Technical Project Manager

The University of Pennsylvania, a world-renowned leader in education, research, and innovation, is the largest private employer in Philadelphia. This Ivy League institution consistently ranks among the top 10 universities and offers a unique working environment with a beautiful urban campus and access to diverse cultural and recreational activities.

About the Role

The Technical Project Manager leads the planning, coordination, and execution of software and research-informatics projects within the lab. This senior staff position operates with significant independence and judgment, owning the team's Agile process end-to-end while serving as the primary liaison for external collaborators and partner institutions on NIH-funded projects.

Responsibilities

• Agile process ownership: facilitate sprint planning, daily stand-ups, backlog grooming, reviews, and retrospectives; maintain velocity, burndown, and other delivery metrics to keep the team on track.
• Ticket and backlog management: translate research goals and technical requirements into clear, well-scoped, and prioritized implementation tickets; maintain the project board and ensure acceptance criteria are defined and met.
• External project & NIH coordination: serve as primary liaison to partner institutions and multi-site collaborators; track grant milestones and deliverables, coordinate cross-team dependencies, and support progress reporting to NIH program officers.
• Communication & stakeholder management: produce status updates, project plans, and timelines; run cross-functional meetings; and keep the PI, team, and external partners aligned on scope, risks, and priorities.
• Process improvement & documentation: refine team workflows and tooling, maintain project documentation and standards, and onboard new contributors to the team's processes.
• Other duties and responsibilities as assigned.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree and 2 to 3 years of experience (e.g., computer science, engineering, informatics, life sciences, or a related field). Master's degree is strongly preferred.
• Minimum of 5 years of relevant project management experience in a software development, research computing, or technical environment, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• PMP certification is a plus.
• Demonstrated experience running Agile/Scrum processes and managing technical backlogs.

Skills

• Fluency in Agile methodologies (Scrum/Kanban) and experience acting as Scrum Master or Agile lead.
• Strong technical literacy—able to read and reason about software architecture, data pipelines, and code to write precise tickets and hold credible conversations with engineers (coding is not required).
• Hands-on experience with project/issue-tracking tools such as Jira, GitHub/GitLab, ClickUp, or Asana.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a proven ability to translate between technical and non-technical audiences.
• Experience coordinating multi-stakeholder or multi-site projects; familiarity with NIH-funded or grant-based projects and reporting is strongly preferred.
• Highly organized and self-directed, with strong attention to detail and the ability to manage competing priorities across concurrent projects.

Benefits

• Health, Life, and Flexible Spending Accounts: Comprehensive medical, prescription, behavioral health, dental, vision, and life insurance benefits. Flexible spending accounts for eligible health care and dependent care expenses with pre-tax dollars.
• Tuition Assistance: Exceptional tuition benefits for you, your spouse, and dependent children at Penn and other institutions.
• Retirement Plans: Generous retirement plans allowing pre-tax or Roth savings with a variety of investment options through TIAA and Vanguard.
• Time Away from Work: Substantial paid time off for vacations, personal affairs, illness, or injury.
• Long-Term Care Insurance: Coverage for long-term care services at home, in the community, or in a nursing facility, with no underwriting requirements if applied for at hire.
• Wellness and Work-life Resources: Programs and resources to support health, family, and work-life balance.
• Professional and Personal Development: Resources to advance personal and professional growth.
• University Resources: Access to libraries, athletic facilities, arboretum, art galleries, museums, and cultural/recreational activities, many free or discounted for employees and families.
• Discounts and Special Services: Savings on arts, entertainment, transportation, mortgages, cellular plans, movie tickets, theme parks, and new cars from Ford and General Motors.
• Flexible Work Hours: Creative approaches to work hours, locations, and job structures to promote work-life balance.
• Penn Home Ownership Services: Forgivable loans for eligible employees buying a home or residing in West Philadelphia, usable for closing costs or home improvements.
• Adoption Assistance: Reimbursement for qualified expenses related to the legal adoption of a child, up to two adoptions per household.

Pay

Salary offers range from $71,733.00 to $95,000.00 annually, based on the candidate’s qualifications, experience, skills, and education as they relate to the position, along with external market and internal peer data.

This position is contingent upon continued funding and is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, within the Perelman School of Medicine.