Monica Pickney

Senior Scrum Master and Agile Leader with 15+ years of experience delivering complex initiatives across regulated, education, healthcare, and public-sector environments. Expert in Scrum, SAFe, Kanban, and Lean, with a strong record of facilitating Agile ceremonies, coaching cross-functional teams, and partnering with Product Owners to improve delivery outcomes. Achievements include increasing sprint predictability by 20–35%, boosting team velocity by 25%+, reducing delivery delays by up to 30%, and cutting sprint rollover by 40% through data-driven coaching and backlog optimization.

Highly proficient in Jira, Azure DevOps, Confluence, and Agile metrics, recognized for stakeholder alignment, Agile transformation, and building high-performing teams.

Senior Scrum Master | Agile Project Manager - Leadership Consultants, Inc. - Louisiana / Texas

(2020-01)

• Orchestrated end-to-end Scrum ceremonies and iteration management for 2–4 cross-functional teams, increasing sprint predictability and delivery consistency by 20–35%.
• Championed Agile transformation and scaled delivery using Scrum, SAFe, Kanban, and Lean, accelerating team maturity by 1–2 Agile levels within six months.
• Optimized Product Owner collaboration, backlog refinement, user story development, and acceptance criteria, reducing rework and sprint rollover by 40%.
• Eliminated delivery bottlenecks through proactive impediment removal, dependency management, and risk mitigation, cutting cycle delays by up to 30%.
• Leveraged Agile metrics project management to strengthen executive visibility, stakeholder alignment, and data-driven delivery decisions.

Scrum Master | Project Manager | Compliance Consultant - Child Development Council of Acadiana / St. Landry Parish Head Start - Opelousas, LA

(2001-01 - 2020-12)

• Directed Scrum Master and project management activities for multi-million-dollar federally funded programs, ensuring governance, compliance, and audit readiness under 2 CFR Part 200, EDGAR, and OMB.
• Introduced Agile-inspired workflows into regulated environments, improving transparency and accelerating corrective action resolution by 25%+.
• Facilitated cross-functional collaboration to resolve audit findings, strengthen documentation, and improve delivery predictability and risk management.
• Developed performance reporting and dashboards to support executive communication, continuous improvement, and stakeholder confidence.

Project Manager | Agile Coach - Duplichain University - Lake Charles, LA

(2009-01 - 2018-12)

• Managed federally funded programs while applying PMI-aligned project management and Agile coaching to improve service delivery and outcomes.
• Led cross-functional teams in implementing Lean and Agile practices, improving efficiency, reporting accuracy, and stakeholder satisfaction.
• Built evaluation frameworks and performance metrics to support delivery predictability and continuous improvement.

Project Manager | Agile Trainer | Instructional Designer - Southern University at New Orleans - New Orleans, LA

(2002-01 - 2016-12)

• Designed and delivered Agile, project management, and analytics training for 200+ professionals, increasing proficiency and adoption rates by 40–60%.
• Led Agile workshops focused on Scrum framework adoption, team collaboration, and continuous improvement, supporting organizational transformation goals.
• Collaborated with senior leadership to align program delivery, training strategy, and technology adoption with institutional objectives.

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) - Educational Leadership - Duplichain University (2013-08)

Master of Arts (M.A.) - Administration and Supervision - Southern University (2005-07)

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) - Elementary Education - Southern University (1990-05)

Certification - Early Childhood Education