Purpose
Your mantra is “excellence in execution” and you will in the lead responsible for driving end to end delivery of programs and the associated tools, guidelines etc to the teams who will manage and execute. You won’t let process get in the way of execution and will be our advocate for a growth mindset and industry-leading communication management.
As a Senior Program Manager in adidas Digital Partner Commerce (DPC) your task is to manage and deliver mid-scale programs or sub-elements of large-scale digital programs and projects. The program or project scope can be on a global or global to local level across functions.
Your objective is to establish the scope and expectations up front, conduct your work within the boundaries of time, cost & quality while focusing on the requirements of the people / teams on the receiving end. Planning, executing and tracking programs in cooperation with the respective functions and team members are a few examples of what is expected from this role.
Additionally, you will be focusing on resource management, coordination of activities, and delivery acting as the central interface to program stakeholders.
Key Accountabilities
Scope: Manage and deliver mid-scale programs on a global or global to local level
* Project/ Program Delivery
o Deliver projects end-to-end successfully, ideally through effective application of the appropriate methodology.
o Develop detailed plans that allow providing transparency on progress and identifying risks on time.
o Identify interdependencies with other projects and solve issues proactively.
o Drive continuous improvement of tools, processes or systems within the program / project scope.
* Resource Planning
o Form, lead, manage and monitor multi-functional team resources (internals and externals) to deliver and support programs.
* Communication
o Act as the key contact person for major global / local stakeholders.
o Apply appropriate and effective communication methods to senior management and important stakeholders.
o As conflicts and escalations arise within projects, identify solutions and drive their resolution in a timely and appropriate manner.
o Manage change within programs / projects and ensure changes are smoothly and successfully implemented to achieve lasting benefits.
* Project & Program Controlling
o Manage project controlling as an independent element to ensure that actual project are in line with expectations
o Monitor project variables (cost, effort, scope, etc.) against plan in order to implement corrective or preventive actions.
o Validate if programs are delivering against program KPIs.
„If required“ Responsibilities
* Growth mindset & change management
o Drive the implementation of elements of the transformation to more agile working modes.
o Contribute to developing and orchestrating the demand & delivery process within DPC and with key stakeholders e.g. DSS, DBC
o Facilitate initial demand discussions within DPC to manage commitments and ability to deliver.
* Customer Development
o Create business cases with support from the Analytics team to evaluate growth opportunities.
o Propose priorities for account rollouts based on business potential and market specific needs.
o Develop base platform capabilities required to fulfill business cases, together with key counterparts.
* People Management
o Create a supportive work environment in which employees are coached, trained and provided with career opportunities through development.
o Provide team members/direct reports with clear direction and targets that are aligned with business needs and DPC objectives.
Knowledge, Capabilities and Experience
* Education & Experience
o University degree with focus on Business Administration, Communication or IT or related areas, or equivalent combination of education and experience
o 8+ years of in-depth experience related to program management or similar topics
o 3-5 years of professional experience in the B2C or B2B eCommerce environment
o Experience in Finance is a plus
o Experience working with stakeholders at various seniority levels as well as subject matter experts across various functions (add list of types of stakeholders that would work with e.g. account directors, sales development, biz development)
o 1+ years of experience in leading a team
* Soft-Skills
o Very good communication skills, especially when interacting with different levels of business
o Ability to work in a fast-paced environment with different international cultures
o Ability to handle ambiguity and untangle complex situations into actionable activities
o Solutions-oriented approach and entrepreneurial mindset
o Good numerical and analytical skills
o Basic leadership skills are required
* Hard-Skills
o Strong MS-Office skills (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
o Ability to travel, domestic or international, as required
o Advanced understanding of eCommerce and sales landscape
o Very good knowledge of Agile working methods e.g. Scrum/Kanban
o Very good knowledge of PMI methods ideally with certification
o Fluent English both verbally and written