Shopify Expert

TOURISM

colle-il-diaccino.de · Holiday Accommodation

• Designed and developed the website: interactive site map, accommodation comparison, and image galleries.
• Implemented German, English, and Italian language versions. Set up inquiry forms with input validation and spam protection, language-specific SEO metadata, and automated tests.

Stack: Next.js, React, TypeScript, Tailwind, next-intl, React Hook Form, Zod, Resend, Playwright, Vitest

• Introduction of service management
• Optimization of processes
• Introduction of an agile way of working
• Introduction and configuration of Atlassian Jira Service Management
• Prioritization of features
• Coordination with stakeholders and the business department
• Management of the backlog and creation of user stories
• Budget management
• Coordination of a Scrum team
• Use of Atlassian Jira and Confluence
• Use of Microsoft Teams
• Working according to Scrum and Kanban

• Documented complex financial reporting processes in deep-dive sessions with subject matter experts
• Analyzed and mapped the 3-tier data flow SAP – Essbase – HQ (984 account entries, triple chart of accounts)
• Identified the biggest time drains (40 % of close time)
• Evaluated technologies (AWS, Microsoft Fabric, Custom/Hybrid) with cost-benefit analysis
• Created a validation rule catalog with 351 rules as the basis for pre-submission automation
• Business case: estimated savings potential of 480–960 T€/year for the EAR region
• Hands-on implementation with Microsoft Fabric, RAG, AI agents/Tool Calling and n8n; productive use of Microsoft Copilot and Copilot Studio
• AI-supported project management workflows (minutes, tasks, knowledge synchronization)
• Stakeholder management at senior management level (EAR Accounting, IEA IT, TFSC Japan), workshops and training on AI tools

Technologies: Microsoft Fabric, Copilot Studio, Claude AI, Python, Power BI, SAP, Essbase/SmartView, Excel (VBA), Notion, SharePoint

Fashion Genius was building an AI fashion advisor for online shops. As fractional CTO I:

• Worked with the founder on product and AI strategy
• Found and managed the development company
• Led the build of a Shopify plugin: a chat assistant that looks at a customer's item, gives fashion advice, and recommends matching products from the shop's catalogue
• Designed it as a structured AI workflow, which kept it controllable, fast, and affordable to run

• Project management in the area of “Campaign, Offer and Performance Management Classic” for PAYBACK partners from the retail, FMCG and financial services sectors
• Campaign planning, development and implementation of offer-specific concepts and measures for the channels newsletter, digital advertising (web and app), stand-alone mailings and the print mailing “PAYBACK Punkteübersicht”
• Coordination with PAYBACK program partners (including American Express, Netto, EDEKA, Marktkauf & Trinkgut), PAYBACK departments and agencies
• Documentation of tasks and processes as well as onboarding of future job holders

• Led discovery phase and POC for Shopware to Shopify Plus migration across EMEA markets, evaluating platform suitability, technical architecture, and multi-brand/multi-country capabilities against business requirements.
• Designed reference architecture for Shopify Plus implementation incorporating headless front-end patterns (Vue.js, Nuxt.js), CMS integration (Magnolia), and Azure middleware (APIM, Functions, Logic Apps, Service Bus) for 11 EMEA markets.
• Defined migration strategy analyzing data mapping, cutover approach, and zero-downtime deployment patterns using Varnish caching, GitOps pipelines, and CI/CD orchestration across six vendor teams.
• Architected multi-tenant Shopify Plus governance model with centralized admin, localized storefront customization, and compliance controls (GDPR, data residency).
• Prototyped AI-driven search optimization (LLM.txt, JSON-LD) for product discoverability in Google AI results, demonstrating post-launch performance opportunities.
• Defined EMEA expansion roadmap for 15+ markets through C-level strategic workshops, identifying phased rollout, market-specific configurations, and resource requirements.
• Tech Stack: React, Nuxt.js, Vue.js, Magnolia CMS, Shopware, Shopify Plus, Azure (APIM, Functions, Logic Apps, Service Bus, Front Door), Varnish, SAP, MS Dynamics, Docker, Kubernetes, GitHub Actions, PostgreSQL, Kafka

• Lecturer for applied AI in the “AI Implementation Architect” and “AI Business Innovator” courses
• Conducting remote training to qualify participants as "AI Implementation Architect" and "AI Business Innovator"
• Building n8n-based automations for the Digital Institut des Mittelstands

AI Agent SaaS

Founded and built an AI agent SaaS for automated customer support and lead qualification, including implementation with pilot customers.

