Project Manager
Summary
A Project Manager at Modern Climate, a full-service marketing agency, operationally owns assigned client projects from kickoff through delivery — keeping timelines, budgets, resources, and risks on track across Account, Creative, Strategy, and Development teams. The role demands proactive communication, forecasting, and project management tools like Klient PSA.
As our name suggests, we’re a full-service marketing company with a decidedly modern twist. We merge fresh thinking and creativity with the latest technology and demand generation strategies to help our clients stand up and stand out in today’s radically shifting, hyper-competitive, maze-like marketing ecosystem. We take a digital-first, data-driven approach to everything we do. Meaningfully connecting brands to people and diligently measuring and optimizing our efforts every step of the way. It’s how we move our clients boldly forward in a world of change.
Modern Climate. Marketers for the modern world.
Modern Climate. Marketers for the modern world.
Project Manager
Role Overview
The Project Manager is the operational owner of assigned client work at Modern Climate, responsible for keeping projects moving with clarity, accountability, and urgency from kickoff through delivery.
A successful Project Manager has a command of where every project stands at all times—what is happening now, what needs to happen next, who owns it, and where risks or dependencies exist. They proactively communicate expectations and priorities to project teams, maintain close day-to-day visibility into the work, and ensure nothing falls through the cracks.
This is a highly proactive role. While individual tasks may belong to Account, Creative, Strategy, Development, or other disciplines, the Project Manager owns the process of ensuring the work is progressing according to plan.
Core Responsibilities
A successful Project Manager has a command of where every project stands at all times—what is happening now, what needs to happen next, who owns it, and where risks or dependencies exist. They proactively communicate expectations and priorities to project teams, maintain close day-to-day visibility into the work, and ensure nothing falls through the cracks.
This is a highly proactive role. While individual tasks may belong to Account, Creative, Strategy, Development, or other disciplines, the Project Manager owns the process of ensuring the work is progressing according to plan.
Core Responsibilities
Own the Work
- Maintain a clear, current understanding of the status, timeline, priorities, risks, and next steps for every assigned project.
- Build and manage project plans that establish clear milestones, dependencies, reviews, approvals, and delivery dates.
- Ensure projects continue moving forward and required steps happen at the right time, regardless of which discipline owns the individual task.
- Identify risks, blockers, or changes early and drive the appropriate resolution before they impact delivery.
- Hold project teams accountable to commitments while maintaining collaborative working relationships.
Drive Communication & Accountability
- Proactively communicate project expectations, priorities, deadlines, and changes across Account, Creative, Strategy, Development, and other stakeholders.
- Maintain regular, direct communication with project teams—including day-to-day communication with Creative—to understand actual progress and ensure expectations are clear.
- Follow up persistently on outstanding decisions, approvals, deliverables, and action items rather than waiting for updates.
- Ensure stakeholders understand not only what changed, but what it means for timing, resources, dependencies, and next steps.
- Create confidence across the organization that project details are understood, communicated, and under control.
Manage Resources & Project Health
- Anticipate resource needs and proactively communicate specific staffing requirements based on upcoming work.
- Maintain accurate project forecasts based on current scope, timing, staffing, and actual progress.
- Work closely with the MC Account team members to monitor project budgets, burn, scope, and resource utilization and raise concerns early.
- Partner with department and resource leadership on staffing while retaining ownership of project timing and delivery.
- Coordinate freelancers and external vendors as needed, including scope, timing, budget, and deliverables.
What Success Looks Like
- At any point, the Project Manager should be able to clearly answer:
- Where is each project right now?
- What happens next?
- Who owns it?
- When is it due?
- Is the team appropriately resourced?
- What could prevent us from delivering successfully?
- Who needs to know about it?
Successful Project Managers are proactive rather than reactive. They anticipate what is coming, communicate early and often, follow up until issues are resolved, and are frequently the first person identifying a potential project issue-not the person learning about it after someone else raises the alarm.
The result is predictable project delivery, accountable teams, reliable forecasting, fewer surprises, and confidence across the agency that the work is under control.
Experience & Qualifications
- 3+ years of project management experience within an advertising, marketing, creative, or digital agency, with a strong understanding of agency workflows, timelines, and resource management.
- Demonstrated ability to manage multiple concurrent projects and cross-functional teams.
- Strong understanding of creative and/or digital production workflows.
- Proven ability to manage timelines, budgets, resources, dependencies, and project risk.
- Demonstrated ability to maintain consistent, proactive communication with Creative teams - ensuring priorities, deadlines, and expectations are clear and adjusting quickly as needs change.
- Highly proactive, organized, persistent, and comfortable holding others accountable without direct authority.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills and the ability to communicate effectively across disciplines and levels of seniority.
- Experience with project management, resource planning, and forecasting platforms; Klient PSA or similar experience is a plus.
- Experience working with freelancers, contractors, or external vendors is preferred.
