Program Manager - Special Projects

Status: Exempt

Department: Program Management (Engineering)

Position Summary

The Program Manager will own and lead a portfolio of complex, high-impact programs that span multiple functions and product lines. They may include development and new product initiatives as well as operational, customer-facing, and cross-company programs. For each initiative, the Program Manager generates a Project Charter to outline the expectations, resource requirements, and an expected return on investment, and maintains the schedules, budgets, and risk plans needed to deliver in accordance with established specifications, schedules, and budgets. The Program Manager will own high-profile, strategically significant programs, serving as the program interface to customers and senior stakeholders, and coordinating across engineering, product management, sales, supply chain, quality, manufacturing, and service to ensure programs meet cross-functional requirements and are successfully delivered.

Reporting to the Sr Director of Program Management, the Program Manager, leads program management best practices, and maintains oversight of schedules, budgets, and resource allocation across multiple concurrent programs. The ideal candidate exhibits strong leadership, communication, and program management skills with a solid technical background, is comfortable representing the company to customers and external partners and is self-motivated and able to manage a complex portfolio in a fast-paced organization.

Core Duties and Responsibilities

• Own and manage a portfolio of complex, cross-functional programs, including schedules, resourcing, budgets, risk management, and alignment with business objectives — spanning engineering and non-engineering initiatives.
• Lead and own high-visibility, high-stakes customer programs, including strategic customer commitments, special projects, and cross-company initiatives, serving as the accountable owner and program customer interface.
• Maintain multiple complex schedules for development projects, company programs, and new product platforms to meet the market needs as defined by the Product Management team.
• Develop and maintain program charters, scope documents, and business cases in collaboration with product management, engineering, and other functional leadership, clearly defining resource requirements, budget, and milestones.
• Coordinate across engineering, product, sales, supply chain, manufacturing, quality, and service to set priorities, allocate resources, and meet program commitments.
• Serve as a primary point of contact for customers, partners, and senior stakeholders on program status, proactively communicating progress, risks, and schedule changes to build and maintain confidence.
• Advise leadership and customers of program statuses on a regular basis, including risks, resource constraints, and trade-off recommendations.
• Manage complex customer relationships, including scope-change discussions, conflict resolution, and risk-mitigation strategies.
• Establish and maintain cross-functional communication so all parties stay informed and up to date on program schedules, and so critical-path items or delays are quickly identified.
• Proactively anticipate potential schedule delays and initiate cross-functional activities and contingency plans that recover the schedule.
• Mentor and guide junior program managers and contribute to program management best practices, standardized processes, and continuous-improvement initiatives.
• Manage competing priorities across the portfolio to ensure all critical deadlines are met.
• Develop our project management tools to improve the overall efficiency of our project development as well as better resource management across multiple projects.
• Drive work independently with minimal oversight, multi-task effectively across a complex portfolio, and provide excellent follow-through on all commitments.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in business, engineering, or a related field of study; Master’s degree preferred
• PMP certification preferred.  Prior PM coursework/training required.
• Mentoring or supervisory experience preferred
• Minimum of three (3) years of progressive project/program management experience
• Experience managing program budgets and recommending resource trade-offs
• Experience with Project and Resource Management Software.  Smartsheet preferred.
• Experience in a customer-facing environment is required, including direct interaction with customers in a highly visible role
• Computer and software systems skills as applicable to the position including but not limited to: Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Outlook
• Strong verbal (articulate and polished) and written communication skills, including the ability to present to and engage with customers and senior external stakeholders and explain complicated/technical information in a way others can readily understand
• Exceptional organizational skills, including independently organizing data and information received from multiple functions/sources
• Dynamic interpersonal skills and the ability to effectively communicate with diverse audiences and stakeholders
• Uncompromising dedication to quality
• Demonstrated analytical abilities with strong attention to detail
• Ability to manage complex programs and multi-task effectively with little direction
• Ability to role model high standards of professionalism and judgment
• Excellent follow-through
• Must be driven and self-motivated

Pay Rate:

We offer a fantastic total rewards package at Plug, and a brief summary is below:
✓Base salary is determined on a number of factors including but not limited to education, experience, skills, and geography. These factors are considered when making an offer of employment.  If you are interested in this position, we’d ask that you apply.
✓The above pay range, may not take into account local geographic pay variations. If there is an applicable geographic differential, a member of the HR team can discuss that with you.
✓Health, Dental & Vision Insurance eligibility starting from the first day of hire
✓401(k) with 5% company match
✓Bonus eligibility
✓Paid time off including vacation, personal and sick time
✓Paid Holidays
✓Wellness Reimbursement Program
✓Potential to apply for Tuition Reimbursement
✓Fertility and Family Building Benefit
✓Employee Referral program
✓Employee Assistance Program  
Plug Power Inc. is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.