IT Program Management & Governance Lead

Global Financial Institution

Company Overview

A leading international financial institution is seeking an IT Program Management & Governance leader to play a key role in the continued evolution of its technology organization.

This is a strategic opportunity for a professional who enjoys bringing structure, discipline and executive visibility to complex IT portfolios. The company is advancing important initiatives related to technology modernization, operational resilience, governance, vendor management and long-term planning within a highly regulated environment.

In this role, the professional will lead and develop a team of Project Managers, strengthen governance routines, improve project controls, enhance documentation standards and support decision-making through clear reporting, KPIs, financial tracking and risk visibility.

The position offers exposure to senior local and international stakeholders, in a multicultural environment that values discipline, collaboration, accountability and structured communication. It is particularly attractive for a mature technology leader who wants to influence how strategic initiatives are governed, prioritized and delivered across a complex organization..

Purpose of the Position

This is an opportunity to join a global financial institution in a strategic technology leadership role, focused on bringing stronger structure, governance, visibility and delivery discipline to a complex IT project portfolio. The position will lead the IT Program Management and Governance structure, overseeing a team of Project Managers and ensuring that technology initiatives are properly planned, tracked, reported and delivered with greater predictability. The role combines people leadership, portfolio management, financial control, vendor governance, executive reporting and continuous improvement of project management practices.

The professional will play an important role in strengthening how technology initiatives are governed, helping the organization improve documentation standards, project controls, KPIs, budget visibility, vendor accountability and executive communication. This is a hands-on leadership role from a governance and control perspective, requiring someone close enough to the details to challenge status updates, identify gaps, support the team and intervene when delivery is at risk. The position is ideal for a structured, analytical and mature technology leader who enjoys working in regulated environments, interacting with senior stakeholders and helping organizations evolve their project management culture with discipline, consistency and business impact.

Main Challenges and Assignments

• Lead, manage and develop a team of Associate / Consultant-level Project Managers, ensuring stronger accountability, discipline, documentation quality and delivery consistency.
• Assess the current project management practices during the first 90 days, identifying what is working, what is not properly controlled, what needs to be improved and where governance gaps exist.
• Build stronger project controls across timelines, milestones, deliverables, KPIs, budgets, contracts, vendor performance, risks, issues and executive reporting.
• Improve the quality of project documentation and IT governance evidence, ensuring proper visibility, auditability and traceability across technology initiatives.
• Provide clear and structured reports to senior technology leadership and executive stakeholders, translating project progress, financial status, risks, delays and required decisions into objective communication.
• Support fiscal-year and long-term technology planning, aligning local and global stakeholders on priorities, budget needs, modernization initiatives, vendor dependencies and future technology direction.
• Review vendor relevance and performance, identifying which partners are critical, how they are performing, which resources are delivering value and where stronger accountability is required.
• Recover project delivery discipline in an environment with multiple simultaneous initiatives, shared resources and relevant delivery dependencies.
• Drive a controlled cultural change in project management practices, improving methodology, discipline, transparency and accountability while respecting a traditional, hierarchical and multicultural corporate environment.

Experience and Professional Qualifications

• Robust experience as a Program Manager, IT Portfolio Manager, Head of PMO, IT Governance Manager or Technology Delivery Leader, preferably within banks, financial institutions, insurance, payments or highly regulated environments.
• Proven experience leading Project Managers, PMO teams or cross-functional technology delivery structures, with responsibility for people management, coaching, prioritization, performance follow-up and delivery discipline.
• Strong background in IT Governance, program management, project portfolio management, executive reporting, KPI management, financial tracking, vendor governance, risk management and documentation control.
• Experience managing technology portfolios involving multiple simultaneous projects, shared resources, complex dependencies, business-critical systems, regulatory requirements and senior stakeholder pressure.
• Ability to assess project management maturity, identify gaps, improve templates, redesign governance routines, standardize reporting and implement scalable control mechanisms.
• Solid understanding of financial management for technology initiatives, including budget planning, forecasting, cost tracking, contract control, vendor spend, resource allocation and fiscal-year planning.
• Experience working with vendors, consulting firms, system integrators, outsourced resources or technology service providers, with the ability to evaluate delivery quality, accountability, performance and relevance to the business.
• Strong exposure to regulated environments requiring documentation, audit evidence, formal governance, risk controls, information security, compliance and operational discipline.
• Ability to interact with senior local and international stakeholders, supporting decision-making with structured reports, clear numbers, project status, risks, scenarios and recommendations.
• Advanced English, with the ability to lead meetings, present reports and align priorities with global stakeholders.
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Business Administration, Finance or related fields. MBA or postgraduate education is desirable.
• Certifications such as PMP, PgMP, PMI-ACP, ITIL, COBIT, Scrum, SAFe, Agile, Lean, Six Sigma or similar governance / delivery frameworks are considered a plus, with PMP, ITIL and COBIT being especially relevant.

Behavioral Profile

• Structured and Numbers-Driven Leader - Highly analytical and comfortable managing progress, budgets, contracts, KPIs, reports, deliverables and vendor performance. Brings discipline and visibility to environments that require predictability.
• People Developer and Team Builder - Leads and develops the team’s capabilities, challenges delivery standards and creates a stronger sense of ownership. The role requires someone who not only demands results, but also improves the team’s maturity, quality of work and autonomy.
• Governance and Documentation-Oriented Professional - Values documentation, evidence, templates, controls, auditability and structured routines. Capable of identifying where governance is weak, what is not properly controlled and which mechanisms need to be implemented or improved.
• Change Agent with Cultural Sensitivity - Able to evolve methodologies, behaviors and delivery culture without creating unnecessary friction. Must know how to raise standards, push for accountability and improve execution while respecting a traditional, hierarchical and multicultural environment.
• Hands-On in Control, Not in Technical Execution - The professional does not need to execute every technical task, but must be hands-on in governance, review, follow-up, escalation, reporting and validation. Expected to know the details well enough to challenge the team and vendors and ensure that commitments are real..