Project Manager II - Enterprise PMO

Starkey is a world leader in the manufacturing and distribution of advanced hearing technologies. We are in the business of connecting people and changing lives. Our teams come to work each day focused on ensuring people everywhere have the products and services they need to hear better and live better.

Founded in 1967 by Bill Austin, Starkey is known for our cutting-edge hearing health innovations, industry-leading research and development, and not being afraid to push the edge of what’s possible. We are headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, have over 5,000 employees in 29 facilities across the globe, and do business in more than 100 markets worldwide.

Watch this video to see more of what sets Starkey Apart: https://youtu.be/9cUYwTlCepg?si=wkovx8_R_iINfrc6

JOB SUMMARY DESCRIPTION

Project Manager II is responsible for managing one or more feature or product development projects in the Technology portfolio. This is a leadership role responsible for working with cross functional teams to ensure a smooth project execution based on Starkey’s approved Technology Maturation Integration Process. This candidate has a strong sense for process and is skilled at enabling teams to bring early stage engineering ideas though to maturation and finally product integration. An ideal candidate would have a knack for stakeholder management and leads their projects with strong and effective communication skills. The Project Manager will function as a key partner to engineering leaders and technical leaders on the project to ensure smooth execution. The Project Manager will be responsible for delivering and maintaining the schedule, while providing regular updates. The Project Manager will also be a partner to the Program Manager and the Technology Portfolio Manager to ensure that the project meets program and portfolio targets. The Project manager will manage the project under the Technology Portfolio and track updates in Starkey’s task management system.

The Project Manager will report into Starkey’s Software PMO and will play a key role in establishing check-ins with other Software Portfolio Managers on the team, to understand how their project impacts other product portfolios.

The Project Manager will also assist the Technology Portfolio Manager to maintain the technology portfolio. 

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES/RESULTS

Create, maintain, and execute detailed project plan and schedule using established best practices

• Work effectively with the cross functional team and Program Manager to develop high quality development and maturation project plans and schedules using MS Project and other task management tools like Jira and Azure DevOps
• Ensure execution occurs based on Starkey’s approved Technology Maturation Integration Process guidelines
• Ensure schedule is properly maintained consistent with established best practices, accurate, and kept up to date on a regular basis

Manage project activities to meet scope, date, and cost commitments

• Enable the team by ensuring all the right team members are identified at the right time on the project.
• Track team’s progress and roadblocks and facilitate special team meetings as needed to brainstorm, problem solve, or conduct other activities needed to ensure project success

Anticipate and proactively manage project risk

• Proactively assess, identify, and manage project risk and establish mitigation and contingency plans
• Institutionalize risk mitigation and prevention by capturing lessons learned

Communicate effectively within the project team, contributing departments, and upward to R&D leadership

• Communicate quickly, accurately, and completely to the project team ensuring that all team members are properly informed, and activities are properly coordinated across departments
• Communicate outward and upward beyond the project team to stakeholders and leadership in a concise, accurate, complete, and objective way with an emphasis on data and facts

Identify opportunities for process improvement

• Proactively identify opportunities to improve the Technology Maturation and Integration Process based on lessons learn
• Partner with the Technology Portfolio Manager and help roll out process improvements to simplify process and enable efficiency in the technology pipeline   

JOB REQUIREMENTS

Education

• 4 year degree in Project Management, or other relevant field

Experience

• 5 years project management (or applicable) experience in an engineering and new product development environment
• Fundamental understanding of electronics and software/firmware programming
• Fundamental understanding of algorithmic development and machine learning processes

Knowledge / Technical Requirements

• Proficient with MS Project and MS Office applications
• Knowledge of Agile and Waterfall execution methodologies

Competencies, Skills & Abilities

• Detail, data, and process driven
• Ability to anticipate roadblocks, diagnose problems, and generate effective solutions
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work with diverse groups
• Strong negotiation, conflict resolution, and interpersonal skills
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Strong organizational and time management skills
• Excellent oral, written, and presentation communication skills
• Experience in development of technology software, hardware, and systems
• Understanding of Quality Management processes

Preferred Skills, Abilities & Experience

• PMI certification
• Experience with hearing aids

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