New Business Implementation Project Manager

Optimas Solutions; Wood Dale (IL); On-site; USD 98,000 - 123,000; Full time

Job summary

Optimas Solutions in Wood Dale, IL is seeking a New Business Implementation Project Manager to lead cross-functional onboarding initiatives for new business opportunities, developing implementation plans and coordinating teams.

This role manages the full lifecycle from contract through go-live, serving as the primary client contact during onboarding and ensuring on-time, on-scope delivery with rigorous governance and risk management.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or equivalent degree in business, engineering, or related field.
• 4–6 years of experience managing implementation or operational projects in manufacturing environments.
• Experience leading cross-functional project teams.
• Knowledge of Agile, PMP, Lean, or Six Sigma methods.
• Strong leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills.
• Experience working directly with external customers in project delivery capacity.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end onboarding/implementation projects from contract award through go-live and post-launch stabilization.
• Lead cross-functional teams to align on account setup requirements and resolve blockers.
• Develop comprehensive project plans with schedules, milestones, resources, risk registers, and communication plans.
• Manage scope changes through change control and obtain approvals.
• Facilitate governance routines such as kickoffs, steering committee check-ins, and go/no-go reviews.
• Ensure operational readiness and data integrity across onboarding deliverables; serve as primary client contact during onboarding.
• Provide regular status updates and reporting on project health using PM tools and dashboards.

Skills

Cross-functional leadership

Project management

Stakeholder management

PM frameworks

Education

Degree in business, engineering, supply chain, operations, project management

Tools

Smartsheet

MS Project

Job description

New Business Implementation Project Manager

Wood Dale, IL

$98,000-123,000

From design to delivery, Optimas integrates fastener manufacturing and distribution for greater inventory certainty, consistent quality, and a lower cost of ownership.

Fuel your passion with a career at Optimas. Become part of a team of diverse thinkers and doers who make a daily impact on our customers. We’re always looking for talented, self-motivated, smart and resourceful team members. And we’re committed to developing, supporting and driving your success.

Our Values are the THREAD that connects us as one team to ensure that we are accountable for our contributions to the success of our company and customers:

• Teamwork
• Respect
• Accountability
• Drive

To learn more, please visit our website http://www.optimas.com

*ONLY LOCAL CANDIDATES WILL BE CONSIDERED*

**SPONSORSHIP FOR THIS ROLE IS NOT AVAILABLE**

***WE WILL NOT BE WORKING WITH STAFFING FIRMS ON THIS ROLE***

Position Summary: The Implementation Project Manager leads cross-functional execution of onboarding initiatives for new business opportunities. This role is responsible for developing implementation plans, coordinating project teams, and ensuring operational readiness for new programs within manufacturing operations.

This role shifts from individual data execution to owning the full project lifecycle across multiple concurrent accounts — driving governance, managing cross-functional dependencies, and ensuring on-time, on-scope delivery. The Project Manager serves as the primary internal project owner and day-to-day client point of contact during the onboarding process.

Areas of impact:

Project Ownership & Delivery

• Own end-to-end onboarding/implementation projects from contract award through go-live and post-launch stabilization, ensuring deliverables are met on time and within scope.
• Conduct formal project close-out activities including go-live sign-off, post-implementation reviews, and transition to ongoing account management.

Planning, Governance & Change Control

• Develop comprehensive project plans including schedules/milestones, resource assignments, risk registers, and communication plans tailored to account complexity.
• Ensure adherence to implementation processes, project governance standards, and required documentation.
• Manage scope changes through a defined change control process, assessing impacts and obtaining appropriate approvals.

Cross-Functional Leadership & Team Coordination

• Lead cross-functional teams (e.g., Sales, Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain/Logistics, IT, Finance, Customer Service) to align on account setup requirements and resolve blockers.
• Assign, direct, and review the work of Implementation Analysts and Senior Analysts supporting projects, ensuring quality and timeliness.
• Integrate analytical insights from Implementation Analysts into project planning and day-to-day decision-making.
• Proactively identify and manage project risks, issues, and dependencies; develop mitigation plans and elevate to the Director when necessary.
• Facilitate key governance routines such as kickoffs, stakeholder/steering committee check-ins, and go/no-go reviews.

Operational & Systems Readiness

• Ensure operational readiness including production capacity, staffing, equipment, and system integration to support successful launch.
• Ensure data integrity and completeness across onboarding deliverables (e.g., account configuration, pricing, product catalog, and system setup).
• Serve as the primary project point of contact for new customers during onboarding, setting expectations and driving timely decisions.
• Provide regular status updates and reporting on project health indicators and key milestones using established PM tools and dashboards.
• Contribute to the development and continuous improvement of implementation methodologies, templates, and PM standards.
• Project planning and execution
• Cross-functional leadership
• Risk and issue management
• Operational readiness planning
• Stakeholder communication
• Managing competing priorities in a fast-paced, high-volume environment
• Project management platforms (Smartsheet, MS Project, or similar)

Qualifications:

• Degree in business, engineering, supply chain, operations, project management, or related field.
• 4-6 years of experience managing implementation or operational projects within manufacturing environments.
• Demonstrated experience leading cross-functional project teams.
• Knowledge of project management frameworks such (Agile, PMP, Lean, or Six Sigma)
• Strong leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills.
• Experience working directly with external customers in a project delivery capacity

To Staffing and Recruiting Agencies: We appreciate your role in helping connect good people to great jobs. Please understand that Optimas does not accept unsolicited CVs or resumes from agencies. We are not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited CVs or resumes and explicitly reserve our right to contact candidates presented in this manner.

Equal Opportunity Employer:

Optimas OE Solutions provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, Optimas OE Solutions complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.