Associate Director, Portfolio Management

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Job Description:

An experienced Project Manager is required to oversee the Client Operations Portfolio to ensure the project delivery of all digital initiatives are according to the agreed scope, time, and cost. Scope of work will primarily focus on insurance operations related projects so experience in this area will be key. This role will lead, coach, and support the team, including business, IT and vendors, to further adopt agile ways of working. Objective is to have business and IT teams operating in a two-in-a-box model for defining business feature backlog and implement them following an MVP and Sprint delivery approach.

Key Responsibilities:

Project/Program Management

• Support business case preparation (project costing, solution selection documentation) for new company initiatives

Portfolio Planning & Scheduling

• Develop and maintain integrated plans for the portfolio, including workstreams, milestones, dependencies, and critical path across initiatives
• Establish and manage delivery cadences (status, RAID, steering), ensuring alignment across business, IT, data, and vendor teams
• Support the Lead Product Owner with sprint/iteration planning logistics, release planning, and coordination of UAT and business readiness timelines
• Track and manage cross-initiative dependencies (data, platforms, security, architecture, change) and drive timely resolution

Delivery Governance & Execution

• Drive day-to-day project delivery activities, ensuring scope, schedule, resources, and deliverables are managed effectively
• Facilitate governance forums and working sessions (project meetings, risk reviews, steering packs) and capture actions and decisions
• Maintain clear documentation of project plans in Planview, RAID logs, decisions, and key artifacts to support auditability and continuity
• Coordinate with technology delivery teams to manage environment readiness, release activities, cutovers, and post-release hyper-care

Risk, Issue, Budget & Vendor Management

• Own and maintain RAID logs across Digital initiatives; proactively surface risks/issues, propose mitigations, and drive closure
• Support budget tracking and forecasting for the Distribution portfolio (where applicable), including vendor spend, licensing, and resource costs
• Coordinate with procurement and vendors/partners on onboarding, delivery plans, commercial milestones, and performance tracking
• Ensure project activities align to governance requirements (security, risk, compliance, data privacy) and that approvals are planned into timelines

Communication, Reporting & Stakeholder Alignment

• Prepare regular status reports and executive-ready Planview dashboards on progress, milestones, outcomes, and RAID
• Ensure timely and clear communication across stakeholders, including business owners, IT, data teams, operations, compliance, and Regional/Corporate teams
• Support change management and adoption activities by coordinating training plans, communications, and operational readiness checkpoints
• Promote consistent ways of working across Digital initiatives, escalating blockers and decision needs early

Tools, Standards & Continuous Improvement

• Establish and maintain standard portfolio artifacts (Planview, roadmap tracker, RAID, dependency map, action log, benefits tracker) to improve transparency and delivery performance
• Maintain project management tools (e.g., Planview, Jira/Azure DevOps, SharePoint) and ensure data quality for reporting
• Identify opportunities to streamline delivery processes, improve governance, and enhance predictability across the Distribution portfolio.

Requirement

• University degree from a recognized institution
• Minimum 10-15 years of relevant experience with a proven track record in Program Management
• Solid hands-on knowledge and experience in project management methodologies, tailored to business needs
• Strong analytical skills and business acumen
• Experience working with executive teams and CEOs
• Excellent communication skills in English; Cantonese and/or Mandarin is an advantage
• Experience in change management and organizational transformation
• Good practice of Agile methodologies and principles

At Sun Life, we’re driven by our Purpose: to help Clients build lifetime financial security and lead healthier lives. Across Asia, we cultivate a High-Performance, Caring Culture that empowers our people to achieve outstanding results, embrace continuous growth, and create meaningful impact. We succeed together by fostering an inclusive environment where wellbeing, collaboration, and accountability are equally valued.

Job Category:

Project Management - Systems

Posting End Date:

29/12/2026