PROJECT MANAGER I

at  State of Colorado Job Opportunities

DESCRIPTION OF JOB

Please Note: This position has hybrid work arrangements. Effective September, 2023 employees are expected to report to the office at least 2 days a week. These arrangements are subject to change.
About this Unit:
The Executive Director’s Office (EDO) is responsible for the strategic direction and effective internal operations of the Colorado Department of Human Services (CDHS). In collaboration with the Governor’s Office, legislature, other government agencies, CDHS staff, counties, and a diverse range of stakeholders, the EDO ensures the alignment and execution of CDHS’s vision: to empower Coloradans to thrive through bold and innovative health and human services.
The Strategic Operations & Solutions (SOS) team leads the Department in developing and maintaining our Results-Driven Management System (RDMS).
As a member of the SOS team, the Portfolio Manager is committed to excellence in managing and delivering CDHS projects and portfolio management. This team establishes best practices for project and performance management and ensures adherence to these standards for sustained success across all of CDHS.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS, SUBSTITUTIONS, CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT & APPEAL RIGHTS

Important Note: Please review your application to ensure completion. For the most equitable applicant experience, CDHS’ hiring teams consider only the contents of your application to determine meeting minimum qualifications and for the comparative analysis process. Experience is calculated on a full-time equivalency basis, therefore, it is important to accurately notate the hours you averaged per experience section entry. Volunteer work or related type of experience may be used to meet the qualifications, but must be clearly documented. It is paramount that in the experience portion of the application, the applicant describes the extent to which they possess the education, experience, competencies and background as they relate to the duties outlined in the job announcement.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Option 1 - Experience:

• Seven (7) years of relevant experience in an occupation related to the work assignedto this position
• Please note: This experience must be clearly documented on your application and the supplemental questions must be answered.

OR

Option 2 - Education & Experience:

• A combination of related education and/or relevant experience in an occupationrelated to the work assigned equal to seven (7) years

Substitutions:

• Additional appropriate education will substitute for the required experience on a year-for-year basis.
• Additional appropriate experience will substitute for the degree requirement on a year-for-year basis.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in any of the following area(s):
• Portfolio Management
• Project Management
• Process Improvement

Conditions of Employment:

• Standard Background – Name check, TRAILS, CMS and JBITS
• Former State employees who were disciplinarily terminated or resigned in lieu of termination must disclose the information on the application and provide an explanation why the prior termination or resignation should not disqualify the applicant from the current position. Absent extraordinary circumstances, prior disciplinary termination or resignation in lieu of termination will disqualify the applicant from future State employment with CDHS.

ABOUT US:

If your goal is to build a career that makes a difference, consider joining the dedicated people of the Colorado Department of Human Services (CDHS). Our professionals strive to design and deliver high quality human and health services that improve the safety, independence, and well-being of the people of Colorado. In addition to a great location and rewarding and meaningful work, we offer:

• Strong, secure, yet flexible retirement benefits including a PERA Defined Benefit Plan or PERA Defined Contribution Plan www.copera.org plus 401(k) and 457 plans
• Medical and dental health plans
• Employer supplemented Health Savings Account
• Paid life insurance
• Short- and long-term disability coverage
• 11 paid holidays per year plus vacation and sick leave
• BenefitHub state employee discount program
• Employee Wellness program MotivateMe
• Excellent work-life programs, such as flexible schedules, training and more
• Remote work arrangements for eligible positions
• Some positions may qualify for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program. For more

information, go to https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/dhr/student-loan-forgiveness-programs.

WE ARE COMMITTED TO INCREASING THE DIVERSITY OF OUR STAFF AND PROVIDING CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE PROGRAMS AND SERVICES. THEREFORE, WE ENCOURAGE RESPONSES FROM PEOPLE OF DIVERSE BACKGROUNDS AND ABILITIES.

