Keith (Robert) Howe
Senior Technical Business Analyst / Requirements Engineer / Product Owner
Experience
Nov 2023 - Feb 2025
1 year 4 months Bonn, Germany
Senior Technical Business Analyst / Requirements Engineer / Product Owner
Deutsche Post E-Post Solutions
- Type of job: Contract
- SBAM – Shipment-Based Order Management System
- SBAM is the core component in a new IT stack that splits customer deliveries – print files (e.g. bank statements, pension statements, customer invoices, advertising, etc.) into individual letters based on contractual agreements (OLA/SLA) between DP EPS and the end customer. The contracts may include processing times for customer mailings (production and delivery) and optimizing DPAG postage discounts based on mail volume (partial performance discounts for BZE/BZA).
- Transformation project from proprietary host-based (AS/400) applications to a modern technology stack using Java, PostgreSQL, Apache Kafka event-driven architecture, MinIO S3 object storage, Red Hat OpenShift, Keycloak SSO (OpenID Connect), Salesforce & a custom Angular Material GUI.
- Application design
- Solution architecture
- Use case specification & improvements
- OLA/SLA concept for end customers
- Standard tasks: solution architecture/design, requirements engineering (elicitation, documentation, validation, negotiation, ongoing management) creating analysis artifacts – specs in Confluence (including UML/BPMN process models)
- Development/analysis under SCRUM (Jira/Confluence)
- User journeys & UI experience design
- UI design – wireframing with Balsamiq & Figma (Angular Material)
- Documenting requirements – user stories & epics (Jira)
- Creating design documents (stakeholder & technical)
- Participating in E2E solution design, architecture & event-driven messaging design
- Process modeling (UML/BPMN via Draw.io)
- Application design (internal architecture)
- Data modeling (ERM/SERM)
- Sprint planning, story refinement, estimation meetings, retrospectives, sprint reviews
- Management presentations (C-Level) on OLA/SLA or order management
May 2021 - Mar 2023
1 year 11 months Munich, Germany
Senior Technical Business Analyst / Requirements Engineer / Product Owner
Tech Mahindra for Telefónica O2
- Type of job: Contract
- MCE – Multi Channel Engine
- The Multi Channel Engine is a robust RESTful API layer between all frontend clients (portal including online shop & self-care, POS, mobile apps) and backend IT/NT stacks. It’s built in Java on Oracle WebLogic with Oracle Traffic Director & Coherence caching, serving about 46 million customers daily. It supports business cases for mobile products (pre- & post-paid) and DSL: product catalog queries, tariff/pack bookings, subscription management, data usage checks.
- Standard tasks: requirements engineering (elicitation, documentation, validation, negotiation, ongoing management), producing analysis artifacts – spec documents (with UML process models) and draft interface designs (with XSD) handed to development. Each analyst presents artifacts at kick-off. Development follows Scrum. After analysis, user stories are added via epics to the product backlog and implemented in two-week sprints.
- Covered topics:
- Contract generation services for third-party partners (Media Saturn, Check24)
- FMC – new services for FTTH (fiber-to-the-home)
- CoRE – enhancements to tablet-based POS selling tools
- Online contract termination services
Jan 2019 - Apr 2021
2 years 4 months Munich, Germany
Senior Technical Business Analyst / Requirements Engineer / Product Owner
AUSY Technologies for Telefónica O2
- Type of job: Contract
- DISI ADM Analysis Pool (all Telefónica frontend portals/apps/shared services & IDP – Piranha)
- Performed unit analysis for various frontend apps:
- B2C Portal eCare & apps (iOS & Android) & eShop (o2online.de & Mein o2 App)
- B2P Portal eCare & apps (iOS & Android) & eShop (alditalk.de, ortelmobile.de, ayyildiz.de, nettokom.de & apps)
- Piranha (IDP using OpenID Connect)
- Shared Digital Services – SDF (B2B gateway for Sky, Boku Networks for Apple/Google/Microsoft Pay)
- MyPay – micropayment platform for premium voice services & carrier billing for prepaid/postpaid & service provider customers
- SMS PackManager / SMS Topup for postpaid pack bookings via SMS
- ARE (AdRequest Enhancer)
- Analysis included implementing CoMS Microfrontend for customer consents, legal aspects of EECC (enhanced content provider info on bills, enhanced pricing for contract extension & in-life tariff migration), NOVUM (connecting global self-care app to local IDP)
- Standard tasks: requirements engineering, creating analysis artifacts – spec docs (ASRI split into user stories with UML/BPMN, wireframes). I join release analysis workshops and PIAs for digital services.
Aug 2014 - Dec 2019
4 years 5 months Munich, Germany
Senior Technical Business Analyst / Requirements Engineer / Product Owner
Cognizant Technology Solutions for Telefónica O2
- Type of job: Contract
- MCE – Multi Channel Engine
- The Multi Channel Engine is a robust REST API layer between all frontend clients (portal, online shop & self-care, POS, mobile apps) and backend stacks. Built in Java on Oracle WebLogic with Traffic Director & Coherence, it serves about 46 million customers daily. It supports mobile (pre/post-paid) & DSL use cases: catalog queries, tariff/pack bookings, subscription management, data usage checks. All processes run through MCE.
- Standard tasks: requirements engineering (elicitation, documentation, validation, negotiation, ongoing management), producing analysis artifacts – spec docs (with UML models) and draft interface designs (XSD). Analysts present artifacts at kick-off. Development follows Scrum. After analysis, user stories are added via epics to the backlog and executed in two-week sprints.
