Program Manager I

ISO, a Verisk business, has been a leading source of information about property/casualty insurance risk since 1971. For a broad spectrum of commercial and personal lines of insurance, ISO provides statistical, actuarial, underwriting, and claims information and analytics; compliance and fraud identification tools; policy language; information about specific locations; and technical services. ISO serves insurers, reinsurers, agents and brokers, insurance regulators, risk managers, and other participants in the property/casualty insurance marketplace. To learn more about ISO please visit us at:  www.verisk.com/iso. We are proud to be a part of the Verisk family of companies! 

At the heart of what we do is help clients manage risk. Verisk (Nasdaq: VRSK) provides data and insights to our customers in insurance, energy and the financial services markets so they can make faster and more informed decisions.   

Our global team uses AI, machine learning, automation, and other emerging technologies to collect and analyze billions of records. We provide advanced decision-support to prevent credit, lending, and cyber risks. In addition, we monitor and advise companies on complex global matters such as climate change, catastrophes, and geopolitical issues.  

But why we do our work is what sets us apart. It stems from a commitment to making the world better, safer and stronger.  

It’s the reason Verisk is part of the UN Global Compact sustainability initiative. It’s why we made a commitment to balancing 100 percent of our carbon emissions. It’s the aim of our “returnship” program for experienced professionals rejoining the workforce after time away. And, it’s what drives our annual Innovation Day, where we identify our next first-to-market innovations to solve our customers’ problems.   

At its core, Verisk uses data to minimize risk and maximize value. But far bigger, is why we do what we do. 

At Verisk you can build an exciting career with meaningful work; create positive and lasting impact on business; and find the support, coaching, and training you need to advance your career. We have received the Great Place to Work® Certification for the fifth consecutive year. We’ve been recognized by Forbes as a World’s Best Employer and a Best Employer for Women, testaments to our culture of engagement and the value we place on an inclusive and diverse workforce.  Verisk’s Statement on Racial Equity and Diversity supports our commitment to these values and affecting positive and lasting change in the communities where we live and work.  

Position Summary:  

Under the direction of the Head of the Project Management Office (PMO), reporting into a Portfolio and Portfolio Manager, this position oversees one or more programs of multiple large, complex, and/or high-priority projects within the ISO Underwriting business unit.  

The Program Manager is expected to be savvy about our business environment and know how to adeptly lead and manage people and processes to ensure projects are run efficiently and effectively. They will need to build a strong relationship with business owners and ensure a solid alignment of their strategic priorities inside the program. 

The Program Manager will have a team of Program and Project managers reporting to them and will need to perform all people manager duties including coaching, performance management, regular check-ins, and more. The Program Manager will ensure that all team members in their purview are orchestrating and driving projects through all phases—from original concept or initiation through to close. Given his or her depth and breadth of experience, the Program Manager is considered a senior expert in project management and has the authority to guide, steer, coach, and lead the project team on how to run the project on a day-to-day basis in order to reach the finish line—on time, within scope and within budget. The position interfaces across, up and down organizational and functional hierarchies impacted by the project, including business and product leadership, IT, development partners, vendors, and end users.  

Given the complexity, importance and high visibility of the projects typically managed by a Program Manager, superb communication skills and consistent, high quality performance and delivery are critical in this role. The ability to report on projects to different audiences must be best-in-class (i.e. clear, thoughtful, well organized and articulated, and at the appropriate level of detail).  

Responsibilities, Work Details and Deliverables:  

