Project Manager

Spektrum have a wide range of exciting opportunities in several global locations.

We are always looking to add great new talent to our team and look forward to hearing from you.

Spektrum supports apex purchasers (NATO, UN, EU, and National Government and Defence) and their Tier 1 supplier ecosystem with a wide range of specialist services. We provide our clients with professional services, specialised aerospace and defence sales, delivery, and operational subject matter expertise. We are looking for personnel to join our team and support key client projects.

Who we are supporting

The NATO Communication and Information Agency (NCIA) is responsible for providing secure and effective communications and information technology (IT) services to NATO's member countries and its partners. The agency was established in 2012 and is headquartered in Brussels, Belgium.

The NCIA provides a wide range of services, including:

Cyber Security: The NCIA provides advanced cybersecurity solutions to protect NATO's communication networks and information systems against cyber threats.

Command and Control Systems: The NCIA develops and maintains the systems used by NATO's military commanders to plan and execute operations.

Satellite Communications: The NCIA provides satellite communications services to enable secure and reliable communications between NATO forces.

Electronic Warfare: The NCIA provides electronic warfare services to support NATO's mission to detect, deny, and defeat threats to its communication networks.

Information Management: The NCIA manages NATO's information technology infrastructure, including its databases, applications, and servers.

Overall, the NCIA plays a critical role in ensuring the security and effectiveness of NATO's communication and information technology capabilities.

The program

Assistance and Advisory Service (AAS)

The NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCI Agency) is NATO's principal C3 capability deliverer and CIS service provider. It provides, maintains and defends the NATO enterprise-wide information technology infrastructure to enable Allies to consult together under Article IV, and, when required, stand together in the face of attack under Article V.

To provide these critical services, in the modern evolving dynamic environment the NCI Agency needs to build and maintain high performance-engaged workforce. The NCI Agency workforce strategically consists of three major categories: NATO International Civilians (NIC's), Military (Mil), and Interim Workforce Consultants (IWC's). The IWCs are a critical part of the overall NCI Agency workforce and make up approximately 15 percent of the total workforce.

Role Background

The NATO Communications and Information Academy (NCI Academy) located in Portugal, Belgium and The Netherlands reinforces NATO's technological edge through excellence in Cyberspace learning. The NCI Academy learning expertise is leveraged to support projects for multiple customers, such as Allied Command Transformation (ACT), and the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO), with the investigation of topics related to Education and Individual Training. Two Programmes of Work, containing several work packages, have been formulated and organized as one project for execution in 2025. The project covers subjects ranging from standards for training requirement analysis to education and training functional systems and tools requirements to support for oversight of an education and training discipline to applications of emerging technology for learning.

The NCI Academy is looking to outsource the project management of this work. The individual will work closely with the NCI Academy Project Executive and individual work package leads, the project sponsor, the NCI Academy PM supervisor, other Academy staff and the NCI Agency Account Manager. The work shall involve: project planning (tasks, resources and budget); monitor, control and reporting related to the progress of work packages and tasks, milestones, dependencies, and budget; risks and issues management; communications; and use of the project management tool set.

Role Duties and Responsibilities

Planning and Monitoring

Plan/replan the Project Management Plan (PMP), project work packages, tasks, resources allocation to tasks, and travel plan together with the NCI Academy PM supervisor, NCI Academy Portfolio Management Office, Work Package Leads, and other relevant stakeholders (e.g. QA, Learning Design and Development, etc.) using the NCI Agency ServiceNow tool

Actively monitor project expenditures versus the agreed budget using Oracle Enterprise Business Application (EBA) and ServiceNow

Approve the booking of resources (hours - OPEX Labour, and travel - OPEX Travel) using ServiceNow and EBA

Support Work Package Leads to plan and execute work package activities/tasks and monitor some events to understand status and quality

Track the progress of the work package execution versus the plan (through discussions with Academy and ACT Work Package leads)

Review project deliverables, for quality control, when ready for handover to customers, identifying recommended follow-up actions

Monitor achievement of milestones; capture concerns (exceptions, risks and issues) and replan when necessary (e.g. additional work, additional travel, unavailability of resources, etc.).

Project Reporting

Produce Project Highlight Report (PHR) and Project Completion Highlight Report (PCHR) each Quarter, to be submitted to Project Sponsor

Schedule, prepare, and support the execution of a monthly project review with NCI Academy Work Package leads

Organize and facilitate a quarterly project review meeting with Project Sponsor, capturing meeting minutes (status, decisions and action items)

Liaise with the Project Sponsor whenever required, ensuring any blocking points or concerns are addressed proactively

Monthly report to the NCI Academy PM supervisor, and NCI Academy Portfolio Management Office on the progress of the project, estimated percentage complete/earned value of each work package, and budget expenditure and estimate of budget at completion, milestone achievements and estimate of percentage complete at end of year, and status of KPIs, quality and exceptions

Project Risk Management

Actively identify and manage risks, issues and actions related to project delivery and milestones achievement, and collect lessons learned (Project Risk management)

Designate the risks and issues that should be NCI Academy internally managed, and the risks and issues that should be managed together with customer

Record and continuously update project risks in the risk register of ServiceNow

Determine the appropriate mitigation and response actions and actively manage these to deliver the appropriate effect

Monthly risk and issue review (with risk owners) and report for internally managed risks and issues, and for risks and issues managed together with customer

Internal and External Stakeholders Management

Coordinate and ensure alignment with key NCI Academy, NCI Agency and ACT stakeholders

Regularly engage, as needed, with NCI Academy stakeholders, NCI Agency stakeholders, ACT and OCIO stakeholders to coordinate and align on information requirements, activities planning, preparation and execution, visits, deliverable dates and scope, etc.

Organize and lead frequent meetings, workshops with customers in meetings and communications with ACT on the topic.

Support work package leads with Statements of Work development, Requests For Quotation, and contractor deliverables tracking

Monthly communication plan (for following month) with objectives and expected participants

Create a summary of engagements conducted during the month and support provided to the Work Package leads.

Support the work package leads to organize and execute activities, tasks and events

Development of Project Proposals

Support the development of price proposals (PP) for 2025 ACT Programme of Work and CRF's (Customer Request Form)

Assist the Work Package leads to iteratively develop price proposals, creating the WBS, and estimating required resources, cost and schedule.

Use Request to Proposal (R2P) Business Intake tool for Price Proposal development and coordination.

Essential Skills and Experience

Experience with managing Programmes of Work between NCI Agency and large customers

Experience with managing projects that are focused on Training Needs Analysis, the design and development of learning solutions as well as innovation of delivery methods in the NATO environment.

Experience with managing projects that are focused on Education, Training, Exercises & Evaluation (ETEE) Functional Services

Certification and experience with Project Management Prince 2, Project Management Professional (PMP) or equivalent training and certification

Project management experience using Agile as well as Waterfall methodologies

Knowledge and experience using ServiceNow and JIRA for project management

Experience in risk and issue management.

Knowledge of and experience with the NATO Command Structure, the NATO Force Structure, and the NATO Political Structure.

Experience with working in an International environment with Military and Civilian elements.

Experience with working with the NCI Agency.

Desirable Skills and Experience

Experience with the development of training materials

Knowledge and experience with working with the NCI Academy

Language Proficiency

Business English

Working Location

Oeiras, Portugal

Working Policy

On-Site

Travel

Some travel to other NATO sites may be required

Security Clearance

Valid National or NATO Secret personal security clearance

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