Governance Manager

Governance Manager – Portfolio, Programme & Project GovernanceRole PurposeThe Governance Manager is responsible for leading governance, oversight, reporting, financial controls, and delivery assurance across a portfolio of projects and programmes. The role ensures investments are aligned to strategic priorities, governance standards are consistently applied, and senior leaders have transparent, data-driven insights to support effective decision-making.Working closely with Portfolio Leads, Programme Managers, Project Managers, PMOs, Finance, Risk, and senior business stakeholders, the Governance Manager drives governance excellence, strengthens control frameworks, improves portfolio transparency, and enables successful delivery of business outcomes and benefits realization.Key ResponsibilitiesGovernance & Portfolio OversightEstablish, maintain, and continuously improve portfolio, programme, and project governance frameworks.Ensure compliance with enterprise change frameworks, policies, regulatory requirements, and delivery standards.Facilitate governance forums, steering committees, control boards, and executive review meetings.Provide independent oversight and challenge to ensure delivery remains aligned to strategic objectives and approved outcomes.Drive governance maturity and promote best practices across the change portfolio.Executive Reporting & InsightsDevelop and maintain executive reporting packs, dashboards, and governance artefacts.Consolidate portfolio-level performance metrics, delivery insights, risks, dependencies, and achievements.Translate complex delivery and financial information into clear and actionable executive insights.Provide regular portfolio health assessments and recommendations to senior stakeholders.Drive greater transparency and confidence in portfolio data and reporting.Financial Governance & Investment ManagementLead governance activities related to portfolio budgeting, forecasting, and financial performance.Monitor investment spend, funding allocation, resource utilization, and budget adherence.Track CapEx, OpEx, benefits realization, and value delivery.Identify financial risks, opportunities, and variances, recommending corrective actions where required.Support business case governance, investment approvals, and funding reviews.Risk, Issue & Dependency ManagementMaintain portfolio-level governance over risks, issues, assumptions, dependencies, and decisions.Ensure timely escalation and resolution of critical impediments.Provide visibility of emerging risks and their potential business impact.Monitor mitigation actions and ensure ownership and accountability are clearly defined.Stakeholder Management & LeadershipBuild trusted relationships with senior business and technology stakeholders.Influence decision-making through governance insights and evidence-based recommendations.Act as a strategic advisor to Portfolio Leads, Programme Directors, and senior executives.Facilitate alignment across multiple teams, programmes, and business functions.Benefits & Value RealizationSupport the establishment and tracking of business outcomes, benefits, and realization metrics.Ensure governance discussions focus on value delivered, customer outcomes, and strategic impact, not solely delivery milestones.Drive transparency of investment performance and measurable business value.Promote outcome-based governance and continuous improvement.Governance Tooling & AutomationDrive the adoption of portfolio management and reporting tools.Improve governance efficiency through automation and dashboarding.Enhance data quality, consistency, and reporting accuracy.Establish a single source of truth for governance and portfolio reporting.Knowledge & ExperienceEssential10-15 years of experience in Portfolio Management, Programme Management, PMO, Governance, Transformation Delivery, Change Management, or related disciplines.Significant experience working within large-scale technology, transformation, regulatory, or business change portfolios.Strong knowledge of Project, Programme, and Portfolio Management methodologies, including Agile, Waterfall, and Hybrid delivery models.Proven experience establishing and managing governance frameworks across complex organizations.Demonstrated expertise in executive reporting, delivery governance, risk management, and financial oversight.Experience supporting senior leadership decision-making through analysis and insights.Strong understanding of portfolio financial management, budgeting, forecasting, investment governance, and benefits realization.Proven ability to operate effectively in highly matrixed environments and influence stakeholders at all levels.PreferredExperience within Financial Services or other highly regulated industries.Experience supporting Value Stream, Product, or Outcome-based operating models.Knowledge of portfolio management platforms such as Clarity, Jira, Azure DevOps, ServiceNow, SharePoint, and Power BI.Professional certifications such as PMP, PRINCE2, MSP, MoP, Agile, SAFe, or equivalent.Key SkillsPortfolio GovernanceProgramme GovernancePMO LeadershipExecutive ReportingFinancial GovernanceBenefits RealizationRisk & Issue ManagementStakeholder ManagementData Analytics & DashboardingGovernance Framework DesignStrategic PlanningDecision SupportContinuous ImprovementChange & Transformation ManagementSuccess MeasuresGovernance processes are consistently applied across the portfolio.Executive stakeholders have confidence in governance, reporting, and performance data.Portfolio risks and issues are proactively identified and managed.Financial performance is transparent and effectively governed.Reporting is timely, accurate, and increasingly automated.Investment decisions are supported by robust data and insights.Business outcomes, customer value, and benefits realization are demonstrably tracked and achieved.Governance forums drive effective decisions and successful portfolio outcomes.