Senior Project Manager

The ACLU seeks applicants for the full-time position of Senior Project Manager in the Learning & Project Solutions (LPS) Team in the Business Operations and Support Services Department of the ACLU’s National office in New York, NY. This is a hybrid role that has in-office requirements of two (2) days per week or eight (8) days per month. This is a 2-year term-limited position.

The Business Operations and Support Services department, in the office of the Chief Operating Officer, works to enable organizational and operational effectiveness by partnering with ACLU staff across the enterprise to develop core business operations, training programs, and support services needed to maximize resources, evaluate and mitigate risk, ensure accessibility and inclusion, and achieve the organization’s strategic goals.  

This position is part of a collective bargaining unit. It is represented by ACLU Staff United (ASU).

Reporting to the Senior Director, Learning and Project Solutions the Senior Project Manager will be responsible for ensuring high-impact ACLU projects are planned effectively, integrate organizational values and compliance priorities, and meet strategic goals and deadlines. The Senior Project Manager will serve as a strategic partner to business units ensuring success through project strategy, project management, and business analysis activities. They will also help the ACLU continue to develop our organizational project management standards and practices in partnership with Project Manager colleagues in the Learning and Project Solutions team and across the organization. 

• Partner with business units to develop project plans that meet strategic goals and integrate organizational values, best practices, and compliance requirements. 
• Facilitate the definition of project scope, goals, and deliverables.  
• Work with LPS team and department leadership to define and integrate organizational priorities and requirements into standard project management practices. 
• Participate in Project Management Working Group with project managers across the organization to create project management resources, trainings, and practices to support organizational effectiveness. 

• Develop project plans including detailed steps for implementation, process definition, user roll out, training, and communications.  
• Manage project schedule to ensure project is on time, in scope, and within budget.  
• Manage project budgets and resource allocations. 
• Facilitate project meetings ensuring clear goals, agendas, and next steps. 
• Identify risks, troubleshoot project issues and recommend effective, business oriented, and strategic solutions. 
• Communicate with stakeholders about project status, issues, deadlines, and changes. 
• Manage project close out steps and post-mortems. 

• Based on project and resource needs, support or supplement projects with business analyst activities, such as 
• Collaborating with stakeholders to identify business needs, translate them into documented requirements. 
• Document current-state processes and design and document future-state processes. 
• Engage with stakeholders to gather insights into business objectives, processes, and pain points. 
• Based on project and resource needs, develop communication plans and draft communications. 

• Engage in special projects and other duties as assigned.

• Be committed to advancing the mission of the ACLU
• Center and embed the principles of equity, inclusion and belonging in their work by demonstrating commitment to diversity with an approach that respects and values multiple perspectives
• Be committed to work collaboratively and respectfully toward resolving obstacles and conflicts

• Proven track record of successfully leading systems and process implementations in complex environments. 
• Demonstrated experience integrating strategy into project management practices and execution. 
• Comfort with leading cross departmental projects.  
• Excellent organizational skills with an ability to multitask, reprioritize, and quickly identify project risks and issues. 
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to compose, edit, and proof correspondence and documents. 
• Comfortable with ambiguity and able to make the ambiguous clear. 
• Ability to communicate effectively across all levels of an organization. 
• Experience with process improvement analysis.   
• Ability to represent the organization and communicate professionally with ACLU staff and other colleagues, maintaining tact, diplomacy, and confidentiality. 
• Ability to work independently as well as part of a team, and foster a team-focused environment that encourages collaboration and peer support. 

• Experience with technical systems and implementation projects a plus. 
• Experience in a large complex nonprofit organization desirable.  
• Minimum of five years related experience. 
• PMP Certification.  

For over 100 years, the ACLU has worked to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States. Whether it’s ending mass incarceration, achieving full equality for the LGBTQ+ community, establishing new privacy protections for our digital age, or preserving the right to vote or the right to have an abortion, the ACLU takes up the toughest civil liberties cases and issues to defend all people.

We know that great people make a great organization. We value our people and know that what we offer is essential not just their work, but to their overall well-being. 

At the ACLU, we offer a broad range of benefits, which include:

• Time away to focus on the things that matter with a generous paid time-off policy
• Focus on your well-being with comprehensive healthcare benefits (including medical, dental and vision coverage, parental leave, gender affirming care & fertility treatment)
• Plan for your retirement with 401k plan and employer match
• We support employee growth and development through annual professional development funds, internal professional development programs and workshops

Accessibility, equity, diversity and inclusion are core values of the ACLU and central to our work to advance liberty, equality, and justice for all. For us diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion are not just check-the-box activities, but a chance for us to make long-term meaningful change.  We are a community committed to learning and growth, humility and grace, transparency and accountability. We believe in a collective responsibility to create a culture of belonging for all people within our organization – one that respects and embraces difference; treats everyone equitably; and empowers our colleagues to do the best work possible. We are as committed to anti-oppression, anti-ableism, and anti-racism internally as we are externally. Because whether we’re in the courts or in the office, we believe ‘We the People’ means all of us.

With this commitment in mind, we strongly encourage applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship, disability, veteran status and record of arrest or conviction, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.    

The ACLU is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual with a disability and need assistance applying online, please complete the Accommodation Request Form

If you are selected for an interview, you will receive additional information regarding how to request an accommodation for the interview process.

The Department of Education has determined that employment in this position at the ACLU does not qualify for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.