★Arvind Gk - Scrum Master (☛Sasm, Psm)★ Email & Phone Number

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States

Scrum Master - Amgen✔ As a Scrum Master, I facilitated agile events such as sprint planning, daily stand-ups, sprint reviews, and retrospectives to ensure that the team was working effectively and delivering value to stakeholders. I worked with the development team and other stakeholders to identify and remove obstacles that were hindering progress, and served as a coach and mentor to the development team, helping them to improve their skills and knowledge of agile practices.✔ I promoted continuous improvement by identifying and implementing changes to the team's processes and practices that would help them work more effectively, and ensured compliance with SAFe principles and practices, aligning all work with the overall goals and priorities of the organization. I collaborated with cross-functional teams and stakeholders to define the scope and priorities for the upcoming PI, and helped to refine and break down user stories and other work items into smaller, more manageable pieces.✔ I participated in estimation and planning activities to ensure that work could be completed within the defined timeframe, and assisted with the development of a PI Objectives document that outlines the goals and priorities for the upcoming PI. I also contributed to the creation of a PI Roadmap that outlines the work that will be completed during the PI and the dependencies between work items. I worked with the development team and other stakeholders to identify and address any risks or issues that may impact the delivery of the work.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States

Scrum Master at Lowe's Companies, Inc.✔ I organized and facilitated Agile and Scrum meetings, including Sprint Planning, Daily Scrums or Stand-ups, Sprint Check-In, Sprint Review, and Retrospective. I assisted the Product Owner/Product Management in maintaining, refining, and prioritizing the product backlog, and helped the team to decide on the sprint backlog for each sprint. I also supported the team in writing and splitting User stories and breaking down Epics.✔ I used JIRA to maintain the product backlog and sprint backlog, and to create and track user stories, Sprint planning, tracking and managing sprints, and creating Scrum and Kanban boards, status reports, and burn-down charts. I reported progress to all stakeholders through Sprint Burn-Down Reports, Iteration Burn-Down Reports, and velocity target updates. I identified the product roadmap and created the backlog in conjunction with the product owner and key business partners, and coordinated with systems partners to finalize designs and formalize requirements.✔ I applied Sizing and Planning Poker techniques as needed based on the length of the backlog and priorities, and operated in 3-week sprints with flexibility on length based on immediate functionality concerns. I ensured application availability and data integrity through preventative maintenance and upgrades, and resolved conflicts, improved morale, and established clear goals by effectively managing timelines and shared resources, with a special emphasis on building relationships across departments. I performed weekly portfolio review with senior management and provided updates to stakeholders, and coordinated with cross-functional teams including Project Management, Finance, Service, and IT Divisions to ensure alignment of business objectives. I communicated internally and coordinated with stakeholders to ensure alignment, identify potential risks, determine product gaps, quickly resolve roadblocks, and build trust with the team.

Client: Decipher (Workforce Management), Inspire It Solutions (Mobile Applications)✔ I facilitate daily Scrum routines, including Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Backlog Refinement, Sprint Demos/Reviews, and Sprint Retrospectives. I collaborate with the Product Owner and development team members to prioritize and define stories using JIRA, and coordinate the work between the onshore and offshore teams.✔ I integrate with project, technology, and business partners to manage projects, proactively gather status updates, and minimize impact. I influence and negotiate with partners to obtain agreement, and ensure that the team has a healthy Product and Sprint backlog. I provide visibility into the Agile team's delivery plans and progress to stakeholders, and measure the team's delivery, maturity, and performance to identify improvement opportunities. I also ensure that each team member is fully engaged in the project and making a meaningful contribution.✔ I am accountable for defining, planning, orchestrating, and delivering a given strategic initiative, including business, operational, and IT deliverables. I ensure that end results are of the highest caliber with a clearly articulated scope and quantifiable business benefit. I also directly manage all aspects of the project life cycle, overseeing all phases of a project, and rigorously manage scope to ensure that commitments are achieved within agreed-upon time, cost, and quality parameters. I define and track project milestones, and develop, maintain, and report on an overall integrated delivery plan.

✔I am proficient in organizing and facilitating all Scrum ceremonies, including Sprint Planning, Daily Stand-up, Sprint Review, and Sprint Retrospective, as well as Story Grooming. I collaborate closely with the product owner on backlog grooming to ensure that the product backlog is relevant, prioritized, and ready for sizing, and that acceptance criteria are agreed upon. I also facilitate the team in estimating story points and measuring velocity to plan for future sprints.✔I am skilled in effectively tracking the team's progress, including burn down, velocity, and release forecasting. I also identify and remove impediments that obstruct the team from achieving sprint goals, and help the team stay creative and productive while making sure its successes are visible to the Product Owner. I educate and reinforce the Scrum methodology and agile framework to team members and stakeholders.✔In addition to my responsibilities as a Scrum Master, I am also responsible for developing, maintaining, and executing capture strategies and detailed capture plans (including call plans). I gather RFP/RFI/RFQ and research information to include in proposals, including resumes, references, company information, certificates, requirements, and project summaries. I review, organize, and edit written RFP/RFI/RFQ documentation to improve clarity, and coordinate the proposal process with relevant teams, following standard procedures.✔I collaborate with stakeholders, vendors, project executives, project managers, and relevant consultants in the proposal preparation process, and verify complex technical solutions with stakeholders to ensure that strategies and themes are easily understandable, readable, and compelling. I also participate in strategic planning that includes evaluating marketing intelligence, identifying customer concerns and key issues, and developing win strategies.

✔As a key member of the Proposal Development team, I provide guidance and leadership on proposal management and development, as well as offering proposal and project management support and oversight for new and existing projects and proposals. My responsibilities include conducting, managing, and participating in kick-off calls, status meetings, and proposal schedules, as well as coordinating and producing responses to Peoplesoft and Oracle proposals (RFIs, RFRs, RFPs, etc.). I also lead a proposal team made up of members with the relevant service, product, and business knowledge needed to win the proposal.✔I am responsible for introducing and implementing necessary proposal procedures and processes, and for analyzing RFP/bid requirements against the proposal outline to ensure compliance and responsiveness to the customer's needs and issues. I conduct regular proposal progress status meetings and maintain the proposal schedule through the creation and management of a dedicated proposal calendar on SharePoint. I also direct the Proposal Coordinator and/or Technical Writer in all proposal development and production activities.✔In addition, I am responsible for collaborating with other team members to ensure the success and completion of project deliverables, and for managing timelines to mitigate negative impacts on all processes. I am in charge of planning project resources, assembling and leading multiple project teams, and managing time, budget, quality, risk, and documentation/reporting. I also lead diverse teams by chairing proposal kick-off meetings, proposal progression meetings, and color review meetings, and by managing relationships with key proposal contributors. I support subject matter experts in developing and updating content areas for incorporation into proposals, and I support capture and business development throughout the opportunity lifecyclenity lifecycle.