Agile Project Manager

About the job

Key responsibilities

• Facilitate and coordinate Agile Scrum processes within the company

• Coordinate cross-functional teams (developers, QA, UX/UI, DevOps) to ensure smooth project execution

• Guide and coach the team on Agile Scrum principles and practices, Scrum rules and cross - functionality

• Ensure the team works collaboratively and efficiently to deliver high-quality product

• Facilitate the daily Scrum meetings

• Identify and troubleshoot obstacles that are hindering the team’s progress

• Remove any impediments to the team’s efficiency and progress

• Work with the Product/ System Developer to prioritise the product backlog

• Promote continuous improvement through retrospectives and feedback sessions

• Manage performance of the team and record non-performance accordingly

• Support the team with defining clear and concise Product Backlog items

• Communicate project status, risks and issues to stakeholders

• Track KPIs and help teams deliver high-quality products/solutions on time

• Facilitate stakeholder collaboration and remove barriers between stakeholders and Scrum teams

• Supporting Scrum events and ensuring they are positive, productive, and kept within the assigned timebox

• Apply agile methodologies and ensure compliance with the relevant legislation

• Compile Weekly and Monthly Reports

• Manage project budgets, timelines, and resource allocation.

• Use tools such as Jira, Confluence, Trello, or Azure DevOps to manage workflows and documentation.

Qualifications

• Diploma or bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Technology, Business, or a related field

• Minimum 5 years of experience managing software development projects

• Agile Project Management Certifications – PMI-ACP/AgilePM/CSM (Mandatory)

• Project Management Certifications – PMP/Prince2/Other (Mandatory)

• Proven track record delivering projects in Agile environments (Scrum, Kanban, or hybrid)

• Sound understanding of the software development lifecycle (SDLC).

• Experience using Agile project management tools (e.g., Jira, Trello, Azure DevOps)

• Familiarity with DevOps, CI/CD practices is desirable

• Proficient in MS Office Suite and document management tools

Skills and competencies

• Analytical

• Planning an organising

• Report writing skills

• Budget management skills

• Excellent interpersonal and consultative skills

• Ability to effectively present to and interact with all levels of management

• Ethical and trustworthy and committed to continuous improvement

• Excellent communication, leadership, and stakeholder management skills.

• Strong organizational and multitasking abilities.

• Ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced environment.

For those interested and do meet the requirements, to apply, please forward your CV and supporting documents to hr@Ptpi.co.za. 

Key Responsibilities

1. Facilitate Agile Scrum Processes
   
   

   • Schedule and lead sprint planning, daily stand-ups, reviews, and retrospectives.
     
     

   • Ensure team follows Agile principles and stays aligned with sprint goals.
     
     

   • Protect team from outside disruptions and scope creep.
     
     

   • Maintain Scrum artifacts (Product Backlog, Sprint Backlog, Burndown Charts).
     
     

   • Act as servant-leader to promote Agile culture.
     
     

2. Coordinate Cross-Functional Teams
   
   

   • Align development, QA, UX/UI, and DevOps efforts.
     
     

   • Ensure clarity on roles, responsibilities, and deadlines.
     
     

   • Mitigate hand-off delays between departments.
     
     

   • Encourage knowledge sharing and collaboration.
     
     

   • Synchronize release plans and testing schedules.
     
     

3. Coach Agile Principles and Practices
   
   

   • Mentor team on Agile/Scrum methodology.
     
     

   • Reinforce team accountability and self-organization.
     
     

   • Support cross-functionality and T-shaped skills.
     
     

   • Guide retrospectives and implement improvements.
     
     

   • Train new team members on Scrum rules and tools.
     
     

4. Ensure Collaborative, High-Quality Output
   
   

   • Foster a trusting and open team environment.
     
     

   • Encourage peer feedback and continuous learning.
     
     

   • Promote Definition of Done (DoD) and quality standards.
     
     

   • Address conflict and miscommunication quickly.
     
     

   • Keep focus on sprint goals and customer value.
     
     

5. Facilitate Daily Stand-ups
   
   

   • Keep meetings focused, brief, and time-boxed.
     
     

   • Ensure each team member shares blockers and progress.
     
     

   • Note impediments and follow up for resolution.
     
