Project Manager of the Quarter – October 2017

It’s hard to believe it’s already been three months since we last highlighted one of our fantastic project managers. But here we are, and we couldn’t be more excited to introduce our October 2017 Project Manager of the Quarter, Danielle Ditto!

Danielle first encountered ModSquad over seven years ago in the Gossip Girl sim within Second Life, where Mods were involved with fostering a positive, safe community. Among the Mods she met was Tera Tilden, who reached out to Danielle and suggested she apply. Danielle officially joined ModSquad in March 2010, and the rest, as Danielle says, is history. She began as a Mod and worked her way up to be an Assistant Project Manager and now Project Manager.

Danielle currently manages projects for several of our chat software clients. For Brazen Technologies, Danielle manages a team of Mods providing customer support to clients using the company’s Brazen chat event software. For Airtime Media, Danielle’s team of Mods monitor and moderate chatroom activity in the Airtime group video app.

A gamer herself, Danielle particularly loves working with video game clients to moderate and engage with their social media and forum communities. She also really enjoys launching customer support projects and has done so for a variety of clients. She especially enjoys digging into metrics provided by software like Zendesk that help improve her team’s performance.

Danielle handles lots of important tasks for each of her clients, but the most important, she says, is day-to-day communication.

I try to be very communicative with my team and with the client. It helps me to stay ahead of any issues that arise, and being so active and involved with any client’s various tools and platforms helps keep things fresh. I also think it helps to keep the relationship with the client a strong, positive one.

Danielle’s proudest moment as a project manager has actually been an ongoing one. Two years ago, she launched her first project from the ground up. As her first customer support project, it was an invaluable learning experience, and she’s been able to watch it grow and thrive over the past two years. Oh, and then there’s the time Danielle launched a 24/7 moderation project in under 12 hours, from kick-off call to a fully trained team beginning their shifts… but she didn’t want to brag.

Her advice to future project managers? Don’t be afraid to ask for help. It’s solid advice everyone can apply, in work and life.

We have an amazing team of PMs and AMs and executives that have such a broad range of experience and expertise. So many of the things I know how to do these days are things that were taught to me by fellow PMs (shout out to Josh, Matt, and Mike from Services for always answering my Zendesk questions).

While she previously worked remotely, Danielle recently relocated to Austin, Texas to work out of ModSquad’s new office. She enjoys spending her off-work time exploring Austin and finding new places to eat. She also enjoys weight lifting, nail art, and spending time with her two cats.

“Danielle did a fantastic job helping a new client better utilize their Zendesk CRM. Our team came in, and under her supervision, wowed the client to no end. They were very appreciative of Danielle’s knowledge and expertise.”
—Michael Marcantel, Account Manager

“Danielle is that little treat you keep in your back pocket for a rainy day. She is absolutely one of my top performers and is a great Project Manager. She is dedicated, strong, and overall a joy to work with. I can throw anything at her and she will get the job done. Clients love her because of her problem solving skills and her enthusiasm to get to know the ins and outs of a project. She is a rock star, and I wholeheartedly believe ModSquad is lucky to have her.”
—Theresa Galle, Account Manager

“Danielle is a superstar! She regularly goes above and beyond to support our clients and help those around her. Danielle is dependable, communicative, and has an excellent command of the business. We regularly get positive feedback about her from clients and co-workers. Danielle is also an all around team player and makes those around her more successful. Danielle recently relocated to Austin and she has been very instrumental with the build out of our Austin Operations Center. Thanks Danielle for all that you do and congrats on becoming ModSquad’s PM of the Quarter!”
—Steve Henry, VP Client Services