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STEVE ZITKOVICH
email: steve@zitkovich.com | mobile: (request number by email) | currently in Seattle, USA
KEY SKILLS & EXPERTISE
International Product Management * E-commerce * International Strategy + Tactics * Multilingual Marketing * Partnerships * Localization * English, German & French
SUMMARY
* 20 years’ experience in international online product management, marketing & localization
* Creative, analytical, organized International Product Manager & Multilingual Marketing Manager for B2B & B2C
* 360-degree view of international business from large scale (Microsoft), highly creative (Getty Images, Zefa) and startup companies in Europe and Seattle
* Positive attitude, team player; looking to join a company long-term
WHAT I DO
Increase the numbers of customers and revenues in international markets through product management, multilingual marketing, setting up partnerships, building teams.
International & Multilingual Expansion
* Create international e-commerce / product strategies
* Manage international go-to-market
* Set up multilingual marketing, sales and operations to support international offices/presence
* Manage partnerships and vendor relationships
International Online Product Management and Product Marketing
* Define & lead international product and multilingual marketing localization strategy
* Write functional requirements, make wireframes, map customer flows
* Brand-management, customer engagement (ex. email, loyalty) and tactical marketing programs
* Agile development teams & Lean Startup business methodology
Personal
* Languages: English (native), German (fluent), French (business conversational)
* Have lived 15+ years in 8 countries in Europe (UK, Germany, France, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain, Czech Republic, Slovakia)
* Active volunteer in non-profit organizations; strong believer in social entrepreneurship
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Projects + job search (Seattle) May ’20 – present
Return to Seattle from Europe and project work while looking for a long-term job.
* Consultant to a company taking first steps of international expansion
* Creating online community connecting international tech companies with Seattle tech companies
* Mentoring international graduate students on their job searches in the Seattle area
* Teaching English online through University of Washington (volunteer)
Director of Marketing at IT-Development SAS (Lyon) June ’17 – Oct ’19
ITD is a SaaS provider to telecoms companies for managing projects, assets and logistics. Company has 12,000 daily users across 20 countries in Europe, Africa, Middle East and SE Asia.
Managed all marketing activities. Emphasis on product marketing, generating leads and supporting sales. Wrote marketing & sales support materials, managed publishing calendar, did sales prospecting and calls, did online demos, managed trade show presence & activities. Also contributed to product management.
Director International at Nubart (Frankfurt & Barcelona) March ’17 – Nov ’17
Nubart is a startup with innovative technology for delivering museum audio guides. Worked with the two founders on all aspects of product/company strategy, sales, marketing and business development. Wrote business plans which won EU funding, earning certificates of excellence.
Program Director at Moravia IT (Monterey, CA) April ’16 – October ’16
Managed localization services account at global Silicon Valley internet company. Sales + P&L responsibility. Gained insight to the vendor side of localization and translation services, but at heart I am a product and marketing person focused on the customer and this role was too far removed from end-users.
Two Startups At Once: E-Commerce Mobile App + International Move June ’15 – March ’16
1. Wrote business plan for an innovative e-commerce mobile app that delivers digital content by independent artists (especially music, books, video).
2. Moved back to Europe on my own, i.e. not re-located by an employer. Moving one’s life abroad is a lot like doing a startup: requires flexibility, agility and decisions based on opportunities or challenges.
International Product- and Program Manager consulting / contracting Sept ’08 – April ’15
(Between contracts I worked on entrepreneurial/business ideas in the Seattle startup community.)
Holland America Line (Seattle)
* Increased speed + quality of promotions and content translations across 4 languages and worldwide markets to establish simultaneous release (simship) delivery.
* Delivered localization projects, including $500K project, to budget and on-time delivery.
* Managed international e-commerce purchase path, data protection and privacy.
Tango Card (Seattle)
* Business development in identifying and setting up partnerships globally, including Amazon and iTunes e-gift cards procurement across Europe and Asia.
* Assisted VP Product Management on 2 MVP products.
* Supported sales teams on calls and proposals; international capabilities were a differentiator in landing a number of key customers.
