Director IT Program Management Office
Ciena · Baltimore, United States
As the global leader in high-speed connectivity, Ciena builds the critical infrastructure powering the AI era. We’re a technology company shaping the future of networking, guided by innovation, integrity, and collaboration. Through development opportunities, meaningful work, and flexibility, Ciena supports growth and well-being—on and off the job. Connect with a career that matters.
Position Summary
The Director of the Program Management Office (PMO) will lead the discipline responsible for translating business priorities into coordinated, executable technology outcomes across Ciena.
This leader will establish and operate a lean, outcome-focused PMO, providing portfolio visibility, delivery governance, resource and capacity planning, dependency management, financial transparency, and consistent execution across strategic initiatives.
This is not a traditional administrative PMO role. The Director will be expected to simplify how work gets done, remove unnecessary process, surface decisions quickly, and create clear accountability across business and technology teams.
The Director will partner closely with business leaders, Product Owners, Strategic Portfolio Champions, IT Business Partners, architecture, technology delivery teams, Finance, and other stakeholders to ensure investments are aligned, understood, properly sequenced, and positioned for successful execution.
Key Responsibilities
Portfolio & Program Leadership
- Lead the enterprise technology portfolio management discipline across strategic programs and initiatives.
- Provide a consolidated view of portfolio health, milestones, dependencies, risks, financials, capacity, and outcomes.
- Ensure strategic priorities are translated into executable programs with clear ownership and measurable outcomes.
- Identify cross-program dependencies, conflicts, constraints, and decisions requiring leadership attention.
- Establish clear escalation paths for initiatives that are off track or require executive intervention.
Intake, Prioritization & Demand Management
- Operate a simple, transparent intake framework that provides a clear front door into IT.
- Partner with business sponsors and Product Owners to ensure initiatives entering the portfolio have clear sponsorship, value, funding, scope, and desired outcomes.
- Facilitate portfolio prioritization based on business priority, technology capacity, dependencies, delivery readiness, and strategic alignment.
- Maintain visibility into demand versus available capacity.
- Help distinguish lightweight requests from initiatives requiring formal program or portfolio governance.
Program Governance
- Establish a pragmatic governance framework scaled to the size, complexity, risk, and strategic importance of the work.
- Reduce unnecessary meetings, reporting, approvals, and administrative overhead.
- Define consistent expectations for program status, risk management, financial management, dependency tracking, and executive reporting.
- Ensure governance accelerates decisions rather than becoming an additional layer of bureaucracy.
Financial & Vendor Management
- Provide portfolio-level visibility into program budgets, forecasts, actuals, and financial risks.
- Partner with Finance and technology leadership on investment planning and forecasting.
- Help ensure resources and external partners are aligned to prioritized business outcomes.
- Support vendor governance and evaluation of external delivery capacity where appropriate.
Executive Reporting & Decision Support
- Provide concise, credible portfolio reporting for senior leadership.
- Convert detailed program information into clear executive recommendations and decisions.
- Maintain visibility into portfolio health, risks, investments, capacity, dependencies, and business outcomes.
- Establish escalation mechanisms that focus leadership attention on the decisions that matter.
PMO Leadership & Continuous Improvement
- Build and develop a high-performing team of program and project management professionals.
- Establish common disciplines, tools, templates, and ways of working without creating excessive process.
- Coach program leaders on stakeholder management, executive communication, risk management, and delivery.
- Continuously simplify portfolio and program management practices.
- Foster a culture of accountability, transparency, collaboration, and execution.
Qualifications
Required
- 10+ yrs of experience leading complex technology programs, portfolios, or PMO functions in a global enterprise environment.
- Demonstrated experience managing multiple concurrent strategic initiatives across business and technology organizations.
- Strong understanding of portfolio management, program management, financial management, resource planning, risk management, and governance.
- Proven ability to work effectively with senior executives and translate complex delivery issues into clear business decisions.
- Strong financial acumen, including budgeting, forecasting, investment planning, and vendor management.
- Demonstrated ability to lead through influence across matrixed organizations.
- Excellent executive communication, facilitation, negotiation, and stakeholder-management skills.
- Strong leadership and people-development capabilities.
Preferred
- Experience establishing or transforming a PMO or portfolio-management function.
- Experience with Agile, SAFe, product-oriented delivery, and traditional program management methodologies.
- Experience working across enterprise platforms, digital transformation, infrastructure, data, cybersecurity, and business applications.
- Experience with portfolio, work-management, or enterprise workflow platforms.
- At least 1 of the following PMP, PgMP, SAFe, Agile, or related certification required
Pay Range
The annual pay range for this position in the USA is $134,100 - $214,000
The annual pay range for this position in Canada is $160,200 - $255,800
Pay ranges at Ciena are designed to accommodate variations in knowledge, skills, experience, market conditions, and locations, reflecting our diverse products, industries, and lines of business. Please note that the pay range information provided in this posting pertains specifically to the primary location, which is the top location listed in case multiple locations are available.
Non-Sales employees may be eligible for a discretionary incentive bonus, while Sales employees may be eligible for a sales commission. In addition to competitive compensation, Ciena offers a comprehensive benefits package, including medical, dental, and vision plans, participation in 401(K) (USA) & DCPP (Canada) with company matching, Employee Stock Purchase Program (ESPP), Employee Assistance Program (EAP), company-paid holidays, paid sick leave, and vacation time. We also comply with all applicable laws regarding Paid Family Leave and other leaves of absence.
At Ciena, we are committed to building and fostering an environment in which our employees feel respected, valued, and heard. Ciena values the diversity of its workforce and respects its employees as individuals. We do not tolerate any form of discrimination.
Ciena is an Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability and protected veteran status.
If contacted in relation to a job opportunity, please advise Ciena of any accommodation measures you may require.