IT Release Manager

Voya Financial; Hartford (CT); On-site; USD 79,620 - 132,720; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental, vision and life insurance plans

401(k) with generous matching

Tuition reimbursement up to $5,250/year

Job summary

Voya Financial is looking for an IT Release Manager to oversee the lifecycle of hardware and software releases. This role involves managing releases across various applications, following established processes, and collaborating closely with business and technology teams.

The ideal candidate has a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and 3–5 years of relevant experience. Responsibilities include risk management, stakeholder communication, and continuous service improvement.

Qualifications

• 3–5 years of release management experience or enterprise-wide project/delivery management experience.
• 10 years of experience in application and hardware implementation.
• Detailed understanding of ITIL Release, Change, and Configuration Management.

Responsibilities

• Manage the lifecycle of releases for hardware and software modifications.
• Build and maintain release roadmaps collaborating with leadership.
• Document the full lifecycle of releases in the service management tool.

Skills

Release planning and execution

Risk management

Stakeholder communication

Project management

Change management

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

ServiceNow

Excel

PowerPoint

Job description

IT Release Manager

Profile Summary

Voya is seeking a Release Manager to manage the lifecycle of hardware and software modifications, new deployments, and related release activities across multiple application suites and delivery methodologies. This role is responsible for following Voya’s release management process and other core IT service management processes as needed, while partnering closely with business leaders, technology teams, project management, operations, infrastructure, QA, development, and supplier resources. The Release Manager will support release planning, stakeholder communication, risk management, approvals, implementation coordination, post-installation support, and continuous service improvement.

Profile Description

• Manage the lifecycle of releases for hardware and software modifications and new deployments by following release management and applicable IT service management processes.
• Build and maintain release roadmaps to identify scope, timelines, dependencies, and execution plans in collaboration with team members and leadership while minimizing or avoiding risk of collision with other changes or releases.
• Meet monthly or quarterly with business leaders to review priorities and plan for future work.
• Document the full lifecycle of releases in the service management tool, including tollgate activities, stakeholder approvals, project management approvals, and required IT service management process steps.
• Identify risks, manage interdependencies and timing concerns, support milestone adherence, and ensure release integrity can be measured.
• Coordinate with other release managers and application suite managers across large multidisciplinary teams in a matrixed organization to confirm resource availability and elevate concerns to senior leaders as appropriate.
• Partner with operations, business analysts, quality assurance, developers, project management, infrastructure, senior business and IT leaders, and supplier resources to support release scope and execution.
• Create release plans and conduct release readiness, milestone, and business go/no‑go reviews with technical teams, project managers, and business stakeholders.
• Develop communication plans, including scope and change control management, and communicate execution plans and impacts to configuration item asset owners affected by the release.
• Communicate and elevate issues related to release plan, scope, schedule, implementation quality, and final release results.
• Provide release metrics, release scorecards, reporting, and escalation updates as appropriate.
• Coordinate execution plans and monitor activities during release implementation, ensuring technical support is available before, during, and after installation.
• Ensure production issues are identified, tracked, and resolved during the post‑installation phase.
• Adhere to SLA agreements and request approval for deviations from SLAs when permitted by process policies and guidelines.
• Participate in post‑implementation reviews, continuous service improvement meetings, CAB meetings, and release advisory meetings.
• Perform other duties and projects as assigned.

Knowledge & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related field.
• 3–5 years of release management experience or enterprise‑wide project/delivery management experience.
• 10 years of experience in application and hardware implementation.
• Detailed understanding of ITIL Release, Change, and Configuration Management.
• Advanced knowledge of the software development lifecycle.
• Demonstrated effective leadership and critical thinking skills.
• Very strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong project management and organizational skills.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate and build relationships with various stakeholders in a matrixed environment.
• Proven record of flexibility and ability to adapt to changing priorities.
• Exposure and familiarity with automated testing tools, process management tools, agile delivery tools, and change management.
• Experience with ServiceNow and analytics tools.
• Expert‑level Microsoft Office knowledge, including Excel and PowerPoint.
• Proven ability to problem solve and apply strong critical thinking skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• ITIL v3 Foundation certification.
• Understanding of Voya Change Management and Release Management processes.
• Copilot/AI prompting experience.

Competencies

• Release planning and execution
• Risk, dependency, and change management
• Stakeholder communication and relationship management
• Matrixed team coordination
• Critical thinking and problem solving
• Adaptability and prioritization
• Service management process discipline

Compensation Pay Disclosure

Voya is committed to pay that’s fair and equitable, which means comparable pay for comparable roles and responsibilities. The below annual base salary range reflects the expected hiring range(s) for this position in the location(s) listed. In addition to base salary, Voya offers incentive opportunities (i.e., annual cash incentives, sales incentives, and/or long‑term incentives) based on the role to reward the achievement of annual performance objectives. Please note that this salary information is solely for candidates hired to perform work within one of these locations, and refers to the amount Voya Financial is willing to pay at the time of this posting. Actual compensation offered may vary from the posted salary range based upon the candidate’s geographic location, work experience, education, licensure requirements and/or skill level and will be finalized at the time of offer. Salaries for part‑time roles will be prorated based upon the agreed upon number of hours to be regularly worked. $79,620 – $132,720 USD.

What We Offer

• Health, dental, vision and life insurance plans
• 401(k) Savings plan – with generous company matching contributions (up to 6%)
• Voya Retirement Plan – employer paid cash balance retirement plan (4%)
• Tuition reimbursement up to $5,250/year
• Paid time off – including 20 days paid time off, nine paid company holidays and a flexible Diversity Celebration Day.
• Paid volunteer time – 40 hours per calendar year

Critical Skills

• Customer Focused: Passionate drive to delight our customers and offer unique solutions that deliver on their expectations.
• Critical Thinking: Thoughtful process of analyzing data and problem solving data to reach a well‑reasoned solution.
• Team Mentality: Partnering effectively to drive our culture and execute on our common goals.
• Business Acumen: Appreciation and understanding of the financial services industry in order to make sound business decisions.
• Learning Agility: Openness to new ways of thinking and acquiring new skills to retain a competitive advantage.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Voya Financial is an equal‐opportunity employer. Voya Financial provides equal opportunity to qualified individuals regardless of race, color, sex, national origin, citizenship status, religion, age, disability, veteran status, creed, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, or any other status protected by state or local law.

Reasonable Accommodations

Voya is committed to the inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, Voya will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please reference resources for applicants with disabilities.