Project Manager III (non-IT)

The Fountain Group; California (MO); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 117,000; Part time

Job summary

The Fountain Group is seeking a Project Manager III – Agile Specialist for a remote, 12-month contract. You will lead Agile delivery across software development, data engineering, and AI/ML initiatives, partnering with Engineering, Product, PMO, and stakeholders.

The ideal candidate will facilitate Scrum ceremonies, manage backlogs in Jira/Confluence, translate estimates into milestones, and provide visibility into progress, risks, and dependencies across multiple teams.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in an Agile software development environment.
• Experience leading Agile/Scrum ceremonies across multiple teams.
• Strong hands-on experience with Jira and Confluence.

Responsibilities

• Lead Agile/Scrum ceremonies across multiple engineering teams.
• Plan continuous and quarterly planning activities with visibility into priorities and deliverables.
• Maintain engineering schedules and support resource and capacity planning.
• Translate engineering estimates into milestones, timelines, and key delivery dates.
• Track milestones, dependencies, risks, deliverables, and timelines to keep projects on schedule.
• Identify and remove obstacles that may impact team progress or delivery.
• Coordinate priorities and project execution with Engineering, Product, PMO, and business stakeholders.
• Prioritize product and engineering backlogs in collaboration with cross-functional partners.
• Ensure engineering teams have product requirements, documentation, and UX designs for successful delivery.

Skills

Agile project management

Jira

Confluence

Stakeholder management

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Jira

Confluence

Job description

The Fountain Group. We are a national staffing firm and are currentlyseeking aProject Manager III – Agile Specialist for a prominent clientofours.This position is REMOTE.Details for the positionare as follows:

Location: 100% Remote
Contract: 12 Months
Pay Rate: $80–$85/hr W2
Schedule: Must be available to work PST hours, with core collaboration hours of 9:00 AM–2:00 PM PST

Position Overview

We are seeking an experienced Agile Project Manager / Agile Specialist to support technical teams working across software development, data engineering, and AI/ML initiatives. This individual will lead Agile delivery activities across multiple teams while partnering closely with Engineering, Product, PMO, and business stakeholders.

The ideal candidate brings strong hands-on experience facilitating Agile/Scrum ceremonies, managing technical project delivery, and utilizing Jira and Confluence to manage backlogs, track progress, identify dependencies, and provide visibility into project performance.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead Agile/Scrum ceremonies across multiple engineering teams, including daily stand-ups, sprint planning, backlog refinement, sprint reviews, and retrospectives.
• Lead continuous and quarterly planning activities, providing visibility into team priorities, capacity, and upcoming deliverables.
• Maintain engineering schedules and support resource and capacity planning.
• Translate engineering estimates into project milestones, timelines, and key delivery dates.
• Track project milestones, dependencies, risks, deliverables, and timelines to ensure projects remain on schedule.
• Identify and remove obstacles that may impact team progress or delivery.
• Partner with Engineering, Product, PMO, and business stakeholders to coordinate priorities and project execution.
• Manage and prioritize product and engineering backlogs in collaboration with cross-functional partners.
• Ensure engineering teams have the necessary product requirements, documentation, and UX designs to support successful delivery.
• Serve as a key liaison between software development teams and internal/external stakeholders.
• Manage Jira boards, workflows, backlogs, and project tracking for supported teams.
• Develop and maintain Agile performance metrics, including burndown charts, sprint velocity, and other delivery reporting.
• Promote Agile best practices and help teams continuously improve productivity and delivery.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Information Technology, or a related field.
• 5+ years of experience working in an Agile software development environment.
• Demonstrated experience leading Agile/Scrum ceremonies across multiple teams.
• Strong hands-on experience with Jira and Confluence.
• Technical project management experience supporting mid- to large-scale software development initiatives.
• Prior experience working with Data Engineering, AI/ML Engineering, Software Engineering, or similarly technical development teams.
• Strong understanding of Agile methodologies, including Scrum and/or Kanban.
• Experience managing project schedules, milestones, dependencies, risks, resources, and deliverables.
• Strong organizational, problem-solving, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to collaborate effectively across Engineering, Product, PMO, and business teams.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting AI/ML or Data Engineering initiatives.
• Experience with Agile metrics and reporting, including sprint velocity and burndown tracking.
• Hands-on experience with AI development/productivity tools such as Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, or similar tools.
• Experience supporting multiple Agile engineering teams simultaneously.

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate combines the delivery skills of a Technical Project Manager with the hands-on Agile expertise of a Scrum Master. They should be comfortable working directly with highly technical engineering teams while maintaining project visibility, facilitating cross-functional communication, managing dependencies, and ensuring teams remain aligned to delivery milestones.