Program Manager, Digital Experience Initiatives

Penn State University • Benner Township, PA

23h • Hybrid

About The Position

Penn State’s Office of Strategic Communications—the University’s central public relations and marketing division—seeks a Program Manager, Digital Experience Initiatives to coordinate complex, highly visible digital initiatives across the University’s distributed web ecosystem. The successful candidate will liaise with internal partners and cross-functional teams to ensure that web and digital projects deliver measurable outcomes. This is a hybrid or potentially fully remote position that calls for a strategic communicator, skilled facilitator, and an experienced project manager who can align cross-functional teams and guide complex initiatives toward cohesive, outcome-driven digital experiences.

Requirements

• Bachelor's Degree
• 3+ years of relevant experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience accepted
• Understand digital platforms, content systems, and user-experience principles
• Be able to coordinate across teams and manage stakeholders in complex organizational settings
• Understand digital accessibility, content strategy, and web governance
• Have strong written and verbal communication skills
• Be fluent in project management tools (e.g., Jira, Smartsheet, MS Project, Asana)
• Be proficient in the use of collaboration, productivity, and documentation tools such as Microsoft Project, Miro, Slack, Confluence, Google Drive, and Microsoft Office Suite

Nice To Haves

• Have PMP, ScrumMaster, or other project management certification
• Prior experience working in a higher education, government, or nonprofit setting is a plus

Responsibilities

• Initiative Management: Lead and coordinate multiple, simultaneous web and digital experience efforts, working across stakeholder groups to define scope, clarify outcomes, and drive progress
• Stakeholder Alignment: Serve as the primary contact for unit-based teams, product owners, and strategic partners, managing expectations through consistent communication and engagement
• Project Facilitation: Support kickoff meetings, discovery phases, sprint planning, and decision-making forums to determine role clarity, timelines, and deliverables
• Delivery Coordination: Work closely with content strategists, developers, designers, analysts, and digital leads to enable projects to advance with clarity, cohesion, and purpose
• Roadmap Documentation: Maintain project documentation, status trackers, and shared communication plans for internal and external visibility
• Risk and Issue Management: Identify potential obstacles, facilitate resolution, and escalate when necessary to maintain momentum
• Continuous Improvement: Recommend and help implement project workflows, communication standards, and team coordination methods that improve delivery outcomes
• Organizational Learning: Capture lessons learned, surface bottlenecks, and share insights that help strengthen Penn State’s broader digital maturity

Benefits

• Penn State provides a competitive benefits package for full-time employees designed to support both personal and professional well-being.
• In addition to comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage, employees enjoy robust retirement plans and substantial paid time off which includes holidays, vacation and sick time.
• One of the standout benefits is the generous 75% tuition discount, available to employees as well as eligible spouses and children.

What This Job Offers

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