PMO Strategist

The Opportunity:

This position will be responsible for issue resolution working closely with senior leadership (CEO, COO, CIO, CFO) to resolve issues within the Project Management Office (PMO) and oversee the functions, processes, and procedures of Velera’s Project Delivery and Onboarding team. As the primary point of escalation, this position will proactively remove barriers to ensure that projects stay on schedule. Additionally, this individual will provide leadership to Project Managers and Analysts working complex implementations to ensure that operational risk in the department is identified and eliminated or minimized and controlled. The PMO Strategist will quality check staff’s adherence to department policy, coach and implement training opportunities, process improvements or efficiencies based on trend analysis and individual performance. 

As the Project Strategist, this individual will interface with senior level executives at financial institutions, cross-functional Velera teams, third-party vendors, industry consultants and business partners. Client facing, this complex position serves as the primary escalation point for Velera’s highest visible projects. This individual must possess critical thinking, strong executive presence and negotiation to expertly navigate large teams in an elevated state for solutioning and will be available for on call after-hours support for implementation go-lives. Within escalation, the Strategist will be responsible to formally communicate with leadership and stakeholders’ real-time information regarding issues, performance, financial impacts, service level performance and participate in Lessons Learned and Root Cause Analysis exercises.

Within this role’s responsibilities, critical service-related issue tracking and analysis ensures quality service and positive relationships between Velera and financial institutions. Utilizing strategist data insights, this position also plays a strong role in Velera’s strategic business partner relationship and produces output for Quarterly Business Reviews, including performance levels, risk factors, brand reputation and financial impacts.

As a project, payment industry and technical expert, this position reports to the VP of Project Management Office (PMO) and will contribute in strategic planning and must possess the ability to work in conceptual spaces to write business requirements that support Client Delivery Experience’s mission and vision. In addition, this individual will drive execution as a subject matter expert partnering with Sales, Client Growth, Project Enablement and Solution Designs for complex project inquiries, prospective sales or project design strategy.

Day in the Life:

• Works directly with Project Team, PMO Managers, VP of PMO, Client Growth, Client Delivery Experience, Partners and financial institutions via phone, email, onsite and webinar.

• Interacts and presents to the leadership team on the progress of project key metrics.

• Performs or assists in problem resolution, recommending alternative techniques and providing training/guidance related to primary areas of responsibility.

• Achieves operational objectives by contributing information and recommendations to strategic plans, project metrics, risk assessments and completing action plans.

• Serves as point of contact for escalations, drives escalation/issue resolution and communication plan protocol.

• Serves as a subject matter expert leveraging knowledge of payments, business partners, operations, Visa and Mastercard, and vendor integration.

• Interfaces with business partners management to review project health and coordinate contingency plans where needed.

• Maintains thorough knowledge of both industry standard best practices and PMO processes as it pertains to project management/deployment and all supported areas of operations.

• Understands functional performance standards and procedures to ensure compliance with overall corporate policies and business unit objectives.

• Implements production, productivity, quality, and customer-service standards by resolving problems, completing audits, identifying trends, determining system improvements, and implementing change.

• Enhances department and organization reputation by accepting ownership for accomplishing new and different requests and exploring opportunities to add value to job accomplishments.

• Collaborates with cross functional teams on sensitive issues, recommended procedures and new processes as needed to prevent future losses.

• Maintains and reports on a comprehensive list of issues and operational losses with preventative measures.

• Reviews all processes within department to ensure optimal delivery of service and production. Identify and recommend management enhancement opportunities to promote improved operational efficiency.

• Provides leadership and oversight of staff for the implementation of pilot and high complexity projects.

• Identifies opportunities for ‘group’ training and collaboration events.

• Participates in hiring and onboarding new employees. Provides feedback for quarterly performance reviews.  

• Available for after-hours on-call support for project installs.

• Maintains working knowledge of the Project Management and reporting PMO tools.

• Creates successful partnerships internally and externally.

• Provide direction and leadership to staff; guide, coach, mentor and develop staff ensuring compliance with processes and procedures.

• Direct staff to ensure all duties are performed according to department performance standards.

• Participate in interviewing, hiring, and promotions.

• Performs other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in related field and/or equivalent combination experience and education is required.

• Five (5) years in credit/debit card related experience and/or financial industry related experience. 

• Five (5) years of project and/or conversion related experience. 

• Working knowledge of card processing systems and/or card processing product/solutions preferred.

• Ability to lead large cross-functional teams and engage with senior leadership both internally and externally.

• Ability to analyze and assess business impacts.

• Expert analytical and problem-solving skills – ability to analyze complex issues and industry information, identify risks/opportunities, develop options, and present effective solutions to stakeholders.

• Demonstrated leadership skills that foster acccountability, collaboration, alignment and teamwork.

• Demonstrated presentation skills and comfort presenting to all levels of leadership within the organization.

• Ability to lead team members in planning, tracking and implementation of complex projects in a fast-paced environment; while managing multiple priorities/initiatives and meeting deadlines. 

• Thorough understanding of card payment industry, various processing systems, and/or related in-house applications. 

• Consultative skills

• Negotiation skills.

• Executive Presence.

• Risk management skills.

• Quality management.

• Creation and facilitation of team building skills – internal and external.

• Ability to travel up to 50% or as needed.

For California, Colorado and New York Applicants:  In accordance with the Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, the expected salary range for this position is between:

Actual Pay will be adjusted based on experience and other job-related factors permitted by law.

This position qualifies for the following benefits; Co-op Solutions offers a competitive Total Rewards package: 401(k) with generous company match, Health, Dental, and Vision Insurance options, Health Savings Account/Flexible Spending Account, Life Insurance, Short- and Long-Term disability benefits, Pregnancy and Parental Leave, Tuition Reimbursement, Paid Time Off (PTO), Paid Holidays, Community Volunteer Time Off, and an Employee Assistance Program.