Director, Program Management — Data & AI

Burtch Works; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Burtch Works is seeking a Senior Program Manager to own the end-to-end program management framework for the Data & AI organization in Chicago. You will track workstreams, surface risks, and ensure commitments are met across multiple functions including AI Engineering, Data Engineering, UX Design, Product Management, and Data Governance.

You will establish Jira standards, drive agile delivery, and maintain a unified program dashboard for leadership visibility.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Engineering, Computer Science, or related field.
• Minimum 10 years of program or project management with 5+ years in senior/leadership roles.
• Experience managing large cross-functional programs (100+ people) with measurable outcomes.
• Deep proficiency with Jira, Confluence, and roadmapping tools.
• Proven expertise scaling agile delivery across multi-disciplinary tech teams.
• Track record building and maintaining OKR/KPI frameworks.
• Experience developing program managers and leading teams.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Excellent executive presence and stakeholder management.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end program management framework for Data & AI org; track workstreams, surface risks, meet commitments.
• Establish and enforce Jira standards, workflows, and reporting across multiple teams.
• Lead agile delivery practices including sprint planning, retrospectives, and backlog hygiene.
• Build a unified program dashboard for real-time portfolio health and blockers for leadership.
• Drive accountability across ~100 professionals; document and escalate when commitments slip.
• Partner with Senior Director to define and track OKRs and KPIs quarterly.
• Run weekly stand-ups, monthly reviews, and quarterly OKR check-ins to stay aligned.
• Provide concise leadership reporting on program status, risks, and health.
• Mentor and grow Program Managers; embed PM practices across functions.
• Facilitate cross-functional coordination and resolve dependencies with IT.

Skills

Jira

Confluence

Roadmapping tools

Agile delivery

OKR/KPI frameworks

Program management

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree (preferred)

Tools

Aha!

Job description

Key Responsibilities

Program Governance & Operational Excellence

• Own the end-to-end program management framework for the Data & AI organization, ensuring all workstreams are tracked, risks are surfaced early, and commitments are met.
• Establish and enforce Jira standards, workflows, and reporting practices across AI Engineering, Data Engineering, UX Design, Product Management, and Data Governance teams.
• Define and implement agile delivery practices—including sprint planning, retrospectives, and backlog hygiene—tailored to the needs of each function within the Data & AI org.
• Build and maintain a unified program dashboard that provides real-time visibility into portfolio health, milestone status, resource allocation, and blockers for senior leadership.
• Drive accountability across a team of ~100 professionals, ensuring commitments are documented, tracked, and honored—escalating when they are not.

OKR & KPI Management

• Partner with the Senior Director, Product Management and Data & AI leadership to define, cascade, and track organizational OKRs and KPIs each quarter.
• Establish a cadence of structured reviews—weekly stand-ups, monthly business reviews, and quarterly OKR check-ins—that keep the organization focused and aligned.
• Proactively identify when teams are off-track and facilitate swift corrective action, surfacing issues with data and proposing solutions, not just problems.
• Produce clear, concise reporting to senior leadership and firm stakeholders on program status, risks, and organizational health.

Team Leadership & Development

• Lead, mentor, and grow a team of Program Managers (currently two), with the latitude to expand the team as organizational complexity demands.
• Set clear performance expectations, provide consistent coaching and feedback, and foster a culture of precision, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Serve as a model for rigorous program management discipline, establishing standards that elevate the entire organization's operational maturity.
• Partner closely with functional leads—Engineering, Design, Product, and Governance—to embed program management practices within each discipline.

Cross-Functional Coordination & Stakeholder Management

• Serve as the connective tissue across the Data & AI organization, breaking down silos and ensuring cross-functional dependencies are actively managed and resolved.
• Serve as the conduit to the IT organization to build out any joint product work plans, timelines, and milestones which the Data & AI organization is dependent on for major product initiatives.
• Facilitate alignment between program delivery and strategic priorities, translating organizational goals into actionable execution plans.
• Act as a trusted advisor to the Senior Director, Product Management and Data & AI leadership on matters of execution, capacity, and operational risk.
• Build credibility across the firm—with attorneys, practice group leaders, and business stakeholders—through reliable delivery and transparent communication.

Process Improvement & Tooling

• Continuously evaluate and improve program management processes, tools, and rituals to reduce friction and increase throughput across the organization.
• Drive adoption of Jira, Aha!, Confluence and other collaboration tools as the sources of truth for work planning, tracking, and reporting.
• Identify systemic inefficiencies and implement scalable solutions that allow the Data & AI organization to move faster with greater predictability.

Candidate ProfileRequired Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field.
• Minimum of 10 years of program or project management experience, including at least 5 years in a senior or leadership capacity at a high-performing organization.
• Demonstrated experience managing large, cross-functional programs (100+ person organizations or equivalent scope) with measurable accountability outcomes.
• Deep proficiency with Jira, Confluence, and roadmapping tools—including workflow configuration, reporting, and driving org-wide adoption of standards.
• Proven expertise implementing and scaling agile delivery practices across multi-disciplinary technology teams.
• Track record of building and maintaining OKR/KPI frameworks and driving organizational accountability to them.
• Experience directly managing and developing program management professionals.
• Exceptional organizational skills and an almost obsessive attention to detail—you catch what others miss and you don't let things slip.
• Strong executive presence with the communication and influencing skills to engage senior leadership and firm stakeholders with confidence and clarity.
• Comfortable making the difficult call: holding teams accountable, escalating blockers, and driving decisions when momentum stalls.
• Demonstrated ability to operate effectively in a matrixed, fast-paced environment with competing priorities and evolving requirements.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in Business Administration, Engineering, or a related field.
• PMP, PgMP, SAFe, or equivalent program management certification.
• Experience in a law firm, professional services, or similarly complex enterprise environment.
• Familiarity with AI, data engineering, or data governance domains and the unique delivery challenges they present.
• Experience managing geographically dispersed teams across multiple time zones.