Program Director Jobs in Wisconsin (NOW HIRING)

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Position Title:
UW-Managed Program Director
Job Category:
Limited
Employment Type:
Regular
Job Profile:
Dsgn&Con Proj Dlvry Dir (Inst)
Job Duties:
The UW-Managed Program Director directs, administers, and manages the UW-Managed program that delivers design and construction projects within the authority of the BOR, but outside of the governor's biennial state funding program. This role provides oversight and direction including awarding projects to external vendors, planning and scheduling of projects, project delivery design, allocating resources, and construction support. In addition, this role serves as the signatory for project contractual documents in the program. This is a supervisory position, which has management oversight of at least 2.0 FTE.
Key Job Responsibilities:
Program & Portfolio Leadership
• Establish governance, stage-gate approvals, and standardized project controls across the portfolio.
• Lead portfolio reviews: budget status, risks, cash flow, schedule health, and change trends.
• Provide program and project reporting to UWs leadership and BOR
Project Delivery & Execution
• Oversee full project delivery life cycle: feasibility, programming, schematic design, development, construction documents, procurement, construction administration, commissioning, and turnover
• Select and optimize delivery methods (Hard bid within single prime contracting and design build) based on risk, speed, complexity, market conditions, stakeholder needs, and statute
• Approve project baselines (scope, schedule, budget) and manage escalations, changes, and claims.
• Champion safety, quality assurance/quality control, and commissioning standards
Contracting, Procurement & Vendor Management

• Oversee procurement strategies in alignment with institutional procurement policy, Universities of Wisconsin procurement, and applicable state procurement statutes
• Drive contractor performance through KPIs, governance, and issue resolution; manage disputes and claims

Financial & Risk Management
• Manage project and program budgets, contingencies, allowances, and forecasting (including escalation)
• Provide continuous improvement of change management and cost/schedule/program control processes; ensure transparent reporting
• Identify, quantify, and mitigate risks (schedule, scope, funding, permitting, supply chain, market)
• Coordinate with Finance on capital funding sources, cashflow, and audits
Stakeholder & Team Leadership
• Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing internal team (PMs, CMs, analysts)
• Serve as the primary liaison to senior leadership, internal departments, end users, and external agencies for the program
• Promote a collaborative culture with architects, engineers, and contractors
• Communicate clearly to non-technical stakeholders; provide executive-level briefings and board materials
Compliance, Sustainability & Standards

• Ensure compliance with building codes, permitting, life safety, accessibility (ADA), OSHA, environmental and infection control (healthcare), and institutional design standards
• Integrate sustainability (LEED/WELL/Net Zero/energy codes), resiliency, and universal design goals
• Oversee accurate close-out, as-builts, O&M documentation, and warranty handoff to Facilities Operations

Department:
The Office of Capital Planning and Budget provides support to the Board of Regents (BOR), the 13 institutions of the Universities of Wisconsin and, in partnership with the Wisconsin Department of Administration - Division of Facilities Development, the State of Wisconsin Building Commission. The office offers institutional partners guidance and expertise in capital planning, budgeting, administration and management of the UW-Managed design and construction program, architectural/engineering assistance as well as real estate services to support the institutions in developing and maintaining their biggest single physical investment - university facilities.

• Oversee and direct program for project delivery of design and construction projects
• Serve as the lead technical representative for matters involving design and construction contract changes, related contractual documents and industry software, and claims
• Provide input, supervise the preparation, and approve of the written project scopes of work and other documents and guides the preparation of estimates and project budgets
• Coordinate the scheduling and assigning of project teams both internal and external
• Monitor project portfolios, and communicate project progress and status to university leadership and the BOR
• Forecast workload in preparation of resource planning requests
• Serve as a key liaison to internal and external stakeholders (architects, engineers, consultants, and contractors) to maintain strategic business relationships that foster greater success for the UWs - both on "project" and "program" level matters
• Develop and implement operating policies and procedures to comply with best practices, institutional objectives, program objectives, Board of Regents policies and guidance, and applicable statutes
• Exercise supervisory authority, including hiring, transferring, suspending, promoting, managing conduct and performance, discharging, assigning, rewarding, disciplining, and/or approving hours worked of at least 2.0 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees

