Data Portfolio Lead

**Ways of working**
Here at Direct Line Group, we recognize the importance of flexibility, not only in our personal lives but also in the way we work. Our mixed model way of working offers a 'best of both worlds' approach combining the best parts of home and office-working, offering flexibility for everyone.

We’ve ditched the daily commute for a virtual first approach. If you do come into the office, there are exciting workspaces and zones you can use, depending on the type of work you are doing

How much you’ll be in the office depends on your role, and we’ll consider the flexible working options that work best for you. Please get in touch with the team to discuss.

**The Role**:
Direct Line Group is going through an exciting transformation to be the leading data-driven business in the UK’s general insurance market. Our Data Chapter is looking to expand Direct Line Group’s competitive advantage with the use of data being at the heart of our mission.

You will use your extensive portfolio management experience and skills to provide management, control, and oversight of the portfolio of change and run initiatives across the Data Chapter (c. £10m change, c. £8m run), including holistic and strategic change delivery planning and reporting, financial reconciliation and management, demand and resource planning and critical supplier engagement and governance.

**What you’ll be doing**:

- Define, implement, and own best-in-class processes and control/reporting measures to provide regular reliable, and accurate delivery, financial, and risk MI to key DLG stakeholders up to ExCo level.
- Own financial reconciliation and reporting for the Data Chapter, working with colleagues in Finance to manage inbound/outbound financial dependencies with other parts of the organization.
- Define and own benefits definition, management, and reporting for Data Chapter investment initiatives.
- Own risk management for the Data Chapter performing a key liaison role with DLG’s internal risk and control functions and ensuring that the Data Chapter’s risk position and mitigation plans are clearly understood and communicated.
- Lead and own the overarching demand management process for the Data Chapter ensuring that forecasted demand is budgeted for and that informed decisions can be taken by squads as to how planned/unplanned demand can be delivered against the current known change portfolio.
- Lead and own the overall resource/supply view for the Data Chapter and provide accurate reporting related to utilization cost, and opportunities for optimization and efficiencies.
- Define and implement measures to identify, track and manage dependencies across the change and run portfolio.
- Produce inputs/packs for regular key committees, meetings and create and issue pre-read and presentation packs to agreed deadlines for consumption, often up to ExCo level.
- Manage strategic supplier relationships for both resource and technology suppliers, ensuring that supplier performance meets expectations and that DLG is receiving value for its’ spend.
- Define and identify or implement tools for tracking the management of the change portfolio, together with the tracking of the time booked to change, as well as all other activities.
- Identify and implement reporting on the change and run portfolios, implementing sophisticated analysis to monitor and improve portfolio performance.
- As and when required, provide focussed project leadership and portfolio services to key strategic initiatives (£2m+) across the Data Chapter, to manage, control and report on delivery performance, dependency management, risk management, etc.
**What we’re looking for**:
You are a highly experienced portfolio/project management professional who can define controls, structures, processes, and reporting in order to manage and oversee large portfolios of change and run complex projects and initiatives. You are someone who can cover all facets of portfolio delivery, including financial management, demand and supply management, dependency management, risk management, as well as defining and implementing the methods and reporting required to provide all necessary portfolio information to various levels of stakeholders up to, and including, ExCo.

**Skills and/or experience you will need**:

- Significant project or portfolio management office experience, having performed a lead project/portfolio office role on large-scale investment and/or run portfolios.
- Experienced in devising and implementing best-in-class portfolio office processes and capabilities to manage project finances, demand and supply management, risk management, and dependency management.
- Experienced in implementing and tracking data capture and reporting processes for managing and comparing both forecasted and actual benefits of change.
- Experience in managing suppliers at both strategic and day-to-day operational levels.
- ‘Hands-on’ project management office skills to support individ