Mark V. Smetanin

Unlock Success for Airbnb and Short-Term Rental Business. Recently by Improving the Product - Increased Engagement by 42% , conversion rate by 74%, and acquired 2.5M new users.

As a product management leader with over eight years of experience in payments, e-commerce, Airbnb business, property management, I am a fan of technology and its application to drive business growth.My expertise lies in product management, agile coaching, portfolio management, and strategic planning.I have experience in increasing user engagement, optimizing technical processes and leading high-performance teams.

Key Highlights:

Director of Product Management: Enhanced user engagement by 16% and improved product value description by 14% through strategic market research and collaboration.

Senior Product Portfolio Manager: Managed a $1.2M project, leading to an $8M revenue projection and a 17% increase in Net Promoter Score. 
Risk assessment methods were applied, which reduced project disruptions by 24%.

Head of Product Strategy: Increased customer engagement by 42%, improved conversion rates by 74%, and acquired 2.5M new users—reduced marketing expenses by 28% by addressing critical pain points.

Skills and Expertise:

Product Management/Product Owner: Agile Frameworks, Scrum, Kanban, SAFe
Technical Proficiency: Jira, Asana, Hubspot, Salesforce
Industry Expertise: Fintech, E-commerce, Property Management, Vacation Rentals
Certifications: PMI-ACP, PMI-PMP, CSM, CSPO

Professional Experience:

Nine years in product management, agile transformation, and strategic planning
I have experience in leading cross-functional teams to deliver high performance products.
Skilled in negotiating and managing key partnerships and stakeholders

Interests:

The God's Flow State, Coffee, Stand-up comedy, Kite surfing, Skiing, Music, martial arts (2 black belts), Reading, and Hiking.

Technology Stack:

Jira, Jira Service Desk, Hubspot, Asana, Zoho Projects, Microsoft Project, Basecamp, ClickUp, Todoist, PipelineCRM, Freedcamp, Hive, Monday, Trello, Time tracker, Pivotal Tracker, Slack,Excel, Powerpoint, MS Sharepoint, MS Visio, MS Project, MS Access, Prezzi, Numbers, Pages, Photoshop, Lightroom, Planview, Linux, FreeBSD, Quality Center, ZohoCRM, ZenDesk, Zoho Desk, Fresh Desk, Vivantio Help Desk, FreshService, Salesforce Service Cloud, Hootsuite, WordPress, HTML, CSS, OBS, Mindmaps, Focus Matrix, Dropbox Paper, Skitch, Insightly CRM, Payment Gates (Visa, Mastercard, AMEX, Square, Braintree, Stripe, Paypal, Authorize.net, 2checkout, Payoneer, Bitpay, Shopify Payments), Google Analytics, Google Search Tool, Google Ads, Microsoft Ads, MCP, Rentals United, Avirato, Expedia, Booking.com, Airbnb, VRBO, PMS, Glovebox, Coterie, Risk Advisor, AWS, Crowe CRM, Salesforc

Lead Product Manager / Product Owner / Consultant

•     Improved a Product using a customer journey map, understanding and prioritizing the most critical pain points in the most profitable segment. Provided clear concept and design strategy. Collaborated with Dev and UX teams. Increased customer engagement by 226%, Improved conversion rate by 74%, and acquired 2.5M, new users.

•     Planned and facilitated an extraordinary spike for (AI) Artificial Intelligence tools and prompts. Fixed and resolved seven major issues when team members just felt stuck. 

•     Raised team confidence after the last check-in. Positive emotions and gratitude are on our happiness radar. The current sprint is 100% happiness VS 78% at the previous sprint. 

•     Organized the most efficient communication with stakeholders and implemented advanced product backlog refinement, reducing the backlog by 16%.

•    Stepped forward with special coaching from our Unique Coach and very advanced Scum Master. Differentiated workflow steps, business rule variations, variations in data, and interface variations, polished and deepened INVEST criteria. Dramatically improved the slicing of our vertical stories. Delivered value ~20% faster with the smallest increments to our customers. 

•   Implemented automated test script, additional smoke test after the build is released to QA, and code review by peers. Armed new Definition of Done (DOD) for our dev team. Changed Sprint Planning Agenda. Raised team confidence level in delivering the sprint goals to 94%. 

•    Implemented automated test script and code review by peers. Armed new Definition of Done (DOD) for our dev team. 

