Sr. Director, Project Management

Please note that we do not offer visa sponsorship for this position.

Role Summary

The Project Management Practice Lead is accountable for designing, evolving, and enabling the enterprise delivery system as a value delivery engine. This role establishes principles, capabilities, and practices that allow the organization to translate strategy into outcomes effectively. The Practice Lead drives alignment across functions, reduces friction in decision-making, and builds a high-performing PM capability focused on value, flow, and adaptability.

This position currently offers an onsite work schedule, with the expectation that you are in the office four days per week during onsite core days. Our current onsite core days are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The work schedule type and core days are subject to change with advance notification and manager discretion.

This role requires a minimum of 10 years of Life and Annuity industry experience.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Initiation & Value Alignment

• Ensure enterprise initiatives align to strategy and value outcomes
• Define principles and guardrails for value-based delivery and prioritization
• Partner with strategy and portfolio functions to reinforce outcome alignment

Adaptive Planning & Flow Management

• Design systems that enable flow across the enterprise
• Partner with Portfolio to optimize sequencing, capacity and prioritization
• Remove systemic barriers to flow and improve speed to value

Risk, Uncertainty & Decision Enablement

• Establish decision frameworks and governance models
• Reduce decision latency and organizational ambiguity
• Enable consistent, transparent tradeoff management across the enterprise

Stakeholder Alignment & Influence

• Align Strategy, Portfolio, Business, and Technology functions
• Build a culture of accountability, transparency, and collaboration
• Influence executive leadership to support value-based delivery practices

Minimum Qualifications

• 15+ years of experience leading enterprise delivery or transformation initiatives
• Minimum of 10 years of experience within the Life and Annuity industry, with demonstrated understanding of products, operations, and regulatory environment
• Demonstrated experience leading, coaching, and scaling Project Management teams in a complex, enterprise environment
• Demonstrated success evolving organizations from process-driven to value-driven delivery
• Deep expertise with enterprise prioritization, portfolio management, and decision frameworks
• Proven ability to design and optimize enterprise delivery systems
• Strong systems thinking and ability to operate in complex environments
• Executive-level influencing capability across business and technology leadership
• Proven track record of building and scaling high-performing PM capabilities
• Strong financial, strategic, and operational acumen
• PMP or equivalent experience required; advanced degree preferred

AI Proficiency Expectations

At National Life Group, we view AI as an enabler of human potential. We use AI to help us work smarter, serve more clients, and keep our promises, while remaining a relationship-driven business where our people are our greatest strength.

All applicants are expected to:

• Leverage approved AI tools, where appropriate, to improve the efficiency, quality, and impact of their work.
• Stay curious and open to new AI-enabled ways of working.
• Exercise sound judgment by reviewing and validating AI-generated content.
• Maintain accountability for the accuracy, quality, fairness, and integrity of work products by adhering to National Life’s AI guiding principles.
• Use AI responsibly and in accordance with company policies related to confidentiality, data privacy, security, compliance, retention and intellectual property.

Benefits

• Your benefits start day one and are flexible and customizable to your and your family’s specific needs. Check out the BENEFITS of a Career at National Life!