Pontoon is an employment consultancy. We put expertise, energy, and enthusiasm into improving everyone's chance of being part of the workplace. We respect and appreciate people of all ethnicities, generations, religious beliefs, sexual orientations, gender identities, and more. We do this by showcasing their talents, skills, and unique experience in an inclusive environment that helps them thrive.
Job Title: Portfolio Manager
Location: Warwick / London
Contract Type: 6 months with scope to extend
Job Purpose
The Portfolio Manager sits within IT&D and will have a strong operational technology focus, directly supporting a critical operational network and associated transformation activity.
The role is responsible for bringing together a complex set of moving parts, constraints, dependencies and priorities at portfolio level, creating the visibility and governance needed to optimise delivery and support effective decision-making.
The role will establish clear portfolio governance, responsibilities and accountabilities, while connecting activity across teams and advising on the work required to inform wider strategic direction.
This is a hands-on role requiring a strong balance of proactive portfolio management and reactive problem-solving. The successful candidate will be comfortable getting into the detail, working directly with teams and addressing issues as they emerge.
Key Accountabilities
Establish a clear view of portfolio activity, priorities, dependencies, risks, constraints and delivery.
Assess the moving parts across the portfolio and identify opportunities to improve sequencing, prioritisation and delivery.
Establish the portfolio layer that brings activity together and enables effective oversight and optimisation.
Support relevant transformation and T3 activity where required.
Identify emerging issues and dependencies and ensure they are addressed or escalated appropriately.
Develop portfolio plans, priorities and decision points to support effective leadership decisions.
Define and establish appropriate portfolio governance and ways of working.
Clarify responsibilities, accountabilities and decision rights across the portfolio.
Work with PMO and relevant teams to establish effective reporting, RAID and portfolio controls.
Ensure governance is practical, proportionate and supports delivery rather than creating unnecessary process.
Build effective relationships across a complex, matrixed organisation and manage stakeholders with differing priorities and perspectives.
Work across IT&D, operational, delivery and supporting functions to build alignment and maintain momentum.
Influence effectively without relying on formal authority.
Connect the dots across teams and provide clear advice on issues, dependencies and work required.
Communicate complex portfolio information clearly to both operational and senior audiences.
Identify portfolio problems early and lead collaborative action to address them.
Establish practical portfolio processes and disciplines that can be embedded within permanent teams.
Transfer knowledge, capability and ownership to appropriate business owners.
Ensure portfolio governance and management practices can operate effectively without ongoing dependency on the role.
Experience and Technical Know-How
Essential
Demonstrable experience managing complex portfolios, programmes or delivery environments.
Experience establishing portfolio governance, accountabilities, responsibilities and ways of working.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to connect information across multiple areas and identify dependencies and constraints.
A hands-on approach, with the confidence to move between high-level portfolio oversight and detailed operational issues.
Ability to balance proactive planning with reactive problem-solving in a fast-moving environment.
Strong influencing and communication skills.
Desirable
Experience within the utilities sector or another complex operational environment.
Experience working with operational technology or technology supporting critical infrastructure.
Exposure to regulated environments or major infrastructure programmes.
Familiarity with portfolio or programme management frameworks.
Experience working within or alongside a PMO.
Standout Skills and Experience
Multi-stakeholder management - confident working across different levels, functions and priorities.
Matrix organisation experience - comfortable navigating complex structures and influencing without direct authority.
Hands-on portfolio management - willing to get into the detail, investigate issues and actively move things forward.
Reactive and proactive thinking - able to manage immediate issues while maintaining a forward-looking portfolio view.
Connecting the dots - able to identify relationships, dependencies and constraints across different areas and turn them into clear actions or advice.
Operational mindset - comfortable working close to critical operational activity rather than operating solely at a strategic level.
Adaptability - able to quickly understand a complex environment and build credibility with technical, operational and senior stakeholders.
Apply now!
Please be advised: if you haven't heard from us within 48 hours, then unfortunately your application has not been successful on this occasion. We may, however, keep your details on file for any suitable future vacancies and contact you accordingly.
We use generative AI tools to support our candidate screening process. This helps us ensure a fair, consistent, and efficient experience for all applicants. Rest assured, all final decisions are made by our hiring team, and your application will be reviewed with care and attention.
No reliable IR35 determination was found in the title or listing text. Treat the status as unconfirmed and ask for the SDS before accepting the engagement.
