Project Manager

Cogitate · India

ROLE OVERVIEW

Job Title

Project Manager

Department

Delivery

Reporting To

Senior Vice President — Delivery

Location

Mumbai, Maharashtra · Hybrid

Employment Type

Full-time

Experience

3-5 years; experience in P&C Insurance (US markets) an added advantage

ROLE PURPOSE

Lead, plan, and drive the delivery of software projects for Cogitate's insurance clients, ensuring scope, schedule, quality, and client satisfaction targets are consistently met.

The Project Manager owns day-to-day delivery execution, team coordination, and stakeholder communication across the full project lifecycle.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Manage and own the full project lifecycle — initiation, planning, execution, monitoring, controlling, and post-production support — for software delivery projects
• Lead cross-functional coordination across engineering, QA, product, and client stakeholders to drive aligned delivery
• Develop and maintain project plans, risk registers, resource plans, and milestone schedules; keep all artefacts current and accessible
• Communicate proactively with clients — managing expectations, surfacing risks early, and ensuring consistent satisfaction across engagements
• Own internal and external status reporting — weekly and monthly updates to management and clients
• Identify, document, and escalate risks and issues with clear impact assessments and recommended mitigations
• Manage resource allocation and utilisation within the project team; flag capacity constraints before they become blockers
• Ensure all project documentation and processes adhere to Cogitate's SDLC and quality standards
• Track and report project performance metrics — velocity, delivery rate, defect trends, SLA adherence and client health indicators
• Build AI maturity across the team by sharing tools, use cases, and best practices with engineers and QA leads
• Use AI tools to automate routine reporting — drafting status updates, meeting notes, and action logs using Copilot or equivalent
• Apply AI-powered risk scanning to track project health indicators and surface early warnings before they escalate
• Leverage AI scheduling tools to optimise sprint planning and resource allocation across the team
• Use LLM tools to draft client communications and change request documentation — then review and refine before sending

AI-Enhanced Responsibilities: These responsibilities reflect how AI tools are expected to be embedded in this role. Proficiency will grow over time — what matters is the mindset and willingness to adopt.

Core Competencies

Project Lifecycle Management – Advanced: Independently manages the full lifecycle delivery of software projects of moderate to high complexity, ensuring projects are delivered effectively from initiation through closure.

Risk & Issue Management – Advanced: Builds and maintains risk registers, proactively identifies potential issues, and escalates risks with clear recommendations, ensuring that risks rarely become unexpected surprises.

Client & Stakeholder Communication – Advanced: Manages regular client and stakeholder touchpoints and communicates clearly and confidently on project status, risks, dependencies, and changes.

Delivery Methodologies (Agile/Waterfall/Hybrid) – Proficient: Works effectively across Agile, Waterfall, and Hybrid delivery environments and adapts the approach based on project requirements and business needs.

PM Tools (Jira, Redmine, MS Project) – Advanced: Configures and manages project tracking tools and uses them to generate meaningful project reports, dashboards, and delivery insights.

P&C Insurance Domain Knowledge – Proficient: Demonstrates an understanding of core Property & Casualty (P&C) insurance workflows and their implications for software development and delivery.

Budget & Resource Management – Proficient: Tracks project budgets, resource plans, and utilization, proactively identifies variances, and proposes appropriate corrective actions.

Monitoring and Tracking – Proficient: Tracks key project metrics, monitors delivery performance, and identifies opportunities for improvement.

Behavioural Competencies:

Ownership & Accountability: Takes responsibility for delivery outcomes and consistently brings practical solutions to the table rather than simply highlighting problems.

Communication Excellence: Communicates clearly and effectively in both written and verbal formats with technical and non-technical audiences.

Structured Problem Solving: Diagnoses delivery challenges methodically and proposes practical, risk-aware solutions that support successful project outcomes.

Be a Fanatic About Response Time: Responds to clients and team members with urgency, ensures reliable follow-through, and promotes a culture of responsiveness and timely delivery.

Collaborative Leadership: Influences and aligns cross-functional teams without relying on direct authority and builds trust through consistency, transparency, and collaboration.

Continuous Improvement: Continuously looks for better ways to improve delivery processes, including embracing AI tools and automation that reduce administrative effort and improve quality.

What You Bring

Must Have: A BE, B.Tech, MCA, B.Sc. in IT, or equivalent qualification;

3–5 years of project management experience in software delivery; experience managing the full lifecycle of client-facing software projects; strong working knowledge of Jira, Redmine, or equivalent project management tools; clear and confident client and stakeholder communication skills; and experience monitoring and tracking key project metrics.

Good to Have: Experience or knowledge in P&C insurance, exposure to Agile, Waterfall, or Hybrid delivery environments, and experience with project budgeting, resource management, and continuous improvement initiatives.