Project/Program Manager Must Be Near Chicago, Peoria, Dallas, or Westminster

We are seeking an experienced Project/Program Manager to oversee key digital initiatives and drive cross-functional collaboration across geographically distributed teams.
Responsibilities:

Coordinate weekly syncs with internal teams and vendors for platform upgrades, indexing, and roadmap planning.Engage with Lucidworks vendor team on a weekly to biweekly basis for support and issue resolution.Collaborate with engineering and validation teams during testing and release cycles.Participate in strategic planning with product/platform stakeholders.Support escalations, change approvals, and cross-functional collaboration when needed.

Team Interaction:

Daily interaction with a cross-functional Search Core Team (U.S., India, and vendor).Frequent coordination with search product suppliers.Minimal travel, flexible work environment.

Required Qualifications:

10+ years of experience in Project/Program Management.Bachelor s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field.Experience with Agile methodologies, specifically Scrum.Strong cross-functional collaboration and stakeholder communication skills.Experience managing relationships with external vendors.

Preferred Qualifications:

PMI or PMP certification.Scrum Master certification and experience.Exposure to search technologies such as Lucidworks and Solr.Familiarity with security and compliance practices.

Soft Skills:

Strong leadership and influencing capabilities without direct authority.Clear, structured communication and risk/status reporting.Ability to navigate complex organizational dynamics and challenging partner relationships.

Red Flags:

Frequent job changes or choppy tenure without clear progression.