Senior Project Manager, Workforce Consulting

PFM • Cape Coral, FL

20h • $115,000 - $140,000 • Hybrid

About The Position

PFM Group Consulting (PFMGC) is seeking a Senior Project Manager to join our Workforce Consulting Group. The Senior Project Manager is expected to have at least 10 years’ experience in public sector compensation and benefits, familiarity with local and state government budgets, and deep expertise with public sector collective bargaining. Exceptional candidates with prior work and/or education experience as labor economists – and who meet the requirements listed below – are strongly encouraged to apply. To be eligible for the Senior Project Manager position, the candidate must have demonstrated experience independently developing expert witness testimony on compensation and benefits matters. Additionally, the Senior Project Manager must possess demonstrated experience delivering expert witness testimony in fact-finding, interest arbitration, or related legal proceedings, and experience responding to cross-examination from opposing counsel under oath. To be considered for this position, candidates must submit both a resume and a cover letter. The cover letter should clearly articulate the candidate’s relevant experience—specifically related to public sector compensation and benefits, collective bargaining, and expert witness testimony—and explain their interest in joining PFM’s Workforce Consulting Group. Candidates who do not provide both documents will not move forward in the selection process. This is a hybrid/remote position, with the possibility of office space available at PFM Group Consulting’s headquarters in Philadelphia (PA) and/or other PFM Group offices throughout the Country. The Senior Project Manager is a leadership position with PFMGC. In addition to leading teams of analysts to produce high-quality deliverables and advise clients on their most pressing workforce challenges, the Senior Project Manager will be expected to build a self-sustaining business plan within two years of hire. ABOUT PFMGC AND THE WORKFORCE CONSULTING GROUP PFMGC provides management, budget, and operational consulting services to local and state governments throughout the United States. We advise local governments on an array of fiscal and operational issues, including but not limited to budget development, multi-year financial plans, revenue forecasting, fee studies and cost recovery strategies, economics and tax strategy, public safety finance and operations, K-12 schools budget and operations, and human services. As personnel costs often comprise three-quarters – or more – of our clients’ General Fund expenditures, PFMGC has a dedicated Workforce Consulting Group. Our primary service line entails providing management-side collective bargaining support services during negotiations. We work directly with local and State labor relations offices as well as outside counsel who serve as chief negotiators. We position ourselves as trusted, strategic advisors to our clients’ negotiating teams, and work hand-in-hand with our clients during all phases of the collective bargaining process – negotiations, mediation, and arbitration (when necessary). Our team performs compensation and benefits comparability analyses, costing of management and labor proposals, development of “ability to pay” and financial condition analyses, and delivers expert witness testimony in fact-finding or interest arbitration hearings. Beyond collective bargaining support, PFMGC’s Workforce Consulting Group performs recruitment and retention studies, stand-alone compensation studies, health and retirement benefits analyses, pension and OPEB reform, overtime analyses, workforce analytics (costing and modeling), operational reviews for human resources departments and civil service functions, and collaborates with other PFMGC practices on the development of multi-year financial plans and other project engagements. While the primary expectation will be for the Senior Project Manager to lead and build business in the collective bargaining support space, a successful candidate will be expected to support and lead additional workforce consulting project engagements. CORE RESPONSIBILITIES Successful candidates for this role will blend a passion for helping governments identify and implement creative solutions to the unique challenges they face with a strong foundation of public sector workforce and/or human resources knowledge and experience. The Senior Project Manager must be nimble in a dynamic, fast-paced environment in which they are given significant responsibility; possess experience leading high-performing teams; demonstrate a track record of leadership and grow a business plan. Additionally, the Senior Project Manager will be expected to embrace a “roll-up-their sleeves” ethos – willing and able to master/execute all tasks within a project engagement, including data collection and quality control. Reporting directly to the Managing Director overseeing the Workforce Consulting Group, the Senior Project Manager will be expected to execute and lead all facets of client engagements.