• Serve as head of the project team, working in close collaboration with the project sponsors, owners, and product leadership; develop a trusted advisor relationship with the business, facilitate discussion, and provide recommendations to management as appropriate  
• Organize and lead communications for entire portfolio in a seamless and timely manner, and to all appropriate levels; direct day-to-day activities of projects in matrixed organization  
• Proactively drive the exploration and discovery of projects’ critical deliverables, guiding project stakeholders through this; also, tailor processes to meet the needs of individual projects  
• Understand interdependencies between technology, operations, and business needs  
• Ensure team is successfully creating, publishing, and maintaining standard project documentation such as project plans, status reports, risk and issues logs, project charters, change request registers, and meeting minutes  
• Direct project timelines and ensure proper planning and execution; regularly document, track, and follow up on projects and programs, milestones and deliverables, ensuring that they meet requirements and quality standards and are completed on schedule  
• Demonstrate decisiveness in resolving business problems and in identifying priorities  
• Monitor, track and control outcomes to resolve issues, conflicts, dependencies and critical path deliverables; identify, manage, escalate and mitigate risks and issues as appropriate  
• In close collaboration with project leadership and stakeholders, define success criteria for assigned projects and report on success criteria results and metrics  
• Act as an internal quality control check for the entire portfolio 
• Prepare and present portfolio level updates for senior management.  
• Comply with PMO established standards and best practices, work within project management tools (including, but not limited to, Sharepoint and MS Teams, PPM Pro, LeanKit, JIRA), and provide ad hoc statistics on projects as requested by PMO or business leadership  
• Continue professional development in order to keep abreast of emerging technologies, methods and best practices  
• Operate as a role model, providing coaching, direction, and training in project management to fellow PMO team members; contribute to process improvement initiatives as it relates to successful project delivery, and participate in establishing best practices, templates, and similar to expand and mature the ISO Underwriting PMO organization  
• Apply mastery in dealing with and managing expectations of different personalities (stakeholders, sponsors, project team members, etc.) with diverse management and leadership styles. Incorporate feedback and expectations across projects and in overall communication.  
• Perform other duties as assigned, needed and appropriate  

Skills/Experience Required:

• Bachelor’s degree, along with a PMP or professional project management certification(s)  
• Agile, Scrum, or SAFe training, certification, and experience desired 
• 5+ years of project management experience on projects within a matrix environment  
• 3+ years of experience with full product lifecycle, with a firm understanding of the development lifecycle and various technology methodologies that support that lifecycle  
• Experience with product management and leadership, with preference given to those with exposure to the property and casualty insurance industry  
• Proven record of reliability and success in managing medium to large cross-functional and/or multi-year projects and/or programs on-time, on-schedule and within budget  
• Proven ability to work in an ambiguous environment with incomplete information and collaborate across multiple areas in order to achieve business objectives  
• Strong leadership and diplomacy skills, including the ability to build and maintain positive working relationships across, up and down multiple business and technology groups  
• A drive for results and demonstrated accountability for planning and executing on business needs; a consistent top performer that employs the right level of urgency and possesses a commitment to being accountable for results  
• Best-in-class communication skills (written, verbal and presentation), along with excellent negotiation, facilitation, consultative, and interpersonal abilities  
• Prowess for establishing credibility, mentoring, motivating, supervising, influencing, and building consensus among internal and external project teams and peers (technical and non-technical)  
• Ability to present to all levels of the organization, including to management and leadership  
• Superb ability to work under pressure; thrives in stressful or demanding conditions that may arise within assigned projects  
• Analytical and perceptive, with strong attention to detail and the proven ability to work creatively in a problem-solving environment  
• Self-motivated and decisive, with the ability to think independently, make sound decisions as well as the ability to adapt to change and flex with competing demands and shifting priorities  
• Knowledgeable in change management and tracking  
• Experience with a variety of project management tools and structured methodologies, including SDLC, Agile, SCRUM, Safe Agile, Waterfall  
• Technically competent with various software programs, including but not limited to Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), Microsoft Project, Microsoft Teams, and Microsoft Sharepoint  

#LI-RM2

Verisk Analytics is an equal opportunity employer.

All members of the Verisk Analytics family of companies are equal opportunity employers. We consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, veteran's status, age or disability.

http://www.verisk.com/careers.html

Unsolicited resumes sent to Verisk, including unsolicited resumes sent to a Verisk business mailing address, fax machine or email address, or directly to Verisk employees, will be considered Verisk property. Verisk will NOT pay a fee for any placement resulting from the receipt of an unsolicited resume.

Consumer Privacy Notice

At Verisk, the health and safety of our people is our number one priority.  Effective November 15, 2021, and subject to applicable law, all prospective hires for office based roles or roles that support any of our businesses’ government contracts will be required to demonstrate that they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by their start date, or qualify for a legally-required medical or religious accommodation to this vaccination requirement, as a condition of employment. Hired candidates who do not demonstrate that they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by their start date, and who have not been approved for a legally-required medical or religious accommodation will no longer meet the requirements for employment and their offers of employment will be immediately rescinded, in accordance with applicable law.