Senior Project Manager at Talent Software Services

Senior Project Manager

Job Summary: Talent Software Services is in search of a Senior Project Manager for a contract position in Minnetonka, MN. The opportunity will be six months with a strong chance for a long-term extension.

Position Summary: The Project Manager is responsible for coordinating activities for a high visibility program, using agile methods in a fast-paced environment, crossing multiple business divisions. The Project Manager will operate in an Integrated Delivery Model / Scaled Agile framework and require integration with other activities outside the scope of the agile teams. The focus of this role will primarily be to ensure all required business activities align with technology delivery to achieve stated business outcomes.
 
Primary Responsibilities/Accountabilities:
Project Planning & Management

• Partner with Product Management & business stakeholders to define and/or understand program scope, milestones and business outcomes
• Develop a critical path/business milestones and timeline in partnership with business representatives and Product Management to meet business outcomes; continuously update critical path/milestones as necessary due to business decisions
• Ensure coordination and synchronization of epic-related (program) activities across all entities as required (business readiness, communications, process design, technology delivery, etc.)
• Ensure alignment and coordination with external partners (vendors) as needed
• Manage executive stakeholder communications, including preparation and facilitation of Executive Steering Committees as required
• Participate in Program Increment (PI) Planning, System Demo, and Solution Demo, as necessary to ensure alignment across multiple ARTs and business divisions; role is to highlight and assist in resolving any gaps in alignment for deliverables
• Understand and report on the progress of the program MVP with key stakeholders, including steering and portfolio mgmt.
• Ensure transparency and management of dependencies, issues and risks; facilitate resolution or decisions where needed
• Support the Product Managers, Product Owners and Business Readiness representatives in managing expectations for program deliverables
• Hold teams accountable for their deliverables and commitments; serve as an escalation resource and help to remove obstacles and facilitate decisions as needed
• Financial Management for Projects/Programs assigned; ensure appropriate expenditures are applied to the program and work with financial representatives and / or Portfolio Management to resolve issues

• Development and management of /project budget including forecasts and actual spend

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.
• BA or BS or equivalent experience is required; MA or MS is a plus
• Minimum: years experience required in the field to qualify for the position
• 7 years, with a minimum of 3years working with large projects of $2m or more.
• ​​​​Strong ability to build and maintain positive working relationships with all levels, including executives to analysts, and vendors
• Very effective interpersonal skills including mentoring, coaching, collaborating, and team building
• Strong analytical, planning, and organizational skills with an ability to manage competing demands
• In-depth knowledge and understanding of business needs with the ability to establish/maintain high level of customer trust and confidence
• Proven ability to lead software development projects and ensure objectives, goals, and commitments are met
• Solid understanding of and demonstrated experience in using appropriate tools:
• Agile Project Management tools such as ApptioTargetprocess (ATP) Jira, Rally, VersionOne or equivalent
• Microsoft Project, Visio, and all Office Tools
• Excellent oral and written communications skills and experience interacting with both business and IT individuals at all levels including the executive level
• Creative approach to problem-solving with the ability to focus on details while maintaining the big picture view

• Security and Access: Comfort/experience with how basic system security components impact user access: high level understanding of how user roles, Active Directory, firewall.
• Conversion/cutover experience: someone with high-level experience of conversion and cutover planning would be beneficial.
• Collaborative: The ideal candidate will have strong technical PM skills, and will partner/collaborate well with the Business PM and stakeholders.