Senior IT Project Manager

Beacon Technologies, Inc; Madison (WI); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Beacon Technologies, Inc. is seeking an experienced Senior Project Manager to lead large, complex software-enabled initiatives from design through implementation. The role emphasizes governance, vendor management, and cross-functional leadership in a Waterfall SDLC setting.

A GIS background is a plus, and the PM will navigate ambiguity, drive decisions, and keep programs moving toward measurable outcomes while coordinating with vendors and internal teams.

Qualifications

• Proven track record delivering complex, high-dollar software projects from initiation to closeout.
• Ability to coordinate across multiple IT teams, vendors, and stakeholders.
• Experience creating and maintaining detailed, resource-loaded schedules with milestones and dependencies.
• Demonstrated ability to challenge assumptions, manage conflicts, and drive decisions to closure.
• Proven capability to manage third-party vendors, consulting partners, and system integrators.
• Experience with structured project delivery methodologies, including governance and executive reporting.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Design Phase to a successful close and transition to the implementation phase.
• Manage vendor relationships, commitments, and accountability across the project lifecycle.
• Communicate effectively with executive leadership and key stakeholders using structured reporting.
• Drive project performance with disciplined follow-up, ownership assignments, and risk mitigation.

Skills

Senior Project Manager

Waterfall SDLC

Vendor management

Large-scale software projects

GIS experience

Cross-functional leadership

Risk and issue management

Job description

Beacon is seeking an experienced Senior Project Manager (PM) whose background is with software-focused project management for our client partner. This experience needs to be with the installation, upgrade, or conversion of commercial vendor-built software (e.g. COTS) and the associated vendor management. While our projects follow Waterfall SDLC (i.e., design, configuration, testing and go-live), they are not software development projects. This role requires a strong project leader who can effectively operate in complex and ambiguous environments where priorities, stakeholders, and decision makers may not always be aligned. The successful candidate must be able to challenge assumptions, facilitate difficult discussions, navigate organizational conflict, drive decision making, and maintain forward momentum while holding stakeholders and vendors accountable for commitments.

The ideal candidate has demonstrated success leading large initiatives through organizational complexity, stakeholder resistance, competing priorities, and unclear governance structures. They must possess the confidence and credibility to appropriately challenge stakeholders, influence without authority, elevate issues when necessary, and drive projects through impasses when decisions are delayed or consensus is difficult to achieve.

The project is currently in a Design (Gate) Phase with a third-party vendor who is analyzing our current model helping define the system architecture design, evaluating the data readiness, defining an implementation approach, and establishing time and cost estimates to build a business case for the implementation phase. It is expected that this PM will bring the Design Phase to a successful close; help the IT organization navigate their business case approval; and then serve as the PM for the implementation phase.

While experience with GIS and managing GIS projects is beneficial it is not necessarily required, if the candidate has relevant experience that correlates to the attributes of this type of project – software, large, complex, upgrade/conversion, etc. and they possess the necessary key skills, a technical aptitude and are a quick learner. In fact, we often focus on securing a strong, well-rounded Senior Technology PM who has a robust set of experiences managing time sensitive, large, Technology/IT software implementation or conversion projects using waterfall SDLC from start to finish.

The candidate must be a systems thinker and critical problem solver who has demonstrated successful delivery of enterprise software modernization projects – from initiation through implementation and project closeout. The PM must possess enough technical fluency to engage effectively with GIS staff, architects, IT system owners, field users, service providers, and implementation partners while translating complex technical concepts into meaningful business decisions and executive communications.

A demonstrated ability to drive execution with a strong sense of urgency, remove obstacles, hold teams and vendors accountable for commitments, and consistently deliver project outcomes is required. We are seeking a project leader, not simply a project administrator. This role requires a hands-on delivery leader who can independently build integrated and resourced project plans; establish measurable delivery baselines; track progress by workstream and deliverable; identify schedule and resource constraints early; and drive project teams, vendors, and stakeholders toward committed outcomes.

Experience managing technology projects utilizing structured project delivery methodologies, including Waterfall SDLC governance, stage-gate reviews, scope management, risk management, and executive reporting is required. Candidates without GIS experience must demonstrate meaningful experience with complex enterprise software projects involving IT teams, vendors, physical/logical dependencies, cutovers, and operational readiness. The successful candidate must be self-directed, proactive, highly organized, and comfortable operating with significant autonomy while remaining fully accountable for delivering measurable project outcomes.

Summary of Required Project Management Experience & Skills:

• Proven track record of successfully delivering complex, large-scale, high-dollar, multi-year software technology projects from initiation through implementation and project closeout.
• Ability to identify, plan, coordinate, and drive work across multiple IT teams, vendors, and business stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to create and maintain resource-loaded project schedules, including tasks, durations, owners, dependencies, milestones, critical path, baseline dates, forecast dates, and capacity/resource constraints.
• Demonstrated ability to drive execution, remove obstacles, challenge assumptions when appropriate, and hold project teams and vendors accountable for commitments and delivery outcomes.
• Possess strong risk, issue, dependency, and escalation management skills with the ability to proactively navigate technical complexities, setbacks, and competing priorities.
• Experience managing third-party vendors, consulting partners, system integrators, and contract resources to achieve project objectives.
• Must be willing and able to drive project performance through disciplined follow-up, clear ownership assignments, decision tracking, escalation of stalled work, vendor accountability, and transparent reporting of commitments versus actual progress.
• Ability to organize, synthesize, and present complex technical and business information to executive leadership and key stakeholders.
• Experience working within structured project delivery methodologies, including Waterfall SDLC governance, stage-gate reviews, scope management, risk management, and executive reporting. Candidates with only software development or only Agile Project Management experience will not be considered.
• Demonstrated ability to independently lead projects with minimal oversight