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Saul Joel Gatica

IT Security Project Manager

Raleigh, North Carolina, United States

15+ Years Exp

Summary

Saul is an IT Security Project Manager with experience leading complex cybersecurity, infrastructure, and compliance initiatives across global enterprises. He has expertise in implementing and managing security frameworks, including CMMC, NIST-800, PCI DSS, GDPR, and ISO 27001, with proven success in areas such as incident response, vulnerability management, identity and access management, data encryption, infrastructure hardening, and lifecycle asset protection. He is skilled in Agile (SAFe, Kanban, Scrum) and Waterfall/PMBOK methodologies, effectively driving end-to-end project delivery, process improvements, and security roadmap execution. He is proficient in Microsoft Project, Jira, ADO, Smartsheet, SNOW PPM, HP PPM, and Monday. Saul demonstrates strong stakeholder management, budget oversight, and vendor coordination while building collaborative relationships with risk, audit, and cyber teams.

Technical Skills

Detailed View

Incident Response & Cyber Defense

Project Management

Stakeholder Management

ITIL / ITSM Governance

Requirements Analysis

Risk, Audit, and Compliance Management

Cloud & Infra Security

Vendor Management

JIRA

Cyber security Frameworks

JIRA

Scaled Agile Framework

Identity And Access Management

Vulnerability Management

Penetration Testing

Other Skills

English

Spanish

Work Experience

Senior IT Security Project Manager

Bridgestone

Temporary | 01/02/2025 - Present

Remote | United States

Created and executed the 2026 Cyber and Infrastructure roadmap with emphasis on reliability, compliance, and CMMC adoption.
Managed SAFe workstreams for endpoint detection, cloud/app security, and OT security.
Facilitated DSUs, backlog reviews, and retrospectives, serving as servant leader across workstreams.
Redesigned network hardening and VPN rollout after a $1.7M budget cut, delivering compliance goals under constrained resources.
Partnered with engineers to integrate Terraform automation into network and security rollouts.
Collaborated on containerization strategy for select applications using Docker and Kubernetes to improve scalability.
Directed SRE-aligned initiatives for endpoint detection, cloud security, and OT infrastructure, improving uptime.
Partnered with engineers to integrate Terraform automation into network and security rollouts.
Reported availability SLAs, MTTR, and operational KPIs to executive leadership.
Oversaw hybrid delivery using Azure DevOps and MS Project, aligning sprint metrics with program-level KPIs.
Managed Azure DevOps (Agile) and MS Project (Waterfall) for hybrid delivery.
Coordinated capacity planning requirements for Q2 and Q3 PI planning with internal teams.
Reported availability, MTTR, and operational KPIs to executive leadership.

Senior IT Project Manager

Oracle

Full Time | 01/04/2024 - 31/01/2025

Remote | United States

Managed global infrastructure and data center programs across 54+ offices, supporting scalability and business continuity.
Prepared RFPs for vendor and contractor services and managed the vendor selection process.
Coordinated multi-cloud planning and portfolio roadmaps, collaborating with AWS and Azure teams.
Directed planning, scoping, and execution of real estate projects from initiation to delivery within schedule, budget, and scope.
Managed vendor contracts, RFPs, and consultant allocation across multi-million-dollar programs.
Tracked financials, risks, and KPIs in executive dashboards for reporting to leadership.
Delivered reliability-focused dashboards to leadership, highlighting risk, dependency resolution, and uptime improvements.
Coordinated multi-cloud portfolio roadmaps with AWS and Azure teams to improve service reliability.
Delivered observability dashboards tracking uptime, MTTR, and incident metrics for leadership.
Coordinated multi-cloud portfolio roadmaps with AWS and Azure, including container-based deployments for scalability.
Directed vendor teams on automated infrastructure buildouts reducing manual effort by 30%.
Supported technical project managers with requirements gathering, prioritization, and deadlines.
Standardized program reporting using Jira and Confluence to track workstreams and ensure visibility across engineering teams.
Partnered with sponsors and stakeholders to develop executive slide decks and KPIs highlighting progress, risks, and escalations.
Oversaw project and program delivery for Oracle Real Estate & Technology Portfolio initiatives.

