IT Project / Program Manager

The IT PMO Lead is responsible for establishing, running, and continuously improving the Programme Management Office function across large-scale enterprise IT engagements. You will own delivery governance, resource management, financial control, and executive reporting ensuring programmes are delivered on time, within budget, and to agreed quality standards across multi-vendor, cross-functional environments.

Role & responsibilities

Programme governance

• Establish and operate the PMO function including governance frameworks, standards, and templates
• Own RAID management (Risks, Assumptions, Issues, Dependencies) across programmes
• Define and enforce delivery methodology (Agile, SAFe, PRINCE2, or hybrid)
• Chair steering committee meetings and facilitate programme-level decision making
• Manage change control processes and scope governance

Financial & resource management

• Own programme budget tracking, forecasting, and variance reporting
• Manage resource planning, capacity allocation, and onboarding across teams
• Oversee vendor contracts, SLAs, and commercial performance
• Report on programme financials to senior leadership and clients
• Identify and escalate budget risks proactively

Executive reporting

• Produce and present programme status reports to C-suite and client leadership
• Develop programme dashboards and KPI frameworks
• Facilitate lessons learned, retrospectives, and continuous improvement cycles
• Maintain programme documentation repositories and audit trails

Stakeholder & client management

• Act as the primary delivery escalation point for enterprise clients
• Build and maintain strong relationships with client programme sponsors
• Manage stakeholder expectations through structured communication plans
• Drive cross-functional alignment across business, IT, and third-party vendors
• Lead onboarding of new workstreams and delivery partners

Preferred candidate profile

Education & certifications

• Bachelor's or Master's in Business, IT, Engineering, or related field
• PMP (Project Management Professional) mandatory
• PRINCE2 Practitioner or MSP (Managing Successful Programmes)
• SAFe Programme Consultant (SPC) or PMI-ACP preferred
• ITIL 4 Foundation or above preferred
• Lean / Six Sigma certification is an advantage

Experience

• 10+ years in IT delivery, with 5+ years in a PMO lead or programme management role
• Managed large-scale IT programmes with budgets of $5M+ for enterprise clients
• Demonstrated experience running PMO functions in consulting or outsourcing environments
• Track record of managing 20+ person cross-functional teams across multiple workstreams
• Prior experience with P&L responsibility or commercial bid management preferred

Tools & Methodologies

• Jira / Confluence
• MS Project / Project Online
• Smartsheet / Clarity PPM
• Power BI / TableauSAFe / Agile at scale
• PRINCE2 / MSP
• ServiceNow (PPM module)
• SharePoint / Teams
• RAID & change control tools
• Earned value management (EVM)
• Resource management platforms

Key competencies

• Executive-level communication
• Negotiation & conflict resolution
• Commercial & financial acumen
• Organisational & planning excellence
• Leadership under ambiguity
• Data-driven decision making
• Vendor & contract management
• Change management