Principal, Cloud Portfolio Manager

Northern Trust • Chicago, IL

1d

About The Position

About Northern Trust: Northern Trust, a Fortune 500 company, is a globally recognized, award-winning financial institution that has been in continuous operation since 1889. Northern Trust is proud to provide innovative financial services and guidance to the world’s most successful individuals, families, and institutions by remaining true to our enduring principles of service, expertise, and integrity. With more than 130 years of financial experience and over 22,000 partners, we serve the world’s most sophisticated clients using leading technology and exceptional service. Position Overview: The Cloud Portfolio Manager is responsible for managing, optimizing, and governing an organization’s portfolio of cloud services, platforms, and solutions. This role ensures alignment of cloud investments with business strategy, drives cost optimization, manages vendor relationships, and provides visibility into cloud usage across the enterprise. The Cloud Portfolio Manager works closely with IT, finance, procurement, security, and business leaders to maximize the value and performance of the cloud portfolio.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Business Administration, or related field (Master’s preferred).
• 7+ years of experience in IT portfolio management, cloud service management, or technology strategy roles.
• Strong background in cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP) and SaaS solutions.
• Experience with financial management of IT/cloud services, including cost optimization and vendor negotiations.
• Deep understanding of cloud technologies, services, and delivery models (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS).
• Strong financial acumen and ability to translate cloud usage into business impact.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Analytical mindset with the ability to assess trade-offs between cost, risk, and performance.
• Familiarity with cloud management and governance tools

Responsibilities

• Cloud Portfolio Strategy & Governance Develop and maintain the cloud portfolio roadmap, ensuring alignment with organizational objectives and digital transformation strategy.
• Establish governance frameworks and policies for cloud service adoption, lifecycle management, and retirement.
• Evaluate and recommend new cloud services, platforms, and tools based on business needs and emerging technologies.
• Ensure compliance with security, risk, and regulatory requirements across the cloud portfolio.
• Financial & Vendor Management Partner with Finance to manage cloud budgets, forecasting, and chargeback/showback models.
• Monitor and optimize cloud spend, identifying opportunities for efficiency and cost reduction.
• Negotiate and manage relationships with cloud service providers (e.g., AWS, Azure, GCP, SaaS vendors).
• Track ROI of cloud initiatives and provide insights for executive decision-making.
• Operational Management Oversee the performance and availability of cloud services in the portfolio.
• Collaborate with IT operations, engineering, and architecture teams to ensure reliable delivery and integration of cloud services.
• Develop dashboards and reporting to provide transparency into cloud usage, costs, and performance.
• Define KPIs and success metrics for cloud services and track against benchmarks.
• Stakeholder Engagement Act as a liaison between technology teams, business units, and executive leadership to ensure cloud services meet enterprise needs.
• Partner with product owners and solution architects to align cloud services with application and workload requirements.
• Communicate portfolio updates, risks, and opportunities to stakeholders at all levels.

Benefits

• Northern Trust provides a comprehensive benefits package including retirement benefits (401k and pension), health and welfare benefits (medical, dental, vision, spending accounts and disability), paid time off, parental and caregiver leave, life & accident insurance, and other voluntary and well-being benefits.
• Northern Trust also provides a discretionary bonus program that may include an equity component.

What This Job Offers

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