Job Family Group

Business Operations

Job Profile

Sr Project / Program Manager

Management Level

Individual Contributor

Flexible Work Option

Hybrid - Ability to work remotely part of the week

Travel %

Yes, 5% of the time

Work Shift

Day

Compensation
Compensation includes a base salary in the range of $98,300.00 - $147,500.00. The base salary may vary within the anticipated base pay range based on factors such as the ultimate location of the position and the selected candidate's knowledge, skills, and abilities. Position may be eligible for additional compensation that may include an incentive program.

Job Description

The Senior Program Manager, Hiring Strategy & Governance owns the Cox Automotive Product Group (CAPTG) wide hiring governance, forecasting, and cross-functional coordination for Engineering and Technology organizations in CAPTG. This role translates workforce strategy into clear, scalable operating models and ensures hiring programs run with strong governance, data integrity, and accountability. Leads and operates enterprise workforce and hiring programs from design through sustained execution. Serves as the primary business owner for CAPTG headcount approvals, Early Career programs, Internal Mobility, and business-driven hiring initiatives in partnership with Talent Acquisition, HR, Finance, and Engineering leadership.

The role combines hands-on operational involvement with program leadership. The Senior Program Manager is actively engaged in day-to-day aspects of the CAPG process, including supporting pre-approval flow, resolving escalations, partnering on in-cycle issue resolution, and soliciting SVP- and EVP-level approvals as needed. At the same time, this role is accountable for defining and maintaining the forecasting, governance model, decision frameworks, intake standards, and escalation paths-using day-to-day signal to identify systemic issues and drive durable improvements to how hiring operates at scale.

What You'll Do:

Hiring Governance & Program Leadership

• Own and evolve hiring forecasting, governance frameworks, leadership approvals, intake standards, and approval guardrails.
• Define and document clear ownership boundaries between governance and operational execution.
• Facilitate cross-functional forums to review demand, trends, risks, and constraints.
• Surface systemic issues and recommend data-backed improvements.

Early Career & Internal Talent Programs

• Own governance and annual planning for Early Career and intern programs.
• Partner with Talent, Finance, HR, and Engineering leaders on approvals, capacity planning, and conversion strategy.

• Define decision criteria and resolution paths for non-standard scenarios.
• Align Internal Mobility initiatives with hiring governance and workforce constraints.

Forecasting, Analytics & Change Enablement

• Lead portfolio-level hiring and headcount forecasting in partnership with Finance and Engineering Operations.
• Produce executive-ready insights on hiring trends, risks, and outcomes.

• Design and maintain hiring playbooks, documentation, and change enablement materials.

Who You Are:

• Bachelor's degree in a related discipline, and 4 years' experience in a related field. The right candidate could also have a different combination, such as a master's degree and 2 years' experience; a Ph.D. and up to 1 year of experience; or 8 years 'experience in a related field.
• 5+ years of experience in program management, business operations, workforce planning, or HR-related roles.
• Proven success leading cross-functional programs with senior stakeholders.
• Strong analytical, communication, and problem-solving skills.
• Comfortable operating in ambiguity and influencing without authority.

Preferred

• Experience with enterprise-scale hiring or early career programs.
• Demonstrated ability to design governance models separate from tactical execution.

Drug Testing

To be employed in this role, you'll need to clear a pre-employment drug test. Cox Automotive does not currently administer a pre-employment drug test for marijuana for this position. However, we are a drug-free workplace, so the possession, use or being under the influence of drugs illegal under federal or state law during work hours, on company property and/or in company vehicles is prohibited.

Benefits

The Company offers eligible employees the flexibility to take as much vacation with pay as they deem consistent with their duties, the company's needs, and its obligations; seven paid holidays throughout the calendar year; and up to 160 hours of paid wellness annually for their own wellness or that of family members. Employees are also eligible for additional paid time off in the form of bereavement leave, time off to vote, jury duty leave, volunteer time off, military leave, and parental leave.