ADAA Accommodations: CDHS is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, our agency will assist individuals who have a disability with any reasonable accommodation requests related to employment, including completing the application process, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, participating in the employee selection process, and/or to perform essential job functions where the requested accommodation does not impose an undue hardship. If you have a disability and require reasonable accommodation to ensure you have a positive experience applying or interviewing for this position, please direct your inquiries to our ADAAA Coordinator, Nancy Schmelzer, at cdhs_ada@state.co.us or call 1-800-929-0791.

SUMMARY OF JOB DUTIES:

Strategic Project Portfolio Management:

• Centralized Resource for Portfolio Management: Acts as the central resource for standardizing portfolio management practices across CDHS, ensuring alignment with the RDMS.
• Oversight at Department and Division Levels: Oversees the maintenance, integration, and governance of the portfolio management system at the Department (Tier 1) and Office and Division (Tier 2) levels. Provides ongoing support to Strategic Project Managers.
• Tier 3+ Support: Develops the maintenance, integration, and governance strategy for the portfolio management system at the team and unit levels (Tier 3+) levels, including templates, guidelines for implementing, and providing technical support.
• Smartsheet System Management: Manages the internal maintenance of the Smartsheet portfolio management system.
• Project Intake and Onboarding: Implements appropriate project intake and onboarding processes based on the needs of various customers and Strategic Project Managers.
• Enhance and Maintain Intake Framework: Evaluates, improves, and maintains the project intake and onboarding process. Manages the SOS project intake process from request to approval, including facilitating weekly portfolio review meetings and conducting governance committee meetings.
• Process New Intake Requests: Processes new SOS intake requests, reviewing and triaging requests for gating criteria, and ensuring they are scheduled and reviewed at weekly leadership and unit meetings.
• Screen Projects for Approvals: Screens projects for all necessary approvals and manages the processes for intake, onboarding, offboarding, and general portfolio management.
• Design Strategy and Guidelines: Designs strategy, portfolio systems, project processes, guidelines, rules, and standards that are mission-critical and directly impact SOS’s ongoing operations and broad programs or policies.
• Interface with CDHS Leadership: Interfaces with CDHS offices and leadership to secure appropriate funding and permissions for project management support.
• Liaison with Strategic Project Managers and Clients: Liaises with Strategic Project Managers and clients to clarify and define project requirements, scope, and objectives.
• Facilitate Alignment Meetings: Facilitates and supports alignment meetings across offices and divisions where critical project alignment and discussions are needed to break silos.
• Develop Recommendations for Leadership: Develops recommendations for SOS leadership, providing essential portfolio consultation before deciding on the portfolio of projects and critical program and policy decisions.
• Resource Allocation: Assesses project value to prioritize resource allocation for the most important projects and develops and presents recommendations to the governance board.
• Reporting and Analytics: Analyzes and reports on the value and progress of the portfolio, providing data-informed analyses for decision-making.

Process Improvement:

• Develop Strategies for Improvement Initiatives: Formulate process improvement strategies for all enhancement, policy-related, and strategy projects. Collaborate closely with the SOS team to determine the most effective communication methods for conveying changes, utilizing change management best practices.
• Implement Continuous Improvement Practices: Introduce continuous improvement best practices across the Department. Develop and use standard metrics to analyze project trends, helping clients minimize waste, increase customer satisfaction, adapt to change early, and reduce resistance.
• Collaborate on Process Improvement Strategies: Work with cross-functional project teams to develop and execute process improvement strategies. This includes conducting swimlane mapping, RACI matrix analysis, root cause analysis, and process analysis.
• Review and Align Departmental Goals: Assess departmental goals and provide input on strategic plans to ensure CDHS projects align with the overall departmental vision and objectives. Recommend changes to standard work and processes within the work unit for optimal program efficiency.
• Utilize Best Practices and Resources: Apply SOS’s best practices, training, templates, tools, and other resources to support process improvement efforts.
• Provide Performance Management Resources: Working with the Organizational Performance Management team, proactively offer internal customers valuable performance management and process improvement resources, templates, and tools.
• Facilitate and Engage in Meetings: Lead meetings and engage participants to ensure the group stays focused and meets the objectives.

