Portfolio Management Office (PMO) Guild Lead

AXA UK; England; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A major insurance firm in the UK seeks a PMO Guild Lead to drive agile transformation and manage the PMO function. The successful candidate will provide technical leadership, design operation strategies, and champion modern PMO tools. This role requires strong experience in managing PMO teams, excellent communication skills, and a solid grasp of agile principles. Competitive salary and flexible working arrangements are offered.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Annual performance bonus

Contributory pension scheme

Life Assurance

Private medical cover

28 days annual leave plus Bank Holidays

Opportunity to buy/sell extra leave

Wellbeing services

AXA employee discounts

Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience leading and managing PMO teams in complex organizations.
• Strong understanding of agile principles and practices.
• Proven ability to leverage data and analytics for reporting.
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills.
• Experience with budgeting, forecasting, and resource optimization.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership and align PMO activities with strategic objectives.
• Design and operate an effective PMO function.
• Drive continuous improvement in project governance and compliance.
• Lead and develop the PMO team.
• Champion modern PMO tools and data visualization techniques.

Skills

PMO leadership

Agile principles

Data analytics

Communication skills

Team leadership

Tools

Power BI

Tableau

Job description

Description

Change Guild leads AXA’s shift to agile ways of working, with PMO as a central capability. The PMO Guild Lead will design and run an enterprise-wide PMO that delivers clear, data-driven insights, robust governance, and continuous improvement to support delivery of valuable products and services across Tribes, Programmes and Projects.

As the PMO Guild Lead, you’ll provide technical leadership for the PMO function, design a high-performing PMO where governance, reporting, planning, and risk oversight enable data-driven decision-making. You’ll champion modern PMO tools and visualization, develop talent, and ensure capacity planning and capability development align with AXA’s product-based operating model.

At AXA we work smart, empowering our people to balance their time between home and the office in a way that works best for them, their team and our customers. You'll work at least two days a week (40%) away from home, moving to three days a week (60%) in the future. Away from home means either attendance at one of our office locations, visiting clients or attending industry events. We’re also happy to consider flexible working arrangements, which you can discuss with Talent Acquisition.

What you’ll be doing:

• Provide technical leadership for the PMO function, aligning its activities with AXA's strategic objectives and the Change Guild's priorities and reporting on PMO performance and key initiatives.
• Design and operate an effective and efficient PMO function that provides clear, data-driven insights to support senior leadership decision-making.
• Drive continuous improvement in the application of the enterprise-wide framework for the portfolio, programme, and adherence to project governance, ensuring robust oversight and compliance.
• Lead and develop the PMO team, fostering a culture of proactive partnership and analytical excellence.
• Oversee the development of effective training programmes (in collaboration with L&D), talent management and succession planning.
• Champion the adoption of modern PMO tools and data visualization techniques to enhance portfolio reporting and strategic insights.
• Ensure all change delivery activity across the portfolio adheres to regulatory and internal governance policies.
• Continuously improve PMO processes and methodologies, driving efficiency, effectiveness, and quality within the PMO function.

Due to the number of applications we expect to receive for this role, we reserve the right to close this advert earlier than the listed closing date to ensure we’re able to effectively manage interest. Therefore, if you’re interested in joining us at AXA, please don’t hesitate to apply.

We know that some candidates may be discouraged from applying if they don't meet every requirement. If you’re excited by this job and the prospect of working at AXA but you’re not sure you tick every box, we’d still encourage you to apply.

What you’ll bring:

• Demonstrated experience leading and managing PMO teams within a complex organisation, preferably in a regulated industry such as financial services, covering planning, scheduling, budgeting, risk management, reporting, and governance.
• Strong understanding of agile principles and practices and the ability to apply them within a PMO context; experience guiding teams in agile PMO operations.
• Proven ability to leverage data and analytics to generate meaningful insights and reports, using data visualization tools (e.g., Power BI, Tableau) to communicate clearly to senior leadership; experience establishing reporting standards and ensuring data quality.
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build strong stakeholder relationships at all levels and facilitate critical governance discussions.
• Experience leading and motivating teams, fostering a collaborative, high-performing environment; mentoring and development of staff.
• Understanding of relevant regulations and compliance requirements within the financial services industry (desirable).
• Experience with budgeting, forecasting, benefits realisation tracking, and alignment with investment governance processes.
• Proficiency with PMO tooling and delivery platforms, and a track record of driving capacity planning and resource optimisation.

As a precondition of employment for this role, you must be eligible and authorised to work in the United Kingdom.

What we offer:

At AXA UK, we’re appreciative of the people who work for us and our rewards package is reviewed regularly to reflect that. You can expect to receive:

• Competitive annual salary dependent on experience
• Annual company & performance-based bonus
• Contributory pension scheme (up to 12% employer contributions)
• Life Assurance (up to 10 x annual salary)
• Private medical cover
• 28 days annual leave plus Bank Holidays
• Opportunity to buy up to 5 extra days leave or sell up to 5 days leave
• Wellbeing services & resources
• AXA employee discounts

To apply, click on the ‘apply for this job’ button, you’ll then need to log in or create a profile to submit your CV. We’re proud to be an Equal Opportunities Employer and don’t discriminate against employees or potential employees based on protected characteristics. If you have a long-term condition or disability and require adjustments during the application or interview process, we’re proud to offer access to the AXA Accessibility Concierge. For our support, please send an email to [e-mail].

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Who we are:

AXA UK Support Functions power AXA’s three customer-facing business units, providing the infrastructure, support and expertise to ensure our customers can always count on us. Whether you’ve got heaps of experience and qualifications behind you, or you’re just starting out, we’ll give you the support and opportunities to help you grow and develop with confidence.