Sr. Project Manager – IT Operations

Company Description

A best-in-class city that attracts best-in-class talent, Philadelphia is an incredible place to build a career. From our thriving arts scene and rich history to our culture of passion and grit, there are countless reasons to love living and working here. With a workforce of over 30,000 people, and more than 1,000 different job categories, the City of Philadelphia offers boundless opportunities to make an impact. 
As an employer, the City of Philadelphia values inclusion, integrity, innovation, empowerment, and hard work above all else. We offer a vibrant work environment, comprehensive health care and benefits, and the experience you need to grow and excel. If you’re interested in working with a passionate team of people who care about the future of Philadelphia, start here.
What We Offer:
•    Impact - The work you do here matters to millions. 
•    Growth - Philadelphia is growing, why not grow with it? 
•    Diversity & Inclusion - Find a career in a place where everyone belongs.
•    Benefits - We care about your well-being.
 

The Office of Innovation & Technology (OIT) is the central IT agency for the City of Philadelphia headed by the Chief Information Officer (CIO). OIT oversees all major information and communications technology initiatives for the City of Philadelphia - increasing the effectiveness of the information technology infrastructure, where the services provided are advanced, optimized, and responsive to the needs of the City of Philadelphia’s businesses, residents, and visitors. OIT responsibilities include: identifying the most effective approach for implementing new information technology directions throughout city government; improving the value of the city’s technology assets and the return on the city’s technology investments; ensuring data security continuity; planning for continuing operations in the event of disruption of information technology or communications services; and supporting accountable, efficient and effective government across every city department, board, commission and agency.

Job Description

This position, under the direction of the IT Operations Manager, leads and directs high-priority projects, which often require considerable resources and high levels of functional integration. In particular, this role will manage projects with a focus on networks, networking, and firewalls/network security, and will be embedded within the City’s Network Services Group. A successful candidate will
1.    Have a breadth of technical knowledge, especially for networks and firewalls.
2.    Great experience managing multiple complex projects simultaneously.
3.    Think from a complex systems perspective and seek to understand how projects and systems relate.
4.    Comfortably support, guide, and direct technical and executive staff.
5.    Be able to pivot between projects, sometimes with little to no notice.
6.    Calmly handle competing priorities and adjust project work accordingly.
7.    Spot potential problems and communicate with all parties on them before they become an issue.
8.    Be a lifelong learner, and be open to feedback and guidance.

Essential Functions (The ideal candidate will be able to)
•     Manage multiple complex projects of various size simultaneously and adroitly track progress for them all. 
•     Research and understand the technical aspects of all assigned projects. You do not need to be the technical expert, but you must be comfortable discussing with the project team, stakeholders, and the project sponsor technical specifics of all assigned projects. 
•     Regularly review assigned projects to spot where they may connect and support, or block, each other
•     Administer all aspects of assigned projects throughout project life cycle (initiating, planning, executing, monitoring/control, closing) largely independently.
•    Select and employ appropriate project management methodology or methodologies for assigned projects. 
•    Develop project plans for a project team, including communications, deliverables, work/tasks, resources, and schedules to meet project goals on-time and -budget.
•    Ensure that appropriate stakeholders are represented, informed, and involved in projects.
•    Escalate issues and risks appropriately to resolve problems and reduce project risk. Ideally, potential issues will be raised proactively. 
•    Fashion well-designed and -implemented communication for multiple audiences to help maximize the adoption of new technology solutions. 
•    Control changes to the project scope, schedule, work/task assignment and structure, communications plan, and budget (when applicable) using appropriate verification techniques.
•    Keep all project team members, technical experts, stakeholders, and project sponsors focused on the project goals—avoid p