Technical Project Lead

About Wakefern

Wakefern Food Corp. is the largest retailer-owned cooperative in the United States and supports its co-operative members' retail operations, trading under the ShopRite®, Price Rite®, The Fresh Grocer®, Dearborn Markets®, and Gourmet Garage® banners.

Employing an innovative approach to wholesale business services, Wakefern focuses on helping the independent retailer compete in a big business world. Providing the tools entrepreneurs need to stay a step ahead of the competition, Wakefern’s co-operative members benefit from the company’s extensive portfolio of services, including innovative technology, private label development, and best-in-class procurement practices.

Summary

The Strategic Project Lead, Tech is a senior-level project management role responsible for leading complex, cross-functional technology initiatives within Wakefern’s Tech PMO. This role manages large-scale technical projects from initiation through delivery, aligns execution to strategic business objectives, and ensures project outcomes are delivered with clear governance, stakeholder alignment, risk management, and measurable business value. The Strategic Project Lead partners closely with Tech, business, vendor, and PMO stakeholders to plan, coordinate, and execute initiatives that require strong technical project management discipline, enterprise awareness, and the ability to navigate the structure and expectations of a mature PMO environment.

Essential Functions

Strategic Alignment:

• Lead the planning and execution of complex technology initiatives that support Wakefern’s strategic priorities and enterprise goals, this may include cross-functional merger integration plans for the Tech division.
• Collaborate with leadership, PMO partners, and stakeholders to define project success criteria, delivery milestones, governance expectations, and measurable outcomes.
• Contribute to PMO standards, project delivery practices, templates, and lessons learned to improve consistency and effectiveness across future technology initiatives.

Cross Functional Leadership:

• Facilitate alignment across Tech teams, business partners, vendors, PMO stakeholders, and other cross-functional groups to ensure project scope, priorities, dependencies, and decisions are clearly understood.
• Manage dependencies and resolve conflicts across business units.

Change Management & Communications:

• Partner with internal Change Management teams to develop and support adoption strategies for technology-enabled process, system, and operational changes.
• Communicate project status, delivery progress, risks, issues, decisions, and outcomes to senior leadership, PMO partners, and key stakeholders.
• Ensure transparency and consistency in messaging across teams.

Risk & Performance Management:

• Identify, monitor, and manage project risks, issues, dependencies, and decisions, developing mitigation strategies and escalation paths to support timely delivery.
• Identify and manage issues and decisions to ensure timely execution of integration plans.
• Monitor project health and delivery performance using KPIs such as schedule adherence, milestone completion, budget or resource impacts, risk exposure, adoption readiness, and business value realization.
• Conduct post-project reviews and lessons-learned sessions to identify delivery improvements, strengthen PMO practices, and support future technical initiatives.

Systems & Process Alignment:

• Oversee project planning and coordination for technology systems, tools, integrations, workflows, and process changes, ensuring delivery activities are sequenced, governed, and aligned across teams.
• Ensure data integrity and continuity across platforms.
• Support harmonization of policies, processes, procedures, and compliance standards.

Stakeholder Engagement and Communication:

• Serve as a liaison between Tech teams, business units, vendors, PMO partners, and other key stakeholders to drive alignment, decision-making, and project execution.
• Facilitate meetings, prepare presentations, and communicate project status.
• Monitor project progress and adjust plan(s) as needed.
• Conduct post-project evaluations and provide insights for future initiatives.

Project Manage Strategic Projects :

• Project manage selected strategic/transformation projects aimed at driving significant organizational change and achieving strategic goals.
• Facilitate stakeholder engagement meetings across various departments, including business partners and consultants.
• Ensure effective communication and collaboration, identify and mitigate risks, resolve issues, and ensure that project milestones and outcomes are achieved.

Success Metrics:

• Successful delivery of complex technology initiatives against approved scope, schedule, budget, quality, governance, and business outcome expectations.
• Achievement of project objectives, stakeholder commitments, and measurable business value tied to strategic technology initiatives.
• High stakeholder and employee satisfaction.
• Minimal disruption to business operations.
• Effective alignment across project teams, business processes, technical dependencies, and operational readiness activities.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in IT or business-related field
• PMP certification preferred.
• 7+ years of project management experience, including multiple years leading complex technical projects, enterprise system implementations, or technology-enabled business transformation initiatives within a structured PMO environment.
• Post-merger integration experience a plus, including cross-functional planning, execution, and stakeholder coordination.
• Proven track record managing complex, cross-functional technology projects in a corporate environment, including enterprise system implementations, technical dependencies, vendor coordination, risk management, and stakeholder governance.
• Strong leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills. Ability to effectively manage and motivate cross-functional teams.
• Strong understanding of PMO operating models, project governance, stage gates, portfolio reporting, RAID management, status communications, and the discipline required to deliver within established project management standards.
• Proficiency in project management tools and software (e.g., Planview Adaptive Work, Smartsheet, etc.)
• Grocery, CPG and Wholesale experience is a plus

Working Conditions & Physical Demands

• This position requires in person office presence 4 days a week
• This position may require travel

Competencies

• Communicate Effectively
• Drive for Results
• Embrace Change
• Develop You
• Build Relationships
• Stay Competitive