Alfred A. (Fred) Valenzuela

Experience

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  Harcourt Assessment

  Jun 2003 - Nov 2006

  Program Manager

  Managed Rhode Island, Vermont, DODEA, and Association for Christian Schools International (ACSI) custom assessment programs. Monitored and oversaw contractual obligations, including material manufacturing, warehouse packaging, shipping, receiving, and document processing, scoring, and reporting.• Processed contracts from bidding and proposal stage through contract closeout, overseeing every aspect of contract life cycle, ensuring consistency with customer communication and contract execution.• Communicated with departments of education, vendors, and subcontractors, ensuring customer satisfaction and successful implementation of contract requirements. Show less

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  Riverside Publishing

  Nov 2006 - Nov 2011

  Senior Program Manager

  Directed day-to-day activities for print, digital and study assessment implementation programs. Communicated with internal program teams on schedules, materials, risks, and liaised with external clients and subcontractors. Participated in and facilitated all program meetings and maintained ongoing relationships with functional managers, coordinators, and clients.• Led 2 cross-functional project teams, ensuring development and on-time delivery to market for 2 flagship assessment products.• Generated and maintained initial baseline program master milestone schedules, helping to manage all activities for contracts while remaining knowledgeable of all aspects of program life cycle. Show less

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  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

  Nov 2011 - Apr 2017

  Manager, Contract Operations

  Oversaw staff of 11, department budget of $850K and 125+ state, district and diocese contracts. Managed $13M of annual business for HMH. Ensured program management methodology was followed, issues were formally documented and, verified proper escalation was followed, providing concise program updates to both internal and external stakeholders.• Secured two, $1M contract extensions for Arkansas statewide testing program, increasing yearly revenue by $400K per contract year.• Won a South Carolina statewide, 5-year contract worth $4M+ by leading internal cross-functional team, ensuring scope and budget accurately met customer requirements. Show less

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  Questar Assessment Inc.

  Oct 2017 - Sept 2019

  Senior Program Manager

  Managed multi-million dollar, state-wide contract by leading cross-functional team to successfully implement and report online and paper-pencil assessments. Oversaw contractual obligations, including material manufacturing, warehouse packaging, shipping, receiving, and document processing, scoring, and reporting.• Led project team that created over 500 paper and online test titles, delivering on time to all public and private primary and secondary educational institutions across state of Tennessee, servicing over 1.5M students.• Created, monitored, and controlled program-level schedule aligned to functional teams and subcontractor project schedules, collaborating and ensuring execution of scope while controlling costs, risks, and issues throughout program life cycle. Show less

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  Pearson

  Jan 2020 - Jul 2020

  Project Manager

  Manage cross-functional team to successfully create TX STAAR testing materials, paper and online, including all accommodated forms: large print, braille, Spanish language, embedded supports, text-to-speech, and American Sign Language. Responsible for ETS item bank (IBIS) integration between Pearson Content, Publishing and Technical teams and ETS. Coordinate test forms creation and material reviews in conjunction with internal Pearson functional teams, the test administration vendor (ETS), and the client (TEA). Collaborate effectively with internal resources and ETS to coordinate the review and merging of Pearson and ETS test creation and publishing processes. Lead team by troubleshooting issues or problems and working to suggest and implement solutions. Manage weekly team meetings with regards to scope, schedules, execution, risk/issue mitigation, and delivery. Provide logistical support and attend program planning and status meetings while providing project updates and oversight. Show less

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  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

  Jul 2020 - now

  Sr Program Manager

  Create a shared vision and overall strategy for the program in collaboration with the Account Owner. Set and negotiate business and customer satisfaction objectives with internal and external (including both business partners and customers) stakeholders. Set the program success metrics and manage to a budget and/or set of revenue goals. Define the program work breakdown structure, recruit the core program team, create the master schedule, and establish the governance model for the program. Establish a multifaceted communication plan for diverse internal and external stakeholders and serve as a key point of contact for all stakeholders. Manage schedules, budgets, and overall project organization to ensure requirements and program deliverables are clearly communicated and executed. Facilitate change management efforts, including enlisting existing processes or creating new processes in order to meet partner requirements; ensure scope changes are represented in contracts, budgets, activities, and schedules. Manage or coordinate Oversee the work of contractors and third party relationships as appropriate. Keep senior management informed of potential risks, missed deadlines, budget overruns, or partner dissatisfaction. Track all scope and budget changes and report to key stakeholders Show less