Rodrigo boasts over 20 years of technical expertise, delivering impactful IT solutions across diverse sectors like finance, technology, automotive, security, logistics, tourism, health, and real estate. With a robust focus on digital strategy, he leverages cutting-edge technology to drive innovation and technical excellence, achieving enterprise objectives. Rodrigo's strength lies in his deep technical knowledge, allowing him to strategically provision resources, control budgets, and develop key partnerships. Equally, his people management skills are the foundation for guiding engineering teams and creating positive work environments. Throughout his career, Rodrigo has successfully led and expanded cross-functional teams, steering large corporations and startups from project inception to operation. His passion for technology is reflected in his contributions to scientific publications in Data Science, AI, and parallel and distributed computing.
Rodrigo Tavares
HEAD OF ENGINEERING
Software Engineering | AI | Data Science
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Contact:
+49 179 7389210
+55 21 986305096
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Linkedin:
www.linkedin.com/in/rtavares187
Location:
Stuttgart, Germany​
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EDUCATION
May 2021
Post-grad. in Blockchain
UNIVERSITY AT BUFFALO, NEW YORK
Emphasis on Smart Contracts and DApps.
Feb 2019
MSc. in Computer Science
CEFET/RJ, RIO DE JANEIRO
Specialization in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence.
Dec 2012
BSc. in Business Administration
UERJ, RIO DE JANEIRO
Emphasis on management systems for decision support.
EXPERIENCE
Out 2023 - Current
Head of Engineering
MERCEDES-BENZ AG
Stuttgart, Germany​​​​
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I recently joined Mercedes-Benz at its global headquarters in Stuttgart as Head of Engineering (Architecture) for the After-Sales Department, supporting the MB Global Training unit. In this role, I collaborate with teams across the globe to deliver new products, drive technology adoption, IT governance, and steer AI strategy. Key Achievements:
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Led a large-scale project that developed a new architecture, increasing product capacity by 730% in the Chinese market.
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Drove a successful concept project utilizing GenAI technologies to compose workflows of virtual agents, with the potential to reduce process costs by 17%.
Jun 2021 - Jul 2023
Director of Engineering
TOPTAL
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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As Director of Engineering at Toptal, a premier global Silicon Valley remote company, I led a core team entrusted with a portfolio of high-profile clients, including Google, Pfizer, and Philips. I adeptly navigated both business and technical landscapes to ensure seamless team assembly, project execution, and overall success. Key Achievements:
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On-time delivery for 87% of projects and within expected costs for 91%.
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Scaled a high-performing, cross-functional team by 26% to accommodate new clients.
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Achieved a customer retention rate of 82%.
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Attained a customer conversion rate of 38%, boosting client numbers on the USA East Coast and Europe.
Apr 2018 - Jun 2021
Program Manager
Multiplan Empreendimentos S.A
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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At Multiplan, the largest mall constructor and administrator in Latin America, I led a 21-member IT development team to deliver impactful projects and achieve significant corporate goals. Key Achievements:
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Attained a 23% cost reduction in infrastructure and support labor by seamlessly migrating legacy systems to Azure, ensuring no disruption to daily operations.
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Optimized lease negotiation time by 36% with the implementation of a cutting-edge BI system that visualizes business indicators on 2D shopping maps.
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Facilitated the company's technological evolution by migrating the core ESB solution to a microservices architecture, setting new standards in governance and DevSecOps.
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Delivered critical web systems and mobile applications, enhancing the functionalities of SAP FI, MM, RE, CO, and PS modules.
Sep 2016 - Apr 2018
Master's Researcher
CAPES - CEFET/RJ
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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During my master's degree at CEFET/RJ, a federal educational technology center of excellence in Brazil, I accomplished the following key achievements:
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Published a scientific article accepted by the Brazilian Symposium on Databases (SBBD) titled "Supporting the Imputation Process with Machine Learning Techniques".
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Developed the large-scale imputation framework Appraisal-Spark, which implements the techniques from my master's thesis. Appraisal-Spark has since been adopted by the data science community to apply imputation techniques to a variety of data structures.
Sep 2012 - Aug 2016
Tech Lead
SICPA Holding S.A.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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At SICPA, a Swiss company renowned for providing over 85% of the world's currency inks, I served as Tech Lead, achieving significant milestones. Key Achievements:
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Led the development team for the Scorpios project (12 members), the official Brazilian IRS solution for tracking and tracing cigarette production. This pioneering system, the first to operate on the H1000—the fastest cigarette packer globally—enabled real-time validation of security stamps across multiple industrial production lines, integrating complex electronic and mechanical components. Scorpios continues to provide production tracking, reporting, and fraud detection to this day.
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Oversaw project evolution and technical requirements in collaboration with the client, Casa da Moeda do Brasil (The Brazilian Mint), ensuring successful homologation of production lines.
Jun 2010 - Sep 2012
Lead Software Architect
CTIS
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Jul 2009 - Jun 2010
Software Development Analyst
DELL
Porto Alegre, Brazil
Jul 2007 - Jun 2009
Senior Software Developer
WTH (World Travel Holdings)
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Oct 2005 - Jul 2007
Software Developer
DBA
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
May 2004 - Jan 2005
IT Intern - Junior Dev
Lopes Filho Investment Consultancy
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
CERTIFICATIONS
PMP (Project Management Professional)
PSPO (Professional Scrum Product Owner)
COBIT® 2019 Foundation
PSM (Professional Scrum Master)
AZ-900 Microsoft Azure Fundamentals
ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library)
AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS
SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATION
SBBD (BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON DATABASES), 2018 | Scientific paper published in the machine learning section:
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Supporting the imputation process with machine learning techniques: https://sbbd.org.br/2018/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2018/08/sbbd-proceedings-vol-01.pdf
PRAISE FOR MASTER'S DISSERTATION
CEFET/RJ, 2020:
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Praise for the contribution of scientific production, technical support for improving the program's computational infrastructure, and performance during the dissertation defense: An approach for large-scale imputation.
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Founding member of the Appraisal Spark project, a large-scale imputation framework that materializes the technique presented in the master's thesis: https://eic.cefet-rj.br/ppcic/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/04-Rodrigo-Tavares-de-Souza.pdf. The data science community has used Appraisal-Spark to apply imputation techniques using machine learning algorithms to various data structures.
SKILLS
Executive Leadership
IT Management
AI and Data Science
Software Engineering
Blockchain and Smart Contracts
English (native)