Project Manager (Finance) at Leadway Assurance Company

Role Overview

• The primary purpose of the role is to lead, oversee and ensure the successful delivery and management of single or multiple projects within scope, quality, time and cost constraints that may be clearly defined or may require dynamic change management in order to deliver business value
• The individual will immediately work closely with the Finance division and interface with consultants and other internal stakeholders to deliver IFRS 9 and 17 conversion as well as other Finance automation projects.
• The individual must clearly demonstrate a proven background managing Finance / Actuarial Change within Insurance organisations, and ideally have worked on IFRS or Solvency II programmes previously - and therefore have a good understanding of financial reporting within Insurance businesses. The candidate will have prior experience of working within PMO in a large scale transformation programme (ideally within Insurance). The candidate must have the ability / gravitas to act as PMO Lead.

Primary Responsibilities and Activities

• Analyze project proposals to determine time frame, funding limitations and appropriate process for accomplishing projects.
• Identify and schedule project deliverables, milestones and required activities and tasks.
• Provide leadership and motivation to project team members throughout the project life cycle, and confer with project staff to outline work plan.
• Establish work plan and staffing for project activities, iterations or phases, and arrange for recruitment or assignment of project personnel.
• Implement project communication plan.- Perform risk assessment, and implement mitigation plans.
• Assign duties, responsibilities and scope of authority to project personnel.
• Direct and coordinate activities of project personnel to ensure project progresses on schedule and within budget.
• Review status reports prepared by project personnel, and modify schedules or plans as required.
• Establish standards and procedures for project reporting and documentation.
• Continuously benchmark project management performance to identify improvements and achieve higher capability maturity in PPM

Primary Contacts:

• Project sponsor and/or key stakeholders
• Project team/staff (including designated users or customers)
• Business unit (BU) management/executives
• Business analysts
• User/customer product owner
• External service providers'/consultancies' project manager(s)

Job Requirements
Educational Qualification:

• Bachelor's or Master's Degree in Computer Science, Information Systems or related field; project management and/or general business management, or equivalent related IT experience. PM training and certification desirable, but not required.

Experience:

• Three or more years of IT experience, with sensitivity and commitment to business problem solving
• A minimum of two years of demonstrated competency in a senior project management role involving the execution of multiple projects or a large project
• Three or more years of Business Unit (BU) or BU-facing experience, with sensitivity and commitment to business problem solving
• Demonstrated experience in leading a team
• Demonstrated experience and ability in successfully utilizing "soft skills" or "people skills"

Knowledge & Skills:

• Ability to lead and motivate others; demonstrating empathy and knowledge of personality types
• Familiar with project management methodologies (for example, PMI, Prince II and agile)
• Demonstrated sensitivity to working and interacting with senior leadership
• Knowledge of project planning tools
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills; expertise in setting and managing customer expectations
• Distinctive blend of business, IT, financial and communication skills, as this is a highly visible position with substantial impact
• Effective influencing and negotiating skills in an environment where this role may not directly control resources
• Strong knowledge and understanding of business needs, with the ability to establish and maintain a high level of customer trust and confidence
• Good understanding of current and emerging technologies and how other enterprises are employing them to drive digital business

Key Behaviors and Competencies
Management:

• Examines issues and creates plans to mitigate risk
• Generates ideas and critically evaluates future project scenarios
• Skilled with tools and techniques of project scheduling and risk mitigation
• Works to maintain alignment of short-term goals to support long-term strategy

Leadership:

• Confers with project personnel to provide advice and to resolve problems
• Encourages and facilitates cooperation and results orientation
• Fosters an environment of collaboration
• Inspires, motivates and guides project team members
• Fosters creative approaches to problem solving and quality deliverables
• Swiftly resolves conflict to minimize friction and maximize diversity of thought

Relationship Building:

• Builds both formal and informal professional networks, and extends these networks within, across and external to organizational boundaries.

Business Acumen an Enterprise Knowledge:

• Makes decisions and recommendations clearly linked to the organization's strategy and financial goals, reflecting an awareness of external dynamics

Change Advocacy

• Demonstrates personal commitment to change through actions and words.
• Mobilizes others within and outside the project to support and enable change resulting from the projects.

Influencing:

• Communicates ideas or positions in a persuasive manner that builds support, agreement or commitment.
• Takes actions that directly or indirectly influence others to create buy-in, gain trust and motivate action.

Results Orientation:

• Sets and accomplishes challenging goals.
• Defines standards in terms of doing what is appropriate and doing it well.
• Competes resourcefully, and takes calculated risks to achieve results.