     

   • Use stand-ups to realign team direction if needed.
     
     

   • Document key points for transparency.
     
     

6. Identify and Remove Obstacles
   
   

   • Proactively seek feedback on blockers.
     
     

   • Escalate issues to relevant stakeholders.
     
     

   • Solve internal and external team dependencies.
     
     

   • Address tooling or access issues.
     
     

   • Track impediments in a backlog or issue log.
     
     

7. Collaborate with Product/System Developers
   
   

   • Assist in backlog refinement and prioritization.
     
     

   • Ensure stories meet INVEST criteria.
     
     

   • Clarify story points and acceptance criteria.
     
     

   • Support alignment of business value and tech feasibility.
     
     

   • Plan release strategy collaboratively.
     
     

8. Promote Continuous Improvement
   
   

   • Lead retrospectives with actionable follow-ups.
     
     

   • Collect feedback from users and stakeholders.
     
     

   • Track and measure improvement initiatives.
     
     

   • Encourage experimentation and innovation.
     
     

   • Promote a culture of psychological safety.
     
     

9. Manage Team Performance
   
   

   • Monitor individual and team KPIs.
     
     

   • Address underperformance tactfully.
     
     

   • Set performance expectations clearly.
     
     

   • Support training and upskilling needs.
     
     

   • Provide feedback in regular one-on-ones.
     
     

10. Define Product Backlog Items
    
    

    • Ensure user stories are clear, testable, and valuable.
      
      

    • Collaborate on story writing and technical detail.
      
      

    • Validate prioritization aligns with business goals.
      
      

    • Help estimate effort and define story points.
      
      

    • Keep backlog groomed and up to date.
      
      

11. Communicate Status, Risks, Issues
    
    

    • Prepare status reports for leadership.
      
      

    • Track and communicate project risks.
      
      

    • Use RAID (Risks, Assumptions, Issues, Dependencies) log.
      
      

    • Maintain transparency with internal and external stakeholders.
      
      

    • Escalate high-impact concerns early.
      
      

12. Track KPIs and Delivery
    
    

    • Monitor velocity, burndown charts, lead time.
      
      

    • Identify trends and root causes of delays.
      
      

    • Use metrics to support team improvements.
      
      

    • Align delivery with sprint/release goals.
      
      

    • Report delivery progress accurately.
      
      

13. Facilitate Stakeholder Collaboration
    
    

    • Act as bridge between Scrum team and business.
      
      

    • Ensure stakeholders attend reviews and demos.
      
      

    • Remove silos and enable cross-functional discussions.
      
      

    • Translate business needs into technical terms.
      
      

    • Manage expectations and scope negotiation.
      
      

14. Support Scrum Events Effectively
    
    

    • Ensure all events are scheduled and purposeful.
      
      

    • Time-box all events per Scrum guidelines.
      
      

    • Encourage full participation.
      
      

    • Capture outcomes and action items.
      
      

    • Follow through on retrospective decisions.
      
      

15. Apply Agile Methodologies and Compliance
    
    

    • Align agile practices with regulatory needs.
      
      

    • Maintain auditability of processes.
      
      

    • Ensure security and legal compliance in delivery.
      
      

    • Adapt frameworks as needed (Scrum, Kanban, SAFe).
      
      

    • Document decisions and progress consistently.
      
      

16. Compile Weekly/Monthly Reports
    
    

    • Use project dashboards (Jira, Confluence).
      
      

    • Track key deliverables and milestones.
      
      

    • Highlight blockers and risks.
      
      

    • Provide insights and recommendations.
      
      

    • Ensure reports are accurate and timely.
      
      

17. Manage Budgets, Timelines, Resources
    
    

    • Track budget burn and forecast expenses.
      
      

    • Adjust timelines based on resource capacity.
      
      

    • Reallocate resources as priorities shift.
      
      

    • Negotiate scope if constraints arise.
      
      

    • Monitor actual vs planned performance.
      
      

18. Use Agile Tools (Jira, Trello, etc.)
    
    

    • Set up and maintain project boards.
      
      

    • Track epics, user stories, and tasks.
      
      

    • Manage workflow states and filters.
      
      

    • Generate reports from tools for stakeholders.
      
