Senior Project Manager or Project Manager

Overview
Our Project Manager position will work out of our Hartford, Connecticut office on a hybrid schedule to support the Talcott Portfolio Management Office (PMO.) This position supports key business initiatives within our finance and actuarial organization. The selected candidate will handle the successful planning, support and execution of assigned projects. This Project Manager will be accountable for designing, adoption, and roll-out of process improvements.

We are seeking a Senior Project Manager or Project Manager to join our team. Detailed responsibilities include:
Responsibilities:

Support portfolio prioritization, planning, and adherence to governance standards
Build strong relationships with stakeholders to ensure alignment with business objectives
Consolidate and prepare monthly PMO reports for leadership and advisory boards
Support intake, assessment, and prioritization of project requests
Administer and optimize the Smartsheet portfolio management system
Manage capacity planning, project financial expenses, and reporting
Review and track financial forecasts and actuals, facilitating operations planning
Oversee vendor management, including contract administration, purchase orders, and invoice approvals
Lead, support and/or manage full-cycle projects across Finance and Actuarial business areas
Plan, organize, and control activities across projects of varying complexity, ensuring delivery within defined scope, timeline, and budget.
Develop and maintain comprehensive project plans, tracking key milestones, dependencies and phase reviews across the lifecycle.
Collaborate with project sponsors and senior stakeholders to align goals with strategic objectives and define success metrics and business cases.
Serve as a liaison between Finance, Actuarial, and IT to gather requirements, prioritize initiatives, and implement high-impact solutions.
Apply best-practice methodologies (Agile, Waterfall, or hybrid) to plan, execute, and monitor projects efficiently.
Identify and manage project risks, issues, and changes proactively, developing contingency plans as needed.
Oversee project budgets, resource allocation, stakeholder communication, and executive reporting.
Support change management, user adoption, and operational readiness.
Influence cross-functional teams and vendors to ensure accountability and drive project outcomes.
Engage with external partners, including consultants and Oracle representatives, to resolve issues and accelerate delivery.
Aid in building an operating structure, implementing a lean workflow, and improving project / portfolio management discipline.
Create materials for portfolio health reviews, metrics/scorecards, steering committee, and roadmap planning.
Facilitate portfolio meetings to remove blockers and advance project work and portfolio management discipline.
Influence stakeholders from various functions and build strong partnerships to facilitate adoption of portfolio practices.
Analyze data and develop recommendations.
Partner with Portfolio Management team to develop continuous feedback mechanisms and improvements to operating structure, tools, and processes.

Qualifications for a Senior Project Manager:

* Note:

This position can be filled as a Senior Project Manager or Project Manager commensurate with a candidate's experience.

Minimum of 7 years of project management experience

Experience in Financial Services and/or Life & Annuity industries preferred or a degree/background in Finance
Hands-on experience with business transformation and / or business improvement initiatives a plus!

Experience of different project management approaches (e.g., agile and waterfall)
Demonstrated experience facilitating workshops and meetings.
Experience partnering with senior c-level executives and cross functional stakeholders.
Successful progression in delivery of projects with increasing complexity.
PMP, PMI-ACP, or equivalent certification desired.
Experience in the insurance or financial services industry.
Experience in change management and training programs for Oracle Cloud rollouts.

Qualifications for a Project Manager

Bachelor's degree in IT, Business Administration, Finance, or related field.
Minimum of 2 years of experience in IT portfolio management or PMO activities.
Proficiency in leveraging AI-powered productivity tools such as Microsoft Copilot.

Experience with AI-driven analytics for portfolio and project performance insights.
Ability to adopt and integrate emerging AI technologies into project management and reporting workflows.
Strong analytical and organizational skills with attention to detail.
Expertise in Excel and PowerPoint; experience with Smartsheet preferred.
Proven experience in financial planning, expense management, and vendor administration.
Excellent communication skills-written, verbal, and presentation.
Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced, international environment.
Proactive mindset with initiative and critical thinking.
High energy, accountability, and results-focused approach.