Director, PMO and Portfolio Management

Marquette University

$100K — $130K *
Education, Government & Non-Profit
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in IT, Computer Science, Business Administration or related field.
  • Experience in leading complex IT initiatives with a focus on project delivery and portfolio management.
  • Proven skills in assessing and enhancing project management practices including governance and reporting.
  • Strong knowledge of various project delivery methodologies, adaptable to different project types.
  • Background in financial planning and investment alignment for projects and portfolios.
  • Excellent leadership, communication, and stakeholder engagement abilities.
  • Experience with vendor management and contract negotiations.

Responsibilities

  • Evaluate and enhance project management practices to align with university needs.
  • Engage with stakeholders to clarify outcomes and align IT initiatives with strategic goals.
  • Translate strategic plans into actionable IT initiatives and integrated portfolios.
  • Lead and develop project management teams to achieve university goals.
  • Drive continuous improvement in project delivery and portfolio management capabilities.
  • Oversee financial planning and budgeting for IT projects and initiatives.
  • Manage vendor relations including contract alignment and performance oversight.

Benefits

  • Professional development opportunities and training.
  • Collaborative work environment with a focus on continuous improvement.
  • Strong commitment to diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
  • Health, wellness, and retirement benefits.
Full Job Description
Posting Details

Posting Details

Posting Number
NA01501

Position Information

Position Title
Director, PMO and Portfolio Management

State

Employment Status
Full Time

Position Status
Regular

If Limited Term (End Date of Assignment, Project, or Grant)

Position Type
Staff

Job Family
Information Technology

# Hours Per Week
37.5

Position Overview

The Director, PMO and Portfolio Management at Marquette University provides strategic and operational leadership for project management, portfolio management, and business analysis capabilities across IT Services and, over time, the broader institution. In close partnership with the CIO, this role evaluates current project delivery practices, identifies organizational needs and opportunities, and helps evolve PMO processes, tools, and governance to support both traditional and more agile, fit-for-purpose delivery approaches. The individual leads enterprise portfolio intake, prioritization, and execution; develops practical forms, templates, metrics, and reporting; and builds a collaborative, continuous improvement-minded team that can successfully deliver value across a complex university environment. This leader also strengthens stakeholder and business relationship management, helping teams align delivery practices with institutional priorities, resource capacity, and desired outcomes

Duties and Responsibilities
  • PMO Leadership, Delivery Practices, and Governance: Evaluate current project management practices, tools, and organizational needs to identify opportunities for continued alignment, maturity, and effectiveness across the university. In partnership with stakeholders, build on existing strengths to advance standardized yet flexible methodologies that support waterfall, agile, and hybrid delivery approaches based on the nature of the work. Develop and maintain practical templates, playbooks, reporting tools, governance routines, and change management approaches that improve consistency, transparency, adoption, and speed to value. Ensure effective project oversight through status reporting, risk and dependency management, escalation support, and governance forums for high-priority initiatives.


  • Stakeholder Engagement, Business Relationship Management, and Demand Alignment: Engage campus leaders and functional units to assess needs, shape demand, clarify business outcomes, and align proposed initiatives with institutional and IT strategic priorities. Build strong business relationship management practices within the role and across the team to strengthen trust, communication, and shared ownership of results. Guide stakeholders through intake, governance, and delivery processes, and facilitate decision-making forums that support prioritization, sequencing, and transparent oversight of university IT initiatives. Establish and use metrics to measure delivery performance, stakeholder value, and achievement of objectives.


  • IT Strategy and Portfolio Leadership: Partner with the CIO to translate the Strategic Plan into actionable initiatives, roadmaps, and integrated portfolios of work for IT Services and enterprise priorities. Lead portfolio planning, intake, and prioritization to ensure initiatives are aligned with strategic goals, organizational readiness, resource capacity, financial constraints, and desired outcomes. Establish prioritization criteria and decision-support information that enable leadership to sequence investments and balance demand across the portfolio. Provide leadership to move priority work from concept to approved execution.


  • People Leadership and Team Development: Provide strategic leadership and direction to the project management and business analysis teams, ensuring alignment with IT Services and the university's goals and objectives. Lead and develop talent through effective workforce planning, hiring, coaching, mentoring, and performance management. Build a strong collaborative workforce with a continuous improvement mindset, high accountability, strong communication practices, and a shared focus on delivering measurable value. Develop team members' project delivery, facilitation, stakeholder engagement, and business relationship management capabilities.


  • Continuous Improvement and Capability Development: Drive continuous improvement of portfolio management and project delivery capabilities across the PMO and supported teams. Develop and implement training, coaching, templates, forms, and standard work that help employees deliver projects effectively while adopting a continuous improvement mindset. Advance organizational maturity in governance, intake, prioritization, metrics, reporting, and delivery practices to strengthen transparency, consistency, collaboration, and data-informed decision-making. Lead change enablement efforts through training, communication, coaching, and adoption support to help teams and stakeholders successfully implement new processes, tools, and ways of working.


  • Financial Alignment and Investment Oversight: Assist in planning and managing technology minor capital and other project-related budgets for both IT Services and the various units on campus. Provide project- and portfolio-level financial oversight, ensuring investments align with strategic priorities, governance decisions, delivery capacity, and expected value. Partner with finance, IT leadership, and campus stakeholders to support capital planning, budgeting, forecasting, prioritization, and transparency of project investments and outcomes.


  • Vendor and Contract Alignment: Provide guidance and oversight for project-related contracts and vendor engagements, ensuring alignment with project objectives, governance standards, financial expectations, and university procurement practices. Support the evaluation, negotiation, development, and execution of formal technology project agreements, including bid documentation, RFPs, and vendor contracts. Work with vendors to drive value, accountability, and measurable outcomes in support of institutional priorities.


Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business Administration or related field

Progressive experience leading and delivering complex IT initiatives, including responsibility for project delivery, portfolio management, governance, and cross-functional execution.

Demonstrated ability to assess, design, and mature project management and portfolio management practices, including intake, prioritization, governance, reporting, and execution disciplines.

Strong knowledge of project delivery methodologies, and the ability to apply fit-for-purpose practices across different types of work.

Experience developing and implementing practical tools, templates, forms, metrics, and training to improve project delivery consistency and outcomes.

Experience with project and portfolio-level financial planning, forecasting, budgeting, and investment alignment.

Strong leadership, communication, facilitation, stakeholder engagement, and business relationship management skills.

Experience leading organizational change, including communication, training, stakeholder engagement, and adoption of new processes or ways of working.

Knowledge of change management principles and the ability to apply them in support of project delivery, process improvement, and organizational adoption.

Demonstrated ability to build collaborative teams, coach employees, and foster a continuous improvement mindset.

Experience working with vendors and contracts to drive value, accountability, and business outcomes.

Preferred Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Master's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business Administration or related field

Project Management Professional (PMP) certification or equivalent

Experience supporting or leading enterprise IT governance, strategic planning, and portfolio management in higher education or a similarly complex environment.

Experience leading or scaling a PMO, delivery transformation effort, or continuous improvement function.

Experience training or coaching project managers,

analysts, or cross-functional teams in agile, hybrid, or continuous improvement practices.

Advanced experience with portfolio metrics, benefits realization, and executive reporting.

Experience applying formal change management frameworks or practices in support of enterprise initiatives.

Department
IT Services

Posting Date
06/03/2026

Closing Date

Special Instructions to Applicants

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