Project & Resources Manager

We are looking for a Project & Resources Manager who is passionate about people and projects. This is the right job for you love to geek out about process, want to understand ‘how business works,’ and have a fluency in the way of gantt charts and spreadsheets. Do you have a proven track record of guiding teams to successful project delivery? Do you have a knack for motivating people to be their best selves? Do you love to-do lists and color-coordinated calendars?

The ideal candidate is a go-getter with high expectations for themselves and who are hungry for the next opportunity to learn and grow. They’re also looking for ways to make agency operations stronger and more efficient, while keeping employee happiness top of mind. But most of all, the ideal candidate is someone who is ready to become a Spoon - to give a damn, try anything, and enjoy the people they are working with.

Responsibilities

PROJECT MANAGEMENT: Act as the central point of communication across all cross-functional teams on a project.

• Plan, coordinate, manage and facilitate the workflows of a project to ensure completion on time and within budget.
• Manage concurrent fast-paced creative and experiential projects across a variety of accounts. 
• Develop processes that help work to be executed at the highest quality standards.
• Develop project timelines based on client milestones and team bandwidth realities. 
• Manage timeline shifts and the impact to workstreams, including maintaining internal communications to make sure work is on schedule and stays on track. 
• Coordinate internal project meetings and reviews, ensuring clear next steps for all team members.
• Help team members prioritize workloads to meet deadlines.
• Ensure the integration of other departments and resources at necessary milestones during the development process (e.g. production, business & legal affairs, etc). 
• Manage projects across all channels, including but not limited to: broadcast, social, digital, video, experiential activations/events, print, OOH, etc.
• Monitor and enforce project constraints (schedule / scope / resources), raising issues to VP Operations as needed.
• Work closely with account and finance teams on SOW and staff plan development. 
• Support the bi-weekly reconciliation of staff hours and related fee. 
• Own the administrative setup required to establish projects within our systems.
• Maintain upkeep of client or project folders and Slack channels.
• Leverage project management platforms or other tools/systems for project organization (Asana, RACI charts, hot sheets, etc).
• Lead project management efforts for internal Giant Spoon initiatives when needed.
• Keep teams highly motivated.

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT: Ensure projects are resourced accurately and teams are utilized.

• Partner with Team Leads to assign in-house talent to upcoming projects based on capacity, level, skillsets, business priorities and utilization. This role will primarily focus on creative and production teams, but may assist with resourcing across other departments, like strategy. 
• Maintain constant knowledge of current and upcoming projects as they relate to resourcing. 
• Monitor day-to-day project activity, identifying potential issues of under/over utilization.
• Manage resource allocations and workload in project management tools like Asana. 
• Flag resourcing risks to Team Leads and suggest solutions.
• Maintain and build a freelance network of talent: 
• Source freelance talent for upcoming and active projects
• Work closely with Finance and Operations on budget approvals
• Handle outreach and rate negotiation 
• Partner with People Team on offer letters and onboarding
• Prepare documentation for contractors/vendors 
• Manage offboarding process 
• Manage team OOO - anticipate issues and overlapping out of office days on current and upcoming project needs.
• Recommend process improvements for Resource Management.
• Escalate issues related to employee retention or employee relations to the People Team.
• Partner with VP Operations and Team Leads to identify talent and skill gaps, and identify need for open positions.
• Foster a positive and cooperative work environment.

Requirements

• 2+ years of hands-on project management experience in advertising or marketing communications, ideally at a creative agency or similar.
• Solid understanding of the creative and production process across various content types/channels (broadcast, digital, social, web, print, experiential events/activations, etc). 
• High EQ and the ability to read what a team needs to help motivate them.
• Acute attention to detail.
• Genuine desire to learn.
• Ability to effectively prioritize tasks and be resourceful, flexible and quick to adapt in a fast-paced environment.
• Effective written, verbal, and visual communicator.
• Ability to collaborate creatively across departments and offices.
• Ability to foster trusting relationships with teammates and clients.
• Strong business understanding to support decision-making. 
• Ability to handle confidential information. 
• Effective negotiation skills - can be firm when needed.
• Problem solving skills - anticipates issues and proactively comes up with solutions. 
• Proficient in Google Suite, Slack and Microsoft Office.
• Experience with project management software like Asana, a plus. 

The anticipated salary range for this position is $75,000 -$85,000. Salary is determined based on a wide range of factors, including relevant experience, knowledge, skills, job duties, and geographic location. For this role, we also offer programs such as medical/dental/vision insurance, 401(k) matching, paid time off, and various other benefits and perks.

This Project & Resources Manager position may be upgraded to a Senior Project & Resources Manager position with a minimum of 4 years of experience in a comparable role. The anticipated annual salary range for the Senior Project & Resources Manager role is $85,000-$125,000.