Jeanine Rust

Operations & Technology Leader | Systems Thinker | Builder of Clarity

Jeanine.Rust@gmail.com

720.757.7796

linkedin.com/in/JeanineRust

I bring structure to complexity and connect people, processes, and tools to get meaningful work done. With roots in healthcare and a decade of experience leading in tech – from software quality to Agile transformation – I now focus on operational excellence in clinical and business environments. I specialize in building repeatable systems, aligning cross-functional teams, and translating ambiguity into action.
Whether I’m improving follow-up workflows in a medical practice or driving quality strategy in a national retail organization, my through-line is the same: empathy, execution, and making things work better for the people involved.

Core Strengths

  • Operational Systems & Workflow Design: Skilled in designing and refining end-to-end workflows that support efficiency, accountability, and continuity across clinical and business operations.
  • Cross-Functional Leadership & Execution: Proven ability to lead diverse teams, build trust across roles, and ensure progress through clear alignment and practical coordination.
  • Agile & Change Management: Experienced in applying Agile principles and leading organizational change efforts that drive adaptability, engagement, and delivery momentum.
  • Training & Onboarding Development: Adept at turning informal knowledge into structured systems, creating scalable onboarding and training programs that accelerate learning and reduce variance.
  • Strategic Planning & Implementation: Strong track record of translating high-level goals into actionable plans and repeatable processes that support growth and long-term impact.
  • Stakeholder Communication & Alignment: Known for bridging communication gaps across teams and roles, distilling complexity into clarity for decision-makers, staff, and technical partners.
  • Quality & Process Improvement (Past Focus): Deep background in software testing and quality assurance, including automation, BDD, and DevOps integration – foundational to my systems thinking today.
  • Certifications: Certified Scrum Master (CSM), Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO)

Professional Highlights

  • Systems Thinking & Operational Clarity: Known for building structure in fast-moving environments – translating ambiguity into systems that support continuity, accountability, and team effectiveness across clinical, technical, and business settings.
  • Leadership in Team Development & Cross-Functional Coaching: Led training and mentoring programs across QA, development, and operations teams. Developed junior stoff into confident contributors and guided seasoned professionals through process transformation efforts.
  • Workflow Optimization & Scalable Process Design: Designed and implemented workflows that improve reliability and reduce inefficiency. From patient care follow-up to Agile ceremonies, I focus on repeatable systems that scale with clarity and purpose.
  • Strategic Planning & Execution: Aligned tactical execution with business goals in both corporate tech and clinical settings. Known for practical roadmaps, grounded planning, and driving results across matrixed environments.
  • Communications & Stakeholder Engagement: Skilled at bridging roles, translating complex information across clinical, technical, and executive audiences to build shared understanding and enable confident decisions..
  • Legacy in Software Quality Leadership: Background in QA strategy and test automation, including BDD, DevOps integration, and Agile coaching – providing a strong foundation for structured thinking and systems design.

Professional Experience

Medical Manager | Sundial Medical Center – Denver, CO | February 2025 – Present

  • Redesigned follow-up workflows and onboarding systems in a concierge internal medicine practice, improving operational clarity across front desk, clinical, and administrative teams.
  • Led internal training and documentation efforts, developed process improvements for medication and lab tracking, and collaborated with providers to ensure continuity of care.
  • Impact: Increased care reliability, reduced lapses in patient follow-up, and enhanced day-to-day consistency across roles

Agile and QA Leadership Professional | H&R Block – Kansas City, MO | July 2021 – June 2023

  • Led Agile and DevOps transformation for two QA teams, introducing BDD and shift-left testing practices.
  • Developed and delivered Agile training programs, coached team members, and built framewords that supported automation and role equity.
  • Impact: Accelerated release cadence, improved test reliability, and helped shift team culture toward shared accountability and delivery clarity.

Software Development Engineer in Test | Vail Resorts – Broomfield, CO  |  August 2020 – December 2020

  • Implemented API-level automated testing and mentored team members on test architecture and release readiness in customer-facing systems.
  • Impact: Reduced production defects and improved stakeholder trust in testing processes.

Senior Technical Leader | Nordstrom – Denver, CO  |  May 2017 – May 2020

  • Standardized testing practices across multiple engineering teams and led efforts to integrate BDD and test automation into a CI/CD pipeline
  • Impact: Boosed deployment stability and unified quality practices across diverse teams.

