Project Manager I

Position Summary:

Provide overall project management (PM) of existing and new broadband/telecom and/or electric energy projects out of the Project Management Office (PMO).  Lead in planning, executing, and managing project scope, changes, contract coordination, stakeholders, schedules, budget/financial management, risks identification and management, communications, staffing needs, and overall client relationships.  Assist in mentoring new project managers as needed, and work with other team members to create and continuously improve PMO processes, practices, and training.

Essential Responsibilities:

• Leadership for assigned projects acting as an overall coordinator to ensure the project lifecycle happens efficiently and effectively.  Mentor and/or assist new project managers as needed.
• Establish a teamwork/collaboration environment for each project team to work effectively and efficiently together.
• It will be the project manager’s role to organize each project within the PMO framework so that it will be successful.
• Collaborate with other team members to create, implement, and continuously improve PM training tools, processes, and materials.
• Identify all stakeholders associated with each project and define/direct all communications between stakeholders to help ensure effective, efficient, and successful project execution.
• Be a major point of contact with Finley clients on projects and work to ensure good client communications and relations.  Ensure that Finley understands all client expectations and that clients understand Finley’s expectations of them for each project.  Timely reporting of status, change effects, and issues to clients is vitally important.
• Plan and manage project scope and on-going scope changes throughout the project lifecycle by collaborating with all necessary stakeholders as needed.  Ensure that all scope changes are adequately understood and evaluated, and that all effects of those specified changes are addressed in other project aspects (schedule, costs, staffing, risks, communications, etc.), and communicated to all stakeholders as needed in a timely manner.
• Manage contract processes with clients, vendors, contractors, any other 3rd parties, and any internal departments, in conjunction with the contracts group.  Manage projects according to those contracts, and initiate contract changes as agreed to by all necessary parties.
• Collaborate with clients, vendors, contractors, other 3rd parties as needed, and any necessary Finley departments to create an initial project schedule and budget.  Manage, adjust, and communicate project schedules, financials, and status by working with all necessary project stakeholders.  Manage each project to its schedule and budget.  Address scope changes and associated effects on schedules and finances accordingly and communicate changes as part of the project change process.
• Collaborate with all necessary stakeholders and any outside 3rd parties to identify potential major risks to each project.  Prioritize each risk and determine a plan to either avoid, mitigate, transfer, or accept each risk.  If any risk must be accepted as is, then make sure it is communicated so that all necessary parties can have a contingency plan in place to deal with it.
• Collaborate with other stakeholders to determine the communications paths (to and from whom) and mechanisms (face-to-face or what tools to use) that will be used for each project for all stakeholders.  This should include periodic and milestone related meetings and reports and should include project changes, schedules, financials, risks, and any other project status, issues, and impacts.
• Collaborate with other leaders and stakeholders as needed to determine initial project staffing needs and staffing changes that will be needed throughout the project.  Work with stakeholders to identify potential staffing change needs as early as possible to ensure staff availability and allow for effective and efficient staff planning for other projects.
• Will be required to perform other duties as requested, directed, or assigned.

Qualifications:

Required: 

• Completion of at least 8 hours of project management training.
• Minimum of 3 years of experience related to managing projects.
• 3-5 years of experience with Agile.

Preferred: 

• Associate or bachelor’s degree.
• Project management certification from PMI (Project Management Institute). 
• Experience in the telecom/broadband industry and/or in the electric energy industry.

Minimum Skills Required:

• Must have excellent communications skills written and verbal and must be able to use many different tools for those communications such as phone calls, video conferences, email, chat tools, social media, office suite tools, etc.  Must be able to effectively do presentations for project teams, clients, vendors, contractors, boards of directors, conferences, and other venues.
• Must be able to organize the many different aspects of a project for multiple projects, with multiple teams and clients.
• Must effectively manage client relationships and the flow of information in both directions.
• Effectively build and lead project teams of very diverse stakeholders at all levels of organizations.
• Must be able to collaborate with many stakeholders to establish project budgets, and to manage projects according to those budgets.  Must also be able to manage project changes and effectively adjust project budgets accordingly and communicate those changes to all necessary stakeholders.
• Since project managers are leaders who work with people at all levels of organizations and with many different organizations, it is a requirement to act and communicate in a professional manner.
• Project managers work with many different teams for many different clients.  Thus, it is important to build collaborative teams quickly and effectively and promote a teamwork environment over long periods of time.
• Project managers are required to work on multiple projects involving many different stakeholders, so it is imperative that they manage their own time wisely and efficiently.
• Since project managers must work with a very diverse list of stakeholders on many different projects in many different organizations, it is important to be cognizant of the different political and cultural environments in which they reside, to be able to work with them most effectively and so as not to be offensive.
• With the wide diversity in stakeholders, environments, and goals that will be undertaking a common project, there are bound to be conflicting priorities, opinions, and conditions that will arise.  As the project manager it is imperative to recognize, address, and resolve those conflicts as soon as possible.  Also, with the wide range of technologies, companies, stakeholders, goals, and tools involved with each project, a project manager must have good problem-solving skills.
• Projects typically have a lot of information flowing in many different directions and involve high value budgets, so it is important to minimize mistakes and misinformation that could impact stakeholders.  Thus, attention to detail is very important.
• Projects are all about creating changes so a project manager must be a good change facilitator in helping clients and project staff understand many different aspects of the changes that may affect their organizations.
• Must be fluent in, or can quickly adapt to, the use of various tools involved in company operations and project management such as MS Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.), company ERP systems (company and customer information systems), project scheduling, task tracking, GIS/mapping information systems, and others.

Licenses, Certifications, Training Requirements:

• A valid motor vehicle driver’s license in good standing is required. No DWI/DUI convictions (the previous number of years will be determined by the state in which the license is obtained).

Physical Requirements and Environmental Factors:

• Flow of work involves normal mental and visual attention along with manual coordination much of the time. Physical demands require occasionally lifting over 25 pounds.
• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools, or controls; reach with hands and arms; climb stairs; balance; stoop, kneel, crouch, talk or hear; taste or smell. Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.

• Most assignments are performed in an office setting. Occasionally will be exposed to extreme weather conditions, including hot and cold temperatures, rain, snow, dust, and wind.   Will occasionally work at off-site locations. May include some physical labor and environmental distractions such as changes in climate and topography. Physical hazards may be present.

Work Location (Office, Field, Hybrid, Remote):

• Remote position.

Travel:

• Travel approximately 10% of the time.