Strategic Delivery Lead – COO

AXIS (AXIS Capital); Short Hills (NJ); Hybrid; USD 160,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical plans

Retirement plans

Tuition reimbursement

Paid vacation

Job summary

AXIS Capital, a trusted global provider of specialty insurance and reinsurance, seeks a Strategic Delivery Lead - COO in the United States. The role oversees cross-functional delivery roadmaps, budgets, risks, dependencies, and reporting to align operations, technology, and data & analytics with COO objectives.

In a hybrid environment, you will collaborate with business leaders, Product Owners, Value Stream Leads, Release Train Engineers, and analytics teams to shape and oversee COO initiatives.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in business administration or a related field.
• PMP, Lean Six Sigma certifications, Agile delivery certifications (e.g. SAFe SPC, SAFe Lean Portfolio Management, PMI-ACP), or other relevant certifications are advantageous.
• Proven experience in strategic delivery leadership, portfolio or project management with a track record of successfully leading and delivering large-scale projects in a matrixed environment.
• Proven experience in the insurance industry preferred.
• Experience overseeing cross-functional programs that include business operations, technology delivery, data & analytics, process improvement, and transformation initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Drive and guide strategy for COO projects in collaboration with Business Leaders, Product Owners, Value Stream Leads, Release Train Engineers, and delivery partners, ensuring alignment across operations, technology, and data & analytics objectives.
• Execute governance, budgets, risk management, and reporting across COO projects, including OKRs and delivery KPIs.
• Identify and mitigate risks that could impact success.
• Maintain clear communication with stakeholders and report progress.
• Support resource prioritization and allocation for COO initiatives across multiple teams.
• Participate in Program Increment (PI) Planning to identify dependencies and priorities.

Skills

Strategic delivery leadership

Portfolio management

Stakeholder management

Analytical skills

Communication skills

Executive presence

Education

Bachelor's degree in business administration

PMP / Lean Six Sigma / SAFe SPC

Tools

PM tools

AI-enabled tools

Job description

This is your opportunity to join AXIS Capital - a trusted global provider of specialty lines insurance and reinsurance. We stand apart for our outstanding client service, intelligent risk taking and superior risk adjusted returns for our shareholders. We also proudly maintain an entrepreneurial, disciplined and ethical corporate culture. As a member of AXIS, you join a team that is among the best in the industry.

At AXIS, we believe that we are only as strong as our people. We strive to create an inclusive and welcoming culture where employees of all backgrounds and from all walks of life feel comfortable and empowered to be themselves. This means that we bring our whole selves to work.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any protected characteristic, including age, color, disability, ethnicity, gender identity, marital status, national origin, pregnancy, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any basis prohibited by the laws that govern its operations.

Job Description: Strategic Delivery Lead - COO

The Strategic Delivery Lead - COO oversees the internal COO of strategic initiatives spanning operations, technology, and data & analytics. This role provides a clear, integrated view of delivery and helps ensure that initiatives are prioritized, governed, and executed in support of COO business objectives.

How does this role contribute to our collective success?

Key responsibilities include maintaining cross-functional delivery roadmaps, managing budgets, risks, dependencies, and initiative-level reporting, and ensuring alignment across operations, technology, and data & analytics priorities. The role operates in a matrixed environment, partnering with business leaders, Product Owners, Value Stream Leads, Release Train Engineers, Application Delivery, Data & Analytics, AI, and COE teams to shape, launch, and oversee COO initiatives.

What will you do in this role?

Drive and guide strategy for COO projects in collaboration with Business Leaders, Product Owners, Value Stream Leads, Release Train Engineers, and delivery partners, ensuring alignment across operations, technology, and data & analytics objectives. Specifically, they will execute:

• Strategic Alignment: In support of COO leadership, the Strategic Delivery Lead ensures that operations, technology, and data & analytics initiatives align with enterprise priorities, COO objectives, and measurable business outcomes.
• Governance and Management: The Strategic Delivery Lead manages governance, financials, delivery status, dependencies, and reporting across COO projects, including budgets, actuals, Objectives & Key Results (OKR) attainment, delivery metrics, and other KPIs.
• Risk Management: The Strategic Delivery Lead identifies and mitigates risks that could impact success.
• Stakeholder Communication: The Strategic Delivery Lead maintains clear communication with stakeholders, ensuring transparency and alignment on goals and progress.
• Resource Allocation: The Strategic Delivery Lead supports prioritization and allocation of resources required to deliver COO initiatives, including work that spans operations teams, technology delivery teams, data & analytics teams, and initiatives not supported by Agile Teams.
• Participating in PI Planning: The Strategic Delivery Lead actively participates in Program Increment (PI) Planning, identifying cross-Value Stream dependencies, helping set priorities, and mitigating impediments.

You may also be required to take on additional duties, responsibilities and activities appropriate to the nature of this role.

About You:

We encourage you to bring your own experience and expertise to the table, so while there are some qualifications and experiences, we need you to have, we are open to discussing how your individual knowledge might lend itself to fulfilling this role and help us achieve our goals.

What you need to have:

• Bachelor's degree in business administration or a related field.
• Project Management Professional (PMP), Lean Six Sigma certifications, Agile delivery certifications (e.g. SAFe SPC, SAFe Lean Portfolio Management, PMI-ACP), or other relevant certifications are advantageous.
• Proven experience in strategic delivery leadership, portfolio or project management with a track record of successfully leading and delivering large-scale projects in a matrixed environment.
• Proven experience in the insurance industry preferred.
• Experience overseeing cross-functional programs that include business operations, technology delivery, data & analytics, process improvement, and transformation initiatives.

Critical competencies:

• Ability to think strategically and align project goals with the overall business objectives of the COO organization, including operations, technology, and data & analytics priorities.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to synthesize complex information.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management abilities, including strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to adapt to changing project requirements and manage ambiguity.
• Keen attention to detail to ensure project plans and deliverables are accurately developed and maintained.
• Strong collaborative skills to work effectively with various teams and stakeholders.
• Ability to balance structure and flexibility, with a focus on results and accountability.
• Strong executive presence and credibility, with experience dealing with senior business leaders.
• Effective influencing, negotiating, and decision-making skills.
• Strong organizational skills, with the ability to coordinate and manage multiple priorities.
• Proficiency in using AI-enabled tools to enhance productivity, improve analysis, streamline communication, and support effective delivery management.
• Proficiency in project management tools and software platforms.

Role Factors:

In this role, you will typically be required to:

• Embrace the hybrid culture offered at AXIS, you need to be in office 3 days per week.
• Much of the work involves using computers for data entry, analysis, and communication. Comfort with prolonged screen time is necessary.
• While much of the work may be desk-bound, there might be occasions requiring mobility within the office environment, such as attending meetings or accessing filing systems.

What we offer:

For this position, we currently expect to offer a base salary in the range of $160,000 -$180,000. Your salary offer will be based on an assessment of a variety of factors including your specific experience and work location.

In addition, you will be offered competitive target incentive compensation, with awards based on overall corporate and individual performance. On top of this, you will be eligible for a comprehensive and competitive benefits package which includes medical plans for you and your family, health and wellness programs, retirement plans, tuition reimbursement, paid vacation, and much more.

Where this role is based in the United States of America, this role is Exempt for FLSA purposes.

This posting is for an existing vacancy.