Software Tester  | Trio Health – Boulder, CO  |  June 2016 – April 2017

  • Built an automated testing framework and delivered training on layered testing and BDD for a healthcare analytics product team.
  • Impact: Improved data reliability and supported faster delivery cycles for clinical tools.

Technical Leader and Test Strategist | Mercury Payment Systems – Denver, CO  |  May 2012 – May 2016

  • Drove QA strategy, including ATDD adoption, API testing, and test coaching across development teams.
  • Collaborated with analysts on backlog prioritization and product alignment.
  • Impact: Improved testing efficiency and supported strategic product delivery across complex financial systems.

Early Career Summary

  • Began my professional journey in healthcare, providing direct care and support. This foundation in empathy, coordination, and service continues to shape my leadership approach in operational, technical, and cross-functional roles.

Education

  • Master of Business Administration (MBA)
    • University of Massachusetts, Lowell
  • Bachelor of Science – Computer Information Systems
    • DeVry University
  • Certifications
    • Certified Scrum Master (CSM) | Scrum Alliance
    • Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO) | Scrum Alliance
  • Continuing Education
    • Data Ethics certificate | Cornell University
    • Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion certificate | Cornell University

Presentations

SQuAD Conference, 2015 &  STPCon Conference, 2016: Co-Presenter on “Collaborative Testing: Why We CAN Have Nice Things”

TestTalks Podcast, 2017: Interview on Acceptance Test Driven Development and Collaborative Testing, Episode 141

Recommendations…

01

Max, Principal Engineer

I haven’t worked with someone as talented as Jeanine before. We worked closely on developing software together at Nordstrom – Her insights on testing approaches as well as experiences writing complex testing systems were invaluable to our projects success!

02

Josh, VP Platform Engineering

Jeanine supported my teams in creating an environment where business and domain defects disappeared. She demonstrated that through collaboration and focusing on the problem at hand we can remove the blockers that allow misunderstandings and assumptions to creep into our software. Using collaborative workshops focused on behavior-driven design and using tools like Specification by Example, she helped my organization raise the bar on engineering quality and effectiveness, and she will help yours do the same.

03

Stephen, Principal Engineer

It was an honor to be able to work with Jeanine at Nordstrom. She has a deep understanding of what it takes to create an amazing product. She has a strong drive to continually improve not just her own knowledge base, but that of everyone around her. She took on the responsibility to help create best practices for testing across not just our department, but the entire company. She is a joy to work with, an invaluable teammate, and an inspiring leader. Definitely an asset to any organization that she is apart of. I hope to be able to work with her again.

04

Joshua, Software Engineering Manager

Few colleagues stand out over their peers as much as Jeanine. I have worked with Jeanine on the same scrum team for about a year and a half and am constantly impressed with the level of rigor she brings to the testing side of the project. She brings significantly more to our team than any other member of the QA department that I have worked with at Mercury. Particularly impressive is her adoption and championing of Acceptance Test Driven Development that has ensured constantly above average quality software with very few production bugs. On top of her quality work and great teamwork her chocolates can always make the day a bit better. I highly recommend Jeanine as both a valued member of the team and a advocate of advanced testing techniques across her department.

05

Mike, Staff Data Architect

Jeanine lead the transformation of our development teams at Trio Health from manual QA methods to a full suite of automated testing. She showed us how to adapt our processes to include test planning and creation as an integral part of the larger development process. Her leadership was informative and collaborative which allowed the team to adapt without coercion. I highly recommend her to anyone looking to modernize their QA practices.

06

Joe, Senior Middleware Engineer

It was a pleasure working with Jeanine while we were at Nordstrom. Jeanine was committed to ensuring and improving the quality of our SDLC. She would schedule quick meetings to make sure that we taking in to account all of the Acceptance Criteria for each story to ensure that AC would make it in to the Acceptance Tests. She led the effort to make sure these tests were part of our automated testing strategy as well.

I have to say, I learned more from Jeanine than any other Test Engineer I have worked with. I thought I knew SpecFlow before I started working with Jeanine but I was sadly mistaken. Jeanine even gave a brown bag on the in’s and out’s of SpecFlow and that really helped bring the entire teams understanding to another level.

Any company that has the opportunity to work with Jeanine will be richer for the experience. Her attention to detail and passion for quality in everything that she does comes through every day in her work and her interaction with her team members.