Michelle Kesselem

About Michelle Kesselem

The majority of my career has been spent in agencies, so I know first-hand and understand the fast-paced demands it can put on a team and how to help the team stay motivated to achieve our goals. I am a highly positive, motivated and organized strategic thinker with a passion for leading projects to successful completion. Throughout the years, I have honed my project management skills and thrive in an environment where I can flex those skills. I am probably the only person who will say they love pivot tables and the challenge of scheduling resources when there are competing priorities. I enjoy collaborating with my co-workers and clients to help guide projects through their lifecycle. To me, the most important aspect of any project is communication, whether that is with the client or with the team. Keeping those lines of communication open makes for more successful projects overall. As well, understanding the client\'s expectations so as a team we can manage those and exceed them. Exceeding expectations starts with creating a solid project plan, detailing key milestones to keep projects on time/budget and being able to forecast any potential risks.

Experience

1. Senior Project Manager

   VML

   Jan 2024 — Present · Kansas City, MO, US

   Develop & manage project execution for Human Health HCP and Patient initiatives and campaigns​- Paid Media project management lead: Developed & managed project execution for Professional and Consumer Animal & Human Health initiatives, campaigns and channels- Timeline creation and maintenance- Resource and workload management for work-in-progress and future scopes- Risk mitigation, identify project risks which may cause delays and address proactively- Stakeholder communication regarding project status, risks and recommend solutions or contingency plans​- Communicate/collaborate/coordinate with the Media team weekly to review workload deliverables, capacity and forecasted workload- Communicate/collaborate/coordinate with the other Project Managers across digital, creative, account and strategy teams daily to ensure projects remain on-time, the proper talent is being utilized and workload is balanced - Establish/modify/Identify processes, as needed, to ensure consistency and efficiency- Facilitate lesson learned with partners to strengthen relationships and improve processes ​- Schedule internal meetings (i.e, agency kick-offs, internal reviews, etc.)- Scope of work development- Monthly budget reconciliation analysis- Workday project setup, resource management and maintenance

Education

• Kent State University

  Bachelor of Arts

• Perry High School

  High School Diploma