      

    • Integrate with CI/CD pipelines and documentation.
      
      

Qualifications

1. Relevant Education
   
   

   • Diploma or Degree in IT, Business, or related.
     
     

   • Understanding of business processes and software.
     
     

   • Academic foundation in systems analysis or development.
     
     

   • Project-based learning or internships preferred.
     
     

   • Post-grad certifications are an advantage.
     
     

2. 5+ Years Software Project Experience
   
   

   • Proven delivery in Agile environments.
     
     

   • Experience managing cross-functional dev teams.
     
     

   • Familiarity with sprints, iterations, and backlogs.
     
     

   • Exposure to both internal and outsourced teams.
     
     

   • Portfolio of successful software implementations.
     
     

3. Agile Certifications (Mandatory)
   
   

   • Certified Scrum Master (CSM), PMI-ACP, AgilePM.
     
     

   • Demonstrated application of learned frameworks.
     
     

   • Continuous learning through Agile events.
     
     

   • Strong grasp of Agile roles and ceremonies.
     
     

   • Certification maintenance and renewal awareness.
     
     

4. Project Management Certification (Mandatory)
   
   

   • PMP, PRINCE2, or equivalent.
     
     

   • Knowledge of project lifecycle and PMBOK.
     
     

   • Risk, time, cost, and quality management.
     
     

   • Governance and stakeholder reporting.
     
     

   • Experience balancing Agile and traditional PM.
     
     

5. Proven Agile Delivery
   
   

   • Demonstrated use of Scrum, Kanban, or hybrid models.
     
     

   • Ability to tailor frameworks to team maturity.
     
     

   • Clear definition of success metrics.
     
     

   • Case studies or references available.
     
     

   • Rapid iteration and customer feedback loops.
     
     

Skills and Competencies

1. Analytical and Planning
   
   

   • Strong critical thinking and problem-solving.
     
     

   • Risk identification and mitigation.
     
     

   • Sprint and release forecasting.
     
     

   • Use of data to support decisions.
     
     

   • Scenario planning and contingency creation.
     
     

2. Reporting and Budgeting
   
   

   • Writing clear, concise reports and summaries.
     
     

   • Tracking and forecasting budget burn.
     
     

   • Communicating variance and cost impacts.
     
     

   • Data visualization in reports.
     
     

   • ROI and cost/benefit analysis.
     
     

3. People and Leadership Skills
   
   

   • Influencing without authority.
     
     

   • Building trust with stakeholders.
     
     

   • Coaching teams and individuals.
     
     

   • Conflict resolution and negotiation.
     
     

   • Creating a collaborative team culture.
     
     

4. Communication and Presentation
   
   

   • Presenting updates to executive stakeholders.
     
     

   • Documenting decisions and trade-offs.
     
     

   • Translating technical to non-technical.
     
     

   • Running workshops or backlog grooming sessions.
     
     

   • Active listening and question framing.
     
     

5. Organizational Agility
   
   

   • Prioritizing competing tasks and deadlines.
     
     

   • Switching context between products/projects.
     
     

   • Delegating effectively.
     
     

   • Working under pressure and uncertainty.
     
     

   • Aligning team efforts with business goals.
     
     

Here’s a breakdown of what it means to lead sprint planning, daily stand-ups, reviews, and retrospectives, with key activities and objectives for each:

🗓 1. Sprint Planning

Goal: Define the work to be done during the sprint.

Key Activities:

• Facilitate team discussion on the sprint goal.
  
  

• Ensure the Product Owner presents prioritized backlog items.
  
  

• Help the team estimate effort (story points, time).
  
  

• Ensure team commits to a realistic amount of work.
  
  

• Clarify acceptance criteria and DoD (Definition of Done).
  
  

You lead by:

• Time-boxing the meeting (typically 2 hours for a 2-week sprint).
  
  

• Guiding scope discussions without imposing tasks.
  
  

• Removing ambiguities from backlog items.
  
  

• Aligning the team on sprint objectives.
  
  

☕ 2. Daily Stand-Ups (Daily Scrum)

Goal: Synchronize the team and identify blockers.

