Senior IT Project Manager

Manulife Financial; Toronto; Hybrid; CAD 113,000 - 163,000; Full time

Job summary

Manulife Financial is seeking a Senior IT Project Manager to lead strategic technology initiatives supporting Legal, Compliance, Audit, and Government Relations. You will drive digital transformation, automation, and process improvement projects that enhance operational efficiency and strengthen risk management.

Working with global business and technology partners, you will deliver high-impact programs with visibility to senior leadership in a highly regulated environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, or related field.
• 10+ years managing complex cross-functional technology projects.
• 5-7 years in financial services or regulated environments.
• Hands-on with Jira, Confluence, MS Project/Planner, Power BI.
• PMP (or equivalent) with PMBOK knowledge.
• Proficiency in Agile/Scrum, Waterfall, and SDLC.

Responsibilities

• Own full project lifecycle from initiation to closure using best-practice methodologies.
• Lead digitization, automation, process improvement, and cost optimization initiatives.
• Partner with stakeholders to define scope, requirements, and implementation strategies.
• Develop business cases and cost-benefit analyses to support initiatives.
• Manage scope, schedule, budget, risks, issues, and dependencies for delivery.
• Provide clear communication to stakeholders, sponsors, and senior leadership.
• Coordinate cross-functional teams including engineering, architecture, compliance, QA, and business.
• Translate requirements into actionable delivery plans and manage expectations.
• Oversee vendor relationships, including contracts and compliance.
• Support organizational strategies and conduct post-implementation reviews.

Skills

Jira

Confluence

MS Project/Planner

Power BI

PMP certification

PMBOK

Agile methodologies

Waterfall delivery

SDLC

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science / Engineering

Tools

MS Project/Planner

Job description

The Senior IT Project Manager role offers the opportunity to lead strategic technology initiatives supporting Manulife's Legal, Compliance, Audit, and Government Relations functions. You will drive digital transformation, automation, and process improvement projects that enhance operational efficiency and strengthen risk management.

Working with global business and technology partners, you will deliver high-impact programs with visibility to senior leadership. This is an excellent opportunity to lead enterprise-wide initiatives and create measurable business value in highly regulated environment.

Position Responsibilities

• Own full project lifecycle including initiation, planning, execution, monitoring, and closure using best-practice methodologies.
• Lead initiatives focused on digitization, automation, process improvement, and cost optimization.
• Partner with business stakeholders to define scope, requirements, and implementation strategies.
• Develop business cases and cost-benefit analyses to support project initiatives.
• Manage scope, schedule, budget, risks, issues, and dependencies to ensure successful delivery.
• Provide clear, consistent communication to stakeholders, sponsors, and senior leadership.
• Lead and coordinate cross-functional teams (engineering, architecture, compliance, QA, business).
• Translate business requirements into actionable delivery plans and manage stakeholder expectations.
• Oversee vendor relationships, including contract negotiation and compliance.
• Support execution of organizational and divisional strategies.
• Conduct post-implementation reviews and continuous improvement assessments.
• Stay current with industry trends, tools, and best practices.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in computer science, Engineering, or related field and equivalent business experience.
• 10+ years of experience managing complex, cross-functional technology projects.
• 5-7 years of experience within financial services or other regulated environments.
• Hands-on experience with project management tools (e.g., Jira, Confluence, MS Project/Planner, Power BI).
• PMP (or equivalent) certification with strong knowledge of PMBOK.
• Proficiency in and Agile/Scrum methodologies, Waterfall delivery, SDLC, and software implementation best practices.

Preferred Qualifications

• Proven experience managing initiatives within Legal, Compliance, Government, or Audit domains.
• Strong financial acumen (business case development, forecasting, variance analysis).
• Experience with risk management, governance, and compliance frameworks.
• Vendor management and contract negotiation experience.
• Exposure to AI use cases and integrating compliance and audit considerations into technology solutions.
• Strong leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills.

When you join our team:

• We'll empower you to learn and grow the career you want.
• We'll recognize and support you in a flexible environment where well-being and inclusion are more than just words.
• As part of our global team, we'll support you in shaping the future you want to see.

The role being advertised is an existing vacancy.

About Manulife and John Hancock

Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider, helping people make their decisions easier and lives better. To learn more about us, visit https://www.manulife.com/en/about/our-story.html.

Manulife is an Equal Opportunity Employer

At Manulife/John Hancock, we embrace our diversity. We strive to attract, develop and retain a workforce that is as diverse as the customers we serve and to foster an inclusive work environment that embraces the strength of cultures and individuals. We are committed to fair recruitment, retention, advancement and compensation, and we administer all of our practices and programs without discrimination on the basis of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, religion or religious beliefs, creed, sex (including pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions), sexual orientation, genetic characteristics, veteran status, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, family status, disability, or any other ground protected by applicable law.

It is our priority to remove barriers to provide equal access to employment. A Human Resources representative will work with applicants who request a reasonable accommodation during the application process. All information shared during the accommodation request process will be stored and used in a manner that is consistent with applicable laws and Manulife/John Hancock policies. To request a reasonable accommodation in the application process, contact [e-mail].

Referenced Salary Location

Toronto, Ontario

Working Arrangement

Hybrid

Salary range is expected to be between

$113,000.00 CAD - $163,000.00 CAD

Employees also have the opportunity to participate in incentive programs and earn incentive compensation tied to business and individual performance. The actual salary will vary depending on local market conditions, geography and relevant job-related factors such as knowledge, skills, qualifications, experience, and education/training. If you are applying for this role outside of the primary location, please contact [e-mail] for the salary range for your location.

Manulife offers eligible employees a wide array of customizable benefits, including health, dental, mental health, vision, short-and long-term disability, life and AD&D insurance coverage, adoption/surrogacy and wellness benefits, and employee/family assistance plans. We also offer eligible employees various retirement savings plans (including pension and a global share ownership plan with employer matching contributions) and financial education and counseling resources. Our generous paid time off program in Canada includes holidays, vacation, personal, and sick days, and we offer the full range of statutory leaves of absence. If you are applying for this role in the U.S., please contact [e-mail] for more information about U.S.-specific paid time off provisions.

We use data and analytics technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), and automated processing tools, to analyze and process the information you provide to us or third parties in the application process. For more information, please refer to our personal information collection statement.