Senior Project Manager (AI Hackathon Event)

Who we are

NTT DATA is looking for an experienced Senior Project Manager to take end-to-end operational ownership of the planning, coordination, execution, and follow-up of the Global AI Hackathon.
This is a high-visibility global initiative, involving NTT DATA employees, senior leadership, multiple regions and business units, as well as external agencies and suppliers.
The Project Manager will act as the central coordination point, ensuring that all workstreams, stakeholders, events, communications, dependencies, and deliverables remain aligned and are executed according to plan.

The role requires exceptional organization, executive-level communication, strong ownership, anticipation of risks, and disciplined execution. Deadlines are fixed, multiple global stakeholders must be coordinated simultaneously, and execution quality is critical.

What you'll be doing

• End-to-End Project Management
• Build, own, and maintain the Global AI Hackathon master plan, including milestones, critical path, dependencies, owners, and deadlines
• Drive execution across the complete lifecycle: preparation, launch, competition, regional phases, global final, awards, and closure
• Establish project governance, RACI, reporting cadence, decision mechanisms, and escalation paths
• Coordinate multiple parallel workstreams and ensure cross-team dependencies are actively managed
• Drive actions through completion and proactively intervene when delivery is at risk
• Global & Executive Stakeholder Management
• Act as the central project coordination interface across Global NTT DATA, regions, business units, practices, and functions
• Work directly with senior and executive management, providing concise status, risks, decisions required, and recommendations
• Coordinate leadership, regional leads, jury members, trainers, communications teams, support teams, and other stakeholders
• Ensure executive meetings and events are fully prepared with validated materials, agendas, responsibilities, and follow-up actions
• External Agency & Supplier Management
• Coordinate external agencies, event suppliers, communication partners, and other third parties
• Define clear deliverables, timelines, dependencies, and approval requirements
• Monitor supplier readiness and proactively address delivery risks
• Ensure external deliverables meet NTT DATA requirements and quality expectations
• Hackathon & Event Execution
• Coordinate operational readiness across the complete lifecycle:
• Launch & Registration → Training & Participant Support → Project Submissions → Jury & Evaluations → Regional Phases → Global Final → Awards Ceremony → Post-event Follow-up
• For every critical milestone, ensure clear ownership, readiness criteria, validated communications, contingency plans, and timely escalation
• Project Control, Risk & Quality
• Maintain the master schedule, RAID log, action tracker, and decision log
• Establish quality gates and readiness checks for critical events and communications
• Organize dry runs and contingency planning for high-profile activities
• Validate critical information before release
• Identify risks early and escalate with clear impact assessment and proposed resolution
• Ensure no surprises for Global Hackathon leadership or executive stakeholders
• Reporting & Communication
• Provide structured operational and executive reporting covering progress, milestones, participation, submissions, event readiness, suppliers, risks, blockers, decisions, and next steps

What you'll bring along

• BSc/MSc in Computer Science or related field
• 5+ years of relevant Project Management experience, preferably within complex international or enterprise initiatives
• Demonstrated ownership of high-visibility projects with fixed deadlines
• Experience working directly with senior management and executive stakeholders
• Strong global stakeholder-management and influencing skills
• Proven ability to coordinate multiple parallel workstreams and dependencies
• Strong risk management, problem-solving, and escalation capabilities
• Experience managing external suppliers/agencies or complex third-party dependencies
• Excellent organizational skills and exceptional attention to detail
• Ability to operate effectively under pressure and manage last-minute changes
• Fluent professional English – mandatory, with excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strong Microsoft 365 skills, particularly Teams, PowerPoint, Excel, and SharePoint
• Spanish language skills are highly appreciated, given the global and multicultural stakeholder environment
• Nice to have:
• Experience with global transformation or innovation programs
• Corporate events, global conferences, or hackathons
• AI / GenAI transformation initiatives
• Executive-level event organization
• Internal communications and employee-engagement programs
• Technical AI development expertise is not required, but a good understanding of AI/GenAI and interest in AI-driven transformation are expected