Director, IT Project Management Office

At The Standard, you’ll join a team focused on putting our customers first.

Our continued success is driven by a high-performance culture. We’re looking for people who are collaborative, accountable, creative, agile and are driven by a passion for doing what’s right – across the company and in our local communities.

We offer a caring culture where you can make a real difference, every day.
 
Ready to reach your highest potential? Let’s work together.

Job Summary

The Director, IT Project Management Office (PMO) is responsible for IT project management, IT portfolio management operations, governance, and reporting. This role provides coaching, coordination, and people management of IT PMO resources, processes, and functions. As a Center of Excellence, this role leads the curation and offering of pragmatic practices, tools, and training to customers within IT to use in every day departmental project management. This position supports large, complex initiatives (such as mergers & acquisitions) which requires collaboration with stakeholders across the enterprise.

In this role, you will be involved in our biggest, most important initiatives including mergers & acquisitions. Acting as a key stakeholder with these, you will provide support, handle escalations, and provide conflict resolution to drive top quality delivery. Additionally, you will provide visionary direction for the overall IT PMO, as we become more product-centric and agile in thought & practice. You will set the standard for IT and how projects are managed, ensuring alignment with corporate expectations, values, and vision.

** Your IT experience with mergers & acquisitions will be highly sought after.

• Lead, direct and be accountable for the overall performance of the IT PMO team in the delivery of IT projects. Establish performance expectations and standards, provide leadership, direction, and coaching to PMs throughout project lifecycle.
• Develop, maintain, and continuously improve comprehensive project portfolio operations, governance, and overall health including budgeting and financial forecasting accuracy, vendor management, risk management, resource management, audit and controls, analytics and reporting. 
• Serve as an escalation point, providing conflict resolution to drive top quality, on-time/budget delivery with complex high-priority projects.
• Adopt and adhere to change management best practices, ensuring IT teams, partners and stakeholders are engaged and informed appropriately throughout the project lifecycle.
• Keep connected to roadmap developments to identify and address interdependencies, risks and constraints early in the planning process.

Skills and Background You’ll Need

• Education: High School diploma or GED is required. A Bachelor’s degree is preferred.
• Experience and Skills: 8 years of IT project management experience with 3 years of portfolio/program management experience leveraging both traditional and agile methods.
• 2 years of experience leading an IT PMO organization. 5 years of experience managing teams in matrix-type project environment. Proven people leader with the ability to build strong teams, assess & coach talent, develop people, and mentor.
• Experience specifically in an IT Project Management Office is required. Experience with mergers & acquisitions is required.
• Experience with waterfall, hybrid, and agile methodologies is required. Lean Management &/or Six Sigma background is preferred. Agile certifications (PMI-ACP, APMG, SPC, CEC, SPC or SA) and PMP certification are preferred.      
• Experience creating and delivering executive-level presentations to corporate management. Expert facilitator and systematic problem solver. Ability to communicate clearly and concisely at all levels of the organization.
• Proficiency in using commercially available portfolio and project management (PPM) tools (Microsoft Project Server/Online, Apptio, Jira, Target Process, Workday, etc.).

Key Behaviors of a Successful Candidate

• Engaging Hearts & Minds: Creates a team identity and builds momentum toward a shared purpose.
• Strategic Visioning: Considers different future scenarios, opportunities and risks to generate operational plans that align with the business unit/function’s strategic vision.
• Developing People: Delivers both individual and group feedback to support ongoing development and overall department performance.

Why Join The Standard?

We have built an enduring legacy of stability, innovation and financial strength thanks to the contributions of the talented, creative and compassionate people who choose to work at The Standard. To ensure we can attract and retain the best talent, when you join The Standard, you can expect:

• A rich benefits package including a 401(k) plan with matching company contributions
• An annual incentive bonus plan
• Generous paid time off
• A supportive and responsive management approach
• Opportunities for career growth and advancement 
• Paid time off to volunteer
• An employee giving program that double matches your donations to eligible nonprofits and schools
• Much more!

#LI-Remote

Please note - the salary range for this role is listed below. In addition to salary, our package includes incentive plan participation and comprehensive benefits including medical, dental, vision and retirement benefits, as well as an initial PTO accrual of 164 hours per year. Employees also receive 11 paid holidays and 2 wellness days per year.

• Eligibility to participate in an incentive program is subject to the rules governing the program and plan. Any award depends on various factors, including individual and organizational performance.

Salary Range:

Standard Insurance Company, The Standard Life Insurance Company of New York, Standard Retirement Services, Inc., StanCorp Equities, Inc. and StanCorp Investment Advisers, Inc., marketed as The Standard, are Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, sex, national origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, or veteran status or any other condition protected by federal, state or local law. The Standard offers a drug and alcohol free work environment where possession, manufacture, transfer, offer, use of or being impaired by an illegal substance while on Standard property, or in other cases which the company believes might affect operations, safety or reputation of the company is prohibited. The Standard requires a criminal background investigation, employment, education and licensing verification as a condition of employment. All employees of The Standard must be bondable.