Technical Certification Program Manager

Russell Tobin; California; On-site; USD 234,000 - 255,000; Full time

Job summary

Russell Tobin partners with a leading AI research and technology company to hire a Technical Certification Program Manager. This remote/hybrid role focuses on scaling a global certification program with proctored exam vendors and a data-driven operations approach.

The role leads daily operational infrastructure, vendor cadences, and policy translation into scalable processes, while driving global adoption and continuous improvement across the certification lifecycle.

Qualifications

• Experience running or operating a technology certification program.
• Hands-on exam delivery experience with a proctored vendor.
• Knowledge of credential and assessment development lifecycle.
• Experience with exam security and candidate integrity policies.
• Ability to analyze program data and performance indicators.
• Experience managing vendors for critical program functions.
• Excellent written and verbal communication with partners and leadership.
• Experience documenting repeatable operating processes.

Responsibilities

• Serve as operating partner and manage delegated workstreams from planning to execution.
• Manage relationships with certification vendors for delivery, proctoring, and content.
• Lead vendor cadences, escalations, SLAs, voucher management, and invoicing.
• Oversee exam security, proctoring configurations, and integrity cases.
• Handle certification-related questions from partners and customers.
• Develop partner- and candidate-facing communications on updates and policies.
• Drive global adoption by analyzing participation and coordinating campaigns.
• Translate policies into scalable operating processes and docs.
• Manage credential lifecycle activities including renewals and revocations.
• Collaborate with learner support to improve escalation paths and templates.
• Prioritize program systems backlog with engineering teams on improvements.
• Own analytics and reporting on pass rates, item performance, and security trends.
• Identify opportunities to use AI to automate workflows and accelerate reporting.
• Build repeatable processes to scale the program globally.

Skills

Program management

Certification program operations

Vendor management

Exam delivery

Data analysis

Policy development

AI workflow automation

Stakeholder communication

Process documentation

Risk tracking

Tools

AI tools

BI tools

Job description

Location: Remote within the U.S. or hybrid/in-office at select U.S. locations
Contract: 12-month W2 contract
Pay: $170-$185/hour depending on experience

Employment Partner: Russell Tobin

Russell Tobin is partnering with a leading AI research and technology company to hire a Technical Certification Program Manager to support a rapidly growing global technology certification and assessment program.

This is a highly operational role for someone who has hands-on experience running or serving as a core operator of a technology certification program with a proctored exam vendor.

The certification program is already live globally and continues to expand across a large partner ecosystem, with additional certifications, skills badges, and performance-based assessments in development. This individual will serve as the program leader's operating partner, owning the day-to-day operational infrastructure needed to scale the program successfully.

What You'll Do

• Serve as the program leader's operating partner, owning delegated workstreams from planning through execution and keeping initiatives moving between key decisions.
• Manage relationships with certification vendors across exam delivery, proctoring, digital badging, and certification preparation content.
• Lead vendor operating cadences, escalations, change requests, service-level tracking, voucher management, and invoice reconciliation.
• Own exam security and integrity operations, including proctoring configuration, security flags, data-forensics reviews, content exposure monitoring, and candidate integrity cases.
• Manage certification-related questions and escalations from partners, customers, account teams, and internal stakeholders.
• Develop clear partner- and candidate-facing communications related to program updates, policies, and operational changes.
• Drive adoption of certifications across a global partner ecosystem by analyzing participation, identifying gaps by partner or region, and coordinating campaigns, incentives, and enablement initiatives.
• Translate certification policies—including retakes, recertification, appeals, and misconduct—into scalable operating processes and candidate-facing documentation.
• Manage credential lifecycle activities including renewals, credential verification, and revocations.
• Partner with the learner support team on escalated certification cases and use support trends to improve processes, escalation paths, and response templates.
• Own and prioritize the program's systems and tooling backlog, gathering needs from vendors, support teams, partners, and program data and partnering with engineering and other teams on improvements.
• Own certification program analytics and reporting, including pass rates, item performance, retake patterns, security trends, adoption metrics, dashboards, and recurring leadership reviews.
• Identify opportunities to use AI tools to automate workflows, accelerate analysis and reporting, improve communications, and reduce manual operational effort.
• Build and document repeatable operating processes that allow the program to scale globally.

Required Qualifications

• Experience running or serving as a core operator of a technology certification program.
• Hands-on experience managing exam delivery through a proctored exam vendor.
• Working knowledge of the credential and assessment development lifecycle, including job task analysis, exam blueprints, item development and review, and standard setting.
• Direct experience with exam security, candidate integrity, and certification policies.
• Ability to analyze assessment and program data, including pass rates, item statistics, retake patterns, security trends, and other performance indicators.
• Experience managing vendors responsible for business‑critical program functions, including scope, escalations, service levels, and operational performance.
• Experience working directly with partners, customers, or account teams to resolve program questions and escalations.
• Strong multi‑workstream program management skills, including dependency management, risk tracking, prioritization, and executive status reporting.
• Experience developing, writing, or operationalizing certification policies such as retakes, recertification, appeals, misconduct, and credential lifecycle policies.
• Hands‑on experience using AI tools in day‑to‑day work for automation, analysis, communication, or operational improvement.
• Demonstrated experience creating new operating processes and documenting them so they can be consistently executed by others.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to work effectively with partners, vendors, technical teams, and senior leadership.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience building or scaling an early‑stage certification or credentialing program in a fast‑moving technology environment.
• Familiarity with digital badging platforms and credential lifecycle management.
• Experience supporting partner, channel, or ecosystem programs within a technology company.
• Understanding of how certifications can support partner tiers, incentives, enablement, or go‑to‑market programs.
• Experience with integrations between exam delivery vendors, digital badging platforms, and internal systems such as identity platforms, CRM systems, or data warehouses.
• Experience gathering requirements and conducting acceptance testing for certification or assessment technology.
• Familiarity with support tooling and ticket‑based support workflows.
• Experience developing program reporting through BI tools or data warehouses or partnering closely with analytics teams to do so.
• Experience launching or operating hands‑on or performance‑based assessments.

Ideal Candidate

The strongest candidate will combine credentialing expertise with strong operational program management skills. You understand how certification programs work behind the scenes—from proctored exam delivery and vendor management to security investigations, policies, credential lifecycle management, analytics, and partner adoption.

You are comfortable taking broad program objectives and turning them into working processes, resolving operational issues without waiting for direction, and acting as a trusted operating partner to a senior program leader.

Important:

General program management experience alone will not be sufficient for this role. Candidates should have direct experience operating a technology certification program and working with a proctored exam delivery vendor.

Equal Employment Opportunity

PrideGlobal and it's affiliates are an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of the race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, reproductive health decision making, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, sexual orientation, veteran or military status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

Fair Chance Employment

PrideGlobal and it's affiliates are a Fair Chance employer. We consider all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with applicable state and local Fair Chance laws and ordinances, including, the California Fair Chance Act and all applicable local Fair Chance ordinances.

Accommodations

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants and employees with disabilities. If you require a reasonable accommodation to participate in the application or interview process, or to perform the essential functions of this role, please contact us.

Only applicable for San Francisco Candidates: Under the San Francisco Lactation in the Workplace Ordinance, we will provide written notice of lactation accommodation rights, and this notice will automatically be given upon hiring, any inquiry of parental leave or lactation accommodation.

Only applicable for Kentucky positions: For this type of employment, state law requires a criminal record check as a condition of employment. This applies to direct care staff (Examples: RN, LPN, Nurse Aides, Therapists) referred to Kentucky nursing facilities, assisted living communities, or long‑term care facilities, in accordance with KRS 216.793.