Lead Technology Project Manager

William Blair • Full-time • Chicago, IL, US • 4d ago

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The Lead Technology Project Manager will apply project management and systems development life cycle expertise to identify, plan and execute large scale, complex, high profile Information Technology (IT) projects that will enhance business success. Manage technology projects from initiation through delivery, collaborating with business partner management to establish project objectives, goals, scope, timing and deliverables. Ensure that all targets and requirements are met and are completed on schedule and within budget. Inform leadership of key issues that may impact project completion, budget, or other results. Oversee the development and implementation of technology project management tools to enhance effectiveness and deliver results.

Essential Responsibilities

Develop strong relationships with assigned business area(s) and a deep understanding of their business functions, future strategic goals, business challenges. Identify ways that business area(s) can leverage technology to achieve business strategies.
Collaborate with business partners to identify potential projects and analyze the associated costs/benefits. Develop technology project roadmaps based on priorities, project feasibility and business strategy impact.
Develop detailed understanding of project objectives. In conjunction with business stakeholders, define project vision, scope, goals, and deliverables. Define tasks, identify project resources, and assign individual responsibilities. Develop comprehensive project plans and define project budgets. Obtain stakeholder approval of scope, timeline and budget.
Drive completion of large scale, complex, high profile IT projects. Coordinate project staff and vendors, ensuring projects meet timing, budget, and quality objectives. Manage day-to-day operational aspects of projects, providing direction and support to project team and vendors. Update plan as appropriate to meet changing objectives.
Monitor status of project roadmap and individual projects. Drive closeout of project issues. Report on progress of projects to stakeholders, as appropriate. Inform management of changes to project plans and any escalated issues which may impact project success.
Maintain current knowledge of industry technology trends, best practices and potential benefits, risks and challenges associated with various software solutions. Share expertise with project teams and business unit management.
Identify and apply project management best practices applicable to respective project and portfolio.
Act as program manager for applicable assigned technology portfolios, assisting with product management deliverables as required.
Maintain strong project subject matter expertise and help train novice project managers in all aspects of project management including schedule management work breakdown structure, risk and issue management, change management, communication, requirements gathering and use case development.
Perform detailed analyses and create documentation to support business and project objectives, including requirements, RFPs, test strategies/test scripts, project issue logs, and other deliverables as required.
Maintain strong knowledge of project management techniques focused on improving effectiveness of technology implementations. Oversee the development of policies and tools to improve the team’s overall project management capabilities.
Perform post-project reviews to determine project successes and identify opportunities for improvement.
Manage vendor relationship, requirements fulfillment and deliverables execution on assigned projects. Ensure alignment of efforts with Wiliam Blair requirements.
Develop project management tool templates, standards and training.
Additional responsibilities as requested.

Qualifications

Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related field of study required; Master’s degree preferred
PMP certification preferred
10+ years of information technology project management experience with increasing levels of responsibility and demonstrated success in leading project teams
Expert project management skills in all phases of technology projects (e.g., planning, budgeting, scheduling, execution, communication, documentation, project tools and change management)
Expert knowledge of systems development life cycle
Excellent communication skills, including presentation skills and the ability to convey technical concepts to multiple audiences
Strong vendor management experience
Strong knowledge of investment industry concepts and information technology trends and their potential impact on firm business strategies and operations
Expertise with project management tool(s)
Proficiency with Collaboration and Productivity tools such as M365
Commitment to quality, including satisfying internal and external customers
Proven ability to take ownership of issues and see them to resolution
Proven ability to be influence outcomes without formal authority

William Blair is an equal opportunity employer. It complies with all laws and regulations that prohibit discrimination in employment practice because of race, color, religion, creed, ancestry, marital status, gender, age, national origin, sexual orientation, unfavorable discharge from the military service or on the basis of a physical or mental disability that is unrelated to the employee's ability to perform the duties of the job applied for. EOE m/f/d/v

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