Project Manager, Employee Experience & HR Technology

Who We AreApplied Materials is a global leader in materials engineering solutions used to produce virtually every new chip and advanced display in the world. We design, build and service cutting-edge equipment that helps our customers manufacture display and semiconductor chips – the brains of devices we use every day. As the foundation of the global electronics industry, Applied enables the exciting technologies that literally connect our world – like AI and IoT. If you want to push the boundaries of materials science and engineering to create next generation technology, join us to deliver material innovation that changes the world. What We OfferSalary:$124,000.00 - $171,000.00Location:Santa Clara,CAYou’ll benefit from a supportive work culture that encourages you to learn, develop, and grow your career as you take on challenges and drive innovative solutions for our customers. We empower our team to push the boundaries of what is possible—while learning every day in a supportive leading global company. Visit our Careers website to learn more. At Applied Materials, we care about the health and wellbeing of our employees. We’re committed to providing programs and support that encourage personal and professional growth and care for you at work, at home, or wherever you may go. Learn more about our benefits. Role OverviewThe Project Manager, Employee Experience & HR Technology provides PM leadership at the intersection of HR COEs and GIS, ensuring that COE-owned initiatives are structured for successful delivery. This role does not manage project plans on behalf of COEs; rather, it ensures COEs have strong plans in place and are operating within the HR Product Development Lifecycle (PDLC) framework. The PM serves as the connective tissue between COE initiative owners and GIS delivery teams, facilitating the governance rhythms, escalation pathways, and visibility mechanisms that keep the HR project portfolio on track.This role works in close partnership with the HR Technology leader, who holds direct responsibility for ensuring GIS design, configuration, and testing are aligned with COE requirements and HR Technology expectations. Together, they form the core delivery leadership partnership for HR Technology initiatives. This role also plays a key supporting part in the development and ongoing maintenance of the annual HR function roadmap, in direct support of the VP of Employee Experience.The ideal candidate is a seasoned PM who brings structured thinking, strong facilitation skills, and the credibility to hold both COE and GIS stakeholders accountable to shared delivery standards -- without owning the work itself.What You'll DoPMO Governance & Meeting LeadershipLead the HR PMO biweekly meetings -- setting agendas, driving structured discussion, tracking action items and decisions, and ensuring follow-through across the HR project portfolio.Co-lead the COE/GIS biweekly project review meetings in partnership with GIS leads, facilitating cross-functional alignment on project status, priorities, dependencies, and risks.Ensure COEs are operating within the HR PDLC framework -- not by managing their plans for them, but by reviewing adherence, identifying gaps, and working with COE leads to close them.Maintain portfolio-level visibility across all active HR initiatives, tracking status, health, and milestone progress in PMO tools and surfacing issues to leadership proactively.Establish and maintain the operating rhythms, templates, and governance standards that keep the HR PMO running consistently and predictably.Partnership with HR Technology LeaderWork in close partnership with the HR Technology leader, who has direct responsibility for GIS design, configuration, and testing alignment with COE requirements and HR Technology expectations.Serve as the PM governance layer alongside the HR Technology leader -- while HR Technology owns the functional and technical alignment, this role owns the delivery structure, meeting cadences, and portfolio visibility that enable that work to move forward.Coordinate intake, planning, and roadmap inputs between COEs and the HR Technology leader, ensuring project scope and timelines are realistic, agreed upon, and tracked.Escalate cross-initiative conflicts, resource constraints, and scope risks to the HR Technology leader and other relevant stakeholders in a timely and structured manner.Annual HR Roadmap SupportSupport the VP of Employee Experience in the development and ongoing maintenance of the annual HR function roadmap, coordinating inputs from COEs, GIS, and HR leadership.Facilitate roadmap planning sessions with COE and GIS stakeholders, helping translate strategic priorities into sequenced, resourced, and dependency-mapped delivery plans.Maintain the roadmap as a living document throughout the year, tracking progress against committed initiatives and flagging changes requiring leadership attention or re-prioritization.Provide regular roadmap status summaries to HR leadership, ensuring the VP of Employee Experience has a clear, current view of the portfolio at all times.COE Delivery EnablementReview COE project plans for alignment with PDLC standards, providing feedback when gaps are identified -- plan ownership and ongoing maintenance remains with the COE.Make PMO templates, frameworks, and PDLC guidance available to COEs, offering clarification on standards when requested.Flag cross-initiative risks, blockers, and dependencies identified through PMO governance forums, routing them to the appropriate COE or GIS owner for resolution.Coordinate project intake activities in partnership with COEs, ensuring new requests are documented and