Head of Delivery (Poland, Warsaw) (offline)

We are seeking an experienced Head of Delivery to own the development of the software products in our brand-new branch in Poland. The role’s main focus will be a management of numerous software development projects and their deliverables across the full SDLC. A Head of Delivery will be responsible for a technical launch of the developed software products, as well as for the overall operations of the branch. The right candidate will have experience with the team management and with building up a team of Software Engineers, Testers, Designers, Product Owners, Business Analysts, and others. Head of Delivery will be expected to create, define and implement a successful delivery process with an overriding focus on Agile methodologies. Moreover, he or she will need to be able to report directly to the shareholders of the project as well as to a Deputy Head of IT, giving the right candidate an unparalleled opportunity to be part of the high-level strategy.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

What you'll be doing:

Lead the Software Product Delivery: run the portfolio of projects resulting in the successful launch of one and more complex software products to the commercial market.

Team Management: Recruit, lead and mentor a cross-functional team to build and execute growth strategies.

Reporting: Monitor, track and report the performance of the team on a regular basis and/or whenever asked by shareholders.

Business Analysis: Monitor and assess the performance of the market of your software products.

Partnerships: Identify and negotiate key partnerships to drive the growth of the products you’re delivering and running where applicable

Others: Work with and support central product teams to improve tools to drive growth in markets. Ensure alignment within other markets and HQ for regional and global initiatives

What you need to be able to demonstrate:

Software Development Projects - First and foremost, you need to have a background delivering software projects (rather than purely infrastructure/networking for example) and the type of software isn't important (e.g. .NET, Java, JavaScript, SQL, Oracle, iOS, Android, etc.). You should have experience of software release management/technical delivery and an understanding of the full SDLC. Moreover, previous experience as a Software Developer is hugely beneficial.

Delivery Methodologies - Whilst they are an Agile development house, wider experience and a broad understanding of additional delivery methodologies (Waterfall, PRINCE2) is important as they are seeking a well-rounded candidate.

Stakeholder Management - You need to be able to demonstrate proven stakeholder management skills (internal and external) as you will be expected to act as a conduit between core technology and the wider business. Proven experience working up to c-level is therefore mandatory.

Team Management & Leadership - Finally, it is imperative that you bring proven leadership skills to the table as this role will see you take ownership for a portfolio of work. Ideally, you should have previous experience managing software teams and any experience working as a Development Manager would be a huge bonus.
More detailed description of Project management in Software Development domain:

• Supervision over local and remote team; lead, manage, train, and develop resources in the context of assigned projects.

• Project initiation & planning: Define and validate project scope, sponsor, stakeholders, roles and responsibilities, and prepare Project Charter to initiate each Project. Then prepare a Project Management Plan to define in detail how the project will be articulated and executed. Explain the implications of changes to project scope and/or objectives to the client and to the project team. Ensure changes are understood and approved. Manage client stakeholders, team members, or contract personnel to design a solution. Establish and maintain a usable and well-communicated schedule for all phases of a project.

• Resources handling: Determine project roles for team members based on project requirements, time frames and budget when applicable. When necessary work with external contractors in addition to internal resources. Determine resource requirements (including staffing, software, hardware, and facilities) of projects, based on project specifications. Obtain prior approval when utilizing internal or external team members.

• Project Monitoring & Control: Manage scope creep through client changes, internal changes to ensure projects are delivered on timeline, scope, budget and strategy expectations. Responsible for formal sign off on all project deliverables. Ensure project meets internal and client expectations with respect to quality, budget, delivery timelines, and strategy. Identify and manage risk on specific client engagements. Escalate these issues when necessary. Obtain user acceptance once the project is closed due to completion or cancellation.

• Project communication: Ensure clients achieve an understanding of expectations, deliverables, dependencies, risks and progress throughout the project lifecycle process. Use sound judgment in all project communication and ensure that key stakeholders including the Team, client and management are well aware of project activities in a timely manner. Communicate progress, risks, expectations, timelines, milestones and other key project metrics to clients and team members.

• Report and administrate projects: Ensure internal Report and discuss project quality, client and team satisfaction, and project success metrics during regularly scheduled and ad hoc project review meetings with the management. Track and report weekly on percent complete and milestones achieved, budget burn, slippage, project effort and duration to complete projects. Keep an accurate risk tracking document with an associated mitigation plan

• Transition to Operations and Support: Ensure that the transition to Operations and Support are managed in a comprehensive and effective manner. The Project Leader is responsible for ensuring that the transition is completed successfully as per the defined processes & checklist before the project is formally closed-out.


JOB PROFILE REQUIREMENTS


Language proficiency

• Native Poland

• Advanced English language level verbal and written


Education

• Bachelor Degree or above with major in Computer Science with 8+ years of relevant experience.

• Economics or MBA degree is highly appreciated



Qualifications

• PMP Certification or other Project or Program Management qualification preferred

• SCRUM or PMI-ACP Certification would be considered as an essential advantage


Experience

• 8+ yrs IT project delivery experience, with experience involving large scale business management IT projects (or programs) using standard industry project/program management methodologies

• Demonstrated experience with designing, planning and delivering complex / high load mobile software solutions

• Highly competent in project risks and issues identification, mitigation (risks only) and management; and reliable status reporting

• Demonstrated experience with complex, senior-level stakeholder management and management/leadership of large teams



Knowledge/skills

• Extensive knowledge of project and program management practices, usually holding a project management certification from a recognized professional body (such as Project Management Institute)

• Project/program management, methods & tools; relationship management; management of large teams; software development; vendor management; business change management and process improvement.

• Understanding of the full software development life cycle

• Familiarity with continuous integration and continuous delivery