Requirements

• A bachelor’s degree or beyond is required. An advanced degree is desirable.
• A minimum of 10 years of work experience (graduate level course work may be substituted for work experience) with increasing levels of responsibility is required (preferably in the public sector or in a consulting capacity).
• The candidate must possess demonstrated experience independently developing and delivering, expert witness testimony on compensation and benefits matters, as well as experience responding to cross-examination from opposing counsel under oath.
• Demonstrated excellence in writing, as well as PowerPoint deliverables. Samples may be requested as part of the hiring process.
• Excellence in Microsoft Excel is a requirement of the position, as much of the Workforce Consulting Group’s technical analysis is developed in excel-based compensation and labor costing models.
• Prior project management experience and a track record of leading high-performing teams.
• Candidates should be knowledgeable and experienced with a broad range of public sector workforce issues, such as: Collective bargaining, Labor relations, Compensation analysis, Health benefits, Pensions, Other Post-Employment Benefits (OPEB), Paid leave, Recruitment and retention, Labor costing, Classification and compensation, Human capital management, Consumer Price Index (CPI) analyses, Local and state government budgeting practices, Human resources organizational functions and best practices
• Occasional business travel required (10-25%) for client meetings and business activity.

Nice To Haves

• Exceptional candidates with prior work and/or education experience as labor economists are strongly encouraged to apply.
• Familiarity with statistical software (e.g., SPSS) is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Technical Analysis Perform a wide range of compensation and benefits analyses for public sector employees. These include benchmarking of pay ranges, pay premiums, and career average compensation, as well as benchmarking of pension/retirement, health, retiree health, paid leave, and other ancillary benefits.
• Deliver expert witness testimony for interest arbitration, fact-finding, and related legal proceedings. Answer questions from opposing legal counsel and arbitrators during cross examination under oath. Assist the bargaining team in evaluating exhibits and testimony put forth by union expert witnesses.
• Develop creative and innovative strategic recommendations around compensation, recruitment, and retention in an array of client deliverables. Assist with the development of costing models to be used in client deliverables (e.g., compensation studies, recruitment and retention studies, collective bargaining support).
• Support organizational reviews of human resources and civil service functions, as well as perform workforce analyses in support of multi-year strategic financial plans for public sector entities. Analyze demographic and socio-economic data, as well as data from third-party resources (e.g., U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and HR consultancies).
• Project Management Oversee, execute, and deliver assigned projects and all related project activities, including but not limited to data collection, research, quantitative and qualitative analysis, expert witness testimony, the development of written reports, presentations, and other deliverables.
• Serve as the principal client contact for all projects; ensure regular and effective communication with clients and project partners. Coordinate and lead project teams. Communicate project findings, results, and recommendations to clients and other stakeholders.
• Manage assigned resources in a responsible, efficient, and cost-effective manner. Ensure client satisfaction and the successful and timely completion of all in-scope project deliverables. Support the development and professional growth of more junior team members. Organize and lead quality control efforts to ensure technical accuracy.
• Marketing and Business Development Build a self-sustaining business plan within two years of hire, with the support of the PFM Group Consulting partnership. Identify new project engagements with existing clients and leverage the PFM Group platform to generate new business for the Workforce Consulting Group. Bring forth new strategies and new clients to expand the Workforce Consulting client base. On a limited basis, assist in the development of scopes of work and formal responses to Requests for Proposals (RFPs).
• General Administrative Support the professional development of team members through coaching, training, mentoring, and leadership. Contribute to positive team culture by participating in team-building activities and being a supportive and empathetic colleague who brings a “roll-up-their sleeves” mentality to all tasks performed.
• Master and independently execute all general administrative tasks associated with a leadership position at PFM Group Consulting, including invoicing, project scope development, project revenue forecasting, contract management, and employee evaluations. Maintain knowledge of and share business insights, including industry trends, challenges, and issues. Serve as a go-to resource for PFM colleagues on public sector workforce issues.

Benefits

• PFM offers a comprehensive benefits package. This includes generous flexible paid time off, tuition reimbursement, student loan repayment, 401k retirement plan with employer match and annual profit-sharing opportunity, medical/dental/vision insurance, health and wellness benefits, and disability and life insurance.
• The anticipated base salary for this position is $115,000-140,000; this position is also eligible for annual performance-based bonuses.
• Actual compensation is influenced by a variety of factors including but not limited to skills, experience, qualifications, and geographic location.

What This Job Offers

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