ready to enter the delivery pipeline with sufficient scope and dependency clarity.Stakeholder Communication & Change ReadinessDeliver clear, structured project and portfolio updates to HR leadership and senior stakeholders, translating portfolio health and GIS technical progress into business-relevant terms for COE leaders.Prepare materials for steering committees and leadership reviews, including portfolio status summaries, risk and issue logs, and decision requests.Coordinate change readiness activities across COE and GIS workstreams -- including communications planning, training logistics, and go-live coordination -- ensuring initiatives land effectively for end users.Partner with HR Communications and HR Business Partners on employee-facing change activities, providing project structure while COEs retain content and strategic ownership.PMO Standards & Continuous ImprovementChampion adoption of PMO standards, PDLC frameworks, and delivery templates across the HR function, identifying gaps and working with teams to strengthen compliance over time.Conduct post-implementation reviews to capture lessons learned and feed improvements back into PDLC and PMO operating standards.Identify recurring friction points in the COE-to-GIS delivery process and recommend structural improvements that reduce delays and improve predictability.What We're Looking ForExperience & Background5-8 years of experience in project management or PMO delivery, with a track record of operating in structured, governance-driven environments where the PM enables and oversees delivery rather than executing it directly.Experience in a PMO or portfolio management role, including facilitating governance meetings, maintaining portfolio visibility, and holding project teams accountable to delivery frameworks and standards.Experience working at the intersection of business stakeholders and technology delivery teams, translating priorities in both directions and maintaining alignment without owning the work on either side.Experience delivering or supporting HR Technology or enterprise platform initiatives (Workday strongly preferred); familiarity with HRIS implementations, module deployments, or HR system enhancements.Experience supporting roadmap planning or portfolio prioritization processes in partnership with senior HR or business leaders is a strong plus.Background in Employee Experience, HR Operations, or HR Transformation is a strong plus.Technical & Functional SkillsHands-on proficiency with project management and PMO tools such as Jira, Smartsheet, MS Project, or Asana -- including portfolio tracking, dashboards, and status reporting.Familiarity with structured delivery frameworks such as a Product Development Lifecycle (PDLC), Agile, hybrid, or waterfall -- and the judgment to assess whether project teams are applying them effectively.Solid understanding of the employee lifecycle and core HR processes (hire to retire) and how enterprise technology supports them.Ability to read and interpret technical requirements, Workday configuration scopes, and integration dependencies well enough to manage delivery risks and communicate impact clearly to non-technical stakeholders.Leadership & CommunicationSkilled at leading governance meetings and cross-functional forums, with the presence and authority to keep discussions focused, drive decisions, and ensure follow-through.Effective at operating alongside a technical leader, understanding the boundary between PM governance and functional/technical ownership, and partnering accordingly.Effective operating between COE business owners and GIS technical teams, building credibility on both sides without overstepping the ownership of either.Clear, structured communicator capable of translating GIS technical progress into business terms for COE leaders, and COE priorities into actionable clarity for GIS teams.Strong facilitation and influencing skills, with the ability to surface trade-offs, maintain alignment across organizational boundaries, and move decisions forward without direct authority.High accountability and follow-through, with a reputation for keeping commitments, escalating risks early, and maintaining stakeholder trust across organizational lines.Additional InformationTime Type:Full timeEmployee Type:Assignee / RegularTravel:Relocation Eligible:NoThe salary offered to a selected candidate will be based on multiple factors including location, hire grade, job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and with consideration of internal equity of our current team members. In addition to a comprehensive benefits package, candidates may be eligible for other forms of compensation such as participation in a bonus and a stock award program, as applicable.For all sales roles, the posted salary range is the Target Total Cash (TTC) range for the role, which is the sum of base salary and target bonus amount at 100% goal achievement.Applied Materials is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, citizenship, ancestry, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, veteran or military status, or any other basis prohibited by law.In addition, Applied endeavors to make our careers site accessible to all users. If you would like to contact us regarding accessibility of our website or need assistance completing the application process, please contact us via e-mail at View email address on click.appcast.io, or by calling our HR Direct Help Line at View phone number on click.appcast.io, option 1, and following the prompts to speak to an HR Advisor. This contact is for accommodation requests only and cannot be used to inquire about the status of applications.SummaryLocation: Santa Clara,CAType: Full time