Project Management Director contract

At Upstatement, we believe that great project management empowers both creativity and client growth. As a Project Management Director, you’ll play a lead role in connecting our creative teams, business objectives, and exceptional client experiences, while serving as the head of the Project Management Department.

You’ll oversee all project management activities within the organization, bringing strategic vision, leadership, and a deep understanding of project management methodologies to guide a senior team of project managers. We believe that the best leaders are also doers, so you’ll lead some projects as a PM while balancing internal responsibilities such as resourcing teams/projects and defining a path forward for project management at Upstatement. More specifically, this remote position will…

• Lead the project management department and help shape the future of project management at Upstatement by defining innovative practices and clear growth paths for the team.
• Establish precedent for strong client partnerships, modeling ownership of account relationships with an eye towards client growth and engagement.
• Own and adapt our project management tools, processes, and systems to streamline workflows and deliverables.
• Collaborate with other project leadership to shape the project, guide the team, solve problems, and ensure high-quality work.

Last but not least: People who succeed here are empathetic teammates who are candid, kind, caring, and embody our core values. We believe that diverse, inclusive teams make the most impactful work. Upstatement is deeply invested in ensuring that we have a supportive, growth-oriented environment that works for everyone.

Upstatement is a digital product studio with an editorial mindset. We use the tools of design, engineering, and journalism to enrich lives and create a more just society. Our 40-person team works with established leaders (MIT, ESPN, PBS, Microsoft) and emerging companies who are about to change the world. We are members of the kyu Collective and combine the energy of a boutique studio with the business maturity of an established global innovation leader.

• Work with ethical and mission-driven organizations.
• Collaborate in a high-trust environment that empowers creative ownership.
• Build a portfolio you can be proud of.
• Blossom in a small studio culture full of top talent and peers who help you grow.
• Find your path at a place that prizes flexibility: We encourage experimentation, support role switching, and help people balance between maker/manager and lead/support.

Leadership and Strategic Direction

• Lead the project management team in using processes purposefully, guiding teams to deliver with agility and creativity.
• Mentor and guide the project management team, setting goals, providing training, and ensuring accountability.
• Define and implement a new project management strategy that aligns with the organization’s objectives and client needs. Continuously improve how we work as an agency, adapting practices to fit team and project needs.
• Define department KPIs and ensure project performance is tracked, reported, and optimized to meet goals.

Client Engagement

• Cultivate account growth. Be a confidant to your clients, and find opportunities for continued partnerships and new projects. Lead account strategy and execute contracts that ensure long-term success.
• Act as a senior point of contact for key clients, providing updates, managing expectations, and ensuring project alignment with client objectives all while growing client accounts
• Collaborate with account managers to scope client projects, set budgets, and develop project proposals

Project Oversight

• Set up projects up for success by ensuring projects are scoped accurately, timelines are set realistically, and deliverables meet quality standards.
• Align people and teams. Design and facilitate meetings, workshops, and standups that help your client and project team collaborate effectively.
• Strategize about the work. Collaborate with project leadership, including Design and Tech Directors to shape the work and make the decisions that keep the project humming.
• Lead cross-functional teams and work closely with creative and technical teams to deliver cohesive digital solutions that drive client satisfaction and growth.

Resourcing

• Facilitate resourcing for client projects across the organization.
• Ensure the process runs smoothly and efficiently, streamlining it to fit our projects and team as needed over the coming months.

Process Improvement and Innovation

• Own & adapt process. Apply process with purpose to help your project teams deliver effectively. Be a steward of agile, but also comfortable adapting it to suit your team’s needs. Continuously seek to improve the processes we use to deliver digital across the organization.

• You’re an inspiring leader. You’re invested in understanding the motivations and needs of others, and then meeting those needs. You set the tone by proactively signaling the behavior you want from your peers and teams. You lead with empathy, actively listen to your team, and set a tone of mutual respect and continuous growth. You thrive on supporting others to reach their full potential.
• You have experience and opinions about how to tackle digital work. You’ve helped a variety of teams design, build, and ship digital products. You understand the principles of agile, and feel comfortable adapting methods to fit different teams and types of work.
• You bring your knowledge and experience to help elevate both your PM and project teams, understanding how to apply your skills across your own projects while truly leading by example to mentor and set the tone for your entire department.
• You’re autonomous and take initiative. You see problems and get to work solving them. You’re comfortable trying things you’ve never tried before. You know when to ask for help.
• You’re reliable and detail-oriented. You’re a process nerd. You love systems. You pay attention to specifics and don’t let details slip through the cracks. You can manage multiple projects simultaneously and prioritize effectively across them.
• You’re empathetic and comfortable addressing conflict. You challenge directly and care personally. You know how to frame difficult situations to avoid misunderstandings, name problems, and move toward solutions. You bring optimism, clarity, and calm.
• You’re a great communicator. You can answer difficult questions on-the-fly and summarize complex conversations in a few clear sentences. You can help others express their own thinking.

Upstatement is committed to helping our people grow and providing transparent salary benchmarks. This job fits two possible levels in our skill progression framework (something we’d love to share during the interview process). The level depends the candidate’s unique qualifications, to be determined during the interview process.

Level: PML5

Official Title: Project Management Director

Department: Project Management

Salary Range: $130,000 – $150,000

Level: PML6

Official Title: Senior Project Management Director

Department: Project Management

Salary Range: $150,000 – $170,000