Telcom Services Project Manager

Primary Duties and Responsibilities

• Accountable for delivery of telecommunication services projects (EF&I) from Inception to Closure using Project Management Methodology adhering to Organizational tools & procedures and within contractual obligations.
• Lead 'handover' from Sales Engineering team, Validate Project “Scope of Work” against the Sales Orders, develop work packages and convert them to a detailed project schedule.
• Identify risks, develop mitigation strategy and lead complexity reviews with defined stakeholders. Track risks and actions.
• Provide Project SOW Packages to Functional teams to facilitate Internal Resource Planning and/or Partner RFQs.
• Work with supply chain to manage customer expectations and track HW deliveries to sites.
• Track and manage project scope with internal and external stakeholders, utilize Job Change Order processes and tools in cases of deviations.
• Develop communication plans, ensure proactive status reporting/reviews/escalations are timely reported and maintain frequent contact w/ Customers relating to all project activities.
• Drive quality in all aspects of the project services from site and network engineering through to installation, turn-up test and Ready for Service (RFS) of all ISP aspects.
• Work closely with vendors to ensure quality and cost‑effective field deployment activities in support of the overall project plan. This includes sending out detailed RFQs and ensuring that the partner responses are within budget and accurately reflect the requested scope, and then issuing POs upon acceptance of FPQ.
• Record and facilitate the resolution of engineering, field or any issue as they arise.
• Resources Management: assurance of proper staffing of internal as well partner resources required as per defined schedule.
• Maintain a live project document library that includes schedule, financials, quality, risk and issues records/trackers and report any deviations to stakeholders defined in project management plan.
• Contribute in, or lead, process improvement initiatives as assigned; record miss or near miss facilities knowledge sharing.
• Achieve forecasted revenue targets Monthly, Quarterly and Annually.
• Assure all necessary internal and external acceptance criteria is identified at the beginning of a project, and met at the end of the project (i.e. scripts, test results, as‑builts, NOC).
• Ability to handle multiple projects at same time & prioritize critical tasks and resources; project may be Subsea and Terrestrial deployment in nature.
• Guide/coach junior members of team to accomplish tasks and contribute to overall deliverables.
• Maintain project in project management tools including, but not limited to:
  • Project financials: revenue & cost, plan & actual
  • Job Change Orders for scope change or cost overruns
  • Plan, Forecast and Actual Completion dates along with RCA of “missed plan dates”
  • Resource requests, assignments, and costs (time sheet approval)
  • Informative and up-to-date project status notes & QRE completion risk (Red, yellow, green)
  • Accurate completion percentage
  • Vendor PO completion percentage
  • Project completion checklist

The Must Haves

• A technical degree in related fields is preferred, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• PMP certification is preferred and will be required within one year of being hired.
• Possess a minimum of 10 years of Telecommunications‑related industry operational experience and/or implementing projects within those markets.
• Possess a minimum of 8 years in a lead role in previous Professional Services and/or participation in medium to large‑scale projects preferred.
• Proficiency with various software applications including Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint and Excel).

Interpersonal Skills

• Subsea deployment experience is a strong plus.
• Business & Financial management skills regarding Project Level P&L.
• Team player, organized, self‑motivated, and capable of independent work.
• Strong communication skills: written and in formal presentations.
• A confident decision maker; demonstrated sense of quick and good judgment, with sensitivity to customer demands.
• Project management skills in keeping projects on schedule and assuring all relevant parties are informed on progress or issues.
• Negotiation skills essential; able to negotiate both with the customer, internal resource owners and external resource suppliers.
• Self‑motivated and self driven take Initiative within assigned responsibilities.
• Multitasking: able to manage many aspects of the account(s) simultaneously.
• Strong customer interface skills and ability to work with all levels of customer operations including senior management.
• Ability to learn and grasp business management as well as technical concepts in fiber optic or high‑speed data communications.
• Strong understanding of Ciena products and technologies a plus but not essential.