Cyber Security Project Manager

QBE Insurance

Full Time | 01/08/2023 - 01/04/2024

Remote | United States

Defined budgetary requirements and aligned Capex/Opex needs for MDR transition, vulnerability management, and Shadow IT initiatives.
Directed a $2.9M cybersecurity and infrastructure portfolio, applying NIST/OWASP frameworks to improve resiliency.
Presented action plans and finalized MSAs/SOWs with vendors and executives.
Designed IaC-based security workflows with Terraform to standardize infrastructure builds.
Partnered with cloud teams to containerize legacy services with Docker for improved portability.
Managed resources and finances across four projects and two programs.
Designed SRE-aligned reporting including incident reduction and uptime metrics.
Drafted schedules, quarterly vision slides, and risk reports for executive sponsors.
Partnered with vendors and SMEs to build scalable infrastructure governance models.

Senior Project Manager - Critical Security and Infra

Arizona Public Services

Temporary | 01/09/2022 - 01/05/2023

Remote | United States

Oversaw $13M infrastructure refresh program (servers, switches, firewalls, HMI systems).
Delivered system upgrades across 3 sites, reducing operational risk and improving service availability.
Facilitated refresh and upgrade of three physical servers, six virtual servers, three network switches, and three firewalls across three sites.
Collaborated with PMO, security, and infrastructure sponsors to reassess scope and prioritize product delivery.
Partnered with vendors to finalize MSAs/SOWs through ad hoc working sessions.
Identified stakeholders and resources, building charters, WBS, PMP, and schedules in alignment with sponsors and SMEs.
Delivered weekly status reports to executives and leadership with project progress updates.
Delivered multiple Critical Information Protection (CIP) projects on time, within scope, and within budget.
Refreshed and upgraded Human Machine Interface (HMI) servers, networks, and applications.
Upgraded Generation Management System (GMIS) Power Gads and Power Manager.
Oversaw infrastructure refresh program leveraging Ansible playbooks for automated system configuration.
Ensured monitoring and observability for new containerized services deployed on Kubernetes.
Ensured observability practices through implementation of monitoring and reporting for new systems.
Delivered Physical Security Refresh, including cameras, access control, NVRs, and perimeter fence upgrades.
Oversaw infrastructure refresh program ensuring observability and automated monitoring for new systems.
Coordinated engineers to implement IaC-based deployments reducing manual errors.
Upgraded DSX Access Control system.
Coordinated APS resources and vendors to ensure successful project execution.

Senior Cyber Security Project Manager

Hertz

Full Time | 01/04/2022 - 01/09/2022

Remote | United States

Created WBS and project schedules for Cyber Security Engineering (CSE) deliverables and MVP tracking.
Managed Zscaler rollout and firewall upgrades with a $1.7M budget, improving global connectivity and reliability.
Facilitated requirements, design, scheduling, and implementation discussions with partners, liaisons, and SMEs.
Guided sponsors in scope reevaluation and prioritized Zscaler deployments across US, EMEA, and APAC.
Produced executive-ready dashboards on service availability and incident metrics.
Delivered weekly progress reports to the CISO and management team.
Completed PMO artifacts for all project phases to ensure audit compliance.

Project Manager - IT Security

TIAA

Temporary | 01/09/2021 - 01/04/2022

Charlotte, NC, US

Delivered IAM, MFA, and AD password policy projects to improve identity reliability and uptime.
Directed SailPoint migration design and RSA decommissioning, aligning with SRE practices for resiliency.
Oversaw $3.7M budget and coordinated vendor MSAs/SOWs.
Implemented operational SLAs and OLAs, tracking compliance and reliability KPIs.
Finalized project scope, business cases, and SNOW PPM updates in coordination with stakeholders.
Managed delivery of Cybersecurity roadmap initiatives including Ping MFA rollout, AD password policies, SailPoint migration design, IAM ops group operationalization, and RSA decommissioning.
Utilized SharePoint and RAID logs to track project status, risks, and dependencies.
Prepared weekly project status reports for management and PMO reviews.
Oversaw $3.7M budget and ensured financial compliance.
Created and finalized vendor MSAs and SOWs for cybersecurity initiatives.
Supported establishment of Cyber Identity Program for TIAA Cybersecurity.
Supported the development and deployment of SLA and OLA performance metrics.
Directed engineers, analysts, and technical staff within SAFe Agile methodology.
Served as primary point of contact for six cybersecurity initiatives.

