Program Manager

Role purpose: Plan and manage day-to-day execution across programme workstreams. Maintain an integrated view of scope, schedule, resources, dependencies, risks, quality and cost; coordinate teams and the client; and provide the Programme Director with reliable, timely information and recommendations.

Reports to: Programme Director.

Direct reports: Project controls or PMO staff and workstream or project leads, as defined by the delivery structure.

Role scope: Integrated planning, execution coordination, client working-level engagement, performance reporting, issue resolution and delivery control.

Key responsibilities

• Maintain the integrated management plan, work breakdown structure, schedule, milestone and deliverable registers, resource plan and governance calendar.
• Coordinate workstream leads, internal functions, partners and vendors; make ownership, interfaces, inputs and handoffs clear.
• Track progress against approved plans using evidence; identify slippage, critical path impacts and capacity constraints, and agree corrective actions.
• Maintain RAID, dependency, decision, change and action registers; assign owners and due dates and follow actions through closure.
• Prepare concise status reports, dashboards, meeting packs, minutes, forecasts and escalation briefs that reflect the current position.
• Coordinate working-level client engagement, requirements clarification, reviews, demonstrations, approvals and responses; record decisions and commitments.
• Plan quality reviews and acceptance readiness; ensure deliverables are complete, traceable, internally reviewed and submitted through agreed controls.
• Monitor budget, commitments, resource utilization, purchase and vendor status, invoicing evidence and forecast inputs; promptly flag variances.
• Apply change control: document requests, assess impacts with relevant leads, obtain required approvals and update the controlled baselines.
• Coordinate risks and issues with functional owners, maintain response plans and escalate matters that exceed delegated authority or threaten outcomes.
• Ensure project records, correspondence, approvals, configurations and delivery evidence are organized, version-controlled and audit-ready.
• Coordinate onboarding, team communications, operational readiness, training, knowledge transfer and transition activities.

Decision authority

• Direct approved day-to-day work and sequence activities within the agreed scope, schedule and delegated resource limits.
• Initiate corrective actions and raise changes, risks or issues for decision through the established governance route.
• Do not commit to material scope, cost, schedule, contractual or client changes without the required approval.

Qualifications and experience

• M.Sc., M.Tech. or PhD in Geo-Informatics, Remote Sensing or Geology.
• Experience as a Project Manager or Programme Manager in GIS implementation projects.
• Typically, 20+ years of professional experience, including 10+ years managing complex projects or workstreams with multiple teams and client dependencies.
• A valid PMP, PRINCE2 Practitioner or CAPM certification is preferred. A PhD in an applicable field is also valued.
• Experience building integrated schedules and plans, managing risks and changes, reporting performance and coordinating acceptance.
• Proficiency with project scheduling, collaboration and issue-tracking tools; strong Excel and presentation skills.

Core capabilities

• Structured planning, follow-through, prioritization and attention to detail.
• Clear written and verbal communication, meeting facilitation and practical negotiation.
• Ability to interpret delivery data, explain variances and turn issues into owned actions.
• Collaborative leadership, sound judgement under pressure and a strong service and quality mindset.

Measures of success

• Plans, reports and registers are accurate, current and supported by delivery evidence.
• Dependencies and decisions are surfaced early; actions have clear owners and close on time.
• Milestones, quality reviews and submissions are coordinated to the approved baseline.
• Risks, changes and cost or resource variances are escalated through the right governance route.
• Teams and the client have a shared, timely understanding of progress, priorities and next steps.