PURPOSE OF THE POSITION

The purpose of the Graduate Project Manager role is to ensure that the Product Owner and Development team deliver software as prioritized by business needs. The role will require collaboration with the Product Owner, Development Team Leads, Analysist, Developers, Testers and external Teams such as Business Development and Projects. The graduate must ensure work is planned, executed and delivered on time to clients without compromising quality. The graduate should be customer centeredness to manage customer expectations and stay within budget.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES FOR THE ROLE

Planning and Scheduling

Assist schedule resources to execute development items in accordance with the Product Owners priorities and ensure that expected deliverables are met.

Responsible to ensure that the team planner & sprint board is updated.

Assist in planning all team resources up to 3 months in advance taking into consideration planned leave.

Ensure that dependencies are factored into the team planning to ensure optimum resource utilisation.

Re-work the team plan to accommodate changes in project priorities as prescribed by the Product Owner or management.

Provide the Product Owner, Business Development and management with information as to the team s ability and capacity to take on a new project.

Project Management

Responsible for all project administration, including but not limited to communications, meetings, minutes, signoffs and invoicing in line with project milestones.

Ensure project compliance documents are approved and all other project related documents are compiled, stored, and maintained throughout the project life cycle.

Manage Relationships

Serve as a point of contact for the team to ensure team actions are aligned.

Communicate with Management, Product Owners and Business Development to keep projects aligned with the commitments made to stakeholders.

Obtaining customer acceptance of project deliverables.

On receipt of a local software development request ensure that the development request is planned and included in the team plan.

Ensure that the team communicate with the client requesting the progress of the request.

Once the RD is planned ensure that we communicate the RD s delivery date to the client.

Ensure that we communicate with the client on the estimated delivery date of the project.

Facilitate the answering of questions and clarifications regarding items on the product / sprint backlog.

Product Owner Assistance

Ensure operational objectives are met i.e. SWT, LSD and Project work according to the time allocation.

Review enhancements build release notes or user manuals to ensure that documentation accurately reflects new or changed functionality in collaboration with the Lead Developers and Product Owner.

Provide management with information relating to the progress on projects to be included in the monthly Work in Progress, ITSUG feedback, Manco and Exco reports for DevOps.

Product Support

Assist the Product Owner / Support Team in answering user queries.

Ensuring SLA s (job escalations) and operational objectives with regards to quality and response times are met on both incidents and development requests.

Ensure operational objectives are met i.e. SWT, LSD and Project work according to the fixed time allocation.

QUALIFICATION AND EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS

Appropriate Degree/ Diploma or Project Management qualification.

SKILLS

Strong analytical skills, the ability to analyse business requirements and to propose different solutions.

Strong verbal and written communication and client interaction skills

Strong collaboration skills required to be used with all stakeholders, including clients and business, as well as the development team within which they operate.

Skilled in writing business documents and software documentation.

ATTRIBUTES

Personal Attributes and Qualities

Ability to work independently and as part of a team.

Ability to work under pressure.

Admit to errors and takes corrective action to avoid repetition

Approach own work with dedication and high sense of responsibility

Identify, analyse, organize, and solve problems and issues in a timely and effective manner

Anticipate problems, identify root causes, and take corrective action

Take caution in preparing the details relevant to the process

Follow process to ensure high quality output

Key Competencies

Data Analysis / Analytical Skills

Ability to see connections and derive meaning out of the records of higher-and further education institutions

Ability to select suitable visualizations to reveal insights derived from data

Knowledge of statistical- and mathematical concepts

Skills

Provide leadership and direction

Strong analytical skills, the ability to analyze business requirements and to propose different solutions

Strong verbal communication and client interaction skills and the ability to facilitate workshops.

Skilled in writing business documents

Ability mentor and coach others

Communication Skills

Sound interpersonal skills, creativity and ability to mix with other people

Sound communication skills

Have a high standard of written- and spoken English skills

Ability to communicate with personnel from clients on all levels, including senior management, technical resources and administrative operational staff.

Excellent verbal ability, communication, negotiation and presentation skills

Ability to create, compose and edit written materials and presentations

Ability to pitch proposals

Ability to convey complex information in understandable terms

Ability to lead brainstorming sessions

Industry Knowledge

Understanding of the Higher- and Further Education industry landscape