Senior Project Manager - AI

Who We Are:

Since 1906, New Balance has empowered people through sport and craftsmanship to create positive change in communities around the world. We innovate fearlessly, guided by our core values and driven by the belief that conventions were meant to be challenged. We foster a culture in which every associate feels welcomed and respected, where leaders and creatives are inspired to shape the world of tomorrow by taking bold action today.

JOB MISSION:

In this role of AI Sr Project Manager, you will be leading initiatives that drive innovation, empower cross-functional collaboration, and unlock scalable impact that contributes to the growth of our business. You will bring technical fluency, business acumen, and a solution-oriented mindset to lead AI projects across a diverse portfolio using the best fit methodology. By bridging enterprise architecture, data engineering, and business operations, you will ensure that AI solutions are not only robust and scalable, but also aligned with compliance, security, and performance standards. You will support prioritization of AI opportunities based on strategic value, feasibility, and readiness and translate complex needs into actionable plans that maximize adoption, usability, and measurable outcomes. Working in cooperation with vendor(s) and other project roles, you will manage project efforts to ensure successful delivery.

MAJOR ACCOUNTABILITIES:

• Managing multiple projects and teams across domains like data science, engineering, business stakeholders, etc. to ensure cohesive, timely execution
• Optimizing our AI use case intake process and helping functional and regional business leads through the intake process
• Ensuring proper training is integrated into AI project delivery
• Providing support to the teams to translate ambiguous business goals into problem statements and actionable requirements
• Liaising with the AI committee and helping drive prioritization across the AI project portfolio
• Ensuring alignment between planned project outcomes (e.g., solution selection and design) with enterprise AI roadmap and strategy
• Coordinating the overall AI project portfolio and breaking down initiatives into workstreams and/or work items taking into account critical dependencies and design decisions
• Scheduling and facilitating necessary meetings at all project stages; managing decisions and tasks; and monitoring and reporting progress
• Working with outside vendors (if applicable) and internal New Balance teams to plan and manage project activities, provide governance and oversight, provide status and other inputs to Business
• Proactively identifying and managing project risks, dependencies, and issues (and related mitigation plans); escalate in a clear and timely manner as appropriate
• Developing leadership updates outlining major milestones, status, accomplishments, critical next steps, and risks
• Providing mentoring and coaching to other project managers

REQUIREMENTS FOR SUCCESS:

• B.S. with 5+ years' project management experience in a relevant technical field with at least 3 years leading AI/ML or data-driven initiatives
• Understanding of AI/ML concepts (e.g., supervised learning, model drift, bias mitigation)
• Understanding of/hands-on experience with software development life cycle
• Skilled in Agile, Scrum, or hybrid project management methodologies tailored to AI workflows
• Experience with project management tools such as Smartsheet
• Ability to work within an Agile lifecycle tool such as ADO (Microsoft DevOps) or JIRA
• Demonstrated influence without authority, self-motivated with the ability to work independently and willing to take a hands-on approach and help the team to drive success.

Regular Associate Benefits

Our products are only as good as the people we hire, so we make sure to hire the best and treat them accordingly. New Balance offers a comprehensive traditional benefits package including three options for medical insurance as well as dental, vision, life insurance and 401K. We also proudly offer a slate of more nontraditional perks - opportunities like online learning and development courses, tuition reimbursement, $100 monthly student loan support and various mentorship programs - that encourage our associates to grow personally as they develop professionally. You'll also enjoy a yearly $1,000 lifestyle reimbursement, 4 weeks of vacations, 12 holidays and generous parental leave, because work-life balance is more than just a buzzword - it's part of our culture.

Temporary associates are provided three options for medical insurance as well as dental and vision insurance and an associate discount.

Part time associates are provided 401k, short term disability, a yearly $300 lifestyle reimbursement and an associate discount.

Flexible Work Schedule

For decades we have fostered a unique culture founded on our values with a particular focus on in-person teamwork and collaboration. Our North American hybrid model encourages rich in-person experiences, showcasing our commitment to teamwork and connection, while maintaining flexibility for associates. New Balance Associates currently work in office three days per week (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday). Our offices are fully open, and amenities are available across our North American office locations. To continue our focus on hybrid work we have introduced "Work from Anywhere" (WFA) for four weeks per calendar year. This model will help us enhance our culture while continuing to maintain elements of flexibility.

Equal Opportunity Employer

New Balance provides equal opportunities for all current and prospective associates to ensure that employment, training, compensation, transfer, promotion and other terms, conditions and privileges of employment are provided without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, handicap, genetic information and/or status as an Armed Forces service medal veteran, recently separated veteran, qualified disabled veteran or other protected veteran, or any other protected status.