Program Manager

Who We Are

VML, part of WPP, is a leading creative company that combines brand experience, customer experience, and commerce, creating connected brands to drive growth. VML is celebrated for its innovative and human first, award-winning work for blue chip client partners including AstraZeneca, Colgate-Palmolive, Dell, Ford, Microsoft, Nestlé, The Coca-Cola Company, and Wendy's. The agency is recognized by the Forrester Wave™ Reports, as a Leader among Marketing Creative and Content Service Providers, Commerce Services, Global Digital Experience Services, Global Marketing Services and, most recently, Marketing Measurement & Optimization. In addition, VML’s specialist health network, VML Health, is one of the world’s largest and most awarded health agencies. VML’s global network is powered by 26,000 talented people across 55+ markets, with principal offices in Kansas City, New York, Detroit, London, São Paulo, Shanghai, Singapore, and Sydney.

About WPP

WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands. We unite cutting-edge media intelligence and data solutions, world-class creativity, next-generation production, transformative enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel in a single company – powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform, WPP Open, to help our clients navigate change, capture opportunity and deliver transformational growth. For more information, visit WPP.com.

Who we are looking for: 

VML is seeking a Program Manager with a keen technical focus for one of the Atlanta office’s largest clients. We are looking for an enthusiastic critical thinker/problem solver that understand technical workflows, tools, and platforms. This person also thrives on being engaged at all levels of an agile project. The Program Manager will be able to lead cross-functional teams and direct reports, as well as have oversight across multiple tracks and projects throughout the full agile lifecycle. The role will acutely understand the opportunities and constraints of cross-functional team needs and take responsibility for setting and managing expectations internally and with clients. The role will understand how to manage and negotiate trade-offs to deliver on time, within budget, and against agreed objectives. Program Managers have full management responsibilities, including: scoping, budgeting, burn reporting, project delivery and resource evaluation. The role requires the ability to confidently prioritize business needs, resource management, schedules, and financials to successfully navigate and deliver all aspects of the assignment. 

 

What you’ll do:  

• Work | Deliver work that is excellent, on time, on budget, and goes beyond the brief. In addition, oversee the entire delivery and execution of the Program (consisting of multiple projects across tracks). Ability to driving the agile team, deliver results and identify both dependencies and the cascading impacts of delays. Lead resource needs and availability across the office and network, working closely with cross-functional needs, resourcing and department leads, and recruiting. 

• People | Motivate, direct and challenge teams to produce great work. Establish and manage cross-functional teams across different locations that are collaborative, efficient and high-functioning. Increase efficiency across a group of accounts through effective management of staff resourcing. Oversee staff aggregate bandwidth, utilization, and realization rates, as well as retention and employee relations. Provide solutions for additional temporary resources, new business pitch support, and PTO coverage. 

• Process | Establish and manage project/program communication and process. Leverage existing tools and processes to monitor people and progress. Collaborate with the RTE to ensure the right resources are in place to deliver the work. 

• Financials | Responsible for project estimation, planning, execution and profitability. Oversee project managers who execute on detailed project plans and budgets. Collaborate with Delivery leads for resourcing and scoping strategy across portfolio, partnering with finance and account teams. Partner with the Program Director to ensure the team has the right access to tools, talent and training to deliver on the scope. 

 

Who you are: 

• Leader | Influences without authority and fosters an environment that adheres to the team’s five cohesion principles. Comfortable communicating and partnering with department leads, tailoring communications based on audience and level (technology, experience, creative, finance, client, and vendor). 

• Builder | Navigates strong collaboration between people, processes and systems. Drives projects and resource management from ambiguity to clarity. Understands digital technologies and trends. 

• Detail Oriented | Sharp attention to detail and a drive for perfection. Excellent problem-solving skills. 

• A Strong Communicator | Excellent communication and analytical skills. Conducts team and client meetings with clear, concise language and leadership acumen. A skilled, creative, confident presenter and negotiator. 

 

What you'll need: 

• 7+ years of experience managing agile, technical projects in a professional environment- agency or consulting environment preferred 

• Previous work experience with Azure and GovCloud environments and project focus, highly recommended 

• Proven ability managing direct reports and leading and guiding teams  

• Ability to manage a cross-functional project team of 10+ 

• Familiarity with managing budgets and project finances, as well as multiple workstreams and cross-functional teams 

• Required previous work experience with common project management tools such as Jira, Confluence, Smartsheet, MS Teams, and Miro. Experience with Monday.com preferred 

• Required and proven experience adapting project management methodologies (Agile, Waterfall, Lean, Kanban) to the needs of the project 

• SAFe certified or experience working within the SAFe framework, highly recommended 

• Conscientious and adept at problem-solving through critical thinking 

• Experience leading team and client meetings 

• Excellent analytical skills 

• Ability to flex time management skills based on workload 

• Strong interpersonal communication skills as a team leader and team player 

• Flexibility, initiative, dedication, and the ability to work with minimal supervision. 

• Willingness to travel on occasion for client meetings, trade shows and/or conferences. 

The base salary range for this position at the time of this posting is indicated below. Individual compensation varies based on job-related factors, including location, business needs, level of responsibility, experience, and qualifications. We offer a competitive benefits package, click WPP Benefits for more details.

_$70,000—$140,000 USD

We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office an average of four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process.

WPP (VML) is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers. 

VML is a WPP agency (NYSE: WPP). For more information, please visit  www.vml.com, and follow along on Instagram, LinkedIn, and X.

When you click "Submit Application", this will send any information you add below to VML. Before you do this, we think it's a good idea to read through our Recruitment Privacy Policy. California residents should read our California Recruitment Privacy Notice. This explains what we do with your personal data when you apply for a role with us, and, how you can update the information you have provided us with or how to remove it.