Sogeti USA (Seattle)
* Consulted Starbucks on localization strategy and best-practices in creating an internationalized platform and processes to host websites for 39 countries.
* SharePoint 2010 implementation: Co-author of governance document and SME for international/localization issues supporting Starbucks global offices, stores and operations.
* Assessed dev team processes at Charles Schwab and made recommendations to improve development speed and reduce risk using Agile methodologies.
Earth Class Mail & Swiss Post Box (Seattle & Zurich)
* Did knowledge transfer of Earth Class Mail processes to Swiss Post Box, including technical implementation, marketing, operations, customer service and overall business rules.
* Managed implementation to launch deadline. Launched in 5 countries.
* Member of core team planning Swiss Post Box product road map and marketing.
[Private Entrepreneur] (Den Haag, NL)
* For a startup, took business concept and defined an online service (including functional requirements and wireframes) to develop an MVP to attract further investment.
International Program Manager at Microsoft (Redmond) May ’07 – July ’08
Team managed localization of 350+ projects, more than 3 million words and a budget of nearly $6 million.
* Led globalization and localization strategy, planning and requirements for international versions of Microsoft Dynamics, People Ready Business and other Microsoft customer campaigns websites.
* Managed localization budget to within 5% of target on a quarterly basis.
* Authored best-practices (“Localization Framework”) for reference across Microsoft.
Project work for Alice In Chains and Soundgarden (Seattle) 1992 – June ’15
Various projects and managing archives. 2006-2007 was particularly busy during Alice In Chains reunion.
International Product Marketing Manager at Ofoto (now Shutterfly) (Amsterdam, NL) July ’04 – Oct ’05
Ofoto had 20+ million members. Responsible for European websites in 7 languages.
* Defined prioritized, customer-focused features and roadmaps for the European e-commerce sites.
* Drove on-time and on-spec implementation of roadmap with the US-based technical teams.
* Wrote requirements for co-branded EU websites and integrated services with partners (ex. Adobe).
Program Manager & Interim Head of IT at Zefa Visual Media (Düsseldorf, DE) Oct ’02 – Jan ’04
* Responsible for strategy and roadmap of multilingual e-commerce web sites and services as well as the back-office system (developed and maintained in-house) serving 8 international offices.
Director Product Management at B2Build SA (Paris, FR) May ’00 – July ’01
* Developed product plans and roadmap to support B2Build’s business goals.
* Managed first commercial Ariba Marketplace 7.0 implementation in Europe.
Startup Attempt/Entrepreneur (Paris, FR) Oct ’99 – May ’00
* Wrote business plan, functional requirements and presented to investors for an e-commerce platform selling B2B stock-photography.
Program Manager & Int’l Project Manager at Getty Images (Seattle & London) Mar ’97 – Sept ’99
* Managed site during exponential growth from $0 to $2+ million per month.
* Managed requirements and roadmap for new e-commerce features; added 5 languages
Web Design Associate at Starwave Corporation (Bellevue) Oct ’94 – Mar ’97
* Managed the merchandising/e-commerce sites for NBA.com and ESPNET SportsZone.
Customer Service & Dealer Sales at AEI Music Network (Hamburg, DE & Seattle) Jan ’90 – July ’94
* Built customer service department for German B2B music service company with 10,000 customers.
OTHER EXPERIENCE
* Languages: English (native), German (fluent), French (business conversational)
* Teacher of German and English in Czechoslovakia (Bratislava 1991/92, Prague 1993).
* Have worked on many music-related projects including band management and producing events.
* Non-profit and volunteering:
— 2006 – present: Teach an English class I created for international students
— 2019 – present: Mentor U of Washington international students in their job search
— 2020 – present: “Friendship Connection” helping international students moving to Seattle
— 2011 – 2014: Translators Without Borders
— 2006 – 2007: Board member of the Young Professionals International Network (YPIN).
EDUCATION
University of Washington, Certificate in Software Product Management (9-month program)
University of Washington, Bachelor of Arts, German Area Studies