ERP Project Manager

Reporting to the Director of Workday Strategy & Engagement, the ERP Project Manager owns the comprehensive delivery of high-impact ERP projects from planning through project closeout and postproduction stabilization. As a key member of the Workday Strategy Team, this role leads cross-functional project teams dedicated to enhancing and expanding the university's Workday platform and collaborates closely with the ERP Change Manager to embed change management activities directly into project planning and execution. This highly visible role requires driving project success through a complex higher education environment while managing relationships at all levels of the organization.

About the Team

The Workday Strategy Team is responsible for the continuous improvement of the Workday system to maximize ROI on the university’s significant investment. This includes full lifecycle implementations, optimization projects, and organizational change management related to system changes. The team drives cross-functional collaboration, enforces operational governance, and owns the long-term system roadmap, partnering closely with functional departments, technical teams, senior leadership, and other campus stakeholders to prioritize enhancements and ensure alignment with Denison’s strategic priorities.

Responsibilities

• Leads full lifecycle Workday module implementations, from initiation and planning through deployment and post-production support.
• Oversees all aspects of implementation, coordinating resources across functional and technical workstreams, integrations, reporting, and data conversion activities.
• Develops and manages all appropriate project management documents, including project charters, plans, resource estimates, project schedule, test logs, RAIDQ, and status reports.
• Orchestrates cutover planning and execution, including go-live readiness assessments and hypercare support models.
• Plays a key role in the development and monitoring of the project budget, making recommendations for additional spending as required to promote project success.
• Facilitates requirements-gathering to ensure alignment between SMEs and implementation partner.
• Enforces project governance, ensuring decisions are made at the correct governance level, documented, and socialized as required.
• Maintains comprehensive risk register and develops strategies to mitigate active project risks. Escalates as needed to the Director and Executive Leadership.
• Serves as the primary point of contact for the implementation partner and other external vendors as needed.
• Fosters a team-based, mission-driven environment that emphasizes trust, mutual respect, open communication, and creative thinking.
• Builds and maintains effective relationships with internal and external project resources. Resolves resource conflicts through established methods and escalates as needed to mitigate impact on project quality, timeline, and team culture.
• Regularly communicates project status to internal and external teams, university stakeholders, and Executive Leadership.
• Presents project status to Steering Committee and facilitates decisions on escalated issues.
• Partners with the ERP Change Manager on development of the change management strategy and campuswide communication plan. Collaborates to maintain the project’s public and internal web presence.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree
• 5+ years of hands-on project management experience with at least 1 cloud-based enterprise

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s Degree
• 1 or more PMI certifications (PMP, PgMP, PMI-ACP, etc), Prosci Certified Change Practitioner, ITIL
• 10+ years of hands-on project management experience

About Denison

Denison University is a leading, fully residential liberal arts college in Granville, Ohio, located just outside the Columbus metro area. Established in 1831, Denison blends a rigorous academic foundation with an award-winning approach to student mentorship and career readiness. With a vibrant campus community of 2,400 students and around 2,000 employees, Denison offers a supportive, forward-thinking environment dedicated to educational excellence and professional growth.

Benefits

• 10% contribution to your retirement
• 22 vacation days
• 3 floating holidays
• Paid campus closure from Christmas to New Years
• Free parking and gym membership
• Free classes for employees
• Full tuition coverage for dependents

Pay

Up to $125,000