Digital Product Manager


I build and manage profitable digital products for exceptional customer experiences

Download my Digital Product Manager resume

Employment

  •  

    2013  -  Present

    ICT Consultant

    A pragmatic, commercially-focused Technologist who will do what it takes to get results. I have enjoyed focused roles across the IT life-cycle, as well as extensive User-centric Product Management, and am most effective in a strategic, cross-functional role. While I can be described as a Senior ICT Manager, I contribute a broader range of skills and experience than those of solely Technology or Management.

  •  

    2013  -  Present

    Senior Business Analyst &: UX Lead

    A key team member responsible for delivery of the strategic Digital Transformation Programme. Responsible for conducting User Requirements Definition for the Loan Origination Value Chain, selecting the technology solution and implementing customer-centric, transformational processes.

  •  

    2012  -  2012

    User Experience Designer (UX)

    Responsible for defining the user-experience across Mxit’s mobile chat product on iOS, Android, Blackberry, J2ME and Windows Phone 8. Drive the refresh of the user interface on smart-phones with trending design and interaction patterns towards a consistent and engaging experience. Set product features, prioritisation and release planning for each agile product release using user-centred design.

  •  

    2010  -  2012

    Digital Product Manager (Mobile games)

    Responsible for all aspects of bringing innovative products to market, including conceptualisation, product design, business modelling, protyping, product launch, customer acquisition, product monetization and market expansion. Daily hands-on involvement in programme delivery including agile project management, product back-log grooming, release planning and feature prioritisation across multiple products. Also managed all aspects of client projects on mobile platforms from scope definition, sales and proposals through to rapid prototypes and user-interaction design.

  •  

    2010  -  2010

    Digital Product Manager (Mobile applications)

    Independently produced mobile applications on iOS and Nokia QT platforms for the South African mobile consumer. Focussed on geo-location and hyper-local content, including social media components. Platform offered turn-by-turn based routing for the Tourism and Real Estate industries. Managed entire product life-cycle with multiple 3rd parties from conception, product design, flow, user interaction, sales & marketing, product launch, user acquisistion and product profitability. Coached and managed a software development team on Scrum for improved project delivery.

  •  

    2007  -  2009

    Software Development Manager

    Responsibilities were to plan, source, deliver and manage the technical architecture, standards and developer resources necessary to deliver on the strategic plan for South Africa's largest web-site offerings. Ensure consistency and set standards in the selection, design, architecture, implementation and performance of underlying technology. Work with the Project Office and Product Managers to deliver innovative IT products to sites like News24.com. Form and manage strategic vendor and partner relationships. Plan and develop competencies of IT professionals, and manage and develop a high performance team and manage the multi-million Rand budgets.

  •  

    2005  -  2007

    IT Manager

    Key deliverables included managing the technical architecture, standards and engineering resources necessary to deliver on the strategic plan, within the parameters of cost and reliability. Directing the implementation and management of physical IT infrastructure initiatives within agreed SLAs. Co-ordinate and programme manage the delivery of IT services for the Operational, Development, Analyst and Design teams as well as strategic vendors. Manage all related multi-million Rand budget and resources.

  •  

    2000  -  2004

    Business Intelligence Lead

    Held multiple roles, beginning as a Senior Business Analyst and Project Manager to deliver on multiple projects from product design, business process definitions, system implementation, business operations, call-centre set-up. System Analyst responsibilities included leading a 7-person test team regarding system configuration, testing, release planning and implementation with the bank clearing houses and MasterCard networks. Final responsibilities were to set-up and lead the customer/business intelligence team to deliver business insights around customer behaviour, as well as advanced segmentation analysis for marketing-led campaigns.

  •  

    1998  -  1999

    Senior IT Consultant (Architecture)

    Joined the London team to consult on technical projects related to large corporate architectures, working on projects in the insurance, financial services, energy and public sector. Responsible for project management, business analysis and delivery on technical architecture definition, eCommerce and CRM solutions and major systems integration around ERP systems.

  •  

    1995  -  1997

    Business Process Consultant

    Entry-level consulting position with broad exposure across the business value chain, as well as the consulting disciplines of visioning, workshop facilitation, sales proposals and business case development, project management, process analysis and improvement and organisational change management. Project-based initiatives were around improving business processes, managing teams on strategy, analysis and implementation of focused improvement projects and system design for new business ventures. Industries worked in included financial services, telecoms, insurance, retail and asset management.

Education

General Skills

  • Commercially minded

  • Strategic thinking

  • Pragmatic, analytical thinking

  • Detail-oriented

  • Bias for action and teamwork

  • Strong project-ownership

  • Thorough understanding of technology

  • Strong written and oral communication

  • Works well under ambiguity & pressure

  • Curiosity & desire to learn

Product Management Skills

  • Market & product research

  • Mobile design patterns (iOS, Android, WinPho 8)

  • Business modelling

  • Product design & prototyping

  • Product monetisation

  • Customer acquisition & retention

  • Social network integration

  • User-centred research & design

  • Data-driven analysis (Google Analytics, Hadoop)

  • Opportunity awareness

  • Advanced use of prototype & wire-frame tools

Project Management Skills

  • Delivery focussed

  • Agile & scrum coaching

  • Collaborative problem-solving

  • Proactive, self-motivating

  • Diplomacy, influencing & negotiating

  • Identify & manage risks

  • High integrity & accountability

  • Expert use of project management software

Business Analysis Skills

  • Conceptual modelling

  • User-requirement definition

  • Process analysis, redesign & improvement

  • System analysis, selection & implementation

  • Expert use of business modelling software

  • Advanced use of frameworks (ARIS, RUP, UML)

  • Customer-oriented

  • Champion for change

General Management Skills

  • Business & financial accumen

  • Effective decision-making

  • Foresight & strategic awareness

  • Planning & time management

  • Risk management

  • Team development & coaching

  • Relationship building

Technical Skills

  • iOS, Android, WinPho 8 design patterns

  • iOS, Android, WinPho 8 user guidelines

  • Content Management Systems (CMS)

  • Social networks (Twitter, Mxit, Facebook, Mig33, Mocospace)

  • MS T-SQL 2012

  • Wordpress, MySQL, Php

  • MS Office (Project, Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Visio, Visual Basic)

  • New technology (Rails, Hadoop, Node.js)

Contact info

  • Bergvliet, 7945, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa

  • Email: neill@adamson.co.za
  • Phone: +27 83 556 3455
  • Website: www.adamson.co.za

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