Professional Project Manager, knowledgeable leader and dedicated problem solver. Brings 18 years of valuable Project Management and 7 years of Research Analysis expertise to drive company objectives. Attentive to detail with experience in coordinating projects, programs and improvements. A detail-oriented team player with strong organizational skills. Ability to handle multiple projects simultaneously with a high degree of accuracy.
Overview
17
17
years of professional experience
Work History
Program Manager and Partner Development Manager
Microsoft
Sandton
10.2021 - Current
Managed and supervised administrative and daily program operations, complying with policies and regulations.
Designed and developed programs and projects for dissemination to Partners.
Managed program budget of +-$1.7m per quarter.
Participated in vendor selection and management process for program initiatives.
Worked with subject matter experts to develop and implement mentoring programs to promote better learning and development experiences.
Identified program obstacles and communicated possible impacts to team and key stakeholders.
Built teams to address project goals and objectives for multiple projects.
Addressed and resolved technical, financial, and operational concerns by working with team members and directors.
Leveraged project management processes and tools to define and execute projects.
Engaged and worked alongside cross-functional stakeholders to manage strategic initiatives.
Freelance Research Analyst and Writer
Freelance
South Africa
03.2014 - 09.2021
Researched and wrote news stories, articles and reviews for online publications.
Presented clients with unique copy options based on overall marketing objectives.
Successfully completed over 200 various writing projects in span of 7 years.
Composed original written material for various types of publications and submitted for approval by supervisor, editor or publisher.
Utilized exceptional writing, editing, and proofreading skills to produce engaging and error-free content.
Incorporated review comments and corrections into existing documentation.
Organized material to research and complete writing tasks.
Collaborated with illustrators and photographers to enhance content.
Consulted with customers to understand project requirements and purpose.
Completed accurate and polished formatting in line with publishing standards prior to submission.
Researched and wrote original content for case studies, emails and newsletters.
Conducted interviews with subject matter experts to generate topics.
Brainstormed ideas to create useful content for clients.
Project Manager
Siyakha Implementation Partners (Pty) Ltd
Sandton
10.2019 - 05.2021
Monitored project performance to identify areas of improvement and make adjustments.
Maintained open communication by presenting regular updates on project status to customers.
Successfully completed Enterprise and Supplier Development Programs for over 13 multi-national company clients.
Negotiated and managed third-party contracts related to project deliverables.
Scheduled and facilitated meetings between project stakeholders to discuss deliverables, schedules and conflicts.
Reported regularly to managers on project budget, progress and technical problems.
Sourced, vetted and managed vendors needed to accomplish project goals.
Managed projects from procurement to commission.
Verified quality of deliverables and conformance to specifications before submitting to clients.
Developed and implemented project plans and budgets to ensure successful execution.
Monitored project progress, identified risks and took corrective action as needed.
Drafted project reports to identify successful outcomes, insights and future recommendations.
Project Controller, Project Co-ordinator
Eskom SOC Limited
Pretoria
04.2006 - 10.2013
Provided a project accounting service to the Project Services Team.
Distributed project funds within Work Breakdown Structure elements (Manual Funds Reservation) as determined by the Project Team
Uploaded estimated and actual physical requirements into Work Breakdown Structure elements in SAP.
Compiled reports on actual expenditure and physical progress
Investigated costs and physical variances
Performed project technical closure after ensuring that all internal and external costs are allocated correctly and ensure re-allocation of costs when necessary.