Compensation:
The UW-Managed Program Assistant Director (Official Job Title: Design and Construction Project Delivery Director (Inst)) is a full-time, limited, exempt position. Well-qualified candidates can expect a starting annual salary within a range of $118,000 - $133,000 commensurate with the candidate's education, related experience, and qualifications.
Required Qualifications:

• Masters's degree in Construction Management, Architecture, Engineering, or a related field.
• Five (5) years of project management experience
• Demonstrated leadership managing multiple complex projects in institutional environments e.g., higher education, public sector, or complex larger organizations)
• Experience operating in occupied and mission-critical facilities with rigorous safety and compliance requirements
• Experience with strategic planning and portfolio governance
• Demonstrated experience with Risk Management & Negotiation (claims avoidance and resolution)

Preferred Qualifications:

• Professional credentials: PMP, CCM, RA (Registered Architect) or PE (Professional Engineer), and/or LEED AP
• Experience with eBuilder, Procore, PMWeb (or similar), Primavera P6 / MS Project, and familiarity with BIM (Revit)
• Experience delivering large capital projects ($50M-$500M+ portfolio preferred)
• Public sector procurement experience
• Higher Ed/Labs: experience with EH&S, AAALAC, BSL, vivarium/lab environments

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Change management and continuous improvement skills
• Strong knowledge of contracts (AIA or equivalent), cost control, scheduling, and change management.
• Strong knowledge of Financial Acumen (budgeting, forecasting, cost modeling, contingencies, escalation)
• Proficiency with project delivery methodologies (DB, CMAR, DBB; IPD exposure is a plus)

Work Location
The office location is 780 Regent Street, Madison, WI 53715. An in-office requirement is expected three (3) days per week and two days may be worked off-site/remote. Telecommuting agreements are subject to change at any time.
How to Apply:
Applicant screening will begin immediately and be ongoing through June 21, 2026. However, applications may be accepted until the position has been filled.
To receive full consideration, applicants are required to apply online and provide in PDF format a Resume and Cover letter addressing your experience and education as it applies to all minimum and preferred qualifications.
Contact Information:
Questions may be addressed to angie.koppen@uwss.wisconsin.edu.
Accommodation Request
If you need to request an accommodation because of a disability, you can find information about how to make a request by contacting uwshr@wisconsin.edu.
Criminal Background Check and Reference Check Policy
This offer of employment is conditional pending the results of a criminal background check and a reference check process that includes questions regarding employee misconduct, sexual violence, and sexual harassment. If you have prior work history within the past 7 years with the Universities of Wisconsin, your personnel file will also be reviewed for employee misconduct. If the results are unacceptable, the offer will be withdrawn or, if you have started employment, your employment will be terminated.
Employment Authorization
Please note that successful applicants are responsible for ensuring their eligibility to work in the United States (i.e., a citizen or national of the United States, a lawful permanent resident, a foreign national authorized to work in the United States without the need of employer sponsorship) on, before, or after the effective date of appointment.
Confidentiality
The Universities of Wisconsin will not reveal the identities of applicants who request confidentiality in writing, except that the identity of the successful candidate will be released. See Wis. Stat. §. 19.36(7).
Benefits Information
Universities of Wisconsin employees receive an excellent benefits package. To learn more about the benefits package, review the Faculty, Academic Staff & Limited Appointees or University Staff Please see this link for total compensation information: Universities of Wisconsin Health & Retirement Contributions Estimator to provide you with total compensation information.
Clery Act information
The Universities of Wisconsin provides statistics on campus crime in its Annual Security Report. For more information on university campus statistics see https://www.wisconsin.edu/compliance/clery/.
UW is an Equal Opportunity Employer
Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, pregnancy, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other bases protected by applicable federal or State law and UW System policies. We are committed to building a workforce that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills, and encourage all qualified individuals to apply.