[Hiring] Director, IT Project Management @Shield AI

Role Description

The Director of IT Project Management Office (PMO) leads the strategy, governance, delivery discipline, and portfolio management practices for enterprise technology initiatives. This role is responsible for ensuring that high-priority IT programs—including enterprise applications, cybersecurity, infrastructure, cloud, data, AI, and business transformation initiatives are delivered predictably, transparently, and in alignment with business objectives.

The IT PMO is a critical enabler of disciplined execution across a growing and complex technology environment. Success in this role equates to a well-governed portfolio, clear executive visibility into investments and risks, strong accountability for outcomes, improved cross-functional coordination, and reliable delivery of strategic programs.

As a senior IT leader, the Director establishes the operating model, standards, tooling, resource-management practices, financial controls, and reporting mechanisms required to scale enterprise program delivery. The ideal candidate brings deep experience managing complex technology portfolios, building and leading high-performing program and project management teams, and partnering with executives to convert strategy into measurable business outcomes.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of experience in technology program management, project management, portfolio management, business transformation, or related enterprise IT leadership roles.
• 5+ years of leadership experience managing PMO, program management, project management, portfolio-management, or enterprise-transformation teams.
• Demonstrated experience building or maturing an enterprise IT PMO in a complex, rapidly evolving, or high-growth organization.
• Proven success leading large-scale, multi-year technology transformation programs with significant business impact, cross-functional dependencies, and executive visibility.
• Strong experience governing portfolios that include enterprise applications, ERP, cloud, infrastructure, cybersecurity, data platforms, integrations, and end-user technologies.
• Deep understanding of portfolio governance, demand management, investment prioritization, business-case development, resource planning, financial management, and benefits realization.
• Experience managing program budgets, forecasts, vendor spend, statements of work, implementation partners, and financial controls.
• Proven ability to develop concise executive communications, including portfolio dashboards, program status reports, investment recommendations, risk summaries, and decision materials.
• Strong ability to identify delivery risks, clarify accountability, resolve cross-functional issues, and drive timely decisions across senior stakeholder groups.
• Experience with project and portfolio management methodologies, including Agile, Waterfall, hybrid delivery models, and ITIL-aligned service-management principles.
• Experience with enterprise portfolio-management, project-management, and collaboration tools such as Planview, Jira, Smartsheet, Asana, Microsoft Project, or equivalent strategic portfolio management platforms.
• Exceptional communication, influencing, negotiation, and stakeholder-management skills, including the ability to engage effectively with executives, technical teams, and business leaders.
• Strong analytical and financial acumen, with the ability to connect technology investments to business value, risk reduction, operational efficiency, and strategic outcomes.
• Ability to participate in critical program governance, escalation management, and incident leadership as required.

Requirements

• 15+ years of progressive experience in enterprise IT, technology transformation, consulting, or program leadership, including 7+ years managing multi-functional delivery organizations.
• Experience leading PMO functions in a defense technology, aerospace, manufacturing, regulated, security-sensitive, or high-compliance environment.
• Experience governing Oracle Fusion, Workday, Salesforce Agentforce, or similarly complex enterprise application and ERP transformation programs.
• Experience managing cloud modernization, cybersecurity transformation, identity, zero-trust, data-platform, AI, or enterprise automation initiatives.
• PMP, PgMP, PfMP, PMI-ACP, SAFe, Lean, Six Sigma, ITIL, or comparable professional certifications.
• Experience implementing strategic portfolio-management platforms and enterprise reporting capabilities.
• Strong background in organizational change management, operating-model design, process transformation, and adoption planning.
• Experience establishing outcome-based delivery metrics, including on-time delivery, budget performance, delivery predictability, realized benefits, resource utilization, customer satisfaction, and risk reduction.
• Experience applying automation, AI-enabled portfolio analytics, or data-driven reporting to improve PMO efficiency and decision quality.

Benefits

• $210,000 - $320,000 a year
• Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity
• Temporary employee offer package: Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)

Company Description

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide.