Karen Phoenix

About Karen Phoenix

I\'m an experienced project manager with analytical skills and a deep love of organizing things. What does this mean? I take an unreasonable delight in my label maker, Excel workbooks, and relational databases. But it also means that I can break down complex tasks and systems into smaller chunks that can be completed more easily, and then organize them into the necessary order. Along the way, I look at how things are going and identify and correct problems and inefficiencies. In other words, I love helping people get things done. For most of my career, I used that passion to teach History at the college level. Then in 2021, I decided to transition careers. I did a lot of self-examination, figuring out my values, the industries that I want to work in, and the types of tasks I wanted to do. As I thought about teaching, I realized that there were two areas that really excite me—planning the course, and helping students accomplish their goals. When I looked at jobs where these were core responsibilities, I found project management. In those roles, planning a project to help people undertake and complete a task are central responsibilities. It was also work where I could use my existing skills in organization, leadership, analysis, and problem-solving. Once I had decided on project management, I went back to school (but for a much shorter time than it took to earn my Ph.D!) and completed a Graduate Certificate in Project Management. I learned a lot about how to think strategically in a business context, ways to handle conflict in the workplace, and project management essentials. I was able to use these skills, along with my extensive experience, to gain PMP certification in 2024. So…what now? I\'m a project manager who is passionate about making the world better for everyone and am looking to work for an organization where that is a core value. I have extensive knowledge of international relations and political, economic, and social inequality, which I would bring to any future role. I\'m a lifelong learner, and I am energized by learning about a very wide range of topics; in the evenings I often watch documentaries as I knit, spin yarn, weave, or sew. k••••••••@gmail.com Professional Skills Clear Written and Verbal Communication | Critical Thinking | LLM Prompt Engineering | Research | Creative Problem Solving | Presenting Complex Information | Relationship Building with a Variety of Stakeholders | Logical Reasoning | Process Development and Testing | Team Building | Project Evaluation | Documentation | Attention to Detail

Experience

1. Course Production Manager

   Washington State University Global Campus

   May 2024 — Present

Education

• University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

  Doctor of Philosophy - PhD

  2000 — 2010

• Brandeis University

  B.A.

  1996 — 1998

• Harvard Extension School

  Project Management Graduate Certificate

  2021 — 2022

• MiraCosta College

  Associate of Arts

  1993 — 1996

• Brandeis University

  Master of Arts

  1998 — 1999