Program Manager

Job Description

Job DescriptionWe’re hiring a Program Manager!Employment type: Full Time/Direct Hire (No Agencies & No C2C)Location: Washington, DC, Charlotte, NC, Atlanta, GA, Richmond, VA, or NYC Metropolitan RegionsLocation Type: Hybrid - Home Office/Local Ippon office (1-2 days per week onsite)
About Ippon:The Ippon story started in 2002 in Paris, France - cue the accordion, berets, and crêpes. Our founder and CEO, Stéphane Nomis, drew on his experience as an international Judo champion to build a technical consulting firm rooted in the sport’s core values: ambition, discipline, and excellence. Those principles continue to shape how we support clients and deliver work today. We work alongside technical partners such as AWS and Snowflake, balancing technical advisory and hands-on delivery for clients in Financial Services and other highly regulated industries. We specialize in legacy system migrations, cloud-native design, system modernization, operational efficiency, accessibility and governance, and build scalable platforms that support long-term business success.
About the position:Ippon is seeking a driven Program Manager to lead cross-functional teams in delivering high-impact technology solutions. This individual will be responsible for day-to-day project delivery, ensuring alignment across engineering timelines, business goals, and stakeholder expectations. From planning through execution and closure, the Program Manager plays a key role in driving structure amid ambiguity, fostering team collaboration, and keeping projects on track, on time, and on budget. The ideal candidate is driven, organized, and a strong communicator with a passion for becoming a trusted partner to both clients and internal teams.Roles and responsibilities:

• Project Delivery & Execution
• Own end-to-end delivery governance across one or more complex, interdependent workstreams, ensuring alignment to client outcomes, product strategy, and business objectives
• Establish and oversee integrated program plans that connect product roadmaps, engineering delivery, and organizational priorities, balancing speed, quality, and risk
• Anticipate, assess, and proactively mitigate cross-program risks and dependencies, setting escalation paths and contingency strategies before delivery is impacted
• Set the standard for delivery excellence by evolving and reinforcing Ippon’s delivery playbook, tooling, and operating rhythms (e.g., Jira, Confluence, executive dashboards)

• Executive Stakeholder Management & Communication
• Act as the primary liaison between client leadership, product, engineering, architecture, and Ippon leadership, during assigned projects and sales processes
• Provide executive-ready insights into program health, KPIs, financials, risks, and trade-offs, enabling informed decision-making
• Lead high-stakes planning moments, including release strategy, go/no-go decisions, and executive steering forums
• Shape narrative and expectations with stakeholders, translating complexity into clarity and confidence

• Cross-Functional Leadership & Collaboration
• Lead through influence rather than authority, aligning multiple teams and leaders around shared goals and delivery commitments
• Create structure in ambiguity by defining operating models, decision frameworks, and ownership across teams
• Proactively unblock delivery at the system level, addressing organizational, technical, or process constraints
• Model strong facilitation and decision leadership, ensuring discussions are outcome-driven and inclusive of the right voices

• Client Success & Team Development
• Serve as a trusted advisor to client stakeholders, building durable partnerships grounded in transparency, credibility, and results
• Mentor and develop Project Managers and consultants, elevating delivery maturity, communication presence, and stakeholder confidence
• Champion Ippon’s values and brand through exceptional client experiences, internal leadership, and participation in thought leadership, events, or practice initiatives
• Own program closeout and value realization, leading retrospectives, synthesizing lessons learned, and contributing insights to future engagements and pursuits
• Lead with curiosity and foresight, asking the right questions to surface unmet needs, anticipate risk, and continuously improve engagement outcomes

Competencies we are looking for:

• Minimum Qualifications:
• 8+ years of experience as a Project Manager or Program Manager in IT consulting or a technology-driven enterprise organization, including ownership of complex, multi-workstream initiatives
• 5+ years of experience supporting technical project portfolios or roadmaps, balancing delivery commitments, risk, and business priorities
• 5+ years of experience partnering closely with product, engineering, and architecture teams in an Agile or hybrid delivery environment
• Proven experience with enterprise-wide dependency management, risk escalation, and cross-team coordination
• Demonstrated success managing mixed delivery models (Agile, Waterfall, hybrid) across cross-functional and distributed teams
• Strong executive-level communication, organizational, and leadership skills, with the ability to influence decisions, manage trade-offs, and align stakeholders
• Hands-on experience with project and program management tools (e.g., Jira, Confluence, Smartsheets, Miro, Notion), including reporting on delivery health and KPIs
• Proven ability to drive project progress, decisions, as well as conflict resolution

• Preferred Qualifications:
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Business, or a related field (or equivalent practical experience)
• Experience consulting and/or managing programs in Financial Services (Credit Unions, Commercial Banking, Capital Markets, etc)
• Experience leading or governing technical delivery for Data Engineering, Analytics, Cloud, or Platform modernization and migration initiatives (e.g., Snowflake, AWS, data platforms, DevOps)
• Familiarity with enterprise delivery governance, including release planning, go/no-go decisioning, and executive reporting
• Relevant certifications such as PMP, PgMP, CSM, SAFe, or Prince2
• Demonstrated experience driving delivery maturity, including improvements to communication models, tooling, release processes, or operating cadence

What we offer:

• Competitive salary – Great starting salaries for well qualified candidates
• Generous Paid Time Off policy - Ippon offers flexible time off to help you be your best
• Health, dental, and vision insurance – We are dedicated to helping our employees live healthier lives through comprehensive health programs
• 401k with company match - Ippon offers an industry leading 401(k) matching plan
• Family Leave - We support the importance of family and offer maternity, paternity and family medical leave plans
• A fun, smart, and healthy work environment, focused on our values and teamwork

We value the diversity and different perspectives each of our employees bring to Ippon Technologies.
Ippon Technologies is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, veteran, or disability status.
Visit us on LinkedIn or at https://us.ippon.tech/ to learn more.
So, do YOU speak Ippon?