Technical Program Manager (TPM)

Job description

Technical Program Manager (TPM) Location: U.S. (Remote but must be based in the continental US; Mountain/Central time zone preferred) Clearance: Must be eligible and able to pass a government background check ABOUT SPRUCE Spruce builds privacy-preserving, standards-based digital identity and credentialing solutions that give individuals control of their information while enabling governments and enterprises to deliver secure, interoperable services. We partner with private and public-sector organizations to modernize how identity is issued, verified, and used. THE ROLE We are seeking a Technical Program Manager (TPM) to lead delivery of complex, high-stakes identity and credentialing software solutions and programs across government and enterprise environments. This is a high-autonomy, highly multifaceted role that blends technical delivery, customer ownership, and operational leadership. In many ways, this role functions as a Technical Success Manager / delivery lead hybrid—serving as the primary point of contact for one or more strategic customers. The TPM is expected to operate as the connective tissue between engineering teams and external stakeholders, especially CTOs, CIOs, product leaders, and program owners on the customer side. This role requires someone who can independently understand what the organization is trying to achieve, why it matters, and how to deliver it end-to-end—even when requirements are incomplete or evolving. CORE RESPONSIBILITIES 1. CUSTOMER & PROGRAM OWNERSHIP - Serve as the primary point of contact for assigned customer programs - Build deep, trusted relationships with technical and executive stakeholders (CTOs, CIOs, product leaders, procurement teams) - Understand customer objectives and uncover the “problem behind the problem” - Maintain clarity between what is requested vs. what is contractually agreed vs. what is technically feasible - Operate confidently in public sector and enterprise contracting environments 2. TECHNICAL PROGRAM DELIVERY - Translate customer and policy requirements into executable technical delivery plans - Partner closely with engineering and product teams to define epics, milestones, and delivery roadmaps - Participate actively in technical conversations (cloud architecture, APIs, containers, identity systems, digital signatures, etc.) - Independently field technical questions (e.g., AWS vs GCP tradeoffs, deployment models, integration patterns) Must be technically fluent enough to: - Participate in architecture-level discussions without relying on engineering escalation - Understand system design tradeoffs and communicate implications clearly to non-technical stakeholders 3. CONTRACT-AWARE EXECUTION - Read, interpret, and execute against customer contracts and SOWs - Identify obligations, constraints, and deliverables within agreements - Ensure delivery aligns with contractual commitments and scope boundaries - Support translation of contract requirements into technical execution plans (This is a core requirement of the role, not optional.) 4. MULTI-PROGRAM MANAGEMENT - Manage multiple concurrent engagements across private and public sector customers - Prioritize effectively across competing demands and delivery timelines - Determine when to escalate, when to unblock independently, and when to engage engineering resources - Protect engineering time by filtering, structuring, and reducing unnecessary meeting load 5. EXECUTION EXCELLENCE & STAKEHOLDER MANAGEMENT - Lead recurring customer meetings, technical working sessions, and executive updates - Run structured governance cadences across internal and external stakeholders - Deliver clear communication in high-stakes environments - Maintain strong alignment across engineering, product, and customer leadership teams 6. RISK, DEPENDENCY & DELIVERY MANAGEMENT - Identify delivery risks early and proactively mitigate across teams - Manage dependencies across engineering, product, and customer stakeholders - Ensure alignment on scope, timelines, and technical feasibility - Surface gaps between customer expectations and delivery reality WHAT YOU BRING - 3–7+ years in Technical Program Management, implementation delivery, or systems-focused customer success roles - Strong technical fluency (APIs, cloud infrastructure, system architecture, identity concepts preferred) - Proven ability to operate in complex, ambiguous, multi-stakeholder environments - Strong understanding of how software systems are built and delivered - Ability to independently interpret contracts, SOWs, or technical requirements - Excellent executive communication and relationship-building skills - Ability to protect engineering time while maintaining customer satisfaction NICE TO HAVE - Experience working with enterprise or government customers - Experience in identity, IAM / ICAM, zero trust, credentialing, or authentication systems - Familiarity with FedRAMP, NIST frameworks, or federal security standards - PMP or other program management certifications - Consulting, federal contracting, or enterprise transformation background - Prior engineering or deeply technical systems experience (strong advantage) WHY THIS ROLE MATTERS - Own delivery of mission-critical identity infrastructure programs - Work directly with senior government and enterprise stakeholders - Operate at the intersection of policy, engineering, and real-world systems delivery - Join a small, high-trust team where autonomy and judgment matter - Help shape how secure digital identity systems are delivered at scale