Lead Project Manager, Harrisburg, PA – Remote with 1 day/month onsite

Job Title: Lead Project Manager
Client: State of Pennsylvania
Location: Harrisburg, PA – Remote with 1 day/month onsite (additional onsite days may be required)
Duration: Long Term

Important Requirements

• Candidate must currently reside in Pennsylvania at the time of submission. No relocation candidates.
• Must be able to work from the Harrisburg, PA office at least 1 day per month, with additional onsite days as required.
• Active PMI PMP certification is mandatory for a minimum of 5 years.
• A copy of the active PMP certification must be submitted along with the resume. Candidates without the uploaded PMP certification will not be considered.
• 7–9 years of relevant Project Management experience required.

Job Summary

The selected candidate will serve as the Lead Project Manager supporting the implementation and enhancement of critical IT projects for the Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP).

A key focus will be the implementation of iSMART / Training Management System (TMS) replacement, along with continued support of the Web Infrastructure for Treatments (WITS) product.

The Project Manager will be responsible for driving projects from initiation through implementation, ensuring delivery within schedule, budget, scope, and quality requirements.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and manage large-scale, high-priority IT projects through the complete project lifecycle.
• Develop and maintain detailed project plans, schedules, milestones, budgets, and resource plans.
• Manage projects with delivery cycles ranging from 8–12 months or longer.
• Coordinate planning, requirements, design, development, testing, implementation, and deployment activities.
• Track project progress, milestones, budget, risks, issues, and dependencies.
• Develop project estimates and revise estimates based on project requirements and team input.
• Develop and obtain approval for Project Management Plans.
• Manage project scope and ensure all changes follow established Change Management processes.
• Maintain RAID Logs and develop risk mitigation strategies through issue resolution and closure.
• Prepare and distribute weekly status reports, project metrics, dashboards, and management updates.
• Develop and maintain Communication Plans and Deliverables Matrices.
• Coordinate with IT Application, Data Warehouse, Informatics, Solution Management, Networking, Security, and Service Management teams.
• Facilitate communication between business stakeholders, IT teams, vendors, and other project participants.
• Coordinate system testing, quality assurance reviews, peer reviews, and project inspections.
• Conduct project meetings, presentations, training, and orientation sessions.
• Communicate project status, risks, issues, and recommendations to senior leadership and stakeholders.
• Ensure compliance with established IT PMO standards, methodologies, and procedures.
• Mentor junior project management staff when required.
• Balance team workloads and proactively address resource constraints.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for project-related issues and resolution.
• Coordinate final project evaluations and obtain stakeholder acceptance/sign-off.
• Support continuous improvement initiatives within the IT PMO.

Required Qualifications

• 7+ years of Project Management experience.
• Active PMI PMP certification with a minimum of 5 years of PMP certification experience.
• Current Pennsylvania residency – mandatory.
• Ability to work onsite in Harrisburg, PA at least 1 day per month, with additional onsite work as required.
• Proven experience managing projects through planning, design, development, testing, and implementation.
• Strong experience with project schedules, budgets, risks, issues, dependencies, and stakeholder management.
• Strong communication, leadership, facilitation, and organizational skills.