Mar 2014 - Aug 2014
6 months Unterföhring, Germany
Senior Business Analyst / Requirements Engineer / Product Owner
Allianz Deutschland AG
- Type of job: Contract
- Net Promoter Score (NPS) and outbound scheduling tools deployed in German call centers. NPS gathers customer feedback after policy use via a set of predefined questions (up to 9).
- The outbound scheduling tool lets call center agents set appointments for Allianz sales reps. If successful, the appointment syncs automatically with the rep’s MS Exchange calendar. Standard tasks: requirements engineering (elicitation, documentation, validation, negotiation, ongoing management), leading to specs as Scrum user stories stored in a wiki. I also create and validate test cases. In our small team (2 devs & 2 analysts) we handle support (complex SQL, reports), project & vendor management, and call center liaison.
Jan 2008 - Feb 2014
6 years 2 months Bonn, Germany
Senior Business / Systems Analyst (Subscription Server, Voucher Management)
T-Mobile / Deutsche Telekom & T-Systems
- Type of job: Contract
- Subscription Server is Deutsche Telekom’s main service for managing subscriptions, handling pay-per-period offers for pre- & post-paid customers and service providers. We cover the full software lifecycle and vendor communication. Standard tasks: requirements engineering (elicitation, documentation, validation, negotiation, ongoing management), producing detailed requirements docs, design (use case specs, UML sequence/state/activity diagrams), test case reviews, security walkthroughs, and UAT. This international project involves stakeholders across the UK, CZ, NL & AT. All docs are in English.
Jan 2005 - Dec 2008
2 years Munich, Germany
Senior Business / Systems Analyst (Prepaid IT – CRM System)
Telefonica O2
- Type of job: Contract
- Worked on the Prepaid-IT CRM system (PEPS) for prepaid customers. Covered all lifecycle phases: feasibility (impact analysis), analysis (elicitation, documentation, validation, negotiation), design (use case & UML modelling), test (release scope workshops, regression test planning), security walkthroughs, UAT & post-launch support. Vendor management was a key part as development was outsourced.
Jan 2003 - Dec 2005
3 years Bonn, Germany
Systems Analyst / Release Management & Production Support (Payment & Recharging)
T-Mobile Deutschland GmbH
- Type of job: Contract
- XTC is a micro-payment billing platform for external content providers selling non-voice services (SMS, MMS, WLAN, ringtones) to pre- & post-paid customers. It’s a proprietary Danet application deployed by T-Mobile across Europe.
Jan 2001 - Dec 2004
3 years Munich, Germany
Technical project management
Sony Ericsson Mobile Communication AB
- Type of job: Contract
- DMZ design, planning & implementation
- Network interconnect planning & design after the Sony DTCE & Ericsson merger
Jan 1999 - Dec 2002
2 years Munich, Germany
Team Leader – Test & E2E Support Team
Viag Interkom (O2)
- Type of job: Contract
- Insourcing project – Test & E2E support
Summary
Highly motivated & flexible senior business/systems analyst/product owner/solution architect with more than twenty years of analysis (together with SCRUM) experience in the telecommunication, insurance & pharmaceutical sectors. Excellent written and verbal communication skills coupled with more than 30 years of experience working on international projects.
Skills / Knowledge Areas:
- Systems Analysis
- Business Analysis
- Requirements Engineering
- Product Owner
- Solution Architecture & Design
- Stakeholder Management
- Release Management
- Test (UAT & E2E) & Training
- Production Application Support
- CRM
- Payment
- Billing
- Prepaid
- Subscriptions
- Voucher Management
- B2B
- B2C
- B2P
- Fixed Line technologies
- Recharging
- Digital Touchpoints (Web Portal, Apps & POS)
Methodologies, Tools & Technologies:
- Methodologies: Waterfall, RUP & Agile – Scrum, Kanban.
- Object oriented analysis & design: use case specification, business process mapping using Visio (UML & BPMN notation - Camunda), process modelling (with PlantUML)
- OOAD Tools: Eclipse/Word with PlantUML, Enterprise Architect & Camunda BPMN Modeler.
- Atlassian Tools: Jira & Confluence.
- Version Control Software: Subversion & ClearCase
- Test: UAT, E2E, HP Quality Centre & HP Demand
- IBM Rational Tools: RequisitePro, Rose, ClearQuest & ClearDDTS
- Microsoft Products: Visio, Word, Excel, PowerPoint & Project
- Database skills: Data modelling (ERM & SERM), SQL, Stored Procedures (PL/SQL), Unix shell scripting
- DB-Tools: Toad, Oracle SQL Developer, DBVisualizer
- Web Services / Messaging / APIs: SOAP / XML / RESTful / Microservices, JSON / TMForum (XSD, WSDL, WADL & XSLT) , Apache Kafka (Apicurio, Redpanda, Grafana & Prometheus), XMLSpy & SOAPUI
- UI Design: C++ Builder, Balsamiq (Wireframing), Gliffy.
- Applications: CRM (Prepaid & Salesforce), Payment (micro payment), Subscription Lifecycle Management, Voucher Management, Net Promoter Score, Prepaid, Recharging & Multi Channel Enablement
- Log, Monitoring & Reporting Tools: Splunk (user)
- Collaboration Tools: MS Teams, Slack, Confluence, Jira, etc.
Languages
English
Native
German
Advanced
Greek
Intermediate
Education
Oct 2000 - Jun 2001
Open University
Diploma in German · German · United Kingdom
Oct 1999 - Jun 2002
Open University
Bachelor of Science · Computing · United Kingdom
Certifications & licenses
Professional Scrum Master 1
scrum.org
Professional Scrum Product Owner 1
scrum.org
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