Director, Strategy, Governance & Transformation

Description

The Director, Strategy, Governance & Transformation is responsible for establishing and leading the strategic direction, governance framework, business intelligence capabilities, and operational transformation agenda of the Vendor Management Office (VMO). This role serves as the architect of the VMO operating model, ensuring governance, analytics, technology enablement, and process excellence are aligned to organizational objectives, regulatory expectations, and enterprise risk standards.

As a member of the VMO leadership team, this position drives enterprise-wide vendor management maturity through the development of scalable governance structures, executive reporting, portfolio analytics, vendor segmentation strategies, and continuous improvement initiatives. The Director plays a critical leadership role in merger integration efforts by designing and implementing a unified vendor management framework, consolidation strategy, and operating governance model across combined organizations.

The role provides leadership to a team including Program Managers and Process/Data Analysts responsible for strategic initiatives, business intelligence, process optimization, reporting, and governance execution.

Here's what you can expect from the job and what you need to be successful:

Job Duties:

• Define and execute the strategic roadmap for the Vendor Management Office, aligning VMO priorities, governance practices, technology investments, and performance objectives with enterprise goals.
• Lead the development and oversight of enterprise vendor governance frameworks, policies, standards, procedures, and operating models that promote consistency, accountability, and regulatory compliance.
• Own the VMO business intelligence strategy, delivering executive dashboards, scorecards, portfolio analytics, spend intelligence, operational metrics, and board-level reporting.
• Establish and continuously refine vendor segmentation methodologies, risk-based governance models, and portfolio management frameworks across all vendor categories.
• Lead the design and execution of vendor consolidation and rationalization initiatives, developing decision frameworks, business cases, and implementation roadmaps that optimize vendor investments and reduce operational complexity.
• Partner with Legal, Risk, Compliance, Procurement, Finance, Technology, and business leaders to establish governance standards, decision rights, escalation paths, and accountability structures.
• Oversee development and maintenance of the PADU (Purpose, Authority, Discourage, Unacceptable) contract clause framework and other governance controls designed to strengthen risk management and contract consistency.
• Sponsor process improvement and operational excellence initiatives that increase efficiency, reduce cycle times, improve stakeholder experience, and enhance data quality.
• Drive evaluation, selection, implementation, and adoption of vendor management technologies, workflow automation solutions, reporting platforms, and data management tools.
• Lead enterprise-level VMO programs and transformation initiatives through direct oversight of Program Management resources.
• Develop executive presentations, strategic recommendations, business cases, and Board materials that provide insight into vendor performance, risks, opportunities, and program maturity.
• Establish governance committees, operational review forums, and performance management routines that enable informed decision-making and accountability.
• Build, mentor, and lead a high-performing team of program management, governance, process improvement, and analytics professionals.
• Provide thought leadership and strategic guidance to executive management regarding evolving industry practices, regulatory developments, and vendor management trends.

Essential

Skills:

• 10+ years of experience in vendor management, procurement operations, governance, business transformation, strategy, consulting, or related disciplines within financial services or another highly regulated industry.
• 5+ years of progressive leadership experience managing teams and enterprise-level initiatives.
• Experience leading large-scale organizational change, transformation programs, merger integrations, or operating model redesign initiatives.
• Deep expertise in vendor management operating model design, governance frameworks, organizational effectiveness, and portfolio management.
• Demonstrated experience building and leading enterprise governance and business intelligence functions.
• Strong knowledge of process improvement methodologies, operational excellence practices, and organizational change management.
• Advanced experience with Power BI, Tableau, Jira, Service Now, or similar analytics and workflow platforms.
• Strong understanding of contract governance, third-party risk management, vendor lifecycle management, and regulatory expectations.
• Experience developing executive-level performance metrics, board reporting, and strategic planning materials.
• Ability to synthesize complex data…