Melissa Bankes — Chief of Staff

Fractional leadership and strategic support for senior technical leaders.

Contact: bankesmelissa@gmail.com

Chief of Staff Sprint

Engineering Operating Systems — Example Projects

Execution Systems

Project planning, releases, resource allocation, metrics

Leadership Systems

Meetings, org structure, people management

Delivery Systems

AI enablement, feature flags, pre/post mortems

Experience

Honors and Awards

Skills

Program Management, Agile/Scrum, Strategic Planning, Stakeholder Management, Risk Management, Budget Management, Cross-functional Leadership, Data Analysis, Process Optimization, Vendor Management, Product Strategy, Change Management

Education

Bachelor of Arts, English — Monmouth College

Certification: Project Management, Duke University Learning and Organizational Development

Testimonials

"Ownership - one facet of the gold standard for employee value is when that employee completes work with minimal oversight. Melissa has worked to create trust and accountability that allows her to thrive in a low oversight environment. That's not to say that she doesn't seek guidance; in fact she seeks a lot of guidance. But once she is on the path there is no need to verify that she is executing the plan to expectations."

— David Hyman, Chief Technology Officer, Wysh

"Thank you for having Melissa manage our account. The major shift in attitude and cooperation between our two companies notably changed with her being onboarded. Not sure if she is new or you were hiding her from us but thank you!"

— Chief Technology Officer, IT Cloud and Managed Service Provider (Vertilocity Client)

"Melissa has become an acute observer and interpreter of folks' work styles, and I see her adding this understanding to the way she works with different groups. She is a confident facilitator, is well prepared for meetings, and follows up promptly. I've thrown practically everything but the kitchen sink at Melissa, and she's caught every item with speed and curiosity. She's really focused on getting things done, in process and in place, and uses her natural curiosity to improve our work."

— Ellen Medearis, VP of Development, Duke Health

"She seeks to understand problems, issues, and personalities and looks for explanations and answers. She asks thoughtful questions. Because she is not quick to pass judgment on people or situations I value her opinion and her point of view. I trust that she has thought carefully about an issue before bringing it to me, and wants to serve as a problem solver rather than a problem bringer."

— Lynda Heaney, AVP of Principal Gifts ($5M+), Duke Health

"It was a pleasure to get to know and work with Melissa on such an important project for Duke Children's. She is insightful, organized, curious, and impeccably detailed."

— Lori Apicella, Director of Digital Engagement, Duke Children's

"One of the highlights of the past year has been working closely with Melissa on the Board of Visitors - hands down, one of the most organized and thoughtful people I have ever had the pleasure of working with."

— Marcy Romary, Executive Director, Duke Health Board of Visitors

"Melissa communicates and organizes with a command of tight instructions in a way that doesn't leave wiggle room. It's efficient and compelling."

— Peter Clark, Chief Revenue Officer, Wysh

"Melissa is doing an amazing job project-managing the NY Go Live project. There are so many cross functional elements and contingencies and she is able to synthesize so much data in a way that key stakeholders can easily understand. She asks great questions that provoke the right conversations yet knows when to take a step back and let the stakeholders take the lead."

— Ilana Kauffman, Chief Compliance Officer, Wysh

"A lot of these releases, deadlines, and scheduling have been a lot easier since Melissa joined the team. It's been said many times by members in every department but I wanted to say it here again – her efforts always keep us in pace and on course to the finish line."

— Dennis Bui, Software Engineer, Wysh