JOB SUMMARY:

The Program Manager leads the planning, development, and launch of technology-enabled programs and enhancements for the Loyalty Operations organization. Partnering with business stakeholders, this role prioritizes projects, writes clear business requirements, and bridges the gap between business needs and technical delivery. The Program Manager owns end-to-end program development from ideation through launch, working with cross-functional teams — including Information Technology — to deliver initiatives on schedule. Success in the role means breaking complex problems into simple, well-documented steps and designing capabilities that close competitive gaps, grow revenue, and strengthen our value proposition to guests. This is an individual contributor position reporting to the Director, Loyalty Operations, with no direct reports and indirect management of internal technology resources.

Note: This role is 4 days onsite based in North Bethesda, MD or Scottsdale, AZ. This role is not eligible for visa sponsorship now or in the future.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Lead planning and implementation of loyalty programs, incorporating stakeholder requirements, market and competitive knowledge, and current system capabilities

• Write sound business requirements grounded in business strategy and internal system capabilities.

• Own and execute program enhancements from ideation to launch, including requirements gathering, cross-functional alignment, competitive research, scrum participation, user testing, launch, and adoption.

• Scope and prioritize activities based on business and customer impact, accounting for functional and resource dependencies.

• Set and track project schedules, provide resource usage and status updates, and report risks, issues, action items, and decisions

• Communicate project roadmaps, key milestones, specifications, value proposition, training tools, and competitive information to stakeholders on a regular reporting cycle.

• Lead user acceptance testing for assigned projects.

• Manage programs post-launch, evaluating performance and customer insights to identify future enhancement needs.  Serve as the subject matter expert and primary operations business contact for all programs and projects managed.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Employment Experience

• 5+ years of program or project management experience in an agile environment.

• Deep knowledge (5+ years) of hotel systems preferred.

• Demonstrated success leading complex, high-profile, cross-functional solution development with multiple stakeholders in an inter-enterprise environment; no direct reports, but indirect leadership of technology resources is required.

Technical Skills

• Proficiency with project management and agile delivery tools (e.g., Jira, Confluence, Microsoft office) for backlog management, sprint tracking, and requirements documentation.

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office products, including Excel, PowerPoint, and Word.

• Working familiarity with hotel and loyalty platform systems and their data flows.

Additional Skills & Competencies

• Exceptional verbal, written, and listening communication skills, with the ability to present to executives, internal influencers, and franchisees.

• Strong decision-making using analytical problem-solving techniques.

• Comfort with ambiguity and complex technology systems, with the ability to iterate deliverables on aggressive timelines.

• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail, including the ability to revise scope as requirements are refined.

• Self-starter who works both independently and collaboratively across developers, interdepartmental teams, vendors, and designers.  

Education Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree (BA/BS) or equivalent experience.

• PMP certification or equivalent (preferred)

Salary Range

The salary range for this position is $86,886 - $102,219.

Choice prioritizes our associate wellbeing by offering a comprehensive benefits program that is both competitive and flexible to help you achieve your wellbeing goals - here are just a few:

• Competitive compensation and benefits, including medical, dental, and vision coverage
• Leave and paid time-off for holidays, vacation, personal, family, volunteer, sick, jury duty, bereavement, military, and religious observance
• Financial benefits for retirement and health savings
• Employee recognition programs
• Discounts at Choice hotels worldwide