Strategic Portfolio Lead Insurance

National Bank of Canada; Montreal; On-site; CAD 110,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health and wellness program

Flexible group insurance

Generous pension plan

Employee Share Ownership Plan

Employee and family assistance program

Preferential banking services

Involvement in community initiatives

Telemedicine service

Virtual sleep clinic

Job summary

National Bank Insurance invites applications for Strategic Portfolio Lead to coordinate the sector’s initiatives. You will deliver an enterprise-wide view of the portfolio, align teams on priorities, and clarify risks and decisions.

Work with initiative owners, PMO, and portfolio teams to ensure structured execution aligned with business objectives. You will lead governance meetings, provide executive updates, and coach teams on prioritization and governance as part of a client-focused,

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required with 8+ years in project portfolio management, governance, or strategic oversight.
• Experience in insurance sector and understanding of business drivers is essential.
• Ability to synthesize complex information and report to senior leadership with clear insights.

Responsibilities

• Lead cross-functional orchestration of the Insurance strategic portfolio, including priorities, status, risks, dependencies, and issues.
• Prepare and present executive-level status reports for senior leadership with priorities and decisions.
• Anticipate cross-functional issues, recommend actions, and support decision-making across multiple initiatives.
• Facilitate governance meetings and support prioritization and arbitration discussions for leadership.
• Coach initiative owners to structure priorities, actions, dependencies, and governance requirements.
• Loster liaison with Corporate Portfolio, PMO, and stakeholders to ensure alignment and follow-ups.
• Drive alignment among teams, initiatives, and business priorities.

Skills

Coaching

Data synthesis

Decision-making tools

Insurance

MD&A (Management Discussion & Analysis

Project management

Project portfolio management

Resiliency

Product owner

Stakeholder management

Strategic communications

Strategic planning

Team alignment

Teamwork

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

SharePoint

JIRA

Confluence

PowerPoint

Excel

Power BI

Job description

A career within National Bank Insurance as a Strategic Portfolio Lead is an opportunity to play a key role in coordinating the sector's strategic initiatives. You will provide an enterprise-wide view of the portfolio, foster alignment across teams around business priorities, and help clarify risks, dependencies, and decision points. You will work closely with initiative owners, project managers, operational teams, and the sector's portfolio management team to ensure consistent, structured execution aligned with business objectives.

Your role

• Lead the cross-functional orchestration of the Insurance strategic portfolio, including priorities, status updates, risks, dependencies, and key issues.
• Prepare and present clear executive-level status reports for senior leadership, highlighting priorities, required decisions, risks, and business challenges.
• Anticipate cross-functional issues, recommend actions to prioritize, and support decision-making in an environment where multiple initiatives are progressing simultaneously.
• Facilitate governance meetings, support prioritization and arbitration discussions, and consolidate the information required by leadership.
• Coach and support initiative owners in structuring priorities, action plans, dependencies, and governance requirements while promoting the adoption of best practices, common frameworks, and reference templates.
• Act as a liaison with the Corporate Portfolio team, Project Management, and key stakeholders to ensure alignment and consistency of follow-ups.
• Facilitate alignment among teams, initiatives, and business priorities.

Your team

The Insurance sector is made up of specialists who collaborate in a proactive and people-centered way to help protect our clients at all times. Your team oversees the strategic portfolio, business processes, and business capacity management for the Insurance sector. This mandate supports the organization’s business strategy, including product management, client experience, net growth, and transformation objectives, particularly in digital distribution. It is also grounded in data-driven decision-making, a deep understanding of client needs, and close collaboration with the financing and credit card value chains. We offer a wide range of ongoing learning opportunities to support your development, including practical training, courses, and collaboration with colleagues who bring diverse expertise and backgrounds. We are committed to building an inclusive workplace where every employee is valued. National Bank stands out through its many initiatives promoting inclusion, making it a Canadian leader in diversity.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field and 8 years of relevant experience in project portfolio management, governance, strategic initiative oversight, or project management.
• Strong understanding of the insurance industry and its key business drivers.
• Proven ability to synthesize complex information, prepare executive-level reporting, and communicate insights effectively to senior stakeholders.
• Strong influencing, coaching, and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to guide teams through complex initiatives, cross-functional dependencies, and governance processes.
• Proficiency with collaboration, tracking, and presentation tools, including SharePoint, JIRA, Confluence, PowerPoint, Excel, and Power BI, as well as the ability to continuously improve portfolio management practices and tools.
• Previous experience as a Product Owner or in a product-led transformation environment is considered a strong asset.

Languages: French

Required skills: Coaching, Data Synthesis, Decision-making Tools, Insurance, Management Discussion and Analysis, Project Management, Project Portfolio Management, Resiliency, Scrum Professional Product Owner, Stakeholder Management, Strategic Communications, Strategic Planning, Team Alignment, Teamwork

Your benefits

• Health and wellness program, including many options
• Flexible group insurance
• Generous pension plan
• Employee Share Ownership Plan
• Employee and family assistance program
• Preferential banking services
• Involvement in community initiatives
• Telemedicine service
• Virtual sleep clinic

We have an offer that keeps up with trends as well as your needs and those of your family.

Our dynamic work environments and cutting-edge collaboration tools foster a positive employee experience. We value employees’ ideas. Whether through our surveys or programs, regular feedback and ongoing communication are encouraged.

Making a bold move in a people-first environment

We’re a bank on a human scale that stands out for its courage, entrepreneurial culture, and passion for people. Our mission is to have a positive impact on people’s lives. Our core values of partnership, agility, and empowerment inspire us, and inclusion is central to our commitments. We aim, wherever possible, to provide a barrier-free and accessible environment to all employees.

We strive to provide accessibility measures throughout the recruitment process within the limits of our available resources. If you require accommodations, feel free to let us know during our initial conversations. We welcome all candidates! What can you bring to our team?

Join us!