Staff Technical Program Manager - Infinia Distributed Platform

Overview:

This is an incredible opportunity to be part of a company that has been at the forefront of AI and high-performance data storage innovation for over two decades. DataDirect Networks (DDN) is a global market leader renowned for powering many of the world's most demanding AI data centers, in industries ranging from life sciences and healthcare to financial services, autonomous cars, Government, academia, research and manufacturing.

"DDN's A3I solutions are transforming the landscape of AI infrastructure." – IDC 

“The real differentiator is DDN. I never hesitate to recommend DDN. DDN is the de facto name for AI Storage in high performance environments” - Marc Hamilton, VP, Solutions Architecture & Engineering | NVIDIA 

DDN is the global leader in AI and multi-cloud data management at scale. Our cutting-edge data intelligence platform is designed to accelerate AI workloads, enabling organizations to extract maximum value from their data. With a proven track record of performance, reliability, and scalability, DDN empowers businesses to tackle the most challenging AI and data-intensive workloads with confidence. 

Our success is driven by our unwavering commitment to innovation, customer-centricity, and a team of passionate professionals who bring their expertise and dedication to every project. This is a chance to make a significant impact at a company that is shaping the future of AI and data management. 

Our commitment to innovation, customer success, and market leadership makes this an exciting and rewarding role for a driven professional looking to make a lasting impact in the world of AI and data storage. 

Staff Technical Program Manager - Infinia Distributed Platform

We are seeking a highly organized and driven Staff Technical Program Manager to lead cross-functional projects from ideation to successfully delivery to customer, ensuring timely project execution, and maintaining alignment across various organizations. The ideal candidate will be responsible for developing and driving program discipline, managing schedules, holding teams accountable for deliverables, and ensuring all milestones are met by planning strategically from launch dates.

This role will require the candidate to be an expert in creating transparent and insightful dashboards to reflect the current state of development efforts, as well as delivering concise executive summaries to senior leadership.

Key Responsibilities:

Cross-Functional Coordination: Serve as the key point of contact for multiple organizations, ensuring alignment and communication across teams to avoid misalignment and scheduling issues.

Schedule Management: Work backwards from launch dates to build detailed project timelines, identifying key milestones and deliverables. Proactively manage and track progress to ensure no slippage.

Accountability & Discipline: Hold teams and individuals accountable for meeting their deadlines and deliverables, implementing effective follow-up processes to maintain program discipline.

Customer-First Mindset: Drive a customer-first mindset across the organization in collaboration with product management and engineering to align Infinia technical roadmap to business goals with the objective of exceeding customer expectations and fostering long-term relationships.

Risk Mitigation: Identify risks and dependencies early, communicate proactively, and develop mitigation strategies to keep the program on track.

Cross-Team Alignment: Ensure alignment on key decisions, priorities, and resource allocations across all involved teams.

Project Delivery: Oversee the deployment and configuration of DDN's storage hardware and software, ensuring compliance with customer specifications and industry best practices.

Monitoring & Reporting: Develop and maintain detailed project plans, schedules, and budgets monitoring progress against established milestones, providing up-to-date visibility to stakeholders, and proactively addressing any potential risks or issues that may arise.

Customer Reporting: Serve as the primary point of contact for customers during large-scale installation projects and Infinia software deployments, providing regular updates, addressing concerns, and ensuring a seamless customer experience.

Executive Reporting: Prepare executive-level summaries, highlighting key project statuses, risks, issues, and next steps for senior leadership.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field; a project management certification (e.g., PMP, PRINCE2) is preferred.
• Minimum of 10 years of experience in program management with a strong focus on managing large-scale software deployment and installation projects.
• Proven experience as a Technical Program Manager or Chief of Staff, leading large-scale, cross-functional projects.
• Strong program management skills with experience in scheduling, risk management, and driving accountability.
• Excellent communication skills, able to work effectively with stakeholders at all levels.
• Expertise in creating and managing dashboards that clearly reflect project statuses and development progress.
• Ability to write executive summaries and reports that concisely communicate complex information.
• In-depth knowledge of software engineering practices and project management methodologies.
• Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams and manage multiple concurrent projects with varying priorities and deadlines.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to effectively communicate technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Familiarity with agile project management methodologies and experience working in a highly dynamic and fast-paced environment.
• Willingness to travel as required to support on-site customer engagements and project activities.

This position requires participation in an on-call rotation to provide after-hours support as needed.

As the Sr. Program Manager for Large-Scale Installations and Infinia Software Delivery, you will play a pivotal role in ensuring the successful deployment of DDN's cutting-edge storage solutions and the company's flagship software product. Your project management expertise, coupled with your technical knowledge and customer-centric approach, will contribute significantly to DDN's commitment to delivering exceptional customer experiences.

This is an incredible opportunity to be part of a company that has been at the forefront of AI and high-performance data storage innovation for over two decades. DDN Storage is a global market leader renowned for powering many of the world's most demanding AI data centers, in industries ranging from life sciences and healthcare to financial services, autonomous cars, Government, academia, research and manufacturing.

Our team is highly motivated and focused on engineering excellence.

We look for individuals who appreciate challenging themselves and thrive on curiosity.

Engineers are encouraged to work across multiple areas of the company.

We operate with a flat organizational structure.

All employees are expected to be hands-on and to contribute directly to the company’s mission.

Leadership is given to those who show initiative and consistently deliver excellence. Work ethic and strong prioritization skills are important.

All engineers and researchers are expected to have strong communication skills.

They should be able to concisely and accurately share knowledge with their teammates.

Interview Process:

After submitting your application, the team reviews your CV and statement of exceptional work. If your application passes this stage, you will be invited to a 30-minute interview (“phone interview”) during which a member of our team will ask some basic questions. If you clear the initial phone interview, you will enter the main process, which consists of four technical interviews:

• Coding assessment in a language of your choice.
• Systems design: Translate high-level requirements into a scalable, fault-tolerant service.
• Systems hands-on: Demonstrate practical skills in a live problem-solving session.
• Project deep-dive: Present your past exceptional work to a small audience.
• Meet and greet with the wider team.
• Our goal is to finish the main process within one week.
• We don’t rely on recruiters for assessments.
• Every application is reviewed by a member of our technical team.

DataDirect Networks, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer.  All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender, sex stereotyping, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, protected Veteran Status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.