Project manager for marketing agency / ai services

ROLE OVERVIEW This role combines Project Management, Customer Success, and Operations for AZ Media. The core mandate: every project gets driven to completion at a high standard, every client and contractor stays in the loop, and the company's systems, tools, and information stay organized and current. This is a hands-on, independent role. This person reports to the founder/manager but is expected to run the day-to-day of delivery without being managed task-by-task — to take initiative, set things up, and keep everything moving. HOW THEY OPERATE (WORKING STYLE & MINDSET) This is as important as the task list. The right person has an ops brain — they don't wait to be told what to do, they see what's missing and build it. - Operates independently — takes initiative without being handed every step. If there's no project board, they create one. If projects aren't being tracked, they start tracking them. If communication is scattered, they organize it. - Hands-on when needed — not everything is outsourced. This person is willing to jump in and do the work directly: run a quick AI task, write or add copy, organize a folder, get into the CRM or WordPress and find a solution themselves. They don't bounce every small thing to a contractor. - Reads the room — brings a thoughtful, situation-aware approach to contractors, vendors, and clients. Knows when to push, when to give space, and how to adjust tone per person. - Steers complex situations — stays calm and neutral when things get tense or messy. Doesn't take sides, doesn't go silent. - Always acknowledges — every message or request gets a response, even when there's no solution yet. At minimum: acknowledge it in the channel or chat ("got it, looking into this"). Nothing goes unanswered or ignored. EXPERIENCE & REQUIREMENTS - Marketing projects — has run or supported marketing work and understands how those projects flow. - GoHighLevel (GHL) — hands-on experience working in the CRM. - PM tools — comfortable with project management tools (boards, tasks, timelines). - Automations — experience setting up operational automations. - Software / AI projects — has worked on software builds or AI projects. - Hands-on generalist — comfortable dropping into a CRM, WordPress, AI tools, or a doc to fix or build something directly, not just delegate it. 1. PROJECT MANAGEMENT - Lead projects end to end: scope, timeline, milestones, and delivery. - Create and own the project board — take the initiative to set up a single source of truth where every project's stage, owner, and due date lives (not spread across DMs). - Drive every project and task to completion — identify blockers early and report them to the manager for resolution. - Create clear briefs for each team member: deliverable, deadline, format, and acceptance criteria. Assign, manage, and give feedback. - QA every deliverable before it goes to the client. Only communicate completion to the client after QA passes. - Track who is working on what so projects aren't over-loaded onto one person. 2. CUSTOMER SUCCESS - Onboarding — run client intake: gather project info, goals, assets, access, and points of contact. Set expectations on timelines and communication. - Ongoing communication — own the client relationship day to day; keep clients informed proactively. - Acknowledge everything — respond to every client message promptly, even if it's just to confirm receipt while a solution is being worked out. - Escalation handling — when a client is unhappy or a deadline is at risk, stay neutral, acknowledge fast, loop in the manager early, and propose a fix. Don't let problems go silent. - Offboarding — when a project or client wraps, run a clean handoff: deliver final assets, revoke access, and close out. 3. OPERATIONS & SYSTEMS - Company Wiki (Notion) — keep all SOPs, client info, and operational procedures up to date. Review wiki pages bi-weekly and update (with AI assistance where useful). - Slack — maintain channels: no duplicates, archive unused channels, keep active channels organized and accurate. Restore archived channels when needed. - Shared Drive — keep files organized and accessible to the relevant team members and clients for each project. - Centralized communication — communication happens in shared Slack channels, not 1-1 DMs, so everything is visible to the manager and to AI. - Operational cleanliness — keep the whole system tidy: naming conventions, folder structure, and access kept current. - Build automations — spot repetitive work and build automations to remove it. 4. TEAM & CONTRACTOR MANAGEMENT - Sourcing — source and interview team members when project requirements arise; keep a "bench" of vetted contractors so there's no scramble when a project lands. - Unique approach per person — adjust communication and management style to each contractor and vendor; read what each one needs to perform. - Onboarding contractors — contracts / NDAs signed, access granted, briefed on tools and process. - Performance — track reliability and quality. If a contractor doesn't respond in time, notify the manager and begin sourcing a replacement so the project isn't blocked. - Coordination — coordinate between team members, run team meetings, and keep everyone moving. - Offboarding — when a contractor rolls off, revoke all access (see Tools & Access) and close out payment. 5. CADENCES & COMMUNICATION - Daily standup with manager — clear goals for the day. Structure: what was done, what's on the list for today, what are the bottlenecks, what ideas exist to improve the process. - Bi-weekly — Notion wiki review and update. - Always-on acknowledgment — no message in a channel or chat sits unanswered. Acknowledge first, solve second. 6. TOOLS & ACCESS - Password management (LastPass) — own and manage the business LastPass account. Store all passwords, organized by folders per agency/client requirements. All shared with the founder (admin, full view + edit access). - Access offboarding — when any contractor or client leaves, revoke their access to tools, drive, and accounts immediately. Pairs with password management. - Tool maintenance — maintain all tools: keep a list of subscriptions and renewal dates, manage who has access to what, and flag unused or duplicate subscriptions. - CRM (GoHighLevel / GHL) — maintain and work within the CRM directly. 7. DECISION AUTHORITY & ESCALATION - Can decide independently: [e.g. assigning tasks, scheduling, routine client communication, spending under $X] - Must escalate to founder: [e.g. hiring/firing contractors, spending over $X, scope changes, unhappy clients, missed deadlines] - Escalation playbook: - Contractor goes dark mid-project → notify manager, begin sourcing replacement, communicate revised timeline. - Client is unhappy → acknowledge fast, stay neutral, loop in manager, propose a fix. - Deadline at risk → flag early (not on the due date), with a revised plan. CORE SKILLS / SCOPE - Project management - QA - Data entry - Communication with team and clients - Leading standup meetings - Building operational automations - Working with AI - Working with the CRM (GHL) - Maintaining all tools - Hands-on work in WordPress, CRM, and AI tools when needed