Senior Manager, Business Operations & Implementation

Walker-Miller Energy Services; Illinois; On-site; USD 124,000 - 157,000; Full time

Job summary

Walker-Miller Energy Services in Illinois seeks a Senior Manager of Business Operations & Implementation to lead strategic projects that launch and optimize energy efficiency programs and internal processes. You will coordinate cross‑functional teams, define business and client requirements, develop project plans and milestones, and drive organizational readiness and continuous improvement.

This role requires a Bachelor’s degree, 7+ years of experience, PMP or Six Sigma preferred, and up to

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering or related field.
• Minimum of 7 years of experience in field or related area.
• Excellent verbal and written communication with business and technical contacts.
• PM leadership and cross-functional collaboration experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic operational and technology projects across energy programs.
• Coordinate cross-functional activities for system implementations and program startups.
• Define business requirements and ensure technology solutions meet needs.
• Develop project plans, milestones and governance processes.
• Monitor risks, issues and project health; report findings to leadership.
• Drive continuous improvement in processes, reporting and performance.

Skills

Verbal communication

Written communication

Presentation skills

Leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Agile

Critical thinking

Analytical thinking

Creative problem solving

Stakeholder management

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering or related field

7+ years of experience in field or related area

Project Management Professional (PMP) certification

Six Sigma Greenbelt, preferred

Job description

Company Overview

Founded in 2000, Walker-Miller Energy Services is a Detroit-based, core-values driven company committed to changing lives through energy efficiency. We create and manage customized energy waste reduction programs that help electric and gas utilities meet mandated energy savings goals.

Position Summary

The Senior Manager of Business Operations & Implementation is responsible for leading strategic operational and technology projects that support the successful implementation, launch, and optimization of energy efficiency programs and internal business processes. This role serves as the primary internal project lead responsible for coordinating cross-functional activities related to system implementations, program startups, major program transitions, and operational improvement initiatives. Acting as the bridge between Operations and technical teams, the Senior Manager also ensures that business requirements are clearly defined, technology solutions meet operational and client needs, and implementation milestones are achieved. This position provides enterprise-wide project leadership and subject matter expertise to drive successful execution, operational readiness, and continuous improvement across the organization.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

This list of duties and responsibilities is not all-inclusive and may be expanded to include other duties and responsibilities, as management may deem necessary from time to time.

• Embrace, operate and lead within our core values.
• Act as the primary Operations representative and liaison across the organization to lead the planning, development, execution, and successful launch of strategic projects supporting energy efficiency program delivery including technology solutions, new program implementations, major program changes, and operational initiatives requiring cross-functional coordination and support.
• Lead the gathering, documentation, prioritization, and validation of business and client requirements that translate operational needs into clear functional requirements to ensure technology solutions align with operational workflows, client commitments, regulatory requirements, and strategic business objectives.
• Develop comprehensive project plans, work breakdown structures, implementation schedules, and milestone tracking tools to ensure projects remain on schedule and within scope.
• Establish, monitor, and report on key project milestones, deliverables, dependencies, risks, and critical-path activities and provide regular project status updates and recommendations, regarding project health, risks, and opportunities.
• Facilitate project governance processes, including status reporting, issue escalation, decision tracking, and cross-functional meetings to drive accountability across project teams and ensure timely completion of project activities and deliverables.
• Evaluate proposed and existing system functionality and identify opportunities to improve operational performance, scalability, automation, and reporting capabilities.
• Identify and lead operational enhancements and continuous improvement initiatives based on lessons learned, performance data, stakeholder feedback, and industry best practices that provide improvement opportunities in business processes, operational efficiency, system utilization, and program performance.
• Support organizational readiness and change management efforts associated with new systems, tools, programs, and operational processes.

Education And Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering or related industry, or equivalent experience.
• Minimum of 7 years of experience in field or related area.

Required Knowledge, Skills And Abilities

• Excellent verbal and written communication with both business and technical contacts.
• Superior presentation skills; experience with presenting to Senior leaders and Executives.
• Strong leadership and collaboration skills; ability to lead cross-functional teams of diverse individuals in a high-demand environment.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, agile environment.
• Excellent critical thinking skills.
• Possess a mix of technical, analytical and creative skills to find innovative solutions for clients and the company while providing world-class service.
• Able to effectively collaborate with various business units across the company to ensure successful implementation of new programs.
• Ability to multitask, organize, communicate and understand a wide variety of complex customer and operational issues.

Certification(s) and License(s)

• Valid Driver’s License
• Project Management Professional (PMP) certification, preferred
• Six Sigma Greenbelt, preferred

Travel Requirements

• Willingness to travel up to 20%, including occasional overnight travel.

Physical Demands and Work Environment

• Required to sit, stand, walk; talk and hear; and ability to touch and handle tools and/or controls
• Ability to lift up to 10 pounds
• Noise level is typically moderate
• Employee could be exposed to fumes and/or airborne particles and risk of potential shock

Note: The physical demand and work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Note: Reasonable accommodations may be made for individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position.

The above information describes the general duties and requirements necessary to perform the principle functions of the position. This shall not be construed as a detailed description of all the duties and requirements that may be necessary in this position.

Walker-Miller Energy Services is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Pay Transparency

This compensation range is provided as a reasonable estimate of the current starting salary range for this role. If this opportunity includes multiple job levels, the salary information represents the job level minimum and the job level maximum. There are multiple factors that are considered in determining final pay for a position, including, but not limited to, relevant work experience, skills, certifications and competencies that align to the specified role, geographic location, education and certifications as well as contract provisions regarding labor categories that are specific to the position.

A team member may be eligible for additional pay, premiums, or bonus potential. Walker-Miller Energy Services offers eligible employees health, vision and dental insurance, retirement, and tuition reimbursement.

Compensation Range: $123,760-$156,520 annually

At Walker-Miller Energy Services, we Embrace Equity by encouraging qualified candidates from all backgrounds and identities to apply for open positions! We have several optional questions about candidates’ demographics, but they do not impact hiring decisions. In fact, all candidate demographic data is anonymized for compliance purposes and to reduce unconscious bias in the hiring process, so none of the information collected here will be attached to your individual application. We ask for this information because Walker-Miller is committed to inclusive recruitment practices, so we hold ourselves to a high standard in developing a candidate pool that is diverse in background, experience, and perspective.

Walker-Miller Energy Services participates in E-Verify. Which confirms employment authorization of all newly hired employees and most existing employees through an electronic database maintained by the Social Security Administration and Department of Homeland Security. For new hires, the E-Verify process is completed in conjunction with the Form I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification on or before the first day of work. E-Verify is not used as a tool to pre-screen candidates. For up-to-date information on E-Verify, go to www.uscis.gov and click on 'E-Verify' located near the bottom of the page.

E-Verify Notice

E-Verify Notice (Spanish)

Right to Work Notice

Right to Work Notice (Spanish)