Program Manager

Job Description

Job Description

Scope of Position

Our client is seeking an experienced Program Manager to lead cross-functional programs from initial concept through post-launch within a consumer products environment. This highly visible, hands-on role drives alignment, execution, risk management, and accountability across R&D, Marketing, Packaging, Regulatory, Quality, Operations, Supply Chain, Sales, Finance, and other functional teams throughout the product development lifecycle.

The Program Manager will lead domestic and international new product development, commercialization, front-end innovation, business support, and select merchandising display programs using structured Stage Gate processes. This role owns integrated program schedules, facilitates cross-functional decision-making, proactively identifies risks and resource constraints, and keeps teams aligned to approved scope, timing, cost, quality, and business objectives. The Program Manager partners with the Senior Manager of Program Management and functional business leaders to support portfolio prioritization, resource capacity planning, product roadmaps, process governance, and continuous improvement.

This is a 100% hands-on individual contributor role for someone equally comfortable building a detailed program plan, facilitating a cross-functional team, driving accountability without direct authority, and communicating program risks and recommendations to senior leadership. The role reports to the Senior Manager of Program Management and is based in Franklin, WI on a hybrid schedule.

Responsibilities

Program Leadership & Execution

• Collaborate with program sponsors, the Senior Manager of Program Management, organizational leadership, and senior cross-functional representatives to define program scope, requirements, deliverables, resources, schedule, budget, success measures, and timing for new initiatives.
• Lead programs from initial planning through execution and closeout, ensuring work is completed within approved scope, timing, budget, quality standards, and Stage Gate requirements.
• Independently develop and maintain detailed, integrated program schedules that define activities, sequencing, dependencies, decision points, milestones, critical paths, and functional commitments.
• Establish and maintain effective program governance, including meeting cadence, agendas, decision and action tracking, program documentation, schedule updates, lessons learned, and timely stakeholder communications.
• Schedule and facilitate cross-functional core team meetings and working sessions; drive clear decisions, ownership, commitments, dependencies, due dates, and follow-through.
• Drive cross-functional accountability through influence rather than direct authority and escalate unresolved barriers, resource conflicts, decisions, and risks at the appropriate time and level.

Risk, Performance & Portfolio Support

• Proactively identify, assess, document, and manage program risks, assumptions, issues, dependencies, and opportunities using risk-based project and program management methods.
• Monitor program progress and performance, recommend corrective actions, and revise plans through documented change-control practices when approved scope, timing, resources, cost, or requirements change.
• Provide concise, decision-oriented program updates and present program status, tradeoffs, risks, recommendations, and required decisions to senior management as appropriate.
• Support portfolio planning and prioritization by evaluating resource demand, capacity constraints, dependencies, risks, costs, strategic alignment, and business priorities.
• Partner with functional leaders to identify and secure appropriate team resources, financial requirements, capital needs, and specialized capabilities for prioritized programs.
• Lead or support resource demand and capacity assessments and communicate current constraints, forecasted gaps, and proposed mitigation plans to management.

Financial, Quality & Process Excellence

• Work directly with Finance to ensure program financial requirements, including P&Ls, COGS, margin assessments, budgets, and performance metrics, are current and incorporated into team reviews and decisions.
• Review program deliverables and outcomes with cross-functional teams to verify they meet agreed requirements, program standards, quality expectations, and leadership expectations.
• Provide timely, constructive feedback to cross-functional team members, reinforce effective team behaviors, recognize wins, and raise recurring performance or process concerns through appropriate functional leadership channels.
• Partner with Program Management, R&D leadership, and cross-functional teams to strengthen collaboration, trust, transparent discussion, disciplined problem solving, and solution-oriented behaviors.
• Recommend and implement improvements to program management, Stage Gate, commercialization, ideation, governance, portfolio, resource planning, and metric-tracking processes.
• Develop and maintain program tools, templates, records, histories, dashboards, training materials, and process documentation to support consistent execution, knowledge transfer, and organizational learning.
• Ensure new program participants receive appropriate orientation to program objectives, roles, responsibilities, governance expectations, tools, and relevant company policies and practices.
• Lead or support brainstorming, core team development, process training, and other working sessions as needed.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 5 years of progressive, hands-on project or program management experience leading cross-functional initiatives; 5–8 years preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to independently build and manage complex, integrated program schedules and to manage risks, issues, dependencies, resource constraints, scope changes, and schedule recovery actions.
• Strong cross-functional leadership and facilitation skills, including the ability to influence without direct authority, challenge constructively, resolve conflict, and drive timely decisions and accountability.
• Ability to manage multiple concurrent programs, establish priorities, monitor progress, and maintain accurate program data and documentation.
• Strong written, verbal, and presentation skills, with the judgment to communicate program status, tradeoffs, risks, recommendations, and escalation needs clearly to cross-functional teams and senior leadership.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Teams, and OneNote, as well as collaborative project or program management tools.
• Experience managing new product development and commercialization programs within consumer-packaged goods, cosmetics or personal care, OTC, food and beverage, pharmaceutical, medical device, or another product-based environment.
• Experience working within a Stage Gate or comparable structured product-development and commercialization process.
• Experience with portfolio prioritization, resource demand and capacity planning, financial or business-case management, and program performance metrics.
• Advanced proficiency with Smartsheet and other program management software tools (Microsoft Project/Planner, Monday, etc.) preferred.
• Bachelor's degree in Business, Engineering, Science, or a related discipline; equivalent combinations of education and directly relevant program-management experience may be considered.
• CAPM, PMP, PgMP, or comparable project/program management certification strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated adaptability, continuous-improvement mindset, ethical conduct, transparency, and alignment with organizational values and business practices.