•     Collected the data via Web-tracking and customer interviews,  tested and validated assumptions with the development team. Provided much precise anatomy of personas. Redesigned current marketing campaign reducing waist by 28%

Spikes:
Sustainable and environmentally conscious business practices
Enterprise Agile: Changing your culture

A first-generation Latina looking to make a positive change in the world. One voice at-a-time. One story at-a-time. One connection at-at-time.  Based in Houston, Raquel has dedicated herself to healthcare advocacy and healthcare education for the last 12 years. 

Having a multi-lingual background, she has been able to expand her reach by educating different neighborhood groups around the Houston area. Through her efforts, many members of the communities who otherwise would go without proper health care have benefitted from her advocacy and received health services.  Her efforts have decreased the high percentage of members who go without basic health needs. 

She works directly with state, city, county, and other local officials to educate communities on important health topics. Raquel is also involved in active research in partnership with various entities such as her world-renowned alma mater Texas A&M University, BakerRipley, and the City of Houston.  This active research aims to identify the external environmental factors which may cause physical stressors on the elderly when participating in physical activities within their communities. Based on the results of the research, enhancements will be made to improve the neighborhood surroundings to be more age-friendly. 

Raquel possesses excellent leadership skills and is looking forward to building a coachable team that will increase the reach potential thus expanding the efforts of her "Mission with a vision". She looks forward to empowering women and contribute globally to spread her message of love and kindness to the world.

Raquel has called Houston her home for the last 30 years. She is a sports enthusiast and labels herself "gung-ho" about all things "Aggies".  Avid salsa dancer. Foodie. Lives with her furbabies and children. Enjoys the beach and quality time exploring the city and seeking adventures. Raquel is currently working on publishing her book and looks forward to sharing her life journey through speaking engagements.

Raquel "Raqi" Flores

Brilliant Beam Media

Strategic Social Media Consultant for effective and engaging B2B and B2C messaging. I help businesses take social media messaging into business results.

Social Media Director

Lena's Foundation

Ambassador

The Influencers' Connection Corner

Influencer Marketing. Livestreaming. Consulting. Brand Ambassador.

Business Influencer For Impact

Texas A&M University

A project that will study how the built environment affects older people in terms of their ability to be more physically active. These insights will be used to develop and evaluate intervention strategies (e.g. design, policy, and technology) to create age-friendly communities). Partners: Texas A&M University, University of Michigan, City of Houston, and BakerRipley.

Research Collaborator

Tech Fest Live

Walking Tall Movement

Walking Tall Movement Ambassador for the Latino community worldwide.

The Outlier Project

Member

Raquel Ideal Care

Healthcare consultant and healthcare advocate. Raquel Ideal Care LLC specializes in guiding clients through the health system in order to get access to quality healthcare for them or their loved ones. We pay special focus to members in underserved populations such as the elderly/disabled.

FOUNDER/CEO

FCC OF TEXAS

Home Health Care Manager

MEDICAL INSIGHTS & CARE UNLIMITED INC

Assistant Manager. Home Health Care Agency.

Healthcare Professional

Turning Authenticity into Influence | Houston Sports Gal | Fierce Mental Health Advocate| | "LIVE, LOVE, LEAD" | OWN Your Essence | | Encouraging humanity to "Educate, Empower, and Uplift".

As a Social Media Director at Brilliant Beam Media, my days are fueled by crafting strategies that not only captivate but also drive results for both B2B and B2C ventures. Fluent in Spanish-speaking and Spanish to English translation, I've had the privilege of bridging cultural gaps and amplifying brand voices across diverse audiences.

Beyond the boardroom, I wear the badges of a Walking Tall Movement Ambassador and a proud member of The Outlier Project with immense pride. These roles aren't just titles; they're opportunities to pay it forward. My heart beats for empowering fellow Latino entrepreneurs, especially the resilient women who navigate through cultural and personal barriers with grace and grit.

Through the intimate avenues of my podcast, coaching sessions, and the pages of my soon-to-be-released book, "Culture Clash," I don't just share stories—I share journeys. My own journey from the tumultuous streets of El Salvador to the corridors of opportunity in the United States serves as a beacon of hope. But more importantly, it's a roadmap for those who dare to dream, guiding them from the realm of possibility to the realm of action.

My mission is simple yet profound: to give voice to the voiceless, to provide platforms for the overlooked, and to equip aspiring entrepreneurs with the tools they need to thrive. And as we continue on this transformative journey together, let's not forget the power of community. On LinkedIn, I've cultivated not just connections but a family—a tribe of diverse souls united by shared dreams and mutual support.

Join me, not just as a spectator, but as a fellow architect of change. Together, let's shatter barriers, rewrite narratives, and pave the way for a future where every dream is not just realized but celebrated.

taplio

The Battle

Mark V. Smetanin

Raquel "Raqi" Flores

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