IT Program Manager

Role Overview

The IT Program Manager leads the coordination and governance of technology initiatives across the organization, ensuring business-led projects receive the appropriate IT oversight, architecture guidance, and integration support. This role serves as a strategic bridge between IT and business units, helping teams deliver measurable value on technology-enabled initiatives while maintaining alignment with enterprise architecture, data governance, and long-term technology strategy.

The IT Portfolio Manager ensures that initiatives across departments are visible, prioritized, and executed in a way that reduces redundancy, manages system dependencies, and protects the integrity of the organization’s technology ecosystem. This includes evaluating system interactions, identifying integration requirements, and helping determine authoritative systems of record for enterprise data.

Key Responsibilities

Portfolio Visibility & Governance

• Maintain a centralized view of technology-related initiatives across business units, including projects not directly owned by IT.
• Establish governance practices that ensure business-led initiatives involving technology receive appropriate IT review and support.
• Facilitate intake, evaluation, and prioritization of technology initiatives in alignment with organizational and operational strategies.

Business & IT Alignment

• Partner with business units to understand upcoming initiatives and identify where IT architecture, data, or integration support is required.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to business leaders on technology decisions and potential impacts on existing systems.
• Ensure technology initiatives align with enterprise architecture standards and long-term IT strategy.

Integration & Systems Coordination

• Identify integration requirements between systems and coordinate with IT teams to ensure proper design and implementation.
• Analyze potential conflicts between systems, including determining appropriate systems of record and data ownership.
• Help prevent redundant or overlapping technology solutions across departments.

Portfolio Management & Planning

• Track the health, risks, dependencies, and resource impacts of technology initiatives across the portfolio.
• Provide leadership with insights into the technology investment landscape, including upcoming demands on IT resources.
• Maintain portfolio roadmaps and support long-term technology planning.

Risk & Impact Analysis

• Evaluate cross-project dependencies and technology risks.
• Identify potential impacts of new systems or changes on existing applications, integrations, and data flows.
• Facilitate discussions among stakeholders when conflicts arise between systems, processes, or data ownership.

Communication & Reporting

• Provide clear reporting and dashboards on portfolio status, risks, and upcoming technology needs.
• Support executive decision-making with analysis of technology investments and trade-offs.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business Administration, or related field.
• 7+ years of experience in IT project, program, or portfolio management.
• Experience working across business and IT teams to deliver technology-enabled initiatives.
• Strong understanding of IT infrastructure, software development lifecycles, integrations with enterprise systems, and data governance concepts.
• Experience facilitating cross-functional decision-making among technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Proven experience managing budgets, timelines, and cross-functional teams
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to translate technical concepts for non-technical audiences.
• Experience with project management tools (e.g., Azure DevOps, MS Project, Asana, Smartsheet)
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Experience working remotely.

 
Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business Administration, or related field.
• Experience working with enterprise architecture or application landscape management.
• Familiarity with integration platforms, APIs, and enterprise data management practices.
• Experience supporting business-led technology implementations.
• PMP, PgMP, PfMP, Agile, or related certifications.

Skills

• Strategic thinking and enterprise perspective
• Technology governance and portfolio oversight
• Cross-functional collaboration
• Systems and integration awareness
• Data ownership and system-of-record analysis
• Executive communication and facilitation