Data Analysis and Resource Planning:

• Status Tracking and Reporting: Develop and maintain a system for tracking and reporting the status of CDHS projects, including generating executive dashboards for leadership updates.
• Milestone Forecasting and Health Tracking: Implement and maintain a system that forecasts key project milestones, tracks project management tasks, and monitors project health.
• Data-Driven Recommendations: Utilize and analyze portfolio management data to make informed recommendations on project hours and timelines. Create a dashboard for SOS supervisors to facilitate resource management discussions, and build additional slides and dashboards as requested.
• Milestone Notifications: Notify SOS staff of upcoming project milestones to ensure optimal planning and execution.
• Project Assessment System: Develop a system to simplify project assessment and organize value identification, ensuring projects generate return value and maintain a balanced workload.
• Resource and Budget Prioritization: Develop data points to assess and prevent projects within the portfolio from competing for resources and budget. Prioritize projects with the potential to generate value and investment.
• Project Health and Risk Analysis: Monitor and analyze project health, identify potential risks, and implement improvements to enhance project performance.
• Project Alignment and Monitoring: Determine how to monitor, assess, and align projects with the Department and Office’s business objectives. Ensure projects progress through all stages smoothly and are documented in the project management software.
• Regular Maintenance and Documentation: Deploy monitoring techniques and regularly maintain the project management software, reports, dashboards, and necessary documentation.
• Presentation and Reporting: Develop presentations and reports based on the needs of individual project owners and leadership.
• Quality Assurance and Best Practices: Ensure adherence to SOS’s project management, change management, and process improvement best practices and standards through regular quality assurance tests.
• Tools and Strategies for Trend Analysis: Determine the tools for analyzing departmental project trends, develop strategies to minimize risk and reduce waste, and deploy effective monitoring mechanisms.

Strategic Project Management:

• Project Schedule and Plan Management: Formulate and manage project schedules, priorities, progress, and work plans. Identify and resolve scheduling issues while adhering to departmental and office objectives, processes, and procedures. Ensure consistency in project planning, budgeting, management, and control throughout the project lifecycle. Ensure compliance with the project’s scope.
• Project Implementation and Direction: Develop and provide project management direction to ensure the success of initiatives. Create project implementation plans that include business benefits, scope, objectives, schedules, deliverables, and success criteria aligned with customer goals. Manage the full project lifecycle, including planning, scope, change control, risks, issues, impacts, onboarding, offboarding, and reporting, using standardized best practices.
• Stakeholder Relationship Management: Manage key client and stakeholder relationships to ensure effective communication and project alignment.
• Continuous Learning and Adaptation: Stay updated with project management and change management trends, innovations, theories, and best practices. Determine when to adjust SOS practices and implement necessary changes.
• Status Reporting and Problem Solving: Create and deliver content for status reports from the project team, troubleshoot problem areas, and provide overall progress reports. Proactively manage changes in project scope, identify potential risks, and develop contingency plans. Identify potential problems and encourage suggestions to improve project performance for customer satisfaction.
• Flexibility and Adaptation: Remain flexible to adapt to changing department and office priorities to meet evolving business needs.
• Oversee Project Implementation: Oversees the planning, development, and implementation of project efforts utilizing information technology solutions, principles, standards, and best practices.
• Defining Project Requirements and Scope: Facilitating initial meetings with Strategic Project Managers and clients to clearly define the project scope, objectives, and deliverables.

OTHER DUTIES AS ASSIGNED:

• Maintain SOS time tracking system: Administer and maintain the Smartsheets time tracking system, ensuring accurate entries, providing training and support, monitoring compliance, and generating regular reports for stakeholders.
• Position performs other duties as assigned.