Program Director - App Migration

Job Description

 We are seeking a visionary and results-driven Program Director to lead our enterprise-wide application migration to the Azure Cloud. In this high-impact role, you will be the strategic anchor overseeing the end-to-end migration lifecycle, ensuring minimal disruption to business operations.

A critical component of this role is Strategic Vendor Management. You will directly manage, govern, and collaborate with third-party system integrators (SIs), cloud consultants, and external vendors who are executing the migration. The ideal candidate blends deep cloud program management expertise with elite negotiation, governance, and stakeholder management skills.

Key Responsibilities

1. Cloud Migration Strategy & Execution

Program Ownership: Define, execute, and oversee the overarching Azure cloud migration roadmap (encompassing Rehost, Replatform, and Refactor strategies).

Governance: Establish program governance frameworks, including tracking milestones, managing budgets, mitigation of risks, and alignment with enterprise architecture standards.

Technical Oversight: Work closely with Azure Architects to ensure cloud landing zones, security protocols, and compliance requirements (e.g., GDPR, HIPAA, PCI-DSS) are rigorously met.

2. Vendor Management & Governance

Partnership Governance: Serve as the primary point of escalation and accountability for all external vendors, MSPs (Managed Service Providers), and System Integrators.

SLA & KPI Tracking: Establish, monitor, and enforce vendor Performance Indicators (KPIs) and Service Level Agreements (SLAs) regarding migration velocity, code quality, and cost.

Contract & Statement of Work (SOW): Partner with Procurement and Legal to define SOWs, manage change orders, and optimize vendor spend against the program budget.

3. Stakeholder Management & Change Leadership

Executive Alignment: Provide regular, transparent status reporting and dashboards to C-suite executives and steering committees.

Cross-Functional Collaboration: Act as the bridge between internal IT infrastructure teams, security teams, business unit owners, and external vendor teams.

Change Management: Drive organizational change, ensuring internal teams are upskilled and ready to operate in the new Azure-native environment post-migration.

Qualifications & Skills

Experience Required

Total Experience: 16+ years in IT Program Management, with at least 5+ years specifically dedicated to leading large-scale cloud migration programs (ideally Microsoft Azure).

Vendor Management Mastery: Proven track record of managing vendor projects and directing large, geographically dispersed vendor teams (onshore/offshore model).

Technical & Professional Skills

Cloud Knowledge: Strong conceptual understanding of Azure services (e.g., Azure Migrate, AKS, Azure SQL, Synapse, Landing Zones) and DevOps principles.

Methodologies: Mastery of Agile/Scrum and traditional PMO methodologies (PMP, Prince2, or Safe Agile).

Soft Skills: Exceptional negotiation, conflict resolution, and influential leadership skills.