Program Governance Lead - US P&C Insurance landscape

Customer - Major US-based P&C Insurance client

Job Title - Program Governance Lead

Type - Contract

Location - Jersey City, NJ – Onsite 3 days a week

We are looking for a Senior Program Governance Lead to oversee and govern a large-scale Cloud Data Engineering engagement for a major US-based P&C Insurance client. You will be the primary custodian of program health, ensuring that planning, execution, and financial tracking are handled with precision.

The ideal candidate acts as the "bridge" between the US-based client stakeholders and the global delivery teams, ensuring that risks are mitigated before they impact timelines and that the program adheres to the strict regulatory and security standards of the insurance industry.

Key Responsibilities

1. Strategic Governance & Oversight

• Framework Design: Establish and maintain a robust program governance framework, including communication protocols, meeting cadences (SteerCos), and reporting standards.
• Milestone Tracking: Diligently track program execution against the master project plan, ensuring all workstreams (Data Ingestion, Transformation, BI) are aligned.
• Risk & Issue Management: Proactively identify, document, and escalate technical and operational risks. Develop mitigation strategies to keep the program on track.

2. Stakeholder & Client Management

• Client Liaison: Act as a trusted advisor to US-based client leadership, providing transparent updates on program status, budget burn, and resource utilization.
• Collaboration: Facilitate seamless communication between the client’s internal IT teams and our offshore/nearshore delivery centers.
• Conflict Resolution: Manage competing priorities and negotiate scope or timeline adjustments when necessary.

3. Execution & Financial Discipline

• Resource Governance: Track resource allocation and productivity to ensure the delivery team is optimized for the engagement’s goals.
• SLA/KPI Monitoring: Define and monitor Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and Service Level Agreements (SLAs) specific to data engineering (e.g., pipeline uptime, data quality scores).
• Financial Oversight: Manage program budgets, tracking actual spend against forecasted figures, and managing SOW (Statement of Work) renewals.

Required Skills & Qualifications

Experience & Domain Knowledge

• Insurance Expertise: Deep understanding of the US P&C Insurance landscape (Claims, Policy, Agency data) and associated regulatory requirements (CCPA, HIPAA, etc.).
• Cloud Data Programs: Proven track record governing large-scale migrations to Snowflake, AWS, or Azure data ecosystems.
• Seniority: 12 years of experience in Program Management/Governance, specifically in multi-vendor or global delivery models.

Technical & Tool Proficiency

• Project Management Tools: Mastery of Jira, Confluence, and MS Project for tracking agile and waterfall delivery.
• Reporting: Ability to build high-level governance dashboards using PowerBI or Tableau to visualize program health.
• Cloud Concepts: While not a coding role, you must understand ETL/ELT patterns, Data Lakes, and Data Warehouse architectures to effectively communicate with engineers.

Soft Skills

• Communication: Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, tailored for US-based executive audiences.
• Cultural Competency: Experience navigating the nuances of working with US-based clients while managing global delivery teams.
• Resilience: Ability to remain calm and structured in high-pressure environments or during critical production issues.

Education & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Information Technology, or a related field.