Digital Assets Strategy and Execution - Vice President

Morgan Stanley•Purchase, NY

About The Position

The Vice President, Digital Assets Portfolio Management Lead, oversees the day-to-day management of Morgan Stanley Wealth Management’s Digital Assets portfolio. Reporting to the Executive Director, the role coordinates and governs strategic initiatives across Product, Technology, Operations, Risk, Compliance, Legal, Finance, Cybersecurity, and third-party partners. It establishes execution discipline by managing interdependencies, maintaining governance processes, tracking delivery, and providing leadership with actionable insight into portfolio health, risks, and priorities. The role serves as the operational hub for the Digital Assets organization, enabling teams to execute efficiently and providing transparency across the portfolio. It supports initiative planning and execution, maintains an effective governance cadence, develops portfolio analytics and executive reporting, and helps establish scalable operating practices.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Economics, Engineering, Computer Science, or a related discipline.
5–7 years of experience in program management, business management, consulting, product operations, COO organizations, or strategic initiatives within financial services.
Experience managing large cross-functional initiatives involving multiple stakeholders and competing priorities.
Demonstrated ability to work effectively in highly regulated environments.
Exceptional organizational skills, attention to detail, and execution discipline.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including experience developing executive-level presentations.
Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities, including the ability to synthesize complex information into actionable recommendations.

Nice To Haves

Experience supporting digital assets, blockchain, tokenization, digital custody, payments, capital markets, or financial technology initiatives.
Familiarity with Agile delivery methodologies and technology development lifecycles.
Experience working across Product, Engineering, Operations, Risk, Compliance, and Legal organizations.
Advanced PowerPoint and Excel skills, including experience developing executive dashboards and presentations.
Ability to influence senior stakeholders without direct reporting authority.
Strong understanding of portfolio management, governance, and strategic planning.
Ability to build compelling presentations for executives and large audiences and translate complex topics into practical conversations.
Knowledge of digital asset products and infrastructure and how to establish an operating model in a regulated wealth environment.
Experience running decision-oriented governance, managing interdependencies across Technology, Risk, Legal, and Operations, and driving outcomes through influence.

Responsibilities

Support planning for new initiatives, including business case development, prioritization, sequencing, and implementation planning.
Manage day-to-day execution of the Digital Assets portfolio across strategic initiatives and track delivery against business objectives.
Develop and maintain integrated portfolio plans covering milestones, dependencies, risks, resource requirements, and executive reporting.
Coordinate cross-functional workstreams across Product, Technology, Operations, Risk, Compliance, Legal, Finance, Cybersecurity, and third-party vendors.
Monitor deliverables, escalate issues, and proactively resolve execution challenges to drive stakeholder accountability.
Run portfolio reviews, steering committees, working groups, and executive governance forums.
Prepare executive presentations, status updates, dashboards, decision materials, and meeting readouts.
Track program decisions, action items, and key risks; maintain governance artifacts and improve governance processes.
Coordinate delivery across interdependent initiatives with Product Managers and Technology teams.
Support organizational readiness, including operational processes, launch planning, training coordination, communications, and documentation.
Facilitate collaboration with business and control partners to meet operational, regulatory, and risk management requirements.
Coordinate external vendor activities and delivery commitments where applicable.
Develop portfolio metrics and dashboards covering initiative health, milestones, resource utilization, risks, and delivery progress.
Analyze portfolio performance and identify opportunities to improve execution efficiency and organizational effectiveness.
Synthesize complex information into concise executive recommendations and support annual planning, budgeting, and portfolio prioritization.
Establish scalable operating practices and document processes, governance standards, and operating procedures.
Support Digital Assets leadership special projects related to strategy, operating model evolution, organizational planning, and business management.
Foster accountability, collaboration, transparency, and continuous improvement.