Cara Bourdage Email & Phone Number

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Experienced and visionary B2B agency leader with a demonstrated track record of providing strategic direction to business analyst and quality assurance analyst teams. Proficient in managing all facets of the product life cycle, including strategic planning, feature prioritization, roadmap development, and timely delivery. Possesses a proven ability to navigate complex projects with ease, offering solution-oriented approaches to overcome challenges.- Oversee and mentor a team of 6 professionals spanning business analysis and quality assurance, fostering a culture of trust and professional development.- Create and maintain a robust process framework to ensure repeatable outcomes for all product planning, execution, and training documentation, aligning with product owner and quality assurance objectives- Guide, coach, and lead colleagues and direct reports to foster confidence within a self-organized team model, promoting collaboration and innovation- Collaborate with clients and key stakeholders to develop strategic near and long-term roadmaps, guiding the team in achieving company objectives- Purposefully prioritize feature backlogs to enhance team velocity through meticulous sprint and resource planning, ensuring timely and quality releases that uphold optimal product health- Participate in user research and customer feedback collection processes to inform feature planning and enhance product offerings- Conduct internal and client retrospectives to facilitate continuous improvement, ensuring adaptation to better ways of working through ongoing feedback loops

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Owned and operated three boutique fitness studio location in Chicago with an annual revenue of $500,000+- Expanded from a single location to three locations in highly sought-after Chicago neighborhoods within less than 3 years - Increased sales by 140% in three years at Lincoln Park studio, and by 25% in less than one year at River North- Directed and executed client communications, marketing plans and customer service strategy across multiple channels and platforms, fostering enhanced brand visibility, customer engagement, and satisfaction- Responsible for daily business operations, including P&L, budget, tax prep, payroll; Hired, retained, mentored and fostered an inclusive workplace for over 25 instructors across three studios

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Served as a key team member in propelling business growth from 20+ employees to 100+ within a span of less than 2 years. Seamlessly transitioned from a well-established project management team to a founding member of the business analyst discipline, making substantial contributions to the organization's rapid expansion and overall success.- Promoted to senior business analyst for exceeding expectations in client satisfaction and leading the team in process development; instrumental in achieving higher client satisfaction levels and implementing more efficient and repeatable outcomes for our department- Advise clients on eCommerce best practices related to business requirements and processes and lead client UAT and project specific training sessions - Serve as platform expert to help clients understand how best to use software to fit their requirementsCoach, mentor and train 6 team members; contribute to building processes and standardization for team practice; initiate comprehensive training sessions on B2B best practices, equipping the team with valuable industry knowledge and expertise

Chicago, Illinois, United States

- Make strategic and tactical decisions about how the project tasks will be completed day to day- Create and maintain project activity from Discovery to Deployment while maintaining focus on timing, budget and project health- Collaborate with technical team members in a variety of geographic locations to communicate and drive acceptance of project deadlines, milestones, and dependencies

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Adept at collaborating with cross-functional teams to deliver high-impact projects on time and within budget. Recognized for driving client satisfaction through strategic planning, meticulous attention to detail, and a passion for creating compelling brand experiences. Instrumental in contributing to the agency's growth by leading dynamic project teams and fostering collaborative client relationships.- Manage all aspects of estimation, planning, execution, and delivery for consumer website development for high profile clients including Altria (Marlboro, USST, JMC) and Coca-Cola - Actively track project status, progress, risks and issues, escalating to project stakeholders as appropriate

• Creating media plans and facilitating creative for Verizon and Clear indirect agents using budgets, advertising objectives and market information. Executing media plans in many different outlets including traditional and non-traditional print, broadcast, outdoor and digital• Administer monthly nationwide direct mail and newspaper inserts promotions for Verizon Agents• Managing the advertising portion of Clear’s co-op program – handling all media requests, negotiating buys, processing claims and paying media vendors. Working with Verizon co-op vendor, ACB to ensure advertising compliance, reserve and claim funding to pay media vendors• Managing Mitsubishi corporate account – including Adplanner, a turn-key marketing website for their dealers and creative/print management for corporate marketing initiatives• Ownership of media billing process using Quickbooks to create invoices and bills, as well as manage payables• Responsible for managing over $900,000 in media placement between October 2008 to May 2010

• Interfaced with clients on all aspects of their account…teleconferencing, business reviews, identifying program enhancements and publishing project measurement reports • Financial planning and monthly billing for a gross revenue of over $1 million per year• Ownership and responsibility for all aspects of project management…scheduling, preparing project specifications, interfacing and directing support groups• Provided clients with timely reporting on project status, managing and monitoring quality control• Directly supervised Customer Service Representatives including annual performance reviews, interviewing for position replacement, and training on direct reporting.• Coordinated client requirements through internal media services group…print production, collateral fulfillment, direct mail, securing budget estimates