Start Date: ASAP
Duration: 3 Months
Location: Hybrid working in either Glasgow or Edinburgh
Rate: £400 - £500 per day, outside IR35
Summary
The Portfolio Office Manager provides structure, coordination, and insight across the Integration & Transformation Office (ITO) portfolio. Reporting to the ITO Director, the role ensures that projects and programmes are well-governed, appropriately resourced and aligned with Group priorities.
Acting as a player-manager, the postholder balances operational oversight of the ITO portfolio with hands-on delivery of key discrete projects. They drive portfolio discipline, maintain visibility of resource and performance, and provide critical administrative and logistical support to both the ITO Directors. The role also chairs and provides secretariat support for the Operational Excellence Group, which triages incoming projects, monitors delivery health, and ensures initiatives are properly shaped before launch.
Responsibilities
- Lead portfolio governance, reporting and insight for the ITO Director, providing a consolidated view of progress, risks, dependencies, and resource use.
- Chair and coordinate the Operational Excellence Group, preparing papers, tracking actions, and ensuring decisions flow into delivery planning.
- Provide tactical project support for priority initiatives, stepping in to stabilise or accelerate delivery as required.
- Maintain an accurate, forward-looking view of resource allocation, capacity, and demand, working with leaders to optimise utilisation.
- Support preparation of reports and Board papers for the ITO SteerCo, Group Exec and Board ensuring consistent and high-quality outputs.
- Manage and evolve PMO frameworks, templates, dashboards, and data repositories to enable efficient, standardised reporting.
- Be the product owner, super-user, and champion of our PM tool, Click-Up.
- Coordinate with project managers to resolve scheduling conflicts and promote alignment across interdependent workstreams.
- Champion continuous improvement through post-implementation reviews and lessons learned.
- Coach and mentor project teams in the application of ITO governance and delivery standards.
- Proven experience in project, PMO or portfolio management within a transformation or operations environment.
- Ability to operate as a hands-on support, while maintaining oversight of the broader portfolio.
- Strong understanding of project and programme management disciplines, governance, and resource planning.
- Excellent analytical and reporting skills, with some proficiency in project management tools/applications.
- Skilled communicator with the ability to prepare and present concise executive materials.
- Experience supporting senior governance forums and producing Board-level documentation.
- Collaborative and pragmatic, with high attention to detail and a focus on delivery quality and pace.
- Comfortable working in a fast-moving, multi-project environment with competing priorities.