Compiled completion certificate with actual costs and reported physical outputs and assisted in the explanation of variances by comparing planned and actual data
Performing accurate data processing
Education
Post Graduate Program - Information Technology Project Management
<ul><li>Assist in preparing Subs Annual Budgets and reviewing Subs financial reports.</li><li>Provide support and training to partners to ensure adequate support for the program component.</li><li>Conduct partner technical supportive supervision on request basis from Grants & Compliance teams.</li><li>Coordinate grantee proposal review process and ensure compliance with solicitations and donor regulations.</li><li>Coordinate pre-award evaluations and assessments of potential grantees as needed.</li><li>Analyze, verify and review grantees proposal budgets to ensure donor compliance and reasonableness.</li><li>Coordinate the assessment of grantee risk and implement appropriate systems and agreements to minimize risk.</li><li>Ensure timely and appropriate close-out of sub-grants and coordinate the close-out of EGPAF prime grants.</li><li>Provide support and training to partners finance staff to build financial and accounting capacity to ensure adequate support for the program component.</li><li>Monitor partners’ spending patterns as part of the overall project budget to actual analytics.</li><li>Follow up on Grantee monthly invoices & supporting documents</li><li>Serve as an expert on applicable policies, procedures, rules, and regulations and assist staff with their interpretation and understanding of these.</li><li>Stays abreast of donor policies, procedures, rules and regulations and host country legal requirements and informs local and regional management of significant changes.</li><li>Perform internal departmental/grants reviews ensuring compliance with Foundation and donor requirements. Identify potential areas of compliance vulnerability and risk; assists with the development of corrective action plans for the resolution of problematic issues; and provides general guidance on how to avoid or deal with similar issues in the future</li><li>Conduct on-site financial compliance reviews which include: cash counts; review of accounts receivables including employee receivables; documentation of segregation of duties and internal control structure; document storage and retention</li><li>Document findings, propose improvements or change as relevant, disseminate findings and ensure follow up implementation of recommendations as well as resolution</li><li>Conduct random surprise checks and vendor verification reviews to ensure proper procurement procedures are being practiced and report on findings</li><li>Develops an effective Compliance & Ethics training program, including appropriate introductory training for new employees as well as ongoing training for all employees and managers</li><li>Assists with improving the awareness and understanding of compliance to assist employees with the establishment of a “culture of compliance”</li></ul> at Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric Aids Foundation<ul><li>Assist in preparing Subs Annual Budgets and reviewing Subs financial reports.</li><li>Provide support and training to partners to ensure adequate support for the program component.</li><li>Conduct partner technical supportive supervision on request basis from Grants & Compliance teams.</li><li>Coordinate grantee proposal review process and ensure compliance with solicitations and donor regulations.</li><li>Coordinate pre-award evaluations and assessments of potential grantees as needed.</li><li>Analyze, verify and review grantees proposal budgets to ensure donor compliance and reasonableness.</li><li>Coordinate the assessment of grantee risk and implement appropriate systems and agreements to minimize risk.</li><li>Ensure timely and appropriate close-out of sub-grants and coordinate the close-out of EGPAF prime grants.</li><li>Provide support and training to partners finance staff to build financial and accounting capacity to ensure adequate support for the program component.</li><li>Monitor partners’ spending patterns as part of the overall project budget to actual analytics.</li><li>Follow up on Grantee monthly invoices & supporting documents</li><li>Serve as an expert on applicable policies, procedures, rules, and regulations and assist staff with their interpretation and understanding of these.</li><li>Stays abreast of donor policies, procedures, rules and regulations and host country legal requirements and informs local and regional management of significant changes.</li><li>Perform internal departmental/grants reviews ensuring compliance with Foundation and donor requirements. Identify potential areas of compliance vulnerability and risk; assists with the development of corrective action plans for the resolution of problematic issues; and provides general guidance on how to avoid or deal with similar issues in the future</li><li>Conduct on-site financial compliance reviews which include: cash counts; review of accounts receivables including employee receivables; documentation of segregation of duties and internal control structure; document storage and retention</li><li>Document findings, propose improvements or change as relevant, disseminate findings and ensure follow up implementation of recommendations as well as resolution</li><li>Conduct random surprise checks and vendor verification reviews to ensure proper procurement procedures are being practiced and report on findings</li><li>Develops an effective Compliance & Ethics training program, including appropriate introductory training for new employees as well as ongoing training for all employees and managers</li><li>Assists with improving the awareness and understanding of compliance to assist employees with the establishment of a “culture of compliance”</li></ul> at Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric Aids Foundation