About the Authors

Sondra Ashmore, Ph.D., is an IT leader who specializes in Fortune 500 corporations. Her areas of expertise include product management, project management, and new product development for IT offerings. She received her graduate education at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in technical communication and management, and at Iowa State in human–computer interaction. Her research focuses on the software development process, both Waterfall and Agile, and explores strategies to optimize the user experience. In 2012, she was recognized as a “Forty under 40” business leader by the Business Record and won the Women of Innovation award from the Technology Association of Iowa for business innovation and leadership for her work at IBM. Sondra is certified as a Project Management Professional (PMP), Project Management Institute Agile Certified Professional (PMI-ACP), and Stanford Certified Project Manager (SCPM).

Photo reprinted with permission from the Des Moines Business Record.

Kristin Runyan is a product delivery expert in Des Moines, Iowa, specializing in product management, Agile coaching and training, and leadership. She is certified as a Scrum Master (CSM), Scrum Product Owner (CSPO), Pragmatic Marketing Product Manager, and Project Management Professional (PMP). She is also a 2011 winner of the Women of Innovation award from the Technology Association of Iowa. Kristin got her undergraduate degree at Texas Christian University and her MBA at Saint Louis University. She is an avid blogger at www.runyanconsulting.com, and her Twitter handle is @KristinRunyan. Kristin enjoys living in the Midwest with her husband, two daughters, and black lab.

Photo courtesy of Businessolver.