Senior Project Manager

Job Description

Heavy transport is one of the hardest sectors to decarbonize — and most answers on the table ask fleets to throw away everything they already own. We're taking a different route.

Heavy transport is one of the hardest sectors to decarbonize — and most answers on the table ask fleets to throw away everything they already own. We're taking a different route. Cespira was born from a joint venture between Volvo Group and Westport Fuel Systems and is the home of HPDI technology: a fuel system that lets existing internal combustion engines run on natural gas, bio-methane, syngas, and hydrogen. It integrates into the trucks already on the road, which means real emissions reductions at scale, now — not after a decade-long platform replacement.

We were founded in 2024 and are headquartered in Vancouver, with the backing of two industry leaders behind us. That's an unusual combination: startup pace and ownership, with proven technology and serious partners. As a Senior Project Manager, you'll be at the center of it — coordinating across engineering, our parent companies, and OEM partners to move programs from commitment to delivery.

The Sr. Project Manager is a key driver of product and technology development with significant and complex scope. They ensure seamless coordination and execution across the cross-functional Product teams. Throughout the product lifecycle, the Sr. Project Manager maintains responsibility for meeting critical deadlines, managing dependencies, and facilitating communication between the Product team members. During product development, they oversee the execution of Cespira’s Product Development Process (CPDP) to ensure timely and high-quality outcomes. In production, they take ownership of product change requests and manage them from initiation through successful implementation. This role requires a strong and dedicated team player that is familiar with automotive product development, has acute attention to detail, can effectively communicate to senior management and executes at a high caliber.

Job Requirements

Project Execution:

• Own the cross functional execution schedule for the assigned Product(s)-plan it, drive it, and make the trade-offs when reality disagrees with the plan.
• Facilitate communication between product team members and other departments, ensuring everyone is aligned on key objectives. Escalate issues that cannot be resolved through the appropriate channels.
• Keep the team pulling in the same direction and say so loudly and early when they're not.
• Run Cespira's Product Development Process (CPDP) with discipline — not as a checkbox, but because it's how complex hardware projects actually ship on time.
• Build and maintain the risk register before problems become crises, and drive the mitigation plans yourself.
• Coordinate prototype ordering and tracking across every active project — the physical builds that turn designs into proof.
• Support the Program Manager with budget forecasting and planning.
• Support budget plan with the Program Manager and help quote new development work.
• Capture lessons learned, identify solutions, and drive change through the organization.

Change Management:

• Take ownership of product change requests end to end — from impact assessment through implementation.
• Support the quoting and execution of customer PCR’s specific to their Product.

Product Planning:

• Partner with the Product Manager on product roadmaps and ongoing business case evaluation for ongoing Product improvements.

Job Responsibilities

What you bring:

• 10+years' experience in project and program management, PMP, PgMP certification (or equivalent)asset.
• 15+years' experience in an engineering environment, preferably in the automotive industry.
• A track record of running large, technically complex projects to completion, not just keeping the status report green.
• Real fluency with APQP and gated development processes, and the judgment to know when agile and waterfall each earn their place.
• Superior communication and interpersonal skills to foster strong customer and Cespira relationships.
• A bachelor’s degree in engineering(Master's in a related field a plus), and a willingness to travel internationally when the work calls for it.

Who you are:

• Passionate. You are determined in all aspects of your work. You are driven by success and are motivated by the success of our customers, colleagues and the Cespira business.
• Empathetic. You are an active listener with a strong desire to understand others’ perspectives. Your ability to connect with people fosters trust, collaboration, and a supportive environment.
• Problem Solver. You tackle challenges head on. You analyze situations thoroughly, think critically, and develop creative, effective solutions that drive results.

Salary

120000 - 140000 CAD (yearly)

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