Senior IT Project Manager

General Electric

Temporary | 01/07/2021 - 01/02/2022

Remote | United States

Developed and delivered executive presentations on program progress.
Supported global Qualys network upgrade initiative for improved monitoring and security visibility.
Enhanced tracking methods for the global Qualys network upgrade initiative.
Defined scope and schedules within GE IT engineering groups, ensuring timely project delivery.
Applied hybrid Agile/Waterfall methodologies for project execution.
Supported global Qualys network upgrades with monitoring for service uptime.
Applied hybrid Agile/Waterfall delivery to track reliability KPIs.
Facilitated requirement, design, scheduling, and implementation discussions across global sites.
Acted as program communication lead, reporting progress, risk, and operational KPIs to leadership.
Managed changes and incidents through established request and incident processes.

Cyber Security Project Manager

Dell

Temporary | 01/03/2021 - 01/09/2021

Austin, TX, US

Directed IAM consolidation and Active Directory migration projects, improving uptime and authentication reliability.
Defined scope and schedules for IAM consolidation and Active Directory migration projects.
Implemented SAFe Agile methodologies with Scrum framework across business units.
Directed AD migration and IAM consolidation using automation for account provisioning.
Applied Agile metrics to improve delivery predictability and system availability.
Led sprint planning, reviews, retrospectives, demos, and DSUs, driving delivery of organizational epics and features.
Defined project scope and schedules, ensuring timely delivery of PI-planned projects.
Partnered with engineering teams on adoption of Jira dashboards for observability and burn-down tracking.

Senior IT Project Manager

Xerox

Temporary | 01/09/2020 - 01/06/2021

Cary, NC, US

Directed data center upgrade and refresh programs involving 375+ servers, firewalls, and switches.
Partnered with architects and network engineering teams to identify dependencies on network hardening and Oracle/Solaris upgrades.
Ensured project management deliverables, schedules, risks, and steering committee communications were consistently maintained.
Managed firewall migration and network hardening with Cisco and Verizon partners.
Authored design documents, runbooks, and operational guides to ensure high-quality documentation and change management.
Implemented monitoring and reporting via SolarWinds, improving observability of upgraded infrastructure.
Oversaw migrations involving P2P, P2V, and V2V application moves, drawing on prior data center relocation experience.
Managed firewall migration and server refresh with Terraform and Ansible deployment scripts.
Introduced container monitoring dashboards for Dockerized workloads.
Managed firewall migration and server refresh with Terraform/Ansible deployment scripts.
Implemented SolarWinds monitoring to ensure real-time observability of new infrastructure.
Maintained professional project deliverables such as schedules, risk/issue logs, and steering committee updates using ServiceNow PPM.
Developed and maintained a central SharePoint repository for organizational policies, procedures, and documentation.
Directed project staff to ensure adherence to DCIM scope, operational readiness objectives, and detailed documentation standards.

Senior IT Security Project Manager

Penn State University

Temporary | 01/03/2020 - 01/11/2020

State College, PA, US

Led Azure SSO and AD migration impacting 1,700+ accounts and 300+ enterprise applications.
Oversaw vulnerability remediation and infrastructure refresh projects to align with audit deadlines.
Drove identification of access controls, additional requirements, design updates, and schedule revisions.
Collaborated with IT senior management, security architecture, IAM, and IT risk compliance SMEs to develop all required implementation documentation.
Managed a budget of $700,000+ aligned to Azure SSO testing, server 2003 upgrade (160+ servers), and vulnerability assessment with E&Y vendor.
Designed project dashboards tracking risks, issues, actions, and dependencies (RAID).
Utilized PSU RAID checklist to track all risks, issues, actions, and dependencies.
Partnered with PSU line-of-business personnel and Deloitte Audit teams to design project plans and processes for completion ahead of audit deadlines.
Directed cross-functional university teams across technical, HR, financial, and business disciplines, ensuring milestones were met on time and within budget.
Partnered with Enterprise Architects to gain buy-in and deliver infrastructure refresh initiatives (P2P, P2V, V2V) across PSU.

