Director, Enterprise Project Management Office (EPMO)

The Council for Professional Recognition; Washington (District of Columbia); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 185,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Remote-first culture

Health benefits

Dental, vision, and life insurance

403(b) retirement plan

Parental leave

FSA options

Generous PTO

Professional development

Job summary

The Council for Professional Recognition is seeking a strategic, results‑oriented Director, Enterprise Project Management Office (EPMO) to establish and lead the Council's Enterprise PMO. This role provides executive leadership for portfolio governance, initiative execution, change management, and operational excellence across the organization.

Reporting to the Chief Administrative Officer, the Director will align investments and resources with strategic priorities, drive governance, establish

Qualifications

• 12+ years of experience in project/program/portfolio management, transformation, strategy, or related fields.
• Experience establishing or leading enterprise PMOs and project delivery functions.
• Strong knowledge of enterprise project management methodologies and governance.

Responsibilities

• Establish, lead, and improve the enterprise PMO, including governance, intake, prioritization, resource allocation, standards, methodologies, and best practices.
• Partner with executives to prioritize strategic initiatives and align with goals, value, and resources.
• Manage a portfolio of enterprise projects and technology implementations with dashboards and metrics.
• Lead governance forums and provide insights to ensure investments and outcomes align with strategy.

Skills

12+ years of PMO experience

Agile

SAFe

Waterfall

Hybrid approaches

Executive communication

Portfolio governance

Financial acumen

Education

Bachelor's degree

PMP

PgMP

PfMP

Job description

The Council for Professional Recognition is the nation's leading credentialing organization for early childhood educators and the home of the Child Development Associate (CDA) Credential, the most widely recognized certification in early childhood education. For more than 45 years, the Council has advanced the professionalization of the early childhood education workforce by establishing rigorous standards that ensure educators have the skills and knowledge to support the healthy development of children from birth to age five.

We are seeking a strategic, results-oriented Director, Enterprise Project Management Office (EPMO) to establish and lead the Council's Enterprise Project Management Office. This role will provide executive leadership for project portfolio governance, strategic initiative execution, organizational change management, and operational excellence across the organization. The ideal candidate is a highly collaborative leader who combines project and portfolio management expertise with strong business acumen, executive presence, and a passion for driving organizational impact.

About the Role

The Director, Enterprise Project Management Office (PMO) provides strategic leadership for enterprise projects, including enterprise governance and portfolio prioritization, to ensure business and technology initiatives align with organizational goals. Reporting to the Chief Administrative Officer, the Director serves as a strategic advisor to executive leadership and leads a growing enterprise Project Management Office that aligns investments, initiatives, and resources with the Council’s strategic priorities.

Through this work, the Director helps ensure that organizational initiatives are prioritized, funded, governed, and executed effectively; establishes project management standards; and promotes successful execution, accountability, continuous improvement, and measurable results.

Location:

Hybrid Remote

Reports to:

Chief Administrative Officer

Classification:

Full-Time, Exempt

Supervisory Responsibilities:

Yes

Travel:

As Needed

Salary:

$180,000-185,000/annually

Key Responsibilities

• Establish, lead, and continuously improve the enterprise Project Management Office (PMO), including portfolio governance, project intake, prioritization, resource allocation, project management standards, methodologies, and best practices.
• Partner with executive leadership to evaluate, prioritize, and oversee strategic initiatives, ensuring alignment with organizational goals, business value, operational capacity, and resource requirements.
• Manage a portfolio of enterprise projects, technology implementations, process improvements, and organizational transformation initiatives, while maintaining executive dashboards, performance metrics, and reporting that provide visibility into progress, risks, resource utilization, and strategic outcomes.
• Lead enterprise project portfolio reviews and governance forums, providing executive leadership with actionable insights, recommendations, and decision support to ensure investments, resources, and project outcomes remain aligned with organizational strategy and priorities.
• Lead organizational change management efforts associated with strategic initiatives and technology implementations, including stakeholder engagement, communication, training, and adoption activities.
• Lead the implementation and optimization of project portfolio management platforms, dashboards, and workflow automation tools to improve visibility, governance, and organizational decision-making.
• Monitor project and portfolio financial performance, budgets, resource utilization, and return on investment.
• Identify and mitigate project and organizational risks, monitor critical dependencies, and support strategic planning by assessing implementation requirements, operational impacts, and resource needs.
• Build organization-wide project management capabilities through coaching, mentoring, training, and the development of scalable tools, practices, and communities of practice.
• Supervise, mentor, and develop PMO staff while fostering a culture of accountability, collaboration, innovation, and results-oriented performance.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to senior leadership on project portfolio management, organizational effectiveness, operational excellence, and strategic execution.

Our Ideal Candidate

Our ideal candidate is a strategic leader with deep expertise in project portfolio management, organizational transformation, and operational excellence. They thrive in a collaborative environment, can effectively influence executive stakeholders, and have a track record of building high-performing PMO functions that drive measurable organizational impact.

The strongest candidates will bring:

• 12+ years of progressive experience in project management, program management, portfolio management, business transformation, organizational strategy, or related disciplines.
• Demonstrated success establishing, scaling, or leading enterprise PMOs and project delivery functions.
• Experience managing complex portfolios, governance frameworks, business cases, budgets, and resource planning.
• Strong knowledge of project management methodologies, including Agile, SAFe, Waterfall, and Hybrid approaches.
• Experience leading enterprise-wide strategic initiatives, technology implementations, and organizational change efforts.
• Strong financial acumen and the ability to evaluate investments, resource allocation strategies, and organizational priorities.
• Exceptional executive communication, facilitation, presentation, negotiation, and stakeholder management skills.
• Proven success collaborating with and influencing executive leaders and cross-functional teams.
• Experience developing dashboards, reporting frameworks, risk management practices, and performance measurement systems.
• Bachelor's degree required in business administration, management, project management, organizational leadership, or a related field; advanced degree preferred.
• PMP, PgMP, PfMP, or comparable project management certification required.

Why Work at the Council?

The Council for Professional Recognition is more than a workplace; it is a mission-driven community where people stay, grow, and thrive. We are proud to be Great Place to Work Certified, with 96 percent of employees reporting that the Council is a great place to work. We invest deeply in the people who advance our mission and offer a comprehensive, highly competitive benefits package designed to support well-being, work-life balance, and long-term success.

What We Offer

• Remote-first culture with flexibility and trust
• Highly competitive health benefits with significant employer contribution
• Dental, vision, and life insurance
• 403(b) retirement plan with a 10% employer contribution after one year
• 16 weeks of parental leave after one year
• Healthcare and dependent care FSA options
• Generous PTO including holidays, vacation, and sick leave
• Professional development opportunities that support continued growth and career advancement

At the Council, your work will directly influence the successful execution of strategic initiatives, organizational transformation, and operational excellence efforts that strengthen our mission and help advance the early childhood education workforce nationwide.

The Council for Professional Recognition is committed to building a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and do not discriminate on the basis of any protected characteristic. Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States.

Work Authorization

Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States for any employer. We are unable to sponsor or assume sponsorship of employment visas at this time.