11/12/2024

Do what works, do the right thing, and be kind Prioritize don’t prescribe Present data not opinions Bring everyone along for the journey Build in public Don’t forget to smell the roses Seek facts, not comfort Lighten the mood, laugh often (but just not like live, laugh, love) Find happiness within Face fears head-on

11/12/2024

Email - Fast responses indicate decisiveness and ability to get stuff done LinkedIn - I am passionate about coaching and mentoring others, always happy to help

11/12/2024

Here’s how I like to jam with you: Engage Developers are more than smart people that code. In a balanced team, they can help us ensure our plans are technically feasible, our tech stack doesn't pigeonhole our future, and share a valuable perspective on the team. I involve Engineers in product discovery and usability interviews whenever possible. If they can't attend, I ensure they get the information through standup recaps or asynchronous summaries, keeping data transparent for the entire team. Facilitation I’m technically fluent and am not afraid to drive technical discussions to move the team forward. Whether I'm running a path-to-production or designing a “how do we align on a specific library” workshop, I’m here to help the entire team overcome obstacles. Dev <> PM Feature Set Quick Syncs Jam Sessions Feature Testing Facilitator User Story Teller What the Engineers Say > She was strong with prioritization and organization. She helped steer clients into a prioritization mindset. Take the time to explain things [to her] because it will pay back dividends." > Asa, Staff Engineer > "I had an amazing experience working with you... You have a gift for helping the team find the next thing to do--even when we were feeling stuck, we were never blocked... You showed equal comfort and presence in both the qualitative and quantitative aspects of our project, and I appreciated how active you were in the creative process for the value stream model (and your willingness overall to add this experimental component to our engagement). You are a great teammate, and I hope we get the chance to work together again soon!" > Tyson, Staff Engineer > "I’ve worked very closely with Michele at VMware Tanzu Labs on a Space Monitoring Application project for the Royal Canadian Air Force. She is an amazing PM. Well organized and able to facilitate data-driven user research, discovery workshops and agile meetings. She is well respected, kind, honest and humble. Has excellent communication and collaboration skills and was key to the project's success by establishing excellent procedures and processes for the organization. Enabling several client PMs to excel to the point of being self-sufficient and proficient in agile processes within a relatively short period of time. Michele is also an entrepreneur and founded Female CoFounders to promote women in technology to lead startups/companies." > Nick, Staff Solutions Architect, Modernization

11/12/2024

Here’s how I like to jam with you: Prioritize not Prescribe During product discovery, it's crucial to define the problem clearly without dictating the solution. I guide designers by prioritizing problems and allowing them to explore solutions. Before product framing, I sync with a balanced team to ensure lean thinking and technical feasibility for our next milestone. In the product framing phase, I help prioritize user feedback so designers can focus on the most impactful improvements. A True Partner As your Product Manager, I’m here to help the entire team and product be successful. I’m here to bounce off ideas and help you avoid rabbit holes. When in a resource allocation rut or trying to onboard new Designers, I am fluent in driving user interviews and usability tests. I can also get by in Figma. Present Data not Opinions Our opinions are assumptions. When providing feedback on designs, I always try to bring it back to data - what did we hear from users, what are our analytics tools showing us, did our experiments test positively? Explaining the why and the data behind my feedback helps ensure the entire team is informed so that we can align on the best decision for the user and our business. Design <> PM Feature Set Quick Syncs Jam Sessions Problem Prioritization Interview Note Taker Interviewer Synthesis Synthesis Prioritization What the Designers Say > "Just wanted to restate that she is the best. She is super collaborative, open, helpful, and obviously a very good problem solver. She is great at steering a project with a lot of technical blockers towards the most successful/highest value things we can achieve based on what we are able to do. She is awesome at listening and interpreting technical things... She is an ally for UCD and has been wonderfully generous with her time to brainstorm ideas and strategies with me..." > Jayd, Senior Designer > "Michele has been very willing to engage in fruitful discussions with me as a designer in order to optimize our product direction and/or provide feedback on design direction. It always felt very collaborative and meaningful, which is the hallmark of someone who can practice being a balanced team member well. As previously noted, championing speedback is also a very positive thing." > Eric, Staff Designer

