IT Application Delivery Manager

Description We are looking for an IT Application Delivery Manager to take ownership of how application projects and enhancements are delivered across the organization — going beyond a traditional PMO function. This role is the next level up from standard project tracking: rather than simply monitoring and reporting status, the Delivery Manager actively manages, forecasts, and course-corrects timelines to ensure delivery commitments are met. The ideal candidate combines strong PMO governance discipline with a delivery-owner mindset — someone who is accountable for outcomes, not just visibility.

• Lead and mature the IT Application Delivery function as the next evolution of the PMO — moving from a governance/reporting office to an active delivery-management capability.
• Own the end-to-end delivery of application projects and enhancements, from planning and resourcing through go-live and stabilization.
• Proactively manage expected timelines, not just track progress: continuously validate whether current pace will meet committed dates, and intervene early when a project is trending off-course.
• Build and maintain realistic delivery baselines and forecasts, using leading indicators (velocity, blockers, dependency risk) rather than relying solely on status updates.
• Identify schedule, resource, and scope risks ahead of time, and drive mitigation actions with project teams and stakeholders — escalating early rather than reporting delays after the fact.
• Hold project managers, vendors, and delivery teams accountable to committed timelines, applying structured follow-up and corrective action plans when milestones slip.
• Establish and enforce delivery governance standards: project intake, prioritization, resource allocation, stage-gate reviews, and change control across the application portfolio.
• Manage cross-project and cross-team dependencies, ensuring sequencing and resourcing decisions protect the overall portfolio timeline, not just individual projects.
• Partner with business stakeholders and application/engineering leads to set realistic timeline commitments upfront, balancing ambition with delivery capacity.
• Report delivery health to leadership with clear, forward-looking risk indicators — highlighting what could cause a date to move before it does, not only what has already happened.
• Coach and develop project managers and delivery leads to shift from passive progress-tracking toward proactive timeline and risk management.
• Continuously improve delivery methodology and tooling (Agile/hybrid delivery practices, PPM/PM tooling, reporting dashboards) to increase delivery predictability.

Requirements

• 8–12+ years of experience in IT project/program management or application delivery, including experience leading or maturing a PMO function.
• Demonstrated experience operating beyond a traditional tracking-and-reporting PMO — with clear ownership of delivery outcomes and timeline accountability.
• Strong track record of proactively identifying and resolving schedule risk before it results in missed deadlines, rather than reporting delays after they occur.
• Solid understanding of application development and delivery lifecycles (Agile, Waterfall, or hybrid), including dependency and resource management across multiple concurrent projects.
• Experience managing vendors, cross-functional teams, and business stakeholders to hold delivery commitments.
• Strong analytical skills — comfortable using delivery metrics (burn-down, velocity, critical path, earned value) to forecast rather than just report status.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills, with the ability to escalate and negotiate timeline trade-offs with senior leadership.
• Hands-on familiarity with PPM/project tracking tools (e.g., Jira, MS Project, Smartsheet, or equivalent).
• Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business, or a related field.