The Role
Own and run program-level release coordination across engineering and cross-functional teams. Maintain master release timeline, dependency maps, risk register, runbooks, and status reporting. Drive go/no-go decisions, enforce change control, improve release predictability, and partner with engineering leadership to implement tooling and processes that increase delivery velocity and visibility.
Summary Generated by Built In
The Opportunity
KWI keeps specialty retail running for Pandora, Bluemercury, Tom Ford, and dozens of other brands, and behind every storefront is an engineering team shipping constantly. Today those releases are coordinated on instinct and hallway conversations. You're here to change that. As our Technical Program Manager, you'll own the master release timeline, build the system that keeps every team aligned, and make shipping shorter, smoother, and more predictable, reporting straight to the CTO with a clear mandate to fix what slows us down.
The Company
KWI keeps specialty retail running for Pandora, Bluemercury, Tom Ford, and dozens of other brands, and behind every storefront is an engineering team shipping constantly. Today those releases are coordinated on instinct and hallway conversations. You're here to change that. As our Technical Program Manager, you'll own the master release timeline, build the system that keeps every team aligned, and make shipping shorter, smoother, and more predictable, reporting straight to the CTO with a clear mandate to fix what slows us down.
The Company
We are a small team with a big vision: to be the premier provider of cloud technology solutions for retailers. KWI offers a unified commerce solution that is designed to help specialty retailers grow their business. Our portfolio of customers includes Pandora, Bluemercury, Tom Ford, and many other globally recognizable brands.
We combine Point of Sale, Merchandising, Order Management, eCommerce, CRM, and Loss Prevention into one cloud-based platform. We are a Values and Mission driven organization, and we believe that if we develop and demonstrate leadership in our strategy, operations, and people, we will continue to drive product innovation and service excellence.
As the Technical Program Manager, you excel at the following core competencies
Cross-team release coordination
As the Technical Program Manager, you excel at the following core competencies
Cross-team release coordination
- Own the master release timeline across all engineering teams, with a particular focus on the POS release cycle.
- Map and track cross-team dependencies; surface conflicts early and drive resolution before they become delays. Facilitate go/no-go checkpoints.
- You can approve a go based on readiness data; all no-go decisions escalate to the CTO and Head of Product.
- Manage the release calendar so teams on different schedules do not collide. Establish and enforce change control: once scope is locked, late changes require formal approval with an impact assessment
Cross-functional coordination
- Define and maintain RACI matrices for release activities across Engineering, QA, Technical Writing, Marketing, and Customer Success.
- Run release readiness reviews that include all involved departments, not just engineering.
- Serve as the single point of accountability for program-level release status visibility across the organization.
Risk management and escalation
- Proactively identify risks to timelines, scope, and quality across all teams.
- Maintain a risk register and drive mitigation plans.
- Escalate to the CTO and Head of Product when cross-team conflicts cannot be resolved at the team level.
The impact you'll make
Process definition and documentation
- Convert tribal knowledge into documented, repeatable processes: release runbooks, checklists, onboarding guides.
- Define and maintain the release process end-to-end so it is survivable if any individual is unavailable.
- Establish templates for cross-team planning: dependency maps, risk registers, status reports.
- Identify bottlenecks and gaps; propose and implement improvements using retrospective data.
Reporting and continuous improvement
- Design and own the organization-wide status reporting system: template, cadence, format, and a compilation mechanism so the report assembles itself.
- Author program-level status reports directly covering cross-team releases, dependency health, risks, and milestones.
- Partner with engineering leadership to mature delivery practices and introduce tooling that improves velocity and visibility.
- Establish program-level metrics (cycle time, release predictability, dependency-related delays) and use them to drive improvement.
What you will bring
- 5 to 9 years of experience in technical program management, engineering program management, or a comparable role coordinating across multiple engineering teams.
- Demonstrated ability to build and run release coordination at the program level, not just within a single team or project.
- Strong technical fluency: you can hold a substantive conversation about architecture, dependencies, and technical risk without needing it simplified for you.
- Experience defining and documenting processes from scratch, including runbooks, RACI matrices, and dependency tracking frameworks.
- Track record of managing cross-functional stakeholders, including product, QA, marketing, and customer success, through complex releases.
- Clear written communication: your status reports give leadership the information they need to make decisions, not a list of what everyone is working on.
Bonus points
- Experience in a SaaS company serving retail or enterprise clients.
- Familiarity with Kanban-based delivery workflows and how to mature them into more disciplined frameworks.
- Hands-on experience evaluating or implementing AI-assisted workflows for delivery visibility or reporting.
- Background working closely with a CTO or VP Engineering in a fast-moving product organization.
As a member of the KWI team you will receive
- Full Medical, Dental and Vision
- Annual bonus eligible
- Free gym in the building
- Generous PTO policy
- Summer Fridays....all year round
- Tuition Reimbursement
- Discount from building café
- 401(K) with a 50% company match (up to 6% of employee base salary)
- Employee Referral Program
- (1) Volunteer day each year
Our work space
We understand that our teams need flexibility, which is why we follow a hybrid schedule. Our in-office days of Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, and employees are allowed to work remotely on Wednesdays and Friday.
We are also a collaborative group and believe that getting together in person allows our team to do their best work. Together we enjoy monthly events, bagels every Thursday, a state-of-the-art coffee machine, a full snack pantry and many more surprise and delight moments throughout the year.
Our commitment to you
At KWI, we know that cultivating diversity and fostering an inclusive work environment is critical to our impact and success. We create an environment where no individual is advantaged or disadvantaged because of their background. We offer equal opportunity employment regardless of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability status, age, marital status, or protected veteran status.
With a commitment to maintaining a bias-free environment in which harassment is prohibited, we respect cultural diversity and comply with the laws of the places in which we operate. We expect our business partners, suppliers, clients, and all our team members to uphold these commitments.
About
KWI helps retailers maximize sales by uniting their online and in-store capabilities to deliver delightful shopper experiences. With KWI Merchandising and mobile POS, retailers can execute omnichannel flawlessly, and right at their fingertips — clienteling, endless aisle, mobile checkout with the latest payment options, inventory management, and ecommerce.
Skills Required
- 5 to 9 years of experience in technical program management, engineering program management, or comparable role
- Demonstrated ability to build and run release coordination at the program level across multiple teams
- Strong technical fluency to discuss architecture, dependencies, and technical risk
- Experience defining and documenting processes from scratch, including runbooks, RACI matrices, and dependency tracking frameworks
- Track record managing cross-functional stakeholders (product, QA, marketing, customer success) through complex releases
- Clear written communication and program-level status reporting for leadership decision-making
- Experience in a SaaS company serving retail or enterprise clients
- Familiarity with Kanban-based delivery workflows and maturing them into disciplined frameworks
- Hands-on experience evaluating or implementing AI-assisted workflows for delivery visibility or reporting
- Background working closely with a CTO or VP Engineering in a fast-moving product organization
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The Company
What We Do
Since 1985, we have delivered ongoing innovation – from SaaS to advancements in Unified Commerce that keep us in the forefront of cloud retail solutions. We offer a complete commerce solution for specialty retailers of all sizes. Our cloud-based technology powers all the solutions you need to create unified customer experiences.
