Director of Program Management

Director of Program Management

Department: Partnership Project Delivery

Employment Type: Full Time

Location: Various

Reporting To: Jennifer Albrecht, VP Partner Success

Compensation: $140,000 - $170,000 / year

Description

Riipen is hiring a Director of Program Management to lead the successful delivery and continuous evolution of our partner programs. This individual will be a key member of the Partner Success leadership team and Riipen Senior Leadership team, and will work closely with both internal stakeholders, partners in post-secondary education, workforce development and non-profits as well as external funding partners to ensure programs are designed, executed, and iterated with excellence.

This role is fully remote and open to candidates in Canada or the United States. 
Primary areas of ownership for this role:

1. Strategic Program Delivery & Portfolio Management
2. Quality Assurance & Operational Excellence
3. Program Innovation & Design
4. Partner Relationship Support & Feedback Loops
5. People & Team Leadership
   
   

Alignment for how we deliver an elevated partner experience is critical for this leader to be successful. The right candidate is committed to:

• Be an operationally strong leader who brings structure, consistency, and rigor to a diverse and growing portfolio of high-impact partner programs.
• Model a systems-thinking approach and instill best-in-class practices across the team to support scale and efficiency without compromising quality.
• Champion continuous innovation in program design and delivery, identifying opportunities to evolve how we drive outcomes for learners and partners.
• Act as a proactive partner to our Partnerships Development team to ensure early engagement in pre-contract delivery planning and feedback loops that improve renewal and replacement rates.
• Be deeply data-driven, setting and monitoring KPIs to assess program health, identify risks, and drive improvements.

Key Responsibilities

Delivering on the primary areas of ownership will require you to:

• Develop and maintain expert level platform and product knowledge 
• Integrate change management approaches into solution delivery and support to effectively guide and coach users through new ways of working to optimally leverage the Riipen solution
• Manage surges in program delivery needs to flex team capacity and consistently meet service level expectations (e.g. program cohort launches) 
• Own end-to-end delivery of Riipen’s signature and managed programs, including oversight of timelines, resource allocation, budgets, deliverables, and impact.
• Manage a portfolio of programs with excellence, ensuring they meet internal delivery standards and exceed partner expectations.
• Lead the continuous evolution of program management practices, tooling, templates, and reporting standards to support scale and sustainability.
• Develop shared quality standards and success metrics across the program portfolio and build dashboards and scorecards to support visibility and decision-making.
• Collaborate with account teams to provide early and frequent feedback on program progress and opportunities for optimization, renewal, or new business development.
• Work closely with cross-functional teams to coordinate the successful delivery and documentation of program activities and outcomes.
• Act as a liaison with Product and other partner-facing teams to influence product and service enhancements to elevate the partner experience
• Co-lead with Marketing the design and delivery of compelling impact reports, storytelling, and case studies to showcase program success.
• Contribute to product feedback cycles based on partner and program insights.
• Support pricing and scope modeling for new program opportunities to ensure operational viability and sustainability.
• Act as a point of escalation for partner issues related to program delivery
• \Coach, develop, and inspire a high-performing team of program managers, fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, ownership, and customer advocacy.

Skills, Knowledge and Expertise

• 10+ years of experience in program management, project delivery, or operational leadership roles, preferably in EdTech, workforce development, or public-private partnerships.
• Experience leading matrixed delivery for large, complex funded programs involving government agencies, corporations, or consortia.
• Proven ability to manage a portfolio of projects and resources while applying a consistent lens of quality and risk mitigation.
• 5+ years of experience managing and mentoring high-performing teams.
• Strong analytical skills and experience building performance frameworks and feedback systems.
• Exceptional communication, relationship-building, and stakeholder management skills.
• Have a data driven spirit; you understand metrics and KPI’s and this motivates you to achieve your goals.
• Have an entrepreneurial spirit and enjoy working in a fast-paced, scale-up environment where change is necessary for growth and success;
• Possess strong problem-solving, organizational, and analytical skills.
• Embrace Riipen’s values and model resilience in your leadership style.

Bonus Points:

• Experience with portfolio management methodologies (e.g., PMO, PPM frameworks)
• Familiarity with the higher education or workforce development space
• Experience working with government-funded programs and impact reporting
• Experience with HubSpot, Asana, or similar CRM/project tools

Benefits

• Remote/travel working opportunities (when appropriate)
• 4 weeks of annual vacation 
• Extended Health and Dental benefits from your first day for the duration of your contract
• 401K matching for US Riipen team members
• Work From Home Stipend and a Learning & Development fund after 6 months of employment

A note on compensation for the role: the range listed is in USD and CAD for candidates based in either geography, and is inclusive of variable compensation. All compensation is benchmarked internally and externally. Compensation offered is commensurate with experience and aligned with our pay equity practices. Apply