Program Analyst Quality Assurance

Rafael Goitia Mercado

Fort Lauderdale, FL ***** ***********@*****.***

619-***-**** linkedin.com/in/rafaelgoitia

Profile

Sr. Level Business and Program Analyst with a proven track record of effectively providing senior leadership with financial insight and strategic support to establish goals and measure performance to ensure optimal decision-making. Demonstrated strengths in Business Process Improvement, Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis, Research, Due Diligence, and Budgets/Forecasting. Recognized for consistent ability to exceed performance expectations.

Decisive leader with excellent ability to analyze critical market factors required to achieve successful business results. Involved in a broad scope of strategy, policy, and operational decisions including business cases, due diligence, and asset management initiatives. Think, plan and execute strategically with strong business acumen. Adept at enlisting global stakeholder participation and partnering with all levels of an organization. Bilingual English and Spanish. Conversational Portuguese.

Professional Experience

U.S. Department of State 07/2019 - Present

Program Analyst/Acting Lead

Accountable for managing the J1 Visa program for exchange students coming to get an education in the United States. Emphasis on ensuring the safety, health and welfare of exchange students participating in the program. Serve in an Acting Lead role responsible for assisting other Program Analysts in closing out cases and effectively resolving issues. Work on special projects as assigned.

Manage incidents and complaints regarding the program including issues with students and host families/sponsors.

Conduct site visits to host site organizations and/or homes to ensure they are in compliance with program standards.

Proactively monitor activity in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS).

Create data analytics reports to assist in program analysis and trend reporting.

Draft responses on complex case issues for the Division Chief and the Program Analysts.

Conduct timely in-depth analysis of complaints, incidents, and negative media coverage to ensure participant health, safety, and welfare and identify underlying regulatory issues. Log incidents and complaints into the case management system.

Report complaints and incidents to the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ Front Office and U.S. Department of State Regional Bureaus.

Effectively provide management with the business insight and strategic support to establish goals and measure performance of the organization’s projects and objectives to ensure optimal decision making.

Work with end-users in implementing business solutions to produce high quality processes that meet/exceed expectations.

Conduct workflow analyses and make recommendations for implementing improvements related to business processes.

Social Security Administration 10/2017 - 07/2019

Legal Assistant

Provided legal support for two judges including case management, decision support, interpreting and translation, evidence gathering and preparation, drafting motions and orders, and preparing case summaries.

Reviewed and analyzed cases to ensure sufficiency of evidence or documentation was ready for hearing.

Obtained both medical and non-medical evidence needed for hearings including contacting claimants and/or representatives.

Drafted dismissal orders for the Judge if a determination was made that the request of hearing was untimely filed or if it did not meet sufficient legal and regulatory requirements.

Prepared case summaries by outlining information from all documents which reflected the prior medical history of the claimant and treatment undertaken, as well as any conflicting medical evidence.

Recognized for attention to detail and consistent ability to meet/exceed performance standards.

Consistently met/exceeded demands, expectations and deadlines through exceptional work ethic and commitment to excellence.

Nordstrom Inc. 11/2013 - 10/2017

Assistant Manager

Responsible for directing all daily activities of the Men’s Furnishings department at this high-volume store and #2 revenue store within the entire company. Product lines included clothing and high-end designer sunglasses, watches and accessories. Accountable for departmental operations, customer service, opening new credit accounts, merchandising, visual presentations/displays, inventory control, vendor relations, and fiscal results. Managed a staff of 200 and revenue in excess of $38.4MM. (Cont. P2)

Rafael Goitia Mercado Page Two

Professional Experience

Nordstrom Inc. - (continued)

Managed the procurement, inventorying, and merchandising of 360 line items for the department.

Audited financial records, invoices, and shipping and receiving documents for annual inspections.

Assisted customers in making selections by building customer loyalty offering suggestions and recommendations.

Exceeded personal sales goals by an average of 12% per year by innovating sales generation within the department.

Created a positive work environment, dramatically decreasing turnover and increasing staff retention.

Coached staff on the key clienteling behaviors including greeting customers, handing out business cards, opening credit applications, requesting to follow up, and establishing a long-term relationship with the customer.

U.S. Navy, USS Kidd (DDG-100) 11/2009 - 11/2013

Petty Officer in Charge/Naval Engineer

Scheduled, led and supervised 8-12 technicians in diagnosing, troubleshooting, repair, and operating auxiliary systems of Rigid-Hulled boats. Complex issues were diagnosed through engineered specific drawings, on-the-job troubleshooting, and trade processes. Administered a multi-million dollar annual budget

Analyzed and evaluated effectiveness of program operations and developed recommendations for improvement.

Advised senior management on program management initiatives.

Complete 20 required maintenance jobs for two Rigid-hulled inflatable boats weekly to ensure US Navy Ships were in compliance with safety standards at all times.

Executed orders and performed inventory audits of all parts and tools ensuring tool locker had all needed equipment to accomplish maintenance and everyday normal operations.

Led document inspection and test results, and independently decided which work was necessary to be performed to keep US Navy operations running to the best of their abilities.

Collaborated with internal departments and trades daily to bring jobs to completion safely, completing repairs with first-time quality, and within strict timelines.

Developed and executed test cases to validate system functionality, ensuring the accuracy of results.

Conducted performance testing to determine the scalability, reliability, and capacity of systems under load conditions.

Assisted in troubleshooting complex issues leveraging innovative problem-solving skills.

Education

Bachelor of Science Degree in Labor Relations

University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, PR

Technical Proficiencies

Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook)

Contact this candidate