Program Manager (Program Management Office)

Why you’ll love working here:

• high-performance, people-focused culture

• our commitment that equity, diversity, and inclusion are fundamental to our work environment and business success, which helps employees feel valued and empowered to be their authentic selves

• learning and development initiatives, including workshops, Speaker Series events and access to LinkedIn Learning, that support employees’ career growth

• membership in HOOPP’s world class defined benefit pension plan, which can serve as an important part of your retirement security

• competitive, 100% company-paid extended health and dental benefits for permanent employees, including coverage supporting our team's diversity and mental health (e.g., gender affirmation, fertility and drug treatment, psychological support benefits of $2,500 per year, parental leave top-up, and a health spending account).

• optional post-retirement health and dental benefits subsidized at 50%

• yoga classes, meditation workshops, nutritional consultations, and wellness seminars

• the opportunity to make a difference and help take care of those who care for us, by providing a financially secure retirement for Ontario healthcare workers

Job Summary

The Program Manager for the IT Project Management Office (PMO) plays an integral role within the IT PMO team of HOOPP’s Project Management Office and Governance (“PMO & Governance”). PMO & Governance is one of six groups within the Information Technology Division of HOOPP. 

Reporting to the  Director, Program Delivery and Intake, the Program Manager is accountable to provide planning leadership, proactive risk and issue management, and driving the execution of strategic programs that support HOOPPs business strategy partnering with IT and Business divisions (Finance, Investment Management, Plan Operations, Risk and others). The Program Manager will support the creation of detailed program schedules, facilitate program governance meetings with VPs and C suite and ensure coordination amongst cross functional teams, to ensure delivery of all program milestones as per schedule.  This role will also have the operational accountability of championing IT PMO best practices, adherence to the Project Management and Enhancements Life Cycle (PMELC), change management practices and regular program status and financial reporting.  

What you will do:

• Facilitate the programs’ strategic delivery, and act as a lead interface between IT and business in maintaining communication regarding program initiatives that adhere to organizational objectives (OKRs), Strategy and HOOPP’s operating plan

• Manage the implementation of program deliverables via project schedules including the management of project scope, budget, procurement, change management, quality, communication, risks, issues, action items, decisions and resources.

• Balances the planning and execution of concurrent cross-disciplinary and/or cross-functional teams/projects in various phases of delivery. Manages risks, issues, changes, and conflict resolution within projects.

• Work with finance to maintain program financials and participate in quarterly re-forecasting – when applicable.

• Support the business and IT to develop business cases, define, and ensure delivery of project artifacts, ensure sustainability of new product or service implementation, ensure effective project execution, and conduct project post-implementation review with a view to continuous improvement. Provide regular reports on project status, open RAID log items. Provide subject matter expertise to support areas.

• Provides coaching and mentoring to project team members as required as well as inputs to performance reviews.

• Champion and support other team members on the IT PMO and PMELC standards and processes. 

• Follow IT PMO standard practices and work in collaboration with IT GRC (Governance, Risk and Compliance) team to plan the execution of ITGCs with adherence to standards and organization’s policies

• Leads program kick off meetings, program status meetings, program control committee meetings, steering committee meetings, and program lessons learned meetings.

• Support the HOOPP organizational culture that attracts, retains, and develops high quality staff, and encourages them to be highly productive and innovative, providing opportunities for growth and development

• Encourages and advocates for a culture that empowers staff to voice their opinions, project ideas and raise recommendations, challenge the status quo, and create innovation for our business 

• Develops and maintains strong business partnerships, including understanding future technology needs, program roadmap updates, and when possible, proactively advising them on this vision

• Assist the Procurement and Vendor Management team in negotiations on contracts and service level agreements on behalf of HOOPP with technology vendors, consultants, and contractors to obtain the highest possible level of services

• Manages the lifecycle and status of relationships with all key vendors/consultants leveraged by the IT PMO’s book of work, along with contractors, ensuring they continue to provide services that are aligned to HOOPP’s strategic technology direction

• Disaster Recovery support for the operations in alignment to our business stated service level agreements

• Change management strategies for to ensure that all changes in our environments are tracked and managed

• In partnership with the Senior Director, IT PMO, the VP of IT PMO and Governance, and various IT VPs, contribute to the development of the annual program delivery planning and budget exercises. When required, support the development of 3-year strategic roadmap vision and plans

What you bring:

• 10+ years of progressive technology and IT roles, including 5+ years of experience in a project/program delivery leadership role. Experience in leading/managing a variety of technical teams

• 5+ years of investment experience (capital markets, private investments, etc.) with experience working in financial institutions, pension funds or similar

• Degree or equivalent work experience in Computer Science or Business, with fintech experience(preferred)

• Specialized breadth/depth/expertise: experience and understanding in managing complex multi-team programs, technical background is a must. 

• Strong experience managing complex projects, including cross organization initiatives in a fintech industry, pension plans or equivalent

• Knowledge of the software development life cycle and the various phases,

• Comprehensive understanding of investment business drivers and industry standards and principles.

• Understands concepts of Product Management, project management and scaled agile frameworks

• Experience leading multiple large/strategic projects

• Have experience in selecting/implementing vendor products

• Ability to determine the cost and value proposition of initiatives negotiate and prioritize the highest value work, with experience building business cases and budgeting.

• Proven ability to interact with all levels of the organization confidently and effectively and to build strong working relationships in a team-oriented, collaborate environment while producing solutions.

• Experience in leading projects with diverse technologies and multidisciplinary Teams (e.g., Directors, Sr Managers, Developers, Architects, Analysts, Product Owners, DevOps professionals)

• Ability to work in a fast-paced complex environment where operational excellence is a must

• Experience in building Teams as well working in a hybrid environment including Waterfall/Agile/Scrum development is a must

• Proven change management experience with the ability to effectively manage complex product and/or architecture transformations

• Experience working with a variety of technologies and vendor platforms

• Effective communication skills in English both written and verbal Demonstration of leadership and management competencies, including empathy and compassion

• Exhibits HOOPPs core values of accountable, collaborative and trustworthy when leading individuals and teams

• PMP, Agile, SAFE certifications or equivalent are nice to have

HOOPP may use artificial intelligence tools to assist in screening, assessing and selecting applicants for this position. These tools support our recruitment process but do not replace human judgment and decision-making.