Lead Project & Program Manager (Hybrid)

Wolters Kluwer; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 108,000 - 188,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental, & Vision Plans

401(k)

Paid Parental Leave

Job summary

Wolters Kluwer seeks a Lead Project & Program Manager in Chicago to independently lead a portfolio of projects, guiding cross-functional teams and stakeholders. You will manage scope, timelines, and budgets, delivering measurable value aligned with strategic objectives.

Minimum 7+ years in project management, strong knowledge of waterfall and Agile methods, and excellent communication are required. Hybrid work, domestic travel up to 10%, and a competitive compensation package are offered.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, project management or related field/equivalent.
• 7+ years of project management experience, or equivalent.
• Knowledge of waterfall and Agile methodologies; ability to coach and mentor others.
• Proficient with project management principles and cross-functional coordination.

Responsibilities

• Oversee and coordinate multiple projects within the portfolio to deliver outcomes, aligning with business strategy, objectives, and priorities.
• Lead projects across departments, mitigating risks, resolving issues, and managing complexity.
• Develop communication plans to drive program discussions and provide status updates to stakeholders.
• Serve as senior advisor to leaders, driving adoption of new perspectives and best practices.
• Implement and execute best practices in program/change management.
• Build and manage relationships with key stakeholders across the organization; manage escalation processes.
• Interpret business and technical challenges and recommend best practices to improve products, services and processes.
• Utilize analytical tools to solve complex problems and identify innovative solutions.
• Deliver multi-phased projects with detailed milestones, budgets, and artifacts.

Skills

Advanced Scheduling

Documentation Expertise

Clear Communication

Financial Administration

Stakeholder Management

Project Management Tools

Risk and Change Management

Quality Control

English Proficiency

Education

Bachelor’s degree in business, Project Management or related field/equivalent

PMP or ACP certification

Tools

Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, PowerBi)

Microsoft Teams

Remote connection tools

SF Milestones

Smartsheet

Job description

Basic Function

The Lead Project & Program Manager is responsible for independently leading and managing a Business /Product Portfolio consisting of multiple technical and/or business projects that support strategic business objectives. This role ensures successful delivery of business outcomes and measurable value for the organization and customers (internal or external) within a defined roadmap through effective management of scope, timeline, and budget. Key responsibilities include coordinating efforts of cross-functional teams, overseeing program execution, and stakeholder management. A strong grasp of portfolio goals and team dynamics is essential for effective delivery of outcomes.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Core Responsibilities

Program Leadership, Strategy and Stakeholder Engagement

• Oversee and coordinate multiple related projects within the portfolio to deliver outcomes, aligning with business strategy, objectives, and priorities.

• Lead projects and initiatives across departments or areas, including technical teams and business stakeholders, mitigating notable risks, resolving impactful issues, and managing complexity.

• Develop and implement effective communication plans to drive program and portfolio discussions, articulate status and outcomes appropriately to all stakeholders, inclusive of presentations, reports and dashboards.

• Serve as a senior advisor to leaders, contributing expert knowledge and broad perspective, driving adoption of new perspectives.

• Implement and execute best practices in program / change management.

• Build and manage relationships with key stakeholders across the CLC business unit, and cross-functional teams, ensuring expectations are met, communicating clearly and managing escalation processes to keep them aware of critical risks and issues confronting the program and action plans for addressing.

• Interpret business and technical challenges as well as recommend best practices to improve products, services and processes.

• Utilize sophisticated analytical thoughts and tools to solve complex problems and identify innovative solutions.

Execution & Governance

• Program Execution:

• Deliver multi-phased projects within a portfolio from original concept through final implementation following an agreed upon methodology, creating detailed milestone plans (schedules, estimates, resources), implementing routines, creating artifacts (risk mitigation plans, issues log) and communicating status via reports and update forums.

• Provide work direction and leadership for programs, including assignment of work, review of efforts and guidance to team members working on various phases of the project.

• Monitor and audit project milestones, gather metrics, and implement changes as necessary to ensure that the project remains aligned to expected business outcomes and is within time, cost, and quality objectives.

• Ensure all required project artifacts (charter, change requests, etc.) are executed and stored correctly. Ensure projects are properly closed upon completion (resource release, team celebrations, lessons learned, final status update).

• Risk & Issue Management: Identify and remove roadblocks; understand appropriate escalation paths. Conduct risk analysis, develop mitigation plans, and manage changes effectively.