11/12/2024

Here’s how I like to keep you engaged: Build in Public Engaging stakeholders throughout the journey informs the team, builds trust, and fosters shared ownership. Internal transparency is crucial; I achieve this through consistent live and asynchronous updates, demos, and regular cadence sessions. Bring it back to their level Understanding your audience is crucial. I tailor communication details and topics based on stakeholders; for example, a technical senior leader likely isn't interested in a backlog bug. Alignment Autonomous teams are empowered, but stakeholder alignment is essential. I proactively inform leadership about key findings that could change strategy or require buy-in for riskier decisions. Expectation Setting Transparency and sharing information are key when managing stakeholder expectations. Sharing current state data alongside the current ask often helps both parties collaborate toward a path forward. Stkhr <> PM Feature Set Quick Syncs Strategy Sessions Status Updates Demos Regular cadence meetings 1<>1s What the Stakeholders Say > "While I have experienced the approaches of many people trying to follow the more academic processes in the world of Agile and Scrum related to requirement discovery and prioritization, Michele is the only one that I have witnessed being able to make it work in a real-life setting, both from a meeting participant engagement point of view and from an outcome point of view. Michelle has extremely strong skills when it comes to leading meetings, working with people of all different personalities, temperaments, and backgrounds, and effective communication." > Kevin, Product Leader Stakeholder > "To be honest you were the one inspiring me from day 1. You made my job easy and fun, thank you! This project could not have succeeded without your hard work, impressive dedication and outstanding leadership. We are so honored and privileged to have you as a key member of our Core Team." > Joseph, Project Director Space COP, Director

11/12/2024

It All Started When A public sector organization made a significant investment in Tanzu Application Service, aiming to modernize its software development processes. They found themselves at a crossroads, unsure of which application to prioritize for development and how to establish an in-house software factory effectively. The organization needed guidance to maximize its investment and create impactful, efficient software solutions. My Role As the product leader on this project, I: Led the initial discovery phase, conducting interviews across 12 teams to identify the most promising applications for development Facilitated prioritization sessions to focus on high-impact, low-complexity solutions Drove the solution generation process, including creative "Crazy eights" ideation sessions Oversaw usability testing and feedback prioritization to ensure user-centric development Developed and implemented an outcome-oriented roadmap to guide the project's progress Managed the growth of the team from a small, focused group to a larger, multi-team structure Conducted iteration planning meetings, user acceptance testing, and demos to ensure continuous improvement and stakeholder alignment Results Saved operations teams 4 hours per day, significantly increasing efficiency Delivered critical national safety information required for decision-making 80x faster All Five Eyes nations (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States) showed strong interest in integrating the application into their operations Successfully scaled the team from 1 PM pair, 1 developer pair, and 1 Designer to 2 teams comprising 10 developer pairs, 1 designer, and 3 PMs Established a robust in-house software factory, enabling the organization to continue developing impactful applications independently

11/12/2024

It All Started When In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, a government agency recognized an urgent need to streamline its financial assistance application process. They were grappling with an overwhelmed system, manual applications piling up, and overworked case workers. The existing online application had a high abandonment rate, exacerbating the problem. The agency needed a rapid, effective solution to manage the surge in financial assistance requests caused by the pandemic. My Role As the Product Manager for this critical project, I: Aligned the team and stakeholders on key objectives for the new application, focusing on simplicity, user-friendliness, responsiveness, and accessibility Led discussions on technical solutions, balancing configurability with development expertise Implemented data-driven decision-making processes, utilizing both qualitative and quantitative data Guided the team through rapid development cycles to meet urgent pandemic-related needs Collaborated with a diverse team of designers, developers, and QA specialists from both the client side and Tanzu Quickly identified key triggers for user abandonment rate to inform design and development decisions Built confidence in the team while selling the future vision to stakeholders Oversaw the technical de-risking of application integration and development Results Won a contract expansion with a $1.2M project budget, demonstrating the value and success of our initial work Developed and launched a $200M social assistance program in response to COVID-19 Reduced time-to-apply by 17%, making the process significantly more efficient for applicants Decreased application abandonment rate by 9% Quarter-over-Quarter after launch, ensuring more people completed their applications Successfully managed a cross-functional team of 2 Product Managers, 2 Product Designers, 10 developers, and 2 QA specialists Created an application with a clean architecture that was easy for developers to understand, ensuring long-term maintainability Developed a secure application, protecting sensitive user data in compliance with government regulations

11/12/2024

Communication Stack Gmail Slack WhatsApp Collaboration Stack MIRO Documentation Stack Google Docs & Sheets Pivotal Tracker (R.I.P.) Social Stack Pinterest - I plan my life goals here Instagram - I post my dog a lot TikTok - I used to run an account called Technically Speaking Others Kobo (yes, the Canadian Kindle) Google Home - “Hey Google, can dogs eat corn?” SweatPals - a small team based out of Austin, I use their platform to host my yoga events Headspace - I’ve been meditating since 2018 Canva - where I do all my graphic design for yoga

11/12/2024

🌴 Miami Mandolin Jass Kitchen Makoto Walrus Rodeo Lagniappe True Loaf Bakery Caffe Umbria Macchialina Hanu Yoga Sol Flo Yoga 🍁 Toronto Bar Piquette Ascari Tabule Daldongnae Korean BBQ Jimmy’s Coffee Chi Junky Yoga 🏙️ NYC Sushi by Bou Chow House Employees Only Joe’s Pizza Minetta Tavern Maman