Project Manager

S&C Electric Company • Chicago, IL

2h • $116,534 - $154,413 • Hybrid

About The Position

The Product Development organization plays a vital role in enhancing S&C's competitive edge in the marketplace. By actively engaging with customers to understand their needs and challenges, this team drives innovation and creativity. Their efforts result in the development and launch of new products designed to create an outage-free and sustainable electrical energy future worldwide. As a member of the Project Management – New Product Development organization, the Project Manager will lead end-to-end project management activities in support of new product development initiatives. This role will develop hardware/software products and associated manufacturing processes throughout all phases of the project life cycle. Project Managers have the authority to direct multi-disciplinary teams and the accountability for meeting/exceeding project objectives and organizational Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Project Management, Technology, Engineering, a related field, or equivalent experience.
• Project Management Professional (PMP)
• 4+ years of Project Management experience within project management related to hardware and software development in a manufacturing environment.
• Advanced understanding of products and a sound understanding of Engineering principles. Able to lead technical discussions.
• Excellent knowledge of and demonstrated experience applying project management principles to manage a large portfolio of complex projects to successful delivery. Able to be tasked with the most challenging project assignments in Product Development.
• Sound technology proficiency, including experience using project management tools such as Microsoft Project Professional.
• Able to support mission-critical change management activities.
• Leading project management skills including the ability to create detailed project plans, define scope, establish timelines/milestones, and manage project finances and budgets at the highest level.
• Excellent customer service orientation, ensuring satisfaction of high-level customers and consistent communication throughout the most difficult projects.
• Sound time management and organizational skills, coordinating internal and external resources, creative problem-solving when obstacles arise, prioritizing tasks, managing multiple deadlines and keeping others organized.
• Excellent interpersonal skills to establish professional relationships built on mutual trust and respect, foster a shared sense of purpose in project teams, navigate and resolve conflict, moderate behaviors and foster collaborative working relationships across a diverse Product Development team and cross-functional project teams.
• Excellent communication skills, (written, verbal, listening and presentation) able to liaise with internal and external stakeholders at all levels from leadership to support staff, and present influentially regarding project progress and risks.
• Business acumen, critical thinking and analytical skills with the ability to use and analyze data to drive informed decisions, problem-solve difficult issues and leverage data and learnings to drive continuous improvement.
• Financial acumen and numerical ability to manage project budgets and finances to maximum effectiveness.
• Skilled at navigating through ambiguity, leading project teams through change and building change management into project plans.
• Excellent presentation and facilitation skills to present project related updates, foster discussion regarding project plans and elicit contributions and discussion from stakeholders.
• Agile project management approach with an ability to help teams pivot approaches to meet project needs.

Nice To Haves

• Master’s degree in Project Management (required if no PMP)
• Experience within the electrical power industry, with particular knowledge of medium and high voltage equipment and installation processes.
• Experience in Lean Project Management and Product Development implementation and transformation.
• Experience with Jira, Confluence, Planview or similar project management systems.

Responsibilities

• Act as a subject matter expert for project management in Product Development, advising others on best practices.
• Facilitate product requirement identification events to translate market needs into tangible product requirements and project scope.
• Oversee pre-project preparation, including the analysis, design, budget, communication and assess project design resource capabilities and needs.
• Facilitate project planning events to create Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), develop overall project schedule and drive critical path activities.
• Collaborate with project stakeholders to identify knowledge gaps and develop rapid learning cycle programs to close those gaps.
• Collaborate with project stakeholders to define budget, develop project financial justification and regularly forecast project costs.
• Create and maintain project plans and other documentation defining project objectives, scope, deliverables, resource allocation, roles and responsibilities, timelines, and quality gates for each project phase.
• Assemble project teams of subject matter experts and assign responsibilities and tasks, engaging third parties as needed when internal resources are unavailable or specialized knowledge is needed.
• Schedule, lead, and/or participate actively in project meetings, facilitating clear communication, taking detailed notes, and updating project plans/trackers to ensure efficient follow-up and execution of actions to keep stakeholders accountable.
• Tailor predictive and adaptive project management approaches for best project fit.
• Facilitate risk identification events to drive risk response plans and lead risk management sessions throughout the project life cycle.
• Understand and mitigate against risks, ensuring that mitigation strategies and contingency plans address broader issues and provide all-encompassing issues to large obstacles.
• Own the overall information flow of project information and decision points, communicating effectively with key team members and partners at key junctions of projects to facilitate smooth delivery.
• Leverage Lean Project Management / Product Development methodologies.
• Holds project teams accountable and pushes back on contractors and other stakeholders to ensure successful outcomes.
• Mentor project team members in Lean Project Management / Product Development methodologies and other best practices to drive effective and efficient project execution.
• Define project success metrics and track project status, budget, and delivery, advising of delays and revised delivery dates or costs as required.
• Lead the project team through initiation, planning, execution, monitoring & controlling, and closure phases of the project.
• Measure project outcomes and analyze data to assess the project's impact on and delivery to the customer.
• Deliver status updates and reports to customers, project teams, leaders, and third parties at an agreed upon cadence, leveraging various communication methods to ensure customers feel heard and information flows effectively.
• Evaluate the success of projects against predefined objectives and customer expectations and collect feedback from stakeholders to identify areas for improvement.
• Understand and comply with all applicable Company policies and rules.
• Maintain regular and punctual attendance.
• Attend in-person or virtual meetings as requested or required.
• Communicate effectively and respectfully with others.
• Other responsibilities as assigned.

Benefits

• Medical & Prescription
• Dental
• Vision
• Health Care and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts
• Health Savings Account (HSA)
• Group Life Insurance
• Optional Supplemental Life and AD&D Insurance
• Wellbeing Resources including Employee Assistance Program
• Family Forming Benefits (i.e., Adoption and Fertility support)
• Vacation Time
• Sick Time
• Paid Holidays
• Company Shutdown days
• Short-Term Disability
• Long-Term Disability
• Other Leaves
• Paid Parental Time
• Military Leave
• 401(k) Retirement Savings and Employee Stock Ownership Plan (KSOP) offering traditional and Roth 401(k) options and an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) component
• Annual ESOP company contributions of over 11% of eligible earnings (3% Core, up to 3.5% Match, Variable Periodic)

What This Job Offers

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