Cape Town: Specialist Project Manager – (PERMANENT) posted by PM Connection

Job Purpose

To lead and deliver complex software development or enterprise application projects by applying expert-level project management, stakeholder engagement, governance, and technical oversight to ensure on-time, within-budget delivery aligned to strategic business goals. The Specialist Senior Project Manager assumes full accountability for project delivery, risk mitigation, stakeholder engagement, and strategic alignment with business objectives.

Key Responsibilities:

• Project Planning & Initiation Define project scope, objectives, deliverables, timelines, and resource plans based on business requirements.
• Execution & Delivery Manage day-to-day project operations including task assignment, progress tracking, and issue resolution.
• Risk & Issue Management Identify, assess, and mitigate project risks and issues.
• Maintain an up-to-date RAID log.
• Budget & Resource Management Track project budgets and ensure optimal resource utilization. Escalate deviations proactively.
• Stakeholder Management Engage with business and technical stakeholders to manage expectations, report progress, and secure approvals.
• Governance & Reporting Produce weekly/monthly status reports and lead steering committee meetings.
• Ensure alignment with governance frameworks.
• Change & Quality Control Enforce change control processes and ensure quality standards are met through testing and validation cycles.
• Project Closure Ensure successful handover to operations/support, conduct lessons learned sessions, and close out project documentation.

Core Responsibilities:

• Deliver complex, high-value software projects in alignment with organisational strategy.
• Demonstrated experience managing multi-workstream or cross-functional ERP/CRM projects.
• Strong understanding of delivery methodologies (Agile, Waterfall, Hybrid) and governance models
• Lead cross-functional and vendor teams, managing dependencies and change across multiple workstreams.
• Maintain full project lifecycle accountability, including scope, schedule, risk, budget, and benefit realization.
• Provide governance oversight and executive reporting while ensuring adherence to PMO standards.
• Cultivate stakeholder trust through transparent communication and strategic engagement

Qualifications, Experience & Skills:

Educational Qualifications:

• Bachelors degree in information technology, Computer Science, Business Administration, Engineering, or a related field.
• Postgraduate Project Management qualification (Advantageous)

Professional Certifications:

• Project Management certifications (e.g., PMP, PRINCE2, AgilePM) preferred or industry equivalent qualification
• Microsoft certifications related to Dynamics 365/ERP related certifications or Power Platform are advantageous

Experience:

• 10+ years of overall project management experience
• Demonstrated success managing multi-phase, multi-stream delivery cycles (Design, Build, Test, Deploy).

Technical & Functional Skills:

Skill Area Requirements:

• Project Tools Proficient in Microsoft Project, Azure DevOps, Project Operations
• Methodologies Strong knowledge of Waterfall, Agile, or Hybrid project delivery frameworks.
• Documentation & Reporting Strong capability in creating project charters, RAID logs, governance reports, and dashboards.
• Budget & Forecasting Comfortable managing financials, cost tracking, and vendor invoices.
• Stakeholder Management Excellent skills in managing cross-functional teams, vendors, and executive sponsors.
• Communication Exceptional verbal, written, and presentation skills; able to lead meetings and workshops with diverse audiences.

Other Requirements (if applicable)

• Willingness to travel to a client or regional sites depending on project needs.
• Cape Town based and willing to be in the office two to three days a week.

Kindly regard your application as unsuccessful if you have not heard from the agency within 2 weeks