Senior IT Project Manager/Scrum Master

Wipro

Full Time | 01/06/2018 - 01/03/2020

Cranberry Township, PA

Oversaw FedEx Supply Chain cloud and infrastructure programs including AD consolidation, IAM, and firewall upgrades.
Directed project efforts across MSP/CI Stack/Retail Cloud Transformation and infrastructure/security programs including AD consolidation, IAM, and SSO integration.
Oversaw Capex/Opex budgets ranging from $500,000 to $17 million covering hardware, software, and staff.
Tracked upgrade and IP rehome of 600+ servers at data centers and 170+ servers at 70 customer sites, including firewall and storage upgrades.
Implemented monitoring, capacity planning, and service migration with SRE principles.
Coordinated with security, VOIP, and wireless vendor PMs on Re-IP/upgrade of 30+ sites.
Developed and maintained project plans for two major programs.
Managed two programs supporting FedEx’s M&A of Genco (FedEx Supply Chain), applying NIST/CMMC frameworks.
Directed enterprise programs including Active Directory Migration, VIP & IPSec Migration, and Corporate Re-IP.
Oversaw sub-projects: IT security upgrades, firewall upgrades, IDM & PAM implementations, and O365 migration.
Managed a project team of 26+ members while aligning with waterfall, Agile, and PMBOK methodologies.
Built relationships with senior stakeholders, serving as liaison for program escalations and risk management.
Maintained risk registers, communication plans, and schedules within PPM tools.
Authored clear, executive-ready reports and prepared summaries for VP/SVP stakeholders.

Senior IT Project Manager (Risk/Security/Audit)

PNC Bank

Temporary | 01/01/2018 - 01/05/2018

Pittsburgh, PA, US

Directed initiation, requirements, design, and execution phases under a waterfall roadmap.
Led planning, development, and implementation of a cyber/risk audit reporting tool and databases.
Managed a $1.7 million budget involving KPMG, Aires vendors, consultants, and internal staff.
Oversaw action items, issue logs, and deliverables across vendor and internal teams.
Partnered with senior retail banking management on testing strategy creation.
Managed the Aeries & KPMG development project, applying project, budget, and vendor management along with risk analysis and compliance.
Directed the planning, development, and implementation of information systems supporting Aeries.
Partnered with IT, Compliance, Audit, and Risk teams to deliver remediation initiatives based on regulatory assessments.
Authored and maintained IT Security and Compliance documentation, including updated policies and processes.

Senior IT Project Manager

American Eagle Outfitters

Full Time | 01/03/2017 - 01/01/2018

Warrendale, PA, US

Defined scope, analyzed requirements, and determined feasibility for application migration projects (175+ applications/databases on 64 IBM servers).
Managed IAM and DLP HR proof-of-concept initiatives within budgets under $1 million.
Led project phases including system selection, UAT, design, implementation, testing, and training.
Created and maintained business cases, project plans, CR punch lists, and ops readiness checklists.
Oversaw project staff allocation, solution delivery, IT process improvement, and portfolio strategy alignment.
Directed the remediation and migration of legacy Windows 2003 servers, ensuring compliance with audit requirements.
Coordinated dependencies with business units to validate server upgrade readiness and tracked migrations to new hardware and ESX VMs via dashboards and project plans.
Managed the migration of AIX workloads to new LPAR environments, reducing operational risk and improving performance.
Oversaw requirements, testing, and implementation phases, ensuring minimal business disruption.
Led the upgrade of iSeries infrastructure to V9000 platform, including resource planning, vendor management, and UAT oversight.
Managed the deployment of SolarWinds monitoring solution for enterprise operations support.
Simultaneously managed multiple large-scale infrastructure projects using Agile and Waterfall methodologies.
Oversaw project plans, requirements documentation, UAT, testing, implementation, training, and closeout deliverables.
Contributed to IT strategy, process improvement, and long-term portfolio planning across architecture, engineering, and operations.

