Project Manager II

About the role

NISC develops and implements enterprise-level and customer-facing software solutions for over 1200+ energy cooperatives and communication organizations across North America. Our mission is to deliver technology solutions and services that are Member-focused, quality-driven and valued-priced. We exist to serve our Members and help them serve their communities through our innovative software products, services and outstanding customer support. We are an AI-forward company committed to being a technology leader in our industry.

Job Summary:

The Project Manager II is responsible for leading end-to-end SaaS implementation and software delivery projects, ensuring successful execution from project initiation through closeout. This role partners with customers, stakeholders, and cross-functional teams to define project objectives, manage scope, schedules, resources, risks, and budgets, and deliver high-quality outcomes that meet business and customer expectations.

Essential Functions:

• Project Initiation and Planning: Lead project initiation activities, including defining scope, deliverables, schedules, resource requirements, team roles, communication plans, and statements of work.
• Project Execution and Delivery: Manage day-to-day project activities, ensuring timely delivery of milestones and adherence to established project management methodologies, standards, and best practices.
• Agile and Scrum Leadership: Serve as Scrum Master for Agile teams, facilitating Sprint Planning, Daily Stand-ups, Sprint Reviews, and Retrospectives while removing impediments and supporting continuous delivery.
• Stakeholder Communication: Establish and maintain effective communication with customers, project teams, management, and stakeholders to ensure alignment on project objectives, expectations, and deliverables.
• Resource Management: Identify, coordinate, and allocate project resources, ensuring appropriate assignments and effective utilization to achieve project objectives.
• Risk and Issue Management: Identify, assess, and manage project risks, issues, and dependencies; develop mitigation strategies and escalate concerns as appropriate.
• Project Monitoring and Reporting: Track project schedules, budgets, milestones, performance metrics, and key performance indicators (KPIs); provide timely status updates and recommend corrective actions as needed.
• Quality and Customer Satisfaction: Monitor project deliverables to ensure quality standards, business requirements, and customer expectations are met.
• Team Collaboration and Development: Foster cross-functional collaboration, contribute to project strategy, and provide guidance and mentorship to Project Manager I team members while working with moderate autonomy.
• Project Closure and Documentation: Coordinate project closeout activities, finalize documentation, communicate completion to stakeholders, and capture lessons learned.
• Continuous Improvement: Identify and recommend improvements to project management processes, tools, and practices based on project outcomes and lessons learned.
• Corporate Compliance and Additional Responsibilities: Adhere to Meridian corporate policies and procedures, represent the organization at relevant industry events as needed, travel to support project execution and customer engagements, and perform other duties as assigned by management.
• Willingness and ability to travel up to 25% of the time as business needs require. 
• Leverage generative AI tools and technologies to enhance productivity, creativity, and problem-solving within the scope of the role.
• Other duties as assigned.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Minimum of 5+ years of experience managing SaaS implementation and software delivery projects from start to finish, with demonstrated end-to-end ownership across the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC), including planning, execution, deployment, and successful delivery. 
• Demonstrated experience utilizing Agile methodologies and Scrum practices to effectively plan, manage, and deliver projects.
• Ability to motivate, influence, and collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams.
• Strong customer service and relationship management skills to effectively engage internal and external stakeholders.
• Ability to manage multiple projects and deliver results on time, within scope, and in alignment with quality standards and stakeholder expectations.
• Strong critical thinking, analytical, and problem-solving skills with the ability to identify issues, evaluate alternatives, and implement effective solutions.
• Excellent written and verbal communication and interpersonal skills, including the ability to clearly convey complex information to diverse audiences.
• Strong organizational and time management skills, with attention to detail and the ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Proficiency with project management and collaboration tools, including Jira, Salesforce, Confluence, Microsoft Office Suite, and ServiceNow Strategic Portfolio Management (SPM), to support project tracking, documentation, reporting, and cross-functional coordination. 
• Adaptability and flexibility to respond effectively to changing project requirements and business priorities.
• Proactive, solution-oriented approach with a commitment to continuous learning and improvement.

Licenses and Certifications:

• Project Management Professional (PMP) certification required.
• Scrum Master certification preferred.

Education:

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant work experience required.

Minimum Physical Requirements:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the essential functions of this position, employees must be able to see and communicate.  Employees are regularly required to maintain a stationary position, move, and operate computer keyboards or office equipment.  

Disclaimer:

Management may modify this job description by assigning or reassigning duties and responsibilities at any time.