Technical Program Director

Role Description

This role will lead the technical implementation of complex strategic initiatives that cross multiple product, engineering, and data teams. Key initiatives of focus will be Slate and possibly Payroll Services Automation and TTC Stabilization.

Cast & Crew runs a portfolio of high-priority, multi-faceted engineering initiatives that cut across product, engineering, infrastructure, and business operations teams. The Technical Program Director (TPD) is accountable for the delivery rigor of these programs:

• Keeping scope, timeline, and budget under control.
• Keeping information flowing across contributing teams and up to executive stakeholders.
• Surfacing and resolving risks before they threaten the delivery schedule.

This is explicitly not a product management role. The TPD does not own product vision, roadmap prioritization, or feature requirements. Instead, the TPD partners with Product, Engineering leadership, and workstream owners to instill the program discipline.

What You'll Own

• Program Governance & Delivery Rigor:
  • Establish and maintain scope, schedule, and budget baselines for each assigned program.
  • Build and maintain integrated program plans and dependency maps across workstreams.
  • Run the standard program-management cadence proportional to program complexity.
  • Track burn against budget and forecast variance early enough for leadership to act.
• Cross-Team & Executive Communication:
  • Own the communication rhythm that keeps stakeholders aligned.
  • Keep updates to the CTO and other executive stakeholders clear and actionable.
  • Act as the connective tissue between teams for efficient decision-making.
• Risk, Issue & Blocker Management:
  • Identify risks and blockers proactively and drive them to resolution.
  • Escalate clearly and with the right urgency.
  • Chase down cross-team dependencies before they stall a workstream.
• Budget, Resourcing & Vendor Oversight:
  • Track program spend and resource allocation against approved budgets.
  • Oversee third-party or vendor workstreams where applicable.
• Stakeholder Alignment & Change Management:
  • Ensure business stakeholders understand changes and their impacts.
  • Run formal change management processes for deliberate decision-making.

What Success Looks Like

• High-priority programs hit their committed milestones, or leadership knows well in advance when they won't.
• Scope and budget variance are caught and communicated early enough to course-correct.
• The CTO and executive stakeholders can get an accurate read on program health.
• Blockers get resolved or escalated in days, not weeks.
• Engineering and product teams report that program overhead helps them move faster.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of specific, relevant experience leading complex, technical, cross-functional programs.
• PMP certification or equivalent demonstrated program management rigor.
• Track record managing programs with real budget, staffing, and executive accountability.
• Fluency with both structured and Agile delivery models.
• Demonstrated proficiency using LLM tools as a daily productivity multiplier.
• Ability to set up and manage AI projects with scheduled, automated tasks.
• Excellent communication skills, written and verbal.
• Comfort operating in ambiguity across multiple concurrent, high-visibility initiatives.
• Experience standing up or maturing a PMO function inside an engineering organization.
• Hands-on proficiency with program/PPM tooling.

Preferred

• Experience in payroll, HR technology, or another regulated, operationally complex domain.
• Experience managing vendor or systems-integrator relationships.
• Additional certifications are a plus but not a substitute for demonstrated delivery track record.

Special Work Conditions

• Sedentary – Involves sitting most of the time but may involve walking or standing for brief periods.
• Some positions may entail exerting up to 15 lbs. of force occasionally.

Benefits

• Comprehensive package of employee benefits including:
• Medical, Dental, Vision
• PTO
• Health and wellness programs
• Employee discounts
• And more!

Compensation

The compensation range for this position is: $170,000.00 - $185,000.00 per year.