Manager, Project Management Office

Be yourself at Protolabs 

Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification.  We are an equal opportunity employer, and we are committed to building a diverse team that feels they are valued in the workplace.  So do you feel you do not meet every single requirement but still intrigued? We encourage you to still apply!  You can help make our company even better.  We do not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, age, mental or physical ability, or any way you represent yourself.  We strongly believe diversity makes for more successful teams. 

Why Protolabs? 

We are the leaders in digital manufacturing.  We hire doers, makers, and creative thinkers who tackle our roles with an entrepreneurial spirit.  Our culture is centered around meaningful work that brings new and innovative products to market at unprecedented speeds.  We are a diverse team that comes from all walks of life and take pride in our team who is smart, genuine, humble, and passionate about what we do.  It’s our people who fuel our creativity and make our culture feel like home. 

Join our team as a Manager, Project Management Office

This is a hybrid role based at Headquarters in Maple Plain, MN.

The PMO Manager is responsible for leading and overseeing the project management team, ensuring the successful delivery of strategic projects across the organization, as well as managing multiple high-priority projects. This role involves establishing and maintaining project management standards, methodologies, and processes to enable project success and alignment with business objectives. The PMO Manager provides strategic direction, guidance, and support to project managers, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and excellence in project execution. Additionally, the position involves collaborating with senior leadership to prioritize projects, allocate resources effectively, and communicate project status, risks, and results to stakeholders. This role is pivotal in driving project efficiency, optimizing resource utilization, and ensuring that projects are delivered on time and within budget.

• Lead the PMO in establishing project management best practices and processes to ensure successful project delivery
• Collaborate with senior leadership to prioritize projects and align them with business objectives
• Directly lead and manage and team of project managers, encouraging professional growth and development within the team.
• Monitor project performance metrics, ensuring projects are delivered on time, within budget, and to quality standards
• Deliver projects at an enterprise level incorporating all impacted teams, functions, and internal and external partners for comprehensive delivery
• Drive initiatives in project management processes, tools, and methodologies to continuously improve efficiency and quality of deliverables
• Communicate project updates, risks, and opportunities to stakeholders and senior leadership effectively
• Ensure that the successful delivery of projects has positive impacts on both the business goals of Protolabs as well as employee retention and well-being
• Identify potential project risks and issues, leading the development of mitigation strategies
• Ensure all project activities are compliant with company policies and industry regulations
• Foster a culture where the team is comfortable sharing mistakes and learning from them. Provide appropriate guidance to reduce the risk of recurrence
• Remove impediments for the team, allowing them to complete tasks or achieve goals with minimal friction
• Identify skillsets needed for open positions, interview and assess candidates, provide feedback on selection, and ensure a positive and productive onboarding experience
• Meet regularly with each team member to discuss career growth and work progress. Regularly review deliverables and provide feedback on both how items were delivered and the quality of the work. Provide immediate and ongoing feedback highlighting valuable contributions and opportunities for improvement
• Encourage sharing of ideas to improve efficiency and effectiveness of the team. Encourage others to do the same by fostering an environment of collaboration and innovation
• Establish team goals, standards, and objectives. Review key metrics and hold the team accountable for progress
• Undertake additional tasks as needed to support the PMO and organizational goals

• Bachelor’s degree in business, computer science, related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience
• 8+ years of direct experience managing technical and/or business projects with 3-24 months duration
• Minimum of one year of direct people management experience
• Experience working with multiple methodologies and processes
• Experience working with a variety of software development methodologies and processes
• Direct experience with the software development lifecycle

• Managing complex projects consisting of multiple projects with multiple inter-dependencies
• Use of project management software tools (e.g. SmartSheet, OnePlan, MS Project, etc.)
• Creation and usage of project management artifacts/tools such as project plans, roadmaps, status updates, RAID logs

• PMI certification and/or other formal project management training.
• Technical understanding of websites, client-server applications, software architectures.
• Working knowledge of digital manufacturing.
• Familiarity with change management and business process improvement. 

• Strong customer focused mindset
• Comprehensive understanding of project management and agile methodologies, with the ability to leverage multiple project methodologies concurrently
• Strong sense of accountability, taking ownership of work while seeking guidance as needed to fulfill commitments
• Ability to take decisive action, even under stressful conditions, and guide teams through change and uncertainty
• Exceptional business and technical acumen
• Strong background in developing, implementing, and sustaining best practice ways of working for the team
• Exceptional communication skills with the ability to adapt messaging based on audience needs, whether to influence, inform, or align
• Ability to engage with and manage stakeholders effectively, including C-Suite. Build healthy cross-functional relationships, facilitating conversations, and resolving disagreements through active listening and focused feedback
• Strong problem-solving skills, capable of learning from past experiences and making informed decisions
• Ability to prioritize tasks based on business impact and delivery timelines
• Ability to foster a collaborative and innovative team environment, encouraging the sharing of ideas and constructive conflict resolution. Engage in open exchanges of differing ideas productively
• Welcome feedback from team, peers, and other business areas. Act upon feedback by evaluating strengths and growth areas, providing thoughtful and effective feedback to others
• Ability to introduce or commit to change, guiding teams through uncertainty while minimizing disruption to ongoing projects

• We offer a competitive Total Rewards Program including:
• Salary, Bonus, Long Term Incentives
• Health Insurance: Traditional OR High Deductible plan
• Flexible Spending Accounts
• Health Savings Account (including employer contributions)
• Dental & Vision
• Basic and Supplemental Life Insurance
• Short-Term & Long-Term Disability
• Paid caregiver leave
• PTO + Holiday Pay + Wellness Hours + Volunteer Hours
• 401k with company match & immediate vest
• Employee Stock Purchase Program at a 15% discounted rate
• Matching grants through Protolabs foundation
• And More!

Proto Labs maintains ITAR-compliant operations in all of our United States based facilities.  Due to ITAR regulations, this role is only open to U.S. Citizens, lawful permanent residents (green card holders) or foreign nationals granted refugee or asylee status.  Individuals with temporary visas (e.g. E, F-1, H-1, H-2, L, B, J, TN or OPT) are not eligible for hire in this role.

Proto Labs, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Physical Demands:

While performing the essential duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit; use a computer keyboard, monitor and mouse, telephone and printer; reach with hands, and arms, talk, see and hear.  The employee is occasionally required to stand, walk, stoop or kneel and must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.

Work Environment:

Indoors (A/C); nonsmoking; the majority of this job function is performed in an office setting requiring normal safety precautions. However, there may be job duties that require the employee to spend time in the manufacturing areas exposed to machinery and noise; eye protection occasionally required. Occasionally works in outside weather conditions. Occasionally works near moving mechanical parts and in high, precarious places and is occasionally exposed to wet and/or humid conditions, fumes or airborne particles, toxic or caustic chemicals, risk of electrical shock and vibration. The noise level in the work environment is usually quiet to moderate.