Program Project Manager Jobs in Berwyn, IL (NOW HIRING)

Placement Type:
Temporary
Salary:
$45.27-54 Hourly
Start Date:
Jul 20, 2026
We are seeking a highly organized and execution-focused AEO Program/Project Manager to own the operating rhythm, coordination infrastructure, and project status communications for a fast-moving Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) program. This is not a strategy role; it is the backbone of how AEO work gets planned, tracked, and delivered.
In this role, you will design and maintain the systems, cadences, and governance structures that keep cross-functional workstreams aligned and moving. You will be the single source of truth for program and project status, the connective tissue across teams and agency partners, and the person who ensures leadership always has clear visibility into progress against project goals. If you thrive on bringing order to complexity, running tight execution systems, and keeping multiple workstreams on track simultaneously, this role is built for you.
Responsibilities
Program Orchestration & Operating Model
Design, manage, and continuously improve the Agile/Scrum operating model for the AEO program, including 2-week sprint cadences, sprint planning, and burndown tracking
Define sprint outputs and expectations, and hold workstream owners accountable to delivery commitments
Build and maintain the program charter, roadmap, and sprint plans; adapt as priorities evolve
Manage and expand the central workstream structure across all AEO pillars, ensuring coverage, clarity, and ownership at every level
Centralized Work Tracking & Tooling
Own and maintain the Monday.com workspace, including sprint tracking boards, cross-workstream dashboards, and institution-level views
Serve as the system administrator for all AEO project tooling-ensuring boards are current, accurate, and useful to all contributors
Drive adoption of centralized execution systems across the team; migrate work away from ad hoc tracking into a single source of truth
Maintain status dashboards for both core team and executive (SteerCo) audiences
Meeting Cadence & Governance
Schedule and facilitate the full operating rhythm: daily standups, weekly core working sessions, and biweekly SteerCo meetings
Create and distribute agendas, pre-reads, and rolling meeting notes for all recurring sessions
Drive follow-up and accountability after every meeting-tracking open actions to closure
Identify and escalate blockers, risks, and dependencies before they become problems
Executive Reporting & SteerCo Communications
Produce sprint reports including status summaries, burndown data, and workstream outputs
Build and distribute SteerCo updates and email communications on a biweekly cadence
Maintain institution-level status trackers and consolidate completed, in-progress, and at-risk work into clear reporting
Translate day-to-day execution activity into leadership-ready visibility-ensuring executives always have an accurate picture of program health
Cross-Workstream Coordination
Act as the connective tissue across all AEO workstreams-aligning workstream owners, tracking dependencies, and ensuring outputs are delivered on schedule
Coordinate across digital presence pillars (e.g., review platforms, social/community channels, content, and site) to keep work integrated and on track
Facilitate alignment on shared priorities such as topic strategies, review campaigns, and faculty/ambassador activation programs
Manage agency and vendor coordination: scheduling kickoffs, aligning timelines and attendees, and tracking execution readiness
Documentation & Knowledge Management
Build and maintain centralized documentation repositories organized by workstream, ensuring materials are current, accessible, and version-controlled
Own the AEO SharePoint environment as the program's central knowledge hub
Enforce documentation standards across the team: upload compliance, naming conventions, and visibility across functions
Intake & Backlog Management
Consolidate incoming ideas, requests, and priorities from stakeholders into a structured backlog
Translate intake into actionable Monday.com tasks and sprint backlog items; ensure nothing gets lost or deprioritized without visibility
Partner with leadership to support prioritization decisions based on program goals and capacity
Workstream Execution Support
Provide hands-on project management support for individual workstreams as needed, including reviews and reputation operations, agency onboarding and coordination, social ambassador and faculty programs, and platform operations (e.g., profile claiming, ticket submission, IT coordination)
Submit and track operational tickets (e.g., ServiceNow) and drive cross-functional resolution of blockers
Qualifications
Below are the minimum requirements of the education, experience, knowledge, and skills required to competently perform in this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
Education & Experience
Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, Communications, or related field preferred
3-5 years of experience in program or project management, preferably in a digital marketing, agency, or cross-functional enterprise environment
Hands-on experience with Agile/Scrum methodologies, including sprint planning, backlog management, and burndown reporting
Demonstrated experience with Monday.com or a comparable project management platform (Asana, Jira, Azure DevOps, Workfront, etc.)
Experience managing executive-level reporting and preparing stakeholder communications or status updates
Technical Skills
Proficiency in Microsoft 365 tools: Teams, SharePoint, Outlook, and PowerPoint
Ability to build and maintain project dashboards, trackers, and status reports
Comfort with ticketing and operational systems (e.g., ServiceNow or similar)
Familiarity with digital marketing concepts-particularly SEO, AEO, or content operations-is a plus, but not required
Ability to quickly learn and become the administrator of new tools and platforms
Soft Skills & Cultural Fit
Exceptionally organized with a strong bias toward systems, structure, and documentation-you create order in complex environments
Strong project manager: you own timelines, track every open action, and close the loop without being asked
Proactive communicator who keeps stakeholders informed, surfaces issues early, and drives accountability without being heavy-handed
Highly collaborative with a team-first mindset-comfortable working across functions and seniority levels
Strong sense of urgency and ownership; you treat the program's success as your own responsibility
Detail-oriented and reliable-teams and leaders trust that what you produce is accurate and complete
Comfortable operating in a fast-moving, ambiguous environment where priorities shift and speed matters
Willing to go above and beyond, and to roll up your sleeves for hands-on execution when the work calls for it
What Success Looks Like
First 30-60 Days
Take full ownership of the existing program infrastructure: sprint cadence, Monday.com boards, meeting rhythm, and project status cadence. Build trust with workstream owners and leadership by delivering accurate, on-time reporting and maintaining a clear, up-to-date picture of program health. Begin identifying gaps and proposing improvements to the operating model.
Ongoing KPIs
Sprint delivery rate: percentage of committed sprint items completed on time
Reporting timeliness: SteerCo updates and sprint summaries delivered on schedule
Backlog health: intake items triaged and on the board within agreed SLA
Cross-workstream alignment: dependencies tracked and risks escalated before they impact delivery
Dashboard accuracy: Monday.com boards and status trackers reflect real-time program state
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