Program Manager

About the Role

The Program Manager at Nortek Data Center Cooling is a hands-on, cross-functional integrator responsible for delivering customer commitments across the full program lifecycle. Reporting to the Vice President of Program Management, this role drives execution, coordinates teams, and ensures financial health of assigned programs.

Responsibilities

• Program Execution & Schedule Management:
  • Own end-to-end execution from opportunity identification to product commissioning.
  • Build and maintain integrated program schedules, focusing on critical-path items.
  • Lead recurring cadence meetings, ensuring clear ownership and follow-through.
  • Coordinate milestones across engineering, procurement, fabrication, assembly, test, shipping, installation, and commissioning.
  • Escalate risks and roadblocks with proposed mitigation paths.
• Customer Coordination & Communication:
  • Maintain direct customer contact on program execution matters.
  • Provide clear, proactive program status updates to internal leadership and customers.
  • Build strong customer relationships and represent their voice internally.
• Program-Level P&L and Contract Management:
  • Accountable for program-level P&L execution, delivering revenue, margin, cost, cash, and schedule.
  • Manage change orders, monitor contract obligations, and ensure customer commitments are met.
  • Identify and mitigate risks to program profitability.
• Risk Management:
  • Apply standardized risk identification, escalation, and mitigation processes.
  • Maintain a live program risk register and drive critical risks to closure.
  • Escalate top risks with recommended actions.
• Installation, Commissioning & Service Coordination:
  • Ensure Service has visibility to installation schedules and customer requirements.
  • Coordinate warranty issues, field modifications, and customer concerns.
  • Support formal handoff to Service when programs are running smoothly.
• Cross-Functional Leadership & Influence:
  • Lead cross-functional teams without direct authority, driving alignment and execution.
  • Build consensus, resolve conflicts, and ensure timely decisions.
  • Partner with Production Planning and Supply Chain to ensure material readiness.
• Continuous Improvement:
  • Reinforce standardized program management processes and templates.
  • Identify opportunities to improve execution and reduce rework.
  • Contribute lessons learned to strengthen team-wide capability.

Qualifications

• Required:
  • Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Business, Supply Chain, or related field (equivalent experience considered).
  • 5+ years of progressive program/project management experience, ideally in engineer-to-order or complex manufacturing.
  • Experience leading cross-functional teams without direct authority.
  • Proficiency in program management tools (e.g., Monday.com, Microsoft Project, PLM systems).
  • Experience managing customer relationships and communicating program status.
  • Strong critical-path thinking, risk management, and organizational skills.
  • Excellent communication skills and comfort in a fast-paced environment.
• Preferred:
  • PMP® certification or equivalent.
  • Experience owning program-level P&L, change orders, and contract execution.
  • Direct experience with engineered-to-order capital equipment or B2B custom manufacturing.
  • Experience supporting hyperscale data center customers or rapidly scaling B2B markets.