Project Manager (Project Assistant)

New York State Higher Education Services Corporation; City of Albany (NY); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid remote work up to 50%

Generous benefits package

PSLF and retirement benefits

Job summary

New York State Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC) is seeking an experienced Project Manager to join the Innovation and Transformation Team. You will plan, execute, and monitor IT initiatives across cross‑functional teams, ensuring timely delivery within scope and budget.

The role requires strong communication skills, familiarity with Agile methods, and experience managing complex projects with multiple stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Five years of Project Management experience in complex IT projects with cross‑functional teams and multi‑million‑dollar budgets.
• Bachelor’s degree in IT, PM, Public Administration, Education, Economics, Communications, or a related field.
• Master’s degree may substitute as an additional year of experience.
• PMP certification or equivalent required with four years post‑certification experience.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain project plans, artifacts, scope, budget, schedule, resources, and communication plans using waterfall, Agile, and hybrid methods.
• Translate business needs into technical terms and prepare detailed work breakdown structures and schedules with stakeholders.
• Prepare and present project status reports; coordinate work across internal and external parties and agencies.
• Lead remote and on-site meetings; develop meeting agendas, notes, and status updates with project teams and leadership.
• Develop project communication plans; monitor and facilitate communication among teams and HESC staff.

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Project Management, Public Administration, Education, Economics, Communications, or a related field

Master’s degree may substitute as an additional year of experience

Tools

Jira

Trella

Asana

Azure DevOps

Confluence

Job description

Description

The New York State Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC) is the state’s student financial aid agency, responsible for centrally administering New York’s major college aid programs. It oversees grants, scholarships, loan-forgiveness programs, and related services – including flagship programs like the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), the Excelsior Scholarship, and other State scholarships. HESC awards nearly $1 billion in financial aid to more than 330,000 students each year.

Duties

As a member of the Innovation and Transformation Team, this position will work on an array of duties including but not limited to:

• Develop and maintain project plans and artifacts including scope, budget, schedule, resource, and communication plans using various PM methodologies (waterfall, agile, hybrid) and tools.
• Articulate project goals and scope, translate business needs into technical terms, and prepare detailed work breakdown structures, develop schedule in coordination with external and internal parties involved.
• Develop and present project status reports, coordinate work, ensure continuous communication with multiple teams from various internal and external parties including Agency representatives, ITS teams, Vendor, consultant staff throughout the project’s lifecycle.
• Lead remote and on-site project meetings, prepare meeting agendas, meeting notes, conduct regular project progress and status meetings with project team, management, and other stakeholders.
• Develop project communication plan; monitor communication between project team and HESC staff. Participates in technical presentations for vendors, key stakeholders, etc.
• Ensure delivery of acceptable products to stakeholders and the project sponsor that are within budget, scope, time, and quality standards. Design and implement quality metrics to analyze project performance.
• Monitor project progress across all phases including intake, analysis, planning, execution, implementation, and closeout. Ensure compliance with established standards and procedures.
• Identify and monitor project risks and issues, develop mitigation plans and make adjustments as necessary for quality content and timely delivery of project deliverables.
• Actively participate in Project Change Management activities impacting project scope, schedule and costs of the Projects assigned.
• Actively participate in Organizational Change Management and Operational Readiness activities within the Agency.
• Report on-going progress to leadership and elevate/resolve problems and identified risks as needed.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications

• FIVE years of Project Management experience in complex information technology projects involving cross-functional project teams and multi-million-dollar budgets; managing requirements analysis, design, development, testing, and implementation activities which must include Project Initiating, Planning, Execution, Monitoring, Closing. This experience must include the development of significant project management deliverables such as scope statements, schedules, budgets, quality plans, risk plans, and communication plans.
• A Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Project Management, Public Administration, Education, Economics, Communications, or a related field.
• A Master’s degree may substitute as an additional year of experience.

Additional Comments

• A current certification from the Project Management Institute as a Project Management Professional (PMP) or equivalent and four years of post-certification required experience as described above.
• A customer-service focus, including:
• Essential soft skills to liaise and build trusted relationships with team members at all levels of the organization and HESC customers.
• Ability to authentically build trusted relationships and maintain a positive work environment.
• Knowledge and experience with various project management methodologies, principles, and tools.
• A proactive mindset interested in continuous improvement.
• Ability to analyze complex situations and recommend solutions.
• Excellent written, verbal, organizational, and presentation skills.
• Flexibility, including adapting to changes in direction based on project needs.
• Hands-on experience managing projects using Agile methodologies.
• Experience with Agile ceremonies, including, but not limited to: backlog refinement, sprint planning, daily standups, reviews, and retrospectives.
• Proficiency with project management and collaboration tools (e.g., Jira, Trella, Asana, Azure DevOps, Confluence, or similar).

NOTE: HESC’s business hours require working between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.

NYS is an equal opportunity employer.

• HESC will not offer permanent employment to any candidate unless the candidate provides documentation that they are authorized to accept work in the United States on a permanent basis. It is the procedure of HESC not to hire F1 or H1 visa holders for employment or to sponsor non-immigrant aliens for temporary work authorization visas or for permanent residence.

Benefits of Working for NYS

Generous benefits package, worth 65% of salary, including:

Holiday & Paid Time Off

• Thirteen (13) paid holidays annually, plus two (2) floating holidays
• Up to Thirteen (13) days of paid vacation leave annually
• Up to Five (5) days of paid personal leave annually
• Up to Thirteen (13) days of paid sick leave annually for CSEA or PEF; up to eight (8) days of paid sick leave annually for M/C
• Up to three (3) days of professional leave annually to participate in professional development
• Initially positions will work full-time in the office and a hybrid telecommuting schedule of up to 50% remote work can be discussed with the hiring manager during the interview.

Health Care Benefits

• Eligible employees and dependents can pick from a variety of affordable health insurance programs
• Family dental and vision benefits at no additional cost

Additional Benefits

• New York State Employees’ Retirement System (ERS) Membership
• NYS Deferred Compensation
• Access to NY 529 and NY ABLE College Savings Programs, as well as U.S. Savings Bonds
• Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)
• And many more.