Project Manager, Management Consulting (Retail)

Position Summary

The Project Manager leads client-facing delivery of retail operations management consulting engagements, providing project and people leadership across multiple concurrent projects in locations throughout the U.S. and internationally. This role owns day-to-day execution against the agreed Statement of Work, including project governance, stakeholder management, and coordination with subject-matter experts to deliver measurable outcomes across workforce management, engineered labor standards, productivity improvement, and operational assessments. The Project Manager is instrumental in ensuring high-quality client delivery and presentations, supporting account management and client satisfaction, and identifying and pursuing future business development opportunities.

Duties And Responsibilities

• Manage delivery across multiple projects and workstreams by owning integrated workplans, milestones, resourcing, and day-to-day execution, providing daily leadership to the delivery team.
• Manage client engagements end-to-end (scope, schedule, budget, quality), translating SOWs into team deliverables and running stakeholder management and governance (weekly status, steering committees) with executive-ready communications to deliver on time and within budget.
• Lead operational assessments and current-state diagnostics, synthesizing findings into prioritized opportunities and practical improvement plans.
• Design and deliver engineered labor/time standards (ELS/ETS)—including study approach, standards development, documentation, and rollout—while leading Lean continuous improvement using root-cause tools (5 Whys, Pareto) to prioritize drivers and deliver measurable performance gains.
• Drive productivity improvement initiatives across labor productivity, utilization, and performance management, with measurable impact tracking.
• Redesign operating models and business processes, developing standard work and sustainment mechanisms to embed changes.
• Support account management by identifying follow-on opportunities and developing proposals and presentations.
• Partner with SMEs to develop productivity improvement initiatives (e.g., labor planning, performance routines, standard work) and quantify benefits.
• Translate strategy and customer journey insights into operational requirements and process changes, developing an executable roadmap and implementation plan.
• Ensure deliverables are “client-ready” (clear narrative, defensible analysis, and practical implementation steps).
• Able to quickly understand several client industries, environments, and ability to create strategies and implementation plans that align with client and project goals.
• Reviews and approves all travel expenses, travel coordination, and project reviews.
• Coaches and develop project team by providing proper support and direction, from both project and career perspective; ability to provide and engage in feedback, performance, and personal development conversations.
• Facilitate cross-functional workshops (Ops, HR, IT, Finance) to align objectives, validate requirements, and drive decisions.
• Responsible for self-time management, progress reporting of tasks to direct project lead and to stay productive whether onsite with a team, by yourself or working remotely.
• Actively participate in trade shows, networking and recruiting opportunities.
• Travels extensively (60-80%), and sometimes independently, throughout the US and Internationally.

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering or equivalent
• 7+ years’ experience in a consulting role using Industrial Engineering principles, having led and managed client engagements across multiple industries
• Familiarity with workforce management (WFM), labor planning, productivity programs, or operational excellence
• Strong executive communication and presentation skills (PowerPoint), analytical problem solving (Excel), and stakeholder management, with the ability to drive deadlines across multiple projects
• Knowledge of change management principles, ability to create influence in implementing recommended solutions
• Knowledge of and experience in implementing end-to-end project solutions, including industry and customer research, creating strategy and project vision, design and development of solution meeting SOW, and associated change management practices
• Demonstrated leadership – with internal teams and clients, maintaining a positive attitude
• Demonstrated ability to assess and solve problems
• Strong work ethic and capability to work independently
• Excellent knowledge of MS Office including: Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Outlook
• Mastery of core IE principles, including Labor Standards, MOST, time studies
• Exposure to industrial engineering methods (work measurement, time studies, capacity modeling, Lean), preferred
• Access to reliable auto transportation and a major US airport