Infrastructure Project Manager

Position: Infrastructure Project Manager
Location: Milwaukee/Mequon WI
Work Environment: Hybrid
Terms: 6-month contract to hire
Rate: $50 to $65 per hour (salary conversion up to 120K w/bonuses)

"No 3rd party candidates will be reviewed."

Job Summary

We are seeking an experienced IT Infrastructure Project Manager to oversee and drive the successful execution of IT infrastructure projects. The ideal candidate should have a strong understanding of servers, infrastructure security applications, firewalls, switches, wireless networks, Active Directory, and email migrations. While this role does not require hands-on technical work, a solid grasp of infrastructure processes-such as firewall installations, email migrations, and server upgrades-is essential for effective project management and team coordination.

Key Responsibilities

1. Project Execution

• Define key project milestones and set target completion dates within the first week of assignment.
• Develop a detailed project work plan, including total project hours, within the first month of assignment.
• Conduct weekly task reviews with the project team to track progress and update project plans accordingly.
• Clearly define and communicate task ownership, deadlines, and responsibilities for all project resources.
• Coordinate with vendors to ensure timely delivery of dependencies critical to task execution.
• Forecast resource requirements (e.g., team hours) at least three weeks in advance.
• Work with the project team to develop migration and cutover schedules, communication plans, and detailed execution strategies.

2. Project Budget Management

• Define and document the project budget within the first month of assignment.
• Coordinate with vendors to obtain executable quotes for hardware, software, and subscriptions while ensuring alignment with the project budget.
• Facilitate approval processes and order execution in collaboration with the project sponsor.
• Establish and track the services utilization budget (burn rate) throughout the project.
• Regularly review and update budget utilization with the project team (at least monthly).
• Immediately escalate any scope changes that may impact budget or timeline to the project sponsor or steering committee.

3. Project Status Reporting & Communication

• Prepare and distribute weekly project status reports to the project sponsor and relevant stakeholders.
• Lead weekly status meetings with the project team to:
  • Ensure clear task ownership and deadlines.
  • Address roadblocks or issues preventing progress.
  • Keep the project aligned with milestone deadlines.
• Conduct recurring status meetings with the project sponsor and/or steering committee to review:
  • Completed and upcoming key tasks.
  • Changes that may impact business operations.
  • Overall project alignment with budget and milestones.
• Maintain and share an open issues log to track and resolve project roadblocks.
• Manage and monitor a Transition Service Agreement (TSA) tracker to ensure all service discontinuation deadlines are met.
• Ensure the completion of transition documentation and communicate final project handoff details to the project sponsor and team.

Qualifications & Experience

• Proven experience managing IT infrastructure projects, preferably in environments involving network security, cloud migrations, or enterprise systems.
• Strong understanding of server architecture, networking, firewalls, Active Directory, and email migration processes.
• Excellent organizational, communication, and leadership skills.
• Ability to manage multiple vendors, budgets, and technical teams effectively.
• Experience with project management methodologies (Agile, Waterfall, or hybrid approaches) is a plus.