Key Activities:

• Each team member answers:
  
  

  1. What did I do yesterday?
     
     

  2. What will I do today?
     
     

  3. Are there any blockers?
     
     

• Note impediments and follow up after the meeting.
  
  

You lead by:

• Keeping the meeting under 15 minutes.
  
  

• Ensuring everyone participates and stays focused.
  
  

• Preventing side conversations or deep dives.
  
  

• Encouraging transparency and accountability.
  
  

✅ 3. Sprint Review

Goal: Demonstrate completed work to stakeholders.

Key Activities:

• Team showcases completed user stories.
  
  

• Product Owner confirms what is “done.”
  
  

• Stakeholders provide feedback.
  
  

• Discuss what can be released or adjusted.
  
  

You lead by:

• Organizing the session and inviting key stakeholders.
  
  

• Helping the team prepare meaningful demos.
  
  

• Facilitating constructive feedback.
  
  

• Highlighting progress toward product goals.
  
  

🔁 4. Sprint Retrospective

Goal: Reflect on the sprint and identify improvement areas.

Key Activities:

• Review what went well, what didn’t, and what to improve.
  
  

• Prioritize 1–2 actionable improvements for next sprint.
  
  

• Foster honest, blame-free discussion.
  
  

You lead by:

• Creating a psychologically safe environment.
  
  

• Using retrospective formats (e.g., Start/Stop/Continue).
  
  

• Ensuring follow-through on action items.
  
  

• Encouraging experimentation for continuous improvement.
  
  

3. Agile Ceremony Checklist (for Cross-Functional Teams)

Ceremony

Who Attends

Frequency

Checklist

Sprint Planning

Dev, QA, UX/UI, DevOps, PO, SM

Every Sprint Start

- Prioritized backlog

- Sprint goal defined

- Story estimates

- Capacity check

Daily Stand-up

Dev, QA, UX/UI, DevOps, SM

Daily (15 min)

- What was done?

- What’s next?

- Any blockers?

- Keep within timebox

Backlog Grooming

PO, Dev, QA, UX/UI, SM

Mid-sprint or weekly

- Clarify stories

- Refine acceptance criteria

- Reprioritize as needed

Sprint Review

All + Stakeholders

Sprint End

- Demo working product

- Capture feedback

- Confirm what’s done

Retrospective

Entire Scrum Team

Sprint End

- What went well?

- What didn’t?

- Action items for improvement

Release Planning

DevOps, QA, PO, SM

As needed

- Deployment readiness

- Rollback plan

- Environment checks

 Product Owner

     │

     ▼

 User Stories & Backlog Grooming

     │

     ▼

Sprint Planning

     ├────────────┬──────────────┬────────────┬──────────────┐

     ▼            ▼              ▼            ▼              ▼

 Developers   QA Engineers    UX/UI       DevOps        Scrum Master

     │           │              │            │              │

     └─► Dev Work Done   ─► Test Plans  ─► Design Final   ─► Environment Setup

         (Coding, APIs)     (Test Cases)    (Mockups)        (CI/CD, Servers)

     ▼

  Code Review & Merge

     ▼

  QA Testing (Functional, Regression)

     ▼

  UAT (User Acceptance Testing)

     ▼

  Staging Deployment

     ▼

  Final Production Deployment (by DevOps)

     ▼

  Sprint Review & Retrospective

📊 1. Cross-Functional RACI Template

Task / Responsibility

Developers

QA

UX/UI

DevOps

Scrum Master / PM

Define sprint goal

C

C

C

C

A / R

Write user stories / backlog grooming

C / I

C / I

C / I

I

A / R

Create UI wireframes / design mockups

I

I

A / R

I

C

Estimate effort (story points)

A / R

C

C

C

C

Develop application features

A / R

I

I

C

I

Execute unit and integration testing

A / R

C

I

C

I

Execute system and regression testing

I

A / R

I

I

C

Ensure UI design is implemented correctly

C

C

A / R

I

C

Set up test/staging/production environments

I

C

I

A / R

C

Deploy release to production

I

I

I

A / R

C

Facilitate daily Scrum & remove blockers

I

I

I

I

A / R

Retrospective and continuous improvement sessions

A / R

A / R

A / R

A / R

A / R

R = Responsible
A = Accountable
C = Consulted
I = Informed