CSD), new network and security services (Checkpoint Firewalls), and Disaster Recovery Plan.

Financial Services Company ($27.4M TCV): Led the greenfield build and migration to IBM’s Public Cloud environment, creating Client Security Documents (CSD), Disaster Recovery Plan, ID Admin Secondary Controls, PCI documentation, and implementing Network and Security Services (Palo Alto Firewalls).

North America Truck Manufacturer ($43M TCV): Managed the transition of z/OS application workloads and data to IBM’s zCloud Data Center, delivering services such as Knowledge Transfer, Process Interface Manual creation, Incident, Problem & Change Process, Network and Security Services, and Disaster Recovery Planning.

Rental Car Company: Oversaw the build-out of the network and base environment for the zCloud migration, ensuring the successful creation of user IDs, temporary network establishment, brocade configuration, and operational data replication in preparation for dry runs.

Senior Project Manager 11/2012 – 8/2020

IBM New York, NY

Steered cross-functional teams to deliver the Strategic Outsourcing Program on time and within budget, including integrating new employees from a business acquisition into IBM and ensuring high client satisfaction.

Led the migration of 106 SAP applications from the client to IBM data centers and IBM’s zCloud, coordinating all technical and logistical aspects to ensure smooth transitions.

Implemented deskside and service desk support systems, including deploying Service Management Systems such as Remedy and ServiceNow, to enhance operational efficiency.

Oversaw the deployment of system tools and the development of operational documents, including Process Interface Manuals (PIM) and Client Security Documents (CSD), to standardize processes and ensure compliance.

Developed Disaster Recovery Plans and Service Level Agreement (SLA) Reporting frameworks to ensure business continuity and maintain service quality across all managed services.

Stood up and scaled a Service Management System (following ITIL best practices), aligning all processes with IBM standards and client requirements and ensuring readiness for full-scale operations.

Project Manager 8/2009 – 11/2012

IBM New York, NY

Managed multiple data center relocations, application, database, and storage migrations within IBM’s Strategic Outsourcing organization, ensuring projects were delivered on time and within budget.

Directed project budget management, planning, scheduling, and execution, ensuring effective coordination internally, externally, and cross-functionally, and timely completion of all phases.

Facilitated the de-transition of support services from IBM to the client, maintaining operational continuity and meeting all service level agreements (SLAs).

EDUCATION

Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Business Management Howard University

Bachelor of Science (BS) in Information Technology George Mason University

CERTIFICATIONS

Certified Scrum Master (CSM) Scrum Alliance

Certified Project Management Professional (PMP) Project Management Institute (PMI)

Master’s Certificate in Project Management George Washington University

TECHNOLOGY TOOLKIT

Project Management & Service Management: Microsoft Project Smartsheet Jira Remedy ServiceNow Process Interface Manuals (PIM) Service Level Agreement (SLA) Reporting Disaster Recovery Planning ITIL

Cloud & Infrastructure Platforms: System Architecture Cloud Operations Cloud Platforms (zCloud, Azure, AWS) Mission Critical Infrastructure Platforms (Mainframe, Distributed Servers, Database, Middleware, Network, Security, Storage, System Platforms) Mainframe and Distributed Server Deployments Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) Platform as a Service (PaaS) Software as a Service (SaaS)

Security & Compliance: Client Security Documents (CSD) Checkpoint Firewalls Palo Alto Firewalls ID Admin Secondary Controls PCI Documentation

Monitoring & Automation: AIOps Science Logic Netcool SolarWinds

Data Management & Backup: Rubrik Backup Services SAP (for Data Center Migrations)

Enterprise Tools & Collaboration: Agile and Waterfall Methodologies Enterprise Architecture Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Outlook, Teams) SharePoint

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