Director of Project Management

Overview:

The Program Director will join Talcott's Portfolio Management Organization (PMO), taking ownership of delivering high-impact, enterprise-wide programs within established timelines and budgets across business groups. This senior leader will foster a culture rooted in accountability, agility, and measurable results, while championing modern delivery practices including AI-enabled tools and approaches to accelerate outcomes. The ideal candidate brings domain expertise in life and annuity products and reinsurance transactions, exceptional business and financial acumen, and a proven record of successful delivery across diverse regions and business units. This role demands very strong, decisive leadership, strategic influence, and outstanding communication and collaboration skills. Success in matrixed environments and expertise in project methodologies, governance, and business alignment are essential. We are seeking an execution-focused leader to guide governance and drive delivery for complex, transformational initiatives that support Talcott's growth. This position will follow a hybrid work arrangement schedule and can be based out of one of our Talcott offices in Hartford, CT., Charlotte, N.C. or New York, N.Y.

Responsibilities:

Plan, organize, and control activities across programs of varying complexity, ensuring delivery within defined scope, timeline, and budget
Develop and maintain comprehensive program plans; track key milestones, dependencies, and phase reviews across the lifecycle
Partner across functions to build robust business cases, manage program budgets, and connect delivery outcomes to financial results and value realization
Drive process reengineering to simplify, standardize, and optimize workflows championing opportunities to apply automation and AI that accelerate delivery
Collaborate with program sponsors and senior stakeholders to align goals with strategic objectives and define success metrics and business cases
Proactively identify and manage program risks, issues, and changes d
Maintain a focus on regulatory, actuarial, and financial complexity inherent in insurance and reinsurance programs
Lead Steering Committee meetings and drive effective senior leadership decision-making
Oversee program budgets, resource allocation, stakeholder communication, and executive reporting.
Support change management, user adoption, and operational readiness
Influence cross-functional teams and vendors to drive accountability and program outcomes, using strong negotiation and conflict-management skills to resolve competing priorities and drive alignment.
Champion a culture of continuous improvement by regularly evaluating program management processes, tools, and methodologies to identify opportunities for increased efficiency, effectiveness, and quality.
Promote knowledge sharing and cross-team collaboration to leverage collective expertise and accelerate problem-solving
Encourage a mindset of agility and adaptability, enabling teams to respond effectively to changing business needs and program requirements.
Build strong, effective business relationships that contribute to driving our strategic priorities.

Qualifications:

Bachelor's degree in business, finance, economics, or a related field; advanced degree a plus.
Minimum of 15 years of program leadership in the Insurance and/or Financial Services domain, with direct experience in life and annuity products and/or reinsurance (e.g., block acquisitions, treaty reinsurance, closed-block or in-force management, policy administration)
Strong finance orientation, with the ability to partner with Finance and Actuarial teams
Capacity to interpret business cases and financial models with multi-year program budgets
Demonstrated familiarity with AI, automation, and data-driven delivery
Readily able to apply emerging technologies for the improvement of business initiatives
Familiarity with process reengineering and workflow optimization, with a track record of delivering pragmatic, scalable improvements.
Deep knowledge of project portfolio management, program governance, risk management and change enablement.
Proven leadership with mentorship that cultivates project management best practices with junior talent
Demonstrated ability to lead, influence and inspire high-performing teams
Experience driving decisions at the executive level within a matrixed organization
Exceptional interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills
Strong facilitation, negotiation, and conflict-management abilities
Aptitude to influence and drive alignment at all levels of the organization
Certifications in PMP, PgMP, and Agile strongly preferred (e.g., PMI-ACP, SAFe, CSM).

Key Competencies:

Executive Presence & Strategic Influence
Decisive, Inspirational Leadership
Business & Financial Acumen
Life, Annuity & Reinsurance Domain Expertise
Strong AI fluency and application
Process Reengineering & Automation
Negotiation & Conflict Management
Agility in Complex, Evolving Environments
Stakeholder Management & Influence
Analytical Thinking & Decision-Making
Cross-functional Collaboration