Principal Technical Program Manager

Disney Disney · Media · Seattle, WA +4

This role is for a Principal Technical Program Manager at Disney, focusing on leading strategic, high-impact technical programs for Disney's Advertising alliance. The responsibilities include defining program scope, success metrics, and operating mechanisms, driving cross-functional alignment and execution, owning portfolio governance and investment planning, and managing quarterly and annual operating plans. The role requires extensive experience in program/product management, strategic planning, and scaling operational frameworks in complex, matrixed technology or media organizations. While the role operates within a technology organization that may utilize AI, the core function is program management, not direct AI/ML development.

What you'd actually do

  1. Lead execution of large, high-impact, alliance-level initiatives with clear milestones, success metrics, and launch criteria.
  2. Drive quarterly planning at scale (100+ teams), translating strategic priorities into committed, capacity-based delivery plans.
  3. Build and maintain capacity models that account for existing commitments, new initiatives, dependencies, and cross-fleet constraints.
  4. Define and evolve portfolio governance, planning standards, and execution mechanisms (process, tooling, documentation, and reporting) that scale across the organization.
  5. Establish operating rhythms and reporting to ensure predictable delivery, quality, and readiness across organizations.

Skills

Required

  • Bachelor’s degree in business, engineering, communications or a related field.
  • 10+ years of experience in engineering, program or product management and operations, strategic planning, or cross-functional program delivery in a technology or media environment.
  • Proven experience building and scaling operational frameworks and planning processes.
  • Proven experience leading large‑scale technical portfolios in complex, matrixed organizations.
  • Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities across complex, matrixed teams.
  • Proficiency with tools such as Airtable, JIRA, Confluence, Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Slides), Excel.
  • Demonstrated ability to influence without authority and drive alignment across diverse stakeholder groups.
  • Excellent communication and facilitation skills, with the ability to distill complexity and synthesize plans for executive audiences.

Nice to have

  • Experience working in a product-led organization, particularly with scaled agile or OKR-driven planning environments.
  • Familiarity with technical project management and delivery life cycles.
  • Experience in strategic initiative planning and financial tracking (e.g., CAR/CER funding processes).
  • High attention to detail with a strong sense of ownership and accountability.
  • Comfortable navigating ambiguity and driving clarity in fast-paced, evolving environments.

What the JD emphasized

  • 10+ years of experience in engineering, program or product management and operations, strategic planning, or cross-functional program delivery in a technology or media environment.
  • Proven experience building and scaling operational frameworks and planning processes.
  • Proven experience leading large‑scale technical portfolios in complex, matrixed organizations.
  • Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities across complex, matrixed teams.
  • Demonstrated ability to influence without authority and drive alignment across diverse stakeholder groups.
  • Excellent communication and facilitation skills, with the ability to distill complexity and synthesize plans for executive audiences.