• Program Governance: Establish and facilitate the governance framework for the portfolio and adjust as needed. Facilitate Steering Committees and Executive Updates for transparency and decision-making.

• Resource Management: Influence the direction and resource allocation for projects across departments to provide coverage for all essential tasks and successful delivery. Coordinate cross-functional teams, establish program RACI, and manage resources to achieve portfolio goals.

• Quality & Compliance: Ensure high levels of quality and compliance across deliverables.

• Reporting & Documentation: Develop and deliver presentations, reports, and maintain accurate documentation.

• Financial Oversight: Manage project budget, work with leadership team to monitor ROI vs. forecast, and ensure financial targets are

Job Qualifications

Education

Minimum: Bachelor’s degree in business, Project Management or related field/equivalent.

Preferred: Project Management Professional (PMP) or Agile Certified Practitioner (ACP) certification.

Experience

Minimum Experience: 7 + years of project management experience, or equivalent.

Project Management:

• Proven knowledge of Project/Program Management principles/methodologies (e.g., waterfall and Agile) and the ability to coach and mentor less experienced program/project managers.

• Proven process management skills - skilled at figuring out the processes necessary to get things done, knows how to organize people and activities, knows how to separate and combine tasks into efficient workflows.

• Proven planning skills - can work with cross-functional project teams to accurately scope out length and difficulty of milestones, break work down into tasks, develop schedules for multiple, inter-connected and non-related projects and teams, anticipate and adjust for problems and roadblocks.

• Proficient communication skills – able to adjust the level of detail based on the audience from executives to team members.

Tools:

Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook. PowerBi)

Microsoft Teams

Tools and process enabling remote connection to internal systems

Project Management Software (SF Milestones, Smartsheet)

Other Knowledge, Skills or Abilities:

Skills:

• Advanced Scheduling: Manage and control schedules independently.

• Documentation Expertise: Craft detailed and accurate documents.

• Clear Communication: Lead and facilitate communication.

• Financial Administration: Oversee budget and financial reports.

• Stakeholder Management: Handle complex stakeholder dynamics.

• Project Management Tools: Proficient with advanced tools.

• Risk and Change Management: Handle risks and changes effectively.

• Quality Control: Ensure high-quality outcomes.

Knowledge:

• Business domain knowledge of products, services and processes.

• Technical knowledge of applications and programs to support the portfolio.

• Proficiency in English required.

Abilities:

• Demonstrates ability to effectively cope with change and shift gears comfortably; help their teams and executive stakeholders move efficiently through the change curve.

• Demonstrates ability to handle conflict resolution.

• Demonstrates ability to thrive in a fast-paced, self-managing, team-based, dynamic environment.

Travel Requirements & Work Arrangement

• Ability to travel domestically up to 10% annually, as business needs require.

• This role operates under a hybrid work model, with a minimum expectation of eight (8) in-office days per month.

• Candidates must be located within commuting distance of our New York City or Chicago office.

Our Interview Practices

To maintain a fair and genuine hiring process, we kindly ask that all candidates participate in interviews without the assistance of AI tools or external prompts. Our interview process is designed to assess your individual skills, experiences, and communication style. We value authenticity and want to ensure we’re getting to know you—not a digital assistant. To help maintain this integrity, we ask to remove virtual backgrounds and include in-person interviews in our hiring process. Please note that use of AI-generated responses or third-party support during interviews will be grounds for disqualification from the recruitment process.

Applicants may be required to appear onsite at a Wolters Kluwer office as part of the recruitment process.

Compensation:

$107,500.00 - $188,400.00 USD

This role is eligible for Bonus.

Compensation range listed is based on primary location of the position. Actual base salary offer is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skills, experience and actual hiring location. Your recruiter can share more information about the specific offer for the job location during the hiring process.

Additional Information

Wolters Kluwer offers a wide variety of competitive benefits and programs to help meet your needs and balance your work and personal life, including but not limited to: Medical, Dental, & Vision Plans, 401(k), FSA/HSA, Commuter Benefits, Tuition Assistance Plan, Vacation and Sick Time, and Paid Parental Leave. Full details of our benefits are available upon request.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY Wolters Kluwer U. S. Corporation and all of its subsidiaries, divisions and customer/business units is an Equal Opportunity / Aff…