IT Project Manager/Service Delivery Analyst

Metlife

Full Time | 01/03/2015 - 01/03/2017

Cary, NC, US

Developed charters, comms plans, requirements documents, and SOP standards for IT projects.
Managed Capex/Opex budgets exceeding $27 million.
Directed MobileIron MDM deployment (2,500+ devices), server upgrades (600+ servers), Azure cloud migration (1,100+ servers), Kaltura streaming upgrade (118+ servers), and Palo Alto firewall upgrades.
Facilitated Scrum ceremonies (planning, daily standups, reviews, retrospectives) across Agile projects.
Organized stakeholder calls to drive sprint and delivery alignment.
Coordinated the rollout of ServiceNow for internal incident and request management, including tier-based routing.
Partnered with risk, production, and service management teams to align deliverables with DR and compliance requirements.
Directed server and service migrations, creating logic flow charts to track start-to-finish activities.

IT Project Manager

HCL

Temporary | 01/12/2014 - 01/02/2015

Cary, NC, US

Created scope documents for TIAA-CREF NAS and SAN projects.
Finalized budgets totaling $1 million+.
Developed and maintained project schedules with HP PPM, tracking tasks, phases, and dependencies.
Led requirements gathering, planning sessions, and risk/resource alignment.
Reported weekly project status to customers and team members.

IT Project Manager/Business Analyst

PCNS, LLC

Temporary | 01/08/2014 - 01/11/2014

Sewickley, PA, US

Designed project implementation plans for VOIP, network refresh, disaster recovery, and Exchange hosting projects (budgets $25k–$175k).
Facilitated requirement sessions with customers and internal contributors.
Managed project lifecycle using ConnectWise, covering assessment through closure.
Reported weekly progress to the CEO and provided recommendations for process improvements.

IT Data Center Supervisor / Deployment IT Project Manager

Microsoft (ATOS)

Temporary | 01/10/2013 - 01/07/2014

Boydton, VA, US

Supervised 36 personnel supporting production and project delivery across infrastructure and applications.
Managed Cisco firewall, NAM, Xbox Titanfall prod network, Azure cloud, and Cisco IPS implementation projects.
Coordinated with program and project managers to validate scope and budgets ($215k–$2M).
Oversaw migration of applications/databases across 100+ sites with field engineers and developers.
Initiated feasibility study for SolarWinds project and prepared business cases for audit submission.
Controlled project budgets and vendor resource allocation via SOW reviews.

Junior Business Analyst/Systems Analyst

Multimedia Games

Full Time | 01/06/2012 - 01/10/2013

Austin, TX, US

Facilitated with the program manager, migrating applications and databases at remote sites with field engineering, architecture team, and the DEV team at over 100+ sites.
Initiated business case and feasibility study for the Solarwinds project for the Service Desk, NOC in Texas and NY, and Engineering, and prepared for submission.
Controlled and monitored budget regarding resources assigned via scheduling and vendor assignment via SOW, and reviewed project contributors and tasks needing to be completed.
Provided the Sales Team with updates regarding current sites, evolving technologies, and proprietary systems, and assisted with customer issues during and after deployment.

Senior Data Center Administrator / Project Lead

Microsoft (ATOS)

Full Time | 09/09/2008 - 05/04/2012

Boydton, VA, US

Directed resource allocation across multiple projects, forecasting future availability.
Led infrastructure projects including VOIP, O365 forest migration (1,800 servers), 66 hardware deployments, and Cisco firewall upgrades.
Initiated discovery meetings for Xbox Live pilot and production environments.
Delivered System Center MDM (budget $750k) and BES5 MDM (budget $1.25M) implementations.
Facilitated communication across project phases, ensuring successful closure and compliance.

Education

Associate in Electronic Engineering, Technology

Coastline Community College

Associate in Electrical Engineering

Palo Alto College

Certifications

SAFe Scrum Master

Safe Scaled Agile | Issued On : 25/03/2025

Oracle cloud infrastructure 2025 AI Foundations Association

Oracle

Project +

CompTIA

HP2-T23 Industry Server Solutions

Hewlett Packard Enterprise

MCP

Microsoft

Server +

CompTIA

Certified SAFe 6 Agilist

Scaled Agile (SAFe) Training by Agile Certification Academy

Oracle Cloud Infrastructure 2023 foundations

Oracle

Network +

CompTIA

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