Technical Program Manager

Oliver James Group; United States; Remote; USD 124,000 - 207,000; Part time

Job summary

Oliver James Group is seeking a Senior Technical Program Manager to drive delivery of a major digital transformation for a life insurance client. The role spans cross-functional engineering and vendor teams, with tight governance and a focus on accountability and measurable progress.

The candidate should bring deep technical fluency, 7+ years in technical program management, and strong vendor management in a SAFe/Agile environment. Initial contract with potential conversion to full-time.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of technical program management experience.
• Ability to translate requirements into vendor deliverables.
• Experience with SAFe/Agile delivery in large programs.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate end-to-end planning across cross-functional Engineering and Vendor teams.
• Act as primary point of contact for stakeholders including Product and executives.
• Track delivery metrics, dependencies and milestones, converting requirements into deliverables.
• Identify risks early, escalate, and drive corrective action.
• Hold vendors accountable and support contract discussions with Procurement.
• Apply SAFe/Agile process discipline across teams.
• Coordinate post-launch activities and monitor adoption.

Skills

Technical background

Vendor management

SAFe/Agile

Stakeholder management

Cross-functional leadership

Job description

Senior Technical Program Manager | Contract (Potential to convert to Full time)

We're partnering with a leading Life Insurance organization that's looking for an experienced Senior Technical Program Manager to drive delivery of a major digital transformation program, with a soft launch in the coming months and full launch targeted for January.

This isn't a traditional Project Manager role. We're looking for someone with a genuine technical background who can get into the detail with Engineering and Vendor teams, challenge them when something isn't right, and hold every party accountable to commitments. While keeping relationships strong. You'll be the person who spots the smoke before it becomes a fire.

You’ll coordinate delivery across multiple Engineering and Vendor teams (up to 50 people), track metrics and milestones, and bring consistent process discipline to a fast-moving, SAFe/Agile environment.

Key responsibilities include:

• Managing end-to-end planning and execution across cross-functional Engineering and Vendor teams, from concept through delivery.
• Acting as primary point of contact for stakeholders, including Product, Engineering, executive leadership, and vendors.
• Tracking delivery metrics, commitments, dependencies, and milestones - translating requirements and user stories into clear vendor deliverables.
• Identifying risks and emerging issues early, escalating and driving corrective action before they become delivery problems.
• Holding vendors accountable for delivery, partnering with Procurement on contract negotiation and risk review.
• Applying consistent SAFe/Agile process and delivery discipline across teams without becoming overly rigid.
• Coordinating post-launch activities - monitoring adoption, collecting feedback, and driving follow-up actions.

What we're looking for:

• First and foremost, a Technical Program Manager with a strong technology/software engineering background - ideally someone who has previously written software.
• Technically credible enough to challenge Engineering and Vendor teams directly and identify when something isn't right. No coding required in the role, but deep technical fluency is essential.
• 7+ years' experience in technical program management, with a proven track record delivering complex, cross-functional programs.
• Strong Vendor Management experience - comfortable holding external partners accountable for delivery.
• Experience operating in a SAFe/Agile environment, with the discipline to apply process consistently across multiple teams.
• Calm and composed under pressure with senior or challenging stakeholders - confident setting expectations and maintaining meeting discipline, without coming across as harsh or hard-edged.
• Experience within Life Insurance (Quoting, Applications, or Underwriting) and/or a regulated environment is beneficial but not essential.

This is an initial 3-month contract (realistically 6 months), with potential for Contract-to-Hire.