Technical Program Manager Retail industry background is mandatory
Location: Vancouver PST, Hybrid - 4 days in office
Position Overview
We are seeking an experienced Technical Program Manager (TPM) to lead the delivery of complex technology initiatives across software engineering, quality assurance, cloud platforms, and DevOps operations. The ideal candidate will have a strong technical background with hands-on experience in software development and/or software testing, coupled with proven expertise managing large-scale programs and cross-functional engineering teams.
This role requires a highly collaborative leader who can partner with Product, Engineering, QA, Architecture, Cloud, and Business stakeholders to successfully deliver scalable, high-quality solutions. Experience within the Retail, Apparel, Fashion, eCommerce, or Omnichannel Retail industry is highly desirable.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead end-to-end planning, execution, and delivery of strategic technology programs and software initiatives.
- Partner with engineering, product, QA, DevOps, and business teams to define roadmaps, priorities, milestones, and release plans.
- Drive Agile/Scrum delivery processes, sprint planning, backlog management, and program governance.
- Manage cross-functional dependencies, risks, issues, and stakeholder communications.
- Provide technical leadership and oversight throughout the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC).
- Collaborate closely with development and QA teams to ensure high-quality product delivery.
- Drive continuous improvement in software delivery practices, release management, and operational excellence.
- Partner with DevOps teams to improve CI/CD pipelines, deployment automation, monitoring, and scalability.
- Lead cloud-based initiatives leveraging AWS services and cloud-native architectures.
- Establish and report key program metrics, delivery health indicators, and executive dashboards.
- Facilitate technical design discussions and align solutions with business objectives and enterprise architecture standards.
- Support vendor management and coordination with external partners where applicable.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology, or related field.
- 8+ years of experience in software delivery, engineering, quality assurance, or technical project/program management.
- 3+ years of experience in a Technical Program Manager, Engineering Manager, or similar leadership role.
- Hands-on experience in software development, software testing, QA, SDET, or application engineering.
- Strong understanding of SDLC methodologies, Agile frameworks, and release management practices.
- Experience managing large-scale software development programs involving multiple stakeholders and teams.
- Strong technical acumen with the ability to communicate effectively with engineers, architects, and business leaders.
- Proven track record of delivering enterprise applications on time and within budget.
Required Technical Skills
Software Development & Testing
Application development and software engineering fundamentals
Software testing methodologies and quality assurance practices
Test automation frameworks and tools
API, integration, and performance testing concepts
Microservices and distributed system architectures
REST APIs and modern application design patterns
DevOps & Automation
CI/CD pipeline implementation and management
Git, GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket
Jenkins, GitHub Actions, Azure DevOps, or similar platforms
Docker and containerization technologies
Kubernetes and orchestration platforms
Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, CloudFormation)
AWS Cloud
EC2, ECS/EKS
Lambda
S3
RDS/Aurora
IAM
CloudWatch
VPC Networking
Route 53
CloudFormation
Program & Delivery Management
Agile, Scrum, Kanban
Jira, Confluence, Azure DevOps
Risk and dependency management
Resource planning and forecasting
Executive reporting and stakeholder management
Vendor and third-party coordination
Preferred Qualifications
Experience in Retail, Apparel, Fashion, eCommerce, Supply Chain, Merchandising, POS, Inventory Management, or Omnichannel Retail platforms.
Experience supporting digital transformation and cloud migration programs.
Background as a Software Engineer, QA Lead, SDET, Technical Lead, or Solutions Architect.
Knowledge of retail systems such as OMS, WMS, ERP, Product Information Management (PIM), or Customer Experience platforms.
AWS certifications such as:
AWS Solutions Architect
AWS Developer Associate
AWS DevOps Engineer Professional
PMP, PgMP, SAFe, Scrum Master (CSM), or equivalent certifications.
What You'll Bring
Strong leadership and communication skills with the ability to influence across all levels of the organization.
Ability to balance technical depth with strategic program execution.
Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
Passion for driving continuous improvement and operational excellence.
Experience managing multiple priorities in fast-paced, highly collaborative environments.
