The OIT Portfolio Manager is responsible for managing the planning, prioritization, and execution of IT projects within the OIT Operations umbrella, including assessing impacts of external project pressures to project capability. They will manage productive relationships with internal and external stakeholders (typically within the City and associated agencies) and assist OIT in fostering strong and collaborative partnerships between OIT Operations, as well as with other units within OIT and various outside business partners. In this role, they will manage a small team of IT project management professionals and will work closely and collaboratively with OIT Operations leadership to set priorities and strategic directions, communicate with stakeholders, and set divisional goals for supporting our Citywide partners.
They are expected to work with the OIT Operations departmental leaders to assist in promoting a collaborative, human-centered, innovative, accountable, transparent, and inclusive culture within their area.
Essential Functions
Management
- Works to develop employees under their supervision.
- Assigns projects and priorities; addresses blockers.
- Identifies and advocates for unit needs.
Operations
- Manages roadmaps for the operations project portfolio related to departmental priorities in collaboration with PMs, leadership, and operations staff, and constituent stakeholders. Coordinates the development and implementation of major project timelines where appropriate.
- Follows effective relationship and project management processes, including appropriate metrics and tools to report on the effectiveness of those relationships, projects, and project portfolio.
- Conducts regular reviews, priority-setting, and planning sessions with departmental partners. Serves as an advocate for those priorities/plans.
- Analyzes performance of activities within their area and documents resolutions, identifies and remediates problem areas, and devises and delivers solutions to enhance quality of area’s services.
- Monitors request handling and escalation policies and procedures; manages the processing of incoming requests to ensure courteous, timely, and effective response.
- Tracks and analyzes status and trends and generates reports for internal and external audiences.
- Keeps their supervisor informed of current and potential issues, activities, operational outages, and any other risks that might jeopardize project success or impact IT service delivery.
- Ensures excellent project documentation.
- Serves as Operations’ primary representative on cross-PMO planning, processes, and Gates.
Relationship Building
Maintains collaborative and consultative relationships with Operations, central IT groups, Governance PMO, and departmental IT groups.
Gains an understanding of the goals, strategies, processes, and requirements of the department to which they are assigned.
Reports regularly to departmental leadership and OIT Operations on projects, services, and support.
Competencies, Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
- Proven track record managing complex projects.
- Ability to solve business problems and develop user/business-driven technology strategies and plans.
- Broad knowledge and facility with operational and/or enterprise IT including foundation in core IT concepts such as networking, security, application development/implementation, data management, etc.
- Strong written and oral communication skills (including ability to present ideas in user-friendly, business-friendly and technical language) and interpersonal skills with a focus on rapport-building, listening and questioning skills.
- Proven analytical and problem-solving abilities, including ability to anticipate, identify, and solve critical problems.
- Supports and expands a culture that is supportive of diversity, equity, and inclusion where employees from all backgrounds can succeed and thrive.
- Exceptional customer service orientation.