• Service → product transformation: productization from the agency into an independent AI agent SaaS. The starting point was a specific customer problem; the product was developed together with the customer.
• Developed and launched AI agents for website inbound, lead qualification, and customer service, reaching €8K MRR.
• Structured and led a remote team across engineering, LLM ops, and customer enablement.
• Case PTC Auto (e-commerce on Shopify): connected an AI support agent to the store, automated product data & support workflows, reducing workload by ~10–15 hours per week per support employee.
• Set up GDPR-compliant data processing for the AI agents: data processing agreements, deletion policies, and customer data storage locations.
• Assessed agents against the EU AI Act (risk class, transparency requirements) and built them accordingly.
• Addressed customers’ compliance and security requirements (questionnaires, evidence, contracts) to make sales possible in the first place.
• Built technical safeguards into the product to prevent agent misbehavior: hallucinations, escalation to humans, and logging.

Workflow-automation SaaS for operations teams (Berlin, 120 people); full-time freelance engagement reporting to the CEO: an initial 12-month interim mandate, extended twice through the AI build-out; owned product for one squad and coached the other product managers on process.

• Led generative AI (LLM) integration into the core product: from LLM-powered steps to natural-language workflow authoring and step-level automation suggestions, plus AI-managed dynamic workflows, shipped behind eval gates with human-in-the-loop fallbacks: AI-drafted workflows grew to 31% of all new workflows, and median time-to-first-workflow fell from 3 days to 4 hours.
• Packaged the AI capabilities as a usage-based add-on priced on executed automation steps, working with sales and marketing on positioning: ~€800K added ARR in the first year, and adopting accounts churned 1.8 pp less.
• Owned the roadmap end to end: replaced feature-request-driven quarterly planning with an outcome-based rolling roadmap built on quarterly bets and explicit kill criteria, presented monthly to the executive team and quarterly to the board.
• Rebuilt the product-management operating system: weekly customer-discovery cadence incl. workshop facilitation, RFC/decision-doc reviews and a single quarterly metrics narrative; coached four product managers, one promoted to senior during the engagement.
• Closed the engagement as scoped: hired and onboarded the permanent VP Product, handed over the process playbook and roadmap, and exited on schedule in June 2026.

As a Freelance Senior Project Manager at Interone (Omnicom Group), I support the digital transformation of a leading British energy provider. My focus is on managing interdisciplinary teams in UX, UI and strategy to implement complex web optimizations and journey mappings. In this international environment, I serve as the central interface to stakeholders in the UK and am responsible for efficient project delivery and expectation management in English. I also manage the Deutsche Telekom account as project manager for the relaunch of a new loyalty shop

• Building strong awareness within the company around nearshoring
• Engagement Manager in the Nearshore Competence Center
• Responsible for nearshore consulting, partner screening and technical onboarding, designing and implementing cooperation scenarios, change management, stakeholder management, participation in steering committees, and collaboration with IT and business units
• Tools used: Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Teams, Azure Devops, Microsoft Sharepoint, Conceptboard
• Key results: Establishment of a nearshoring strategy, successful identification and implementation of outsourcing partnerships, delivery of change management and stakeholder management at the highest level

project-based mandate

• Responsibility for marketing, growth, and market expansion strategies for several supplement brands
• Planning and execution of marketing, content, and promotional measures to increase visibility, reach, and revenue
• Building, scaling, and optimizing international sales channels via Shopify, Walmart, eBay, TikTok Shop, Kaufland, Rakuten, EMAG, etc.
• Coordination of product launches, rebranding initiatives, and optimization of brand positioning
• Creation and alignment of product, content, and campaign briefs for different target groups, markets, and platforms
• Managing collaboration with external partners, fulfillment, logistics, marketplace, and distribution partners
• Coordination of product information, claims, platform requirements, and approval processes for international markets
• Analysis of digital performance metrics to identify growth and optimization potential

AI implementation for retail, DACH

• Repositioning of the company and development of the Go-to-Market: target segments, Value Proposition and messaging architecture for the DACH retail market.
• Leadership of the brand and website relaunch across more than 100 pages, from Creative Direction and copy through UX to delivery.
• Development of the Demand Generation stack and redesign of the CRM: pipeline, lifecycle stages, lead scoring and reporting.