IT Program Manager - 5 Year Limited Term

San Mateo County Transit District • Millbrae, CA

4d • Onsite

About The Position

The IT Program Manager is a 5-year limited term position responsible for managing the IT Project Management Office for the San Mateo County Transit District (SamTrans), the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board (Caltrain), and the San Mateo County Transportation Authority (TA). This role involves planning, organizing, managing, and overseeing the Division of Innovation & Technology’s enterprise information technology program and project portfolio. Key responsibilities include establishing and administering portfolio governance, project intake, prioritization, resource planning, budget tracking, vendor coordination, risk management, and performance reporting. The position leads complex, cross-functional technology initiatives supporting transit operations, administrative functions, customer services, cybersecurity, infrastructure modernization, and enterprise applications. This role requires a highly technical background with hands-on expertise in managing complex enterprise IT projects.

Requirements

• Sufficient experience, training and/or education to demonstrate the knowledge and ability to successfully perform the essential functions of the position.
• In lieu of a degree, work-related experience that demonstrates the skills and experience necessary to perform this role will be accepted.
• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in information systems, computer science, public administration, engineering, or a closely related field.
• Five (5) years of full-time progressively responsible experience in information technology project or program management, business systems delivery, enterprise systems implementation, infrastructure modernization, or related IT work.
• At least three (3) years of responsibility for managing complex cross-functional programs, project portfolios, PMO functions, or enterprise technology initiatives.

Nice To Haves

• Ten (10) years of experience working within PMO functions.
• Experience overseeing both business application and infrastructure projects
• Experience with ERP, cloud migration, cybersecurity initiatives, enterprise integrations, data/reporting programs, or operational technology implementations
• Experience supporting formal procurement and vendor contract oversight
• Able to possess a valid California Class C driver’s license and a satisfactory driving record.
• PMP, PgMP, PMI-ACP, ITIL, Scrum, or related certification is desirable

Responsibilities

• Develops, implements, and maintains an enterprise IT project portfolio management framework aligned with agency strategic goals, service delivery priorities, regulatory obligations, and budget constraints.
• Leads project intake, business case review, prioritization, sequencing, and portfolio planning for technology initiatives.
• Establishes and facilitates governance processes for evaluating scope, risk, funding, resource capacity, operational impact, and expected business value.
• Recommends portfolio tradeoffs and prioritization decisions to executive leadership based on cost, urgency, risk, compliance, and service impact.
• Maintains portfolio roadmaps for enterprise applications, infrastructure, cloud, cybersecurity, data, communications, and transit technology initiatives.
• Oversees and manages multiple large, complex, and interdependent IT projects and programs from initiation through implementation and transition to operations.
• Ensures projects are appropriately planned with defined scope, schedule, budget, milestones, dependencies, risks, staffing, procurement actions, and success metrics.
• Monitors portfolio health and project performance using dashboards, status reports, KPI tracking, and executive briefings.
• Identifies delivery risks, escalation points, resource conflicts, and change impacts; develops mitigation and recovery strategies.
• Promotes consistent use of project management standards, templates, controls, and documentation practices.
• Partners with business units, transit operations, maintenance, finance, procurement, HR, customer service, safety, and executive leadership to define project needs and expected outcomes.
• Translates operational and business priorities into executable technology roadmaps and implementation plans.
• Facilitates stakeholder meetings, steering committees, workshops, and executive decision sessions.
• Supports organizational change management, communication planning, training coordination, and adoption readiness for new technologies and processes.
• Assists in development and administration of the IT capital and operating project portfolio budget.
• Tracks project expenditures, encumbrances, forecasts, and funding utilization.
• Coordinates procurement activities related to technology projects, including requirements development, scopes of work, RFP/RFQ support, proposal evaluation, contract administration support, and vendor onboarding.
• Oversees vendor, consultant, and systems integrator performance to ensure compliance with contractual obligations, schedules, deliverables, and service levels.
• Supports audit responses, funding documentation, and executive reporting related to projects and contracts.
• Coordinates initiatives affecting enterprise applications, servers, storage, networks, cloud services, cybersecurity controls, identity and access management, business continuity, and end-user platforms.
• Supports implementation of systems relevant to transit and public-sector operations, which may include ERP, HRIS, asset management, fare systems, dispatch/CAD-AVL, customer information systems, document management, data integration, and reporting platforms.
• Ensures proper transition from project delivery into production support, operations, maintenance, and service management.
• Works with technical teams to identify architecture, integration, security, support, and lifecycle implications of proposed projects.
• Promotes compliance with applicable agency policies, information security standards, privacy requirements, records management practices, accessibility expectations, and public procurement requirements.
• Supports disaster recovery, business continuity, and operational resilience planning as related to technology initiatives.
• Develops and refines PMO, portfolio, and governance practices to improve delivery consistency, transparency, and accountability.
• Prepares reports, presentations, memoranda, and recommendations for executive staff, leadership committees, and, as assigned, governing board materials.

Benefits

• The selection process may include a panel interview, written and skills test assessments, or supplemental questions.
• The Human Resources Department will make reasonable efforts in the recruitment/examination process to accommodate applicants with disabilities upon request.
• We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive and welcoming workplace environment.
• We are an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.
• Minorities, Women, Persons with Disabilities and Veterans are encouraged to apply.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior