Lead Technical Program Manager

Technology is at the heart of Disney’s past, present, and future. Disney Entertainment and ESPN Product & Technology is a global organization of engineers, product developers, designers, technologists, data scientists, and more – all working to build and advance the technological backbone for Disney’s media business globally. 

The team marries technology with creativity to build world-class products, enhance storytelling, and drive velocity, innovation, and scalability for our businesses. We are Storytellers and Innovators. Creators and Builders. Entertainers and Engineers. We work with every part of The Walt Disney Company’s media portfolio to advance the technological foundation and consumer media touch points serving millions of people around the world.  

Here are a few reasons why we think you’d love working here: 

Building the future of Disney’s media: Our Technologists are designing and building the products and platforms that will power our media, advertising, and distribution businesses for years to come. 

Reach, Scale & Impact: More than ever, Disney’s technology and products serve as a signature doorway for fans' connections with the company’s brands and stories. Disney+. Hulu. ESPN. ABC. ABC News…and many more. These products and brands – and the unmatched stories, storytellers, and events they carry – matter to millions of people globally.  

Innovation: We develop and implement groundbreaking products and techniques that shape industry norms, and solve complex and distinctive technical problems. 

The Business Operations team helps guide and articulate technology strategy and research, and is responsible for driving the day-to-day operation of the Product & Technology organization, including: project and portfolio management and tracking; organization-level capital, space, and resource management and allocation; process management; technical incident management; and our administrative and workplace experience support team. 

This position is part of the Global Program Management team which manages the execution of DE&E Technology programs, including scope, delivery schedules and budgets in addition to identifying dependencies, managing risks and quantifying business impact. This role collaborates with Product, Engineering and QA to understand and rationalize strategic roadmaps while providing easy to understand, transparent reporting to leadership during delivery.

Job Summary:

Within the Business Operations organization the Sr Technical Program Manager is responsible for managing small through large-scale, complex projects in the Software Engineering area from initiation through closure. These initiatives will involve daily hands-on management of technology activities utilizing Agile and Scrum based software development practices; and may include working with other technical teams to effectively deliver business solutions.

This role requires a wide range of leadership competencies, technical (PM) experience and communications skills. Responsible for managing projects using DE&E Technology processes, tools and methodologies, which includes the development of the scope of work and the management of time, cost, risk, and communications.

Responsibilities and Duties of the Role:

• Accountable for driving execution and delivery of multiple technical product or software development projects from start to finish.
• Have experience executing both Agile and Waterfall software development methodologies.
• Have experience with industry-standard project management tools such as JIRA and Confluence.
• Responsible for managing team dynamics, morale and motivation while building a culture where all members and points of view are respected.
• Develops and manages project plans comprised of complex activities and dependencies.
• Communicates status, updates and project summaries via presentations, e-mail and direct communication with key stakeholders and leadership.
• Have excellent professional writing skills and can provide verbal explanations of status and technical issues with precision and accuracy.
• Excel at working with project stakeholders to define project scope and objectives, and effectively communicate requirements to development teams.
• Excel in leading effective meetings (keeping teams on track), document decisions and follow up.
• Display initiative, take a proactive approach, and can start the conversation.
• Negotiate with skill and can identify a solution path for various competing requirements or stakeholder preferences.
• Learns quickly and enthusiastically, particularly about technical systems and issues.
• Constantly evaluating process and seeking for ways to improve at every iteration.

Required Education, Experience/Skills/Training:

• Minimum Qualifications:
  • Have 7+ years of technical project management experience working directly with engineers.
  • 7+ years of hands-on experience with Agile/Scrum methodologies developing software applications, playing the role of scrum lead.
  • BA/BS required.
  • Extensive knowledge and experience with the software development lifecycle.
• Preferred Qualifications:
  • CSM / CSP Certification preferred.
  • Experience in streaming media software and digital technology.
  • Experience with frontend, backend systems, machine learning, and personalization a plus.
  • Have some technical proficiency demonstrated in any number of ways, ex. coding skills, quality assurance experience or technical writing background or similar.

The hiring range for this position in California is $155,700.00 to $208,700.00 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long-term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.