Manager, Portfolio Management and Governance

Manulife • Waterloo, ON

10d • Hybrid

About The Position

The Manager, Portfolio Management & Governance plays a pivotal role in shaping how business‑led initiatives are prioritized, governed, and delivered. This role drives consistency, transparency, and disciplined execution across the portfolio to ensure alignment with strategic objectives and optimal use of capital. The selected candidate will partner closely with senior business sponsors, Finance, Risk, and Functions counterparts to enable evidence‑based trade‑offs, stronger delivery oversight, and improved outcomes, while continuously evolving a high‑performing portfolio management and governance practice.

Requirements

• Advanced degree in quantitative discipline and 5+ years of experience leading project, program, or portfolio management functions, including governance, prioritization, and executive decision support.
• Strong financial planning and forecasting capabilities, with a demonstrated ability to promote disciplined investment decisions aligned to strategy.
• Proven ability to translate delivery performance, investment impact, and risk into clear, executive‑ready insights and narratives.
• Demonstrated expertise in portfolio management and governance, including prioritization, trade‑off management, and strengthening oversight and reporting practices.
• Strong relationship and influence skills, with the ability to challenge constructively and build trusted partnerships in a matrixed environment.

Nice To Haves

• Bilingualism (English and French) is an asset. If the successful candidate is in Québec, proficiency in both languages will be required to support clients from various provinces outside of Quebec.

Responsibilities

• Lead portfolio management and governance practices, including prioritization support, delivery health oversight, and decision support aligned to strategic objectives and investment frameworks.
• Lead the annual planning process, ensuring alignment of capital with segment and global strategic objectives.
• Partner with Finance to embed data-driven, evidence-based decision-making into business cases, portfolio planning, and initiative sequencing.
• Enable senior leadership decision‑making by providing clear insights, recommendations, and trade‑off assessments in governance and leadership forums.
• Lead and uphold governance frameworks (ODF, DOA, TC), ensuring consistent application, awareness, and adherence across initiatives.
• Develop clear, compelling executive‑level materials for internal and external audiences, including Board updates and Business Reviews.

Benefits

• health
• dental
• mental health
• vision
• short- and long-term disability
• life and AD&D insurance coverage
• adoption/surrogacy and wellness benefits
• employee/family assistance plans
• various retirement savings plans (including pension and a global share ownership plan with employer matching contributions)
• financial education and counseling resources
• generous paid time off program in Canada includes holidays, vacation, personal, and sick days
• full range of statutory leaves of absence

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager