SUMMARY OF POSITION:
The IT Program/Project Manager drives oversight of all IT projects and is also responsible for managing strategic relationships for vendors in the IT ecosystem.
Project Management
This role manages IT projects or programs from project intake to completion. This role partners with the IT functional leaders to ensure projects are managed according to established policies and procedures. This position coordinates with business leadership and project managers for the successful delivery of joint projects. This role may also assist in developing and monitoring Project Management related policies, procedures, resource management, change control, dependency management and integrated planning across IT.
Vendor Management
In this function, this role will assist in managing relationships with specific IT vendors. Responsibilities will include researching vendors of IT related products and services for quality and cost competitiveness. This role will also analyze and evaluate proposals and assist in IT vendor selection and implementation. Ensures compliance with contracts and assists with vendor performance issue resolution. May conduct periodic vendor reviews.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:
Project Management
1. Leads IT projects and programs to successful completion.
2. Develops project plans in support of large projects to accomplish business objectives.
3. Defines and manages scope, budget, and issue resolution.
4. Schedule and hold regular project updates for core project team members and provide regular updates to Leadership.
5. Participates in the IT Strategic planning process and works with IT Financial Coordinator to ensure IT budgets are aligned with key decisions.
6. Helps define and ensure utilization of standard methodologies, processes, tools, and reporting metrics.
7. Monitors budget performance. Helps develop policies for budget monitoring and control.
8. Conducts periodic resource planning within the department escalating issues requiring additional staffing / funding.
9. Build and maintain successful professional relationships with key stakeholders, staff and managers during the entire process of planning and execution of activities.
Vendor Management:
10. Build strong relationships with key IT suppliers.
11. Lead/support contract negotiation/re-negotiation efforts in close partnership with Corporate Purchasing.
12. Lead vendor relationship management activities engaging appropriate resources within IT, the business and other corporate functions as needed.
13. Assist in organizing vendor events with key stakeholders in order to understand vendor’s product and service direction on a periodic basis.
14. Support issue and dispute resolution processes.
15. Build relationships with internal stakeholders to understand their needs and provide exceptional ongoing support.
16. Assist IT subject matter experts and Corporate Purchasing with vendor evaluation and selection criteria, procedures and best practices and execution of SOW’s.
17. Validate and ensure adherence to SLAs and performance of obligations.
18. Support Corporate Procurement in conducting bench-marking efforts in order to validate the competitiveness of key vendor agreements.
DEPARTMENT SPECIFIC/NON-ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:
1. Participate in staff meetings and team meetings as required.
2. Develop deep understanding of business processes and business dependencies on supported technologies.
3. Develop relationships within IT and with vendors to improve collaboration and teamwork necessary to accomplish organizational objectives.
4. Participate in a development planning process where employee career goals are defined & understood and development activities are incorporated into the employee objectives.
5. Other duties as assigned with or without accommodation.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:
Education: Bachelor degree in Information Technology or related business field, MBA preferred.
Experience: 10+ Years Information Systems Experience, 5+ years of demonstrated strength in IT project and vendor management.
Preferred Skills/Qualifications: Bachelor degree in IT field (computer science, information systems, etc.) and MBA with a minimum of 10+ years IT experience. PMP certification strongly preferred.
- Business Acumen and Business Engagement Skills. Prior experience working within a business function or demonstrated ability to understand a business problem and proactively propose an IT solution.
- Advanced Project Management Skills. Prior experience managing large cross functional projects ($2MM budgets). Experience also to include accountability for the entire project (outside of only a single work stream) and participation in all aspects of project management, including organizational change management, training, risk management, stabilization, business case realization, etc.
- Attention to Detail. Focus on accuracy and ensuring high quality in compressed timeline. Comfort moving from details to trends.
- Planning and Organizing. Experience planning and organizing work across multiple teams. Ability to communicate plan and ensure activities are tracked to achieve outcome.
- Cross-Functional Acumen. Prior experience leading projects or programs with multiple functional work streams required to interact to deliver the expected results. Demonstrated ability to interact with leadership in multiple functions expected. Any prior experiences as an analyst within functions or aligned to functions (in an IT business analyst role) can further demonstrate the capabilities.
- Project scoping and development. Experience in scoping and sizing up large or strategic projects from concept to requirements development, solution assessment, vendor contracting as well as putting together a solid plan for execution.
- Management of external parties. Ability to work with 3rd parties for the successful delivery of services and projects.
Skills/Competencies: ⢠Strong coordination and influence skills, to stretch across business units and functions.
- Excellent problem-solving ability.
- Strong knowledge of business needs and ability to advise business leaders.
- Strong communication skills to explain and resolve strategic issues.
- Excellent verbal and written communications skills.
- Ability to resolve conflicts and drive collaboration across the organization.
- Ability to meet deadlines and produce quality results in a fast-paced, collaborative environment.
Other Skills: ⢠n/a
ORGANIZATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS/SCOPE:
Individual Contributor. This role will work cross-functionally with all levels, including senior leadership.
WORKING CONDITIONS:
Normal office environment. St. Louis based position.
Periodic travel may be required.
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