Sara Ploechl Email & Phone Number

Phoenix, Az, Us

New York, Ny, Us

Phoenix, Az, Us

- Product Manager and team lead of the Tire-focused cross-product integration with external manufacturer software through flat file and API data transfer- Created and managed Tire-focused strategy, vision, and roadmap- Participated on a panel charged with spearheading the Development and Product department’s adoption of traditional Scrum methodologies- Collaborated with Development department leadership on the optimization and configuration of Jira and Scrum process workflows- Performed end-user customer interviews to elicit feedback, pain points, and post-launch success validation- Created discovery user-flow diagrams, documentation, and user maps- Facilitated discovery and design sessions between stakeholders, product design, and developer team members- Authored Epics and User Stories and managed Sprint Backlog Grooming sessions to refine details and Acceptance Criteria- Facilitated Kick-Off sessions between Development, QA, Support, Help & Training, and Marketing departments- Ran daily Tire-focused team stand-ups to facilitate team communication- Prioritized groomed backlog for Sprint Planning preparation- Managed day-to-day Product vision direction and impediment resolution- Performed Product Acceptance, pre-release branch merge- Facilitated team Sprint Demos for team members and internal stakeholders- Facilitated team Sprint Review and Sprint Retrospectives for commitment and estimation evaluation and process improvements.- Facilitated team Sprint Planning and workload commitments- Documented team’s bi-weekly company-wide release notes and facilitated or performed team’s company-wide demonstrations prior to release- Authored internal functionality documentation with Confluence to support the Help & Training department- Rotated Release Management responsibilities on internal-facing release notes and bi-weekly, company-wide release presentations and management of Support and Operation’s feature request backlog via Salesforce and Pendo Feedback

Phoenix, Arizona, Us

- Acted as Point of Contact for Integrated Software Vendors’ Sandbox Environment access, troubleshooting, certification, and Production Environment access- Handled requests between Payment Operations and Development departments where database changes were needed, or issue reported- Spearheaded investigations into suspicious or fraudulent consumer activity, coordinating action between departments and affected clients- Maintained project tracking for strategic accounts involving external partners or vendors- Maintained daily and weekly project status updates via program dashboards, status calls, and email- Facilitated coordination on efforts between internal departments and external partners/clients- Created, collaborated on, and documented new program processes/practices for internal departments

Phoenix, Arizona, Us

Hypur is a Scottsdale-based payment and banking technology platform that was built to enable financial institutions to responsibly and sustainably bank highly regulated industries. Through proactive compliance and automated due diligence tools it helps financial institutions provide banking services to cash-intensive businesses, like cannabis and money service businesses. Founded in 2014, the platform helps monitor transactions and provides the level of transparency needed to comply with government regulations.- Collaborated between Stakeholders and Developers in defining and refining acceptance criteria, UX/UI, and scope for Epics and their User Stories- Ran daily Development team stand-ups to facilitate team communication- Managed pre-development prioritization of the Product Backlog- Managed Sprint Planning and assignment of Features and Bugs for the development iteration- Managed Stakeholder Requirement Approval Demos for Code Completion milestones pre-QA Delivery- Managed web and backend Releases from QA delivery, feature testing, regression testing, and production deployment- Documented and distributed internal release notes in conjunction with deployment- Documented minimum business and development requirements for larger features- Managed and directed iOS and Android Native App Version Releases through development, QA, and deployment in conjunction with dependent backend updates- Fielded communications for Feature Requests between external/internal parties and Product Director- Provided Tier 3 and 4 level troubleshooting and analysis of issues reported by Customer Support and internal departments

True Mobile Health is a personalized support program designed to help people in early recovery navigate the daily challenges of staying sober. True Mobile Health's goal is to utilize live coaching available 24×7, 365 days a year, combined with an accountability app that helps keep people on track in early recovery. True Mobile Health bridges the gap from leaving treatment and early recovery to help clients stay accountable to a recovery program while also reintegrating back into everyday life.As Product Coordinator I am responsible for Project Management and Product Ownership of the development for the True Mobile Health and CARE Connect applications, and their licensed counterparts. My main duties involve collaborating between developers, designers, and stakeholders to produce frequent and functioning updates to the system.I also assist in Quality Assurance and user and organization onboarding support.

