Global Tech Leader - Cloud & AI Strategy Architect

MARGARITA BURAKOV

Global Engineering Leader Scalable Systems Architect Technology Strategist

917-***-**** ️ *********.*******@*****.*** https://www.linkedin.com/in/margarita-burakov-46b0b6a

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Results-driven technology executive with over 20 years of leadership experience in cloud modernization, enterprise architecture, and digital transformation across healthcare, education, and insurance sectors. Proven success in scaling organizations from startup to over $120 million in revenue, driving AI/ML innovation, and aligning enterprise technology with business strategy. Expert in cloud architecture (AWS, Azure), SaaS product growth, and compliance in regulated environments. Skilled in leading global teams (100+ staff) and managing budgets up to $15M, with a track record of transforming technical operations into scalable, profitable engines for growth. Recognized for C-suite partnership, strategic foresight, and delivering measurable business outcomes.

Core Strengths: Technology Vision & Execution • Operational Excellence • AI/ML Innovation • Cloud Strategy (AWS, Azure) • Enterprise SaaS • Compliance (HITRUST, HIPAA, FERPA, SOC2, COPPA) • Cross-Functional Leadership • Data Analytics • Cost Optimization • Global Team Management • Stakeholder Engagement

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Rethink First, New York, NY

SVP, Engineering & Architecture Jan 2024 – Present

VP, Engineering Feb 2018 – Jan 2024

Product Development Manager Oct 2014 – Feb 2018

Senior Web Developer Aug 2011 – Sep 2014

Company Growth Impact:

Played a pivotal leadership role in transforming Rethink First from an early-stage startup into a $120M+ enterprise SaaS leader serving healthcare, education, and corporate wellness markets. Partnered with founders, investors, and C-level executives to architect secure, scalable platforms, drive AI/ML innovation, and lead the company through six successful acquisitions – integrating technology operations while maintaining service excellence and accelerating growth.

Under my technology leadership, Rethink scaled to serve 8 of the largest U.S. school districts and over 800 districts nationwide, supporting 3M+ students. The platform now supports 31 of the Fortune 100 companies, spans 190+ countries, and impacts 11M+ lives worldwide. It powers 1,100+ clinical practices, processes over 650M+ clinical data points, and achieves 99% precision in predicting treatment outcomes through AI-driven analytics and outcome modeling.

Key Achievements & Responsibilities:

Orchestrated the execution of an enterprise-wide technology strategy, ensuring alignment between innovation, scalability, and long-term business objectives.

Scaled Agile across global teams—leveraging OKRs, KPIs, and velocity metrics to sharpen sprint execution and significantly improve release cadence, reliability, and delivery accuracy.

Spearheaded the design and deployment of AI/ML-powered analytics that elevated predictive modeling accuracy, improved operational forecasting, and accelerated data-driven decision-making.

Directed and optimized a $15M engineering budget while leading global teams of 100+ professionals across architecture, DevOps, QA, and IT.

Partnered strategically with the CEO and Board to craft forward-looking technology roadmaps that expanded scalability, elevated company valuation, and supported new market penetration.

Strengthened post-acquisition scalability by unifying architecture, data frameworks, and compliance processes across healthcare, education, and insurance sectors.

Increased operational efficiency by 25%, reduced infrastructure costs by 18%, and improved time-to-market by 20% through strategic platform consolidation and cross-team alignment.

Overhauled engineering workflows to increase throughput by 15% and enhance system performance by 20% through architectural modernization and agile process refinement.

Spearheaded comprehensive cloud transformation (Azure, AWS) and containerization initiatives leveraging Docker and Kubernetes.

Built and institutionalized robust data intelligence frameworks leveraging AI and BI tools to enhance visibility, performance analytics, and executive insights.

Architected healthcare data exchange solutions across FHIR, HL7, and EDI standards, enabling real-time clinical event routing, secure PHI workflows, and regulatory-aligned integrations with EHR, RCM, and payer systems to support population health and outcome analytics.

Increased customer satisfaction by 25%, achieved 99.99% system uptime, and delivered $1.5M in annual cost savings through infrastructure optimization.

Led district-scale interoperability initiatives—including Canvas LMS, Schoology, OneRoster, and SIS integrations – enabling seamless roster sync, real-time data flow, and automated provisioning; accelerated district onboarding by 40% and unlocked scalable growth for large K–12 edtech markets.

Designed and implemented secure card processing systems integrated with enterprise SaaS platforms; optimized transaction workflows, ensured PCI compliance, and increased payment processing efficiency by 30%.

Championed and sustained HITRUST certification for eight consecutive years, fortifying compliance with HIPAA, FERPA, SOC2, and COPPA standards and strengthening enterprise risk posture.

Implemented scalable data pipelines and cloud infrastructure capable of processing 650M+ clinical progress data points, enabling AI-driven insights at unprecedented precision.

Reduced deployment time by 40% and improved release predictability through automation, CI/CD optimization, and DevOps integration.

Cultivated a high-performance, accountability-driven engineering culture, improving retention and internal promotions by 25% through mentorship, stretch assignments, ongoing feedback and leadership development.

Special Education Associates Inc., Brooklyn, NY

Web Developer / Systems Administrator / Project Manager Sep 1996 – Aug 2011

Led IT transformation for an educational services provider, developing enterprise applications for billing, compliance, and student tracking.

Reduced operational processing time by 30% through workflow automation and SQL-based reporting systems.

Oversaw end-to-end software development lifecycle (SDLC) from requirements through deployment.

EDUCATION

Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science – Minor: Information Systems & Internet Technology

Pace University, New York, NY

Graduated Summa Cum Laude

CERTIFICATION

HITRUST Certified CSF Practitioner (CCSFP) – March 2021

TECHNICAL EXPERTISE

Cloud & Architecture: Microsoft Azure, Amazon AWS, Cloud Migration, SaaS Platforms, SOA, Microservices, Containerization (Docker, Kubernetes)

AI & Machine Learning: Generative AI (ChatGPT, LLMs), ML Model Development & Deployment, Data Preprocessing, NLP, AI Integration into Enterprise Workflows, GitHub Copilot for AI-assisted coding and automation

Software Development: Agile/Scrum, CI/CD, DevOps, API Design, Mobile & IoT Applications, AI/ML Integration

Security & Compliance: HITRUST, HIPAA, FERPA, SOC2, COPPA, WCAG Accessibility, Risk Management

Data & Analytics: Business Intelligence, Predictive Modeling, Data Engineering, SQL Server, PowerBI

Leadership & Strategy: Budgeting, Forecasting, Vendor Management, Business Continuity Planning, Cross-Functional Team Leadership

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