Program Manager

The NOAA Cooperative Science Center in Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology (NCAS-M II) is currently seeking to hire a dynamic individual to join our team in the role of Project Manager. The successful candidate will provide operational oversight for the Center and support the Center’s director, who (along with the deputy director) provides strategic leadership for large-scale scientific and academic initiatives. The successful candidate will coordinate the Center’s collaborative research (with NOAA and with partner institutions), will support the staff (the educational specialist, budget analyst, and data and information specialist), and will coordinate meetings, reporting, and communications for the Center.   

Key Responsibilities 

• Operational Execution: Translate senior leadership’s strategic vision into actionable daily workflows, managing center milestones and tracking performance indicators. 

• Chain of Command Liaison: Act as the primary conduit between the directorate and administrative teams, serving as the default proxy when senior leadership is unavailable. 

• Cross-Institutional Coordination: Synchronize efforts across all partner university campuses, aligning sub-awardee progress with the central administration’s directives. 

• Fiscal Optimization: Drive the execution of portfolio-level budgets, proposing and reviewing allocations (in consultation with the budget analyst) for final approval by senior leadership. 

• Risk & Performance Management: Identify operational bottlenecks, manage student and researcher tracking systems, and escalate critical grant-compliance issues up the chain. 

• Reporting Consolidation: Synthesize raw research, education, and financial data into comprehensive draft reports for the senior leadership’s final review and submission to NOAA. 

Additional Responsibilities 

• Perform project coordination and analysis for science initiative and strategic projects across the Center to guide the timely completion of project goals; 

• Works with project team members and stakeholders to define project requirements and maintain them through change management activities;  

• Maintains comprehensive project plans, including scope, schedule, and communications plans (including written status reports or oral presentations); 

• Contributes to the effort to develop baseline risk assessments; monitors project risks and mitigation plans; and prepares risk management summary reports;  

• Coordinating project requirements with project teams made up of division/lab staff, external advisory committees, NCAS-M management, and outside vendors;  

• Facilitates project meetings through detailed notes and action item determination, agenda development, and entire team engagement activities; and 

• Organizes engagement activities as well as follow-up actions related to outcomes of project/stakeholder engagement activities (e.g., creates action plans to better engagements).  

• Supports the NCAS-M II director and deputy director to make critical project decisions. 

Qualifications 

• Master’s degree in a related field, and at least one year of experience managing various phases of projects, or an equivalent combination of experience and disciplinary expertise; 

• Demonstrated knowledge of and ability to apply project management principles and to execute strategic process improvement projects;  

• Demonstrated skill in establishing and facilitating large, multi-stakeholder meetings and communications/ project status updates;  

• Excellent organizational skills demonstrated by managing multiple priorities/projects;  

• Demonstrated skill in using Microsoft Office to create advanced documents, spreadsheets, and presentations;  

• Demonstrated skill in processing and presenting project data collection and analysis (e.g., financial or schedule related information);  

• Proven ability to respond positively and productively to uncertainty, rapid changes, and ambiguity;  

• Skill in directing the work of diverse scientific and administrative personnel;  

• Ability to motivate teams of individuals;  

• Excellent written and oral communication skills; and 

• Demonstrated skill in presenting technical and sensitive information to internal audiences. 

Core Competencies 

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including experience preparing materials for senior leaders and varied audiences;  

• Strong strategic thinking and problem-solving skills, with the ability to connect long-term institutional goals to near-term actions;  

• Strong interpersonal skills, with the ability to build trust and credibility across a wide range of constituencies, including faculty, staff, students, and external partners;  

• Demonstrated ability to operate effectively in a complex, fast-paced environment, managing multiple priorities while maintaining a high standard of quality and accuracy; and 

• Proven capacity to lead through influence, coordinate across diverse stakeholders, and drive initiatives to completion. 

Note: This position description should not be construed to imply that these requirements are the exclusive standards of the position. Incumbents will follow any other instructions and perform any other related duties as may be required. The university has the right to revise this position description at any time. This position description is not construed as a contract for employment. The position is 100% grant funded.