Software Ops is a software developer based out of Scottsdale, Arizona that provides specialized integrated mobile and web application solutions to clients, with a focus in providing and securing data.At Software Ops I manage the Quality Assurance process, field customer support, facilitate daily stand up and sprint planning meetings, and manage teams working on multiple projects at any given time.Projects include enterprise systems and applications such asUnited Dairyman of Arizona Delivers (UDA Delivers) - a system that allows Milk Truck drivers a faster and comprehensive way of picking up milk loads from dairies around the state and delivering them to main handler hubs such as Kroger or UDA itself for processing, with a web portal that allows administrative access to track and record reports coming in from the mobile application, GPS tracking and data retrieval, and ability to message and manage drivers all while in the field on the move.Liberty Scaffolding - an application and web portal system that streamlines the scaffolding inspection process at construction sites, sending reports back to the web portal for administration to view and management the inventory material parts on each project site.True AfterCare - A personalized 90-Day Support program for those in early recovery. It connects Clients with Coaches of the program to set up customized schedules and routines and establish accountability to navigate the challenges of stay sober.Hypur - A payment and banking technology platform that was built to enable financial institutions to responsibly and sustainably bank highly regulated industries. Through proactive compliance and automated due diligence tools it helps financial institutions provide banking services to cash-intensive businesses, like cannabis and money service businesses. The platform helps monitor transactions and provides the level of transparency needed to comply with government regulations

Tactical Restoration is a small restoration and remodeling company that specializes in disaster repair, located in Tempe, AZ.It was the Office Administrator's role to manage the office, inventory, customers, books, crew's and general business needs.- Entered in new clients and projects into the database so that the crew could schedule their workload, as well as field customer emails and phone calls about new and existing projects - assisting them as needed.- Restocked and tracked the crew's inventory daily for each project.- Updated the books with material and other purchases allocated to each project.- Entered and managed time sheets and weekly payroll stubs.- Managed incoming and outgoing mail from and to clients or otherwise.

Agoura Hills, Ca, Us

THQ was a video game publisher responsible for such series as Saints Row, Darksiders, MX vs ATV, Red Faction, WWE, and many others.Quality Assurance testers were responsible for testing incoming games through all levels of their production cycling and documenting all issues in preparation for release.- Tested functional quality and playability on the X360 and PS3 consoles- Paid close attention to detail while testing and documenting bugs- Communicated with team members, leads, and developers; vocal and through use of email and Lync- Wrote comprehensive and detailed bugs using DevTrack- Prioritized and managed issues within time constraints and under pressure- Continued daily duties with little direction; self-motivated- Took initiative for leading group tests, test plans, and organization of tests- Worked extensively with the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 and their testing tools- Used Audiokinetic Wwise for audio testing- Developed and organized easy to use and read test plans using Microsoft Excel- Worked on-site with developers at Vigil Games during the Darksiders II project- Used Perforce and Steam for PC testing while on-site at Vigil Games

Austin, Tx, Us

While working at THQ Phoenix I was sent to work on-site with Vigil Games to help their Development QA team during Darksiders II's crunch time.I worked closely with the studio developers and developer QA to find major issues within the critical path line and quest lines, offering solutions where possible and collaborating with the QA team in Phoenix on the project's status.

San Francisco, Ca, Us

Volunteered as a Conference Associate at the 2011 Game Developers Conference held annually in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Tempe, Az, Us

The University of Advancing Technology is a private, for-profit institution of higher education in Tempe, Arizona. UAT is an accredited university, with specific emphasis on how its specialized mission integrates technology into its general education requirements.Student Ambassadors were student employees that acted as liaisons between prospective students and the university.- Managed and fielded prospective student and their family's questions about the school from a current student's perspective via online and over the phone.- Provided guided tours of the campus and dorm facilities to prospective or accepted students and their families.- Assisted University Staff and Faculty with office tasks as needed.- Volunteered worker for University events.

An off-site internship for a small flash games company based out of Las Vegas, Nevada.- Created assets and animations using Adobe Flash.

Volunteered as a Conference Associate at GDC Austin.