Job Description

Do you want to be part of our innovative and entrepreneurial team?
Do you thrive in an entrepreneurial environment and enjoy working in a team atmosphere? Are you an "outside the box" thinker who strives to implement continuous improvements? Do you take a strategic approach to your work? Do you enjoy a fast-paced culture where your opinions are valued and respected? Do you enjoy building partnerships to solve mutually beneficial challenges?
Mitacs is a national not-for-profit that helps industry and non-profit partners solve strategic challenges by leveraging Canada's world-class post-secondary talent and a global network of industry, academic, and government partnerships. Through these collaborations, Mitacs helps business and community partners succeed, improves students' on-the-job skills development, and strengthens Canada's world-class innovation ecosystem. At Mitacs, we strive to develop the next generation of innovators with vital research and business skills. In partnership with domestic and international companies, governments, and academia, we support a new economy using Canada's most valuable resource - its people.
To get a better understanding of Mitacs and read more about our values, please visit our .
Project Manager (One-year contract)
The Project Manager plays a key role in supporting the successful delivery of the Mitacs Enterprise Transformation (MET) and Mitacs Plus programs. Reporting to the Program Manager, Enterprise Transformation, this full-time temporary one-year contract role manages small to mid-sized projects or specific workstreams, ensuring initiatives are delivered on time, within scope and budget, and aligned with program objectives.
This is an individual contributor role with no direct reports, providing day-to-day leadership and coordination across cross-functional teams, vendors, and stakeholders. The role is hands-on and offers the opportunity to make a tangible impact, implement improvements, and drive initiatives in a fast-paced environment where processes and tools are still evolving. The position combines practical project management with strategic coordination, enabling smooth collaboration, effective governance, and continuous improvement within the Transformation Management Office (TMO).
Why This Role?
This is a full-time temporary one-year contract, offering the opportunity to:

• Contribute directly to enterprise-wide transformation initiatives with high organizational impact.
• Gain exposure to program-level governance and work closely with transformation leaders.
• Build valuable project management and change management experience in a dynamic environment.
• Take ownership of projects in a dynamic environment where your contributions directly shape processes, tools, and ways of working across the organization.
• Develop problem-solving, creative thinking, and stakeholder influence skills in a fast-paced environment.

Key Responsibilities
Project Management & Delivery

• Manage small to mid-sized projects or assigned workstreams under the MET umbrella, ensuring delivery on time, within scope, and within budget.
• Lead the planning, execution, and monitoring of project activities, coordinating timelines, resources, and deliverables.
• Maintain visibility on dependencies, milestones, risks, and issues across initiatives; make day-to-day delivery decisions and recommend trade-offs on scope, schedule, and resources; escalate high-impact risks and issues to the Program Manager, Director, Enterprise Transformation, and Sponsors.
• Organize and facilitate project meetings, prepare agendas, capture decisions, and ensure follow-up on action items.
• Own the financial health of assigned projects, including budget forecasting, monitoring, and reporting, while escalating variances to the Program Manager and Director, Enterprise Transformation as required.
• Work with existing systems and tools to streamline workflows, identify improvement opportunities, and implement solutions.

Program Alignment & Governance

• Work closely with the Program Manager to ensure that project objectives remain aligned with the overall Enterprise Transformation strategy.
• Maintain and update RAID logs (Risks, Actions, Issues, Dependencies/Decisions) in alignment with corporate Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) standards.
• Collaborate with the Program Manager to integrate project updates into program-level reporting.
• Contribute to the ongoing refinement and adoption of project and program management methodologies within the TMO/EPMO.

Stakeholder Engagement & Communication

• Build and maintain strong relationships with Sponsors, Director, Enterprise Transformation, Program Manager, Project Leads, and other stakeholders.
• Facilitate and develop effective communication and reports between cross-functional teams and ensure alignment on priorities and expectations.
• Contribute to change management activities, helping stakeholders adapt to program-driven changes.
• Present ideas and updates confidently to diverse audiences; influence decisions and drive alignment across teams.
• Think creatively to solve problems and propose innovative approaches to project challenges.

Role requirements:

• 5+ years of experience managing projects, ideally within large-scale transformation initiatives.
• Degree or diploma in Project Management, Business Administration, IT, or equivalent experience.
• Project Management certification (PMP, PRINCE2, or equivalent).
• Formal training or certifications in Agile (CSM, PSM, SAFe, PMI-ACP, ICP, DASM).
• Strong understanding of project and program management methodologies (Agile, Waterfall, or hybrid).
• Proficiency with Project Portfolio Management (PPM) tools such as Microsoft Project, Aha!, Smartsheet Control Center, Jira, Asana, or Monday.com.
• Understanding of change management practices (e.g., ADKAR or Kotter models); change management experience is considered an asset.
• Advanced skills in MS Excel, PowerPoint, and SharePoint.
• Strong problem-solving skills, ability to think outside the box, and adaptability in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong presentation and verbal communication skills; ability to influence stakeholders effectively.
• Experience preparing and maintaining project documentation and reports.
• Experience managing vendor relationships or working with external consulting partners.
• Strong stakeholder engagement, facilitation, and communication skills.
• Ability to manage competing priorities and adjust plans within a fast-changing environment.

Nice to have:

• Experience working within a TMO, EPMO, or program-focused environment.
• Experience in technology or startup environments is considered an asset.
• Prosci certification is considered an asset.
• Experience with Power Platform (Power BI, Power Apps, Power Automate).
• Knowledge of resource management and capacity planning best practices.
• Familiarity with AI tools to support project management, reporting, and decision-making (e.g., ChatGPT, Power BI Copilot, Smartsheet AI).

Hiring Range: $79,520 - $94,430
Hiring and Salary Range Transparency
Typically, employees are hired, transferred, or promoted within the salary range, specifically between the minimum and midpoint in the hiring range.
The salary range refers to the range of base salaries for a given position, encompassing the minimum and maximum amounts. The midpoint of the range is positioned approximately halfway between the minimum and maximum, indicating a fully qualified employee with comprehensive job knowledge and experience for the role.
Only in rare and exceptional circumstances, where a candidate has the experience, skills, and expertise that far exceed those required for the position, would we consider paying above the hiring range for this role.
Equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) and decolonization are core values at Mitacs: . We believe a diverse workforce comprised of individuals with different ideas, strengths, interests, and backgrounds (e.g., gender identities and expressions, Indigeneity, race, abilities, sexual orientation, and other identities) are crucial to our success. We welcome everyone to apply and encourage you to connect with us if you require accommodations during the recruitment process.

Skills Required