Director, Portfolio Performance & PMO
Cushman & Wakefield · Chicago · $148,750–$175,000 (stated in the posting)
Job Title
Director, Portfolio Performance & PMOJob Description Summary
Position SummaryThe Director, Portfolio Performance & PMO provides strategic leadership and operational oversight for portfolio governance, performance management, PMO operations, reporting and analytics, workforce strategy, continuous improvement, and organizational effectiveness across client account portfolios.
This role serves as a strategic business partner to client stakeholders and Cushman & Wakefield leadership, driving operational excellence, portfolio delivery performance, client satisfaction, financial accountability, and long-term account success.
The Director is accountable for the governance, visibility, performance, and scalability of a complex portfolio of projects and programs while ensuring alignment with client objectives, contractual commitments, operational priorities, and business growth strategies. This role serves as the executive owner of portfolio performance, PMO maturity, delivery excellence, business intelligence, organizational development, risk management, and operational transformation initiatives across the Client account.
In addition to leading PMO operations, the Director partners closely with account leadership to improve financial performance, optimize resource utilization, mitigate operational risk, strengthen client relationships, and support strategic growth opportunities through best-in-class project delivery and governance practices.
Job Description
Director, Portfolio Performance & PMO
Global Occupier Services | Client Account
Position Summary
The Director, Portfolio Performance & PMO provides strategic leadership and operational oversight for portfolio governance, performance management, PMO operations, reporting and analytics, workforce strategy, continuous improvement, and organizational effectiveness across client account portfolios.
This role serves as a strategic business partner to client stakeholders and Cushman & Wakefield leadership, driving operational excellence, portfolio delivery performance, client satisfaction, financial accountability, and long-term account success.
The Director is accountable for the governance, visibility, performance, and scalability of a complex portfolio of projects and programs while ensuring alignment with client objectives, contractual commitments, operational priorities, and business growth strategies. This role serves as the executive owner of portfolio performance, PMO maturity, delivery excellence, business intelligence, organizational development, risk management, and operational transformation initiatives across the Client account.
In addition to leading PMO operations, the Director partners closely with account leadership to improve financial performance, optimize resource utilization, mitigate operational risk, strengthen client relationships, and support strategic growth opportunities through best-in-class project delivery and governance practices.
Key Responsibilities
Account Leadership & Strategic Business Partnership
- Contribute to strategic planning, business priorities, growth initiatives, and operational decision-making.
- Partner with Client leadership and key stakeholders to align project delivery strategies with business objectives and priorities.
- Act as a trusted advisor to client and account leadership regarding portfolio performance, organizational capability and operational risks.
- Support account growth initiatives through operational excellence, service expansion opportunities, delivery innovation, and enhanced client value creation.
- Drive account-wide initiatives that improve client satisfaction, delivery effectiveness, financial outcomes, and organizational performance.
- Participate in executive business reviews, strategic planning sessions, client governance meetings, and account performance reviews.
PMO Leadership, Governance & Contract Compliance
- Lead all PMO functions supporting the Client project portfolio.
- Establish, maintain, and continuously improve governance frameworks, methodologies, policies, procedures, standards, and best practices.
- Ensure compliance with contractual obligations, service level commitments, client requirements, corporate policies, and regulatory standards.
- Provide executive oversight of portfolio governance reviews, steering committees, operational review processes, and executive reporting forums.
- Drive consistency in project delivery, controls, documentation, reporting, and performance management across all regions and business lines.
- Serve as the executive sponsor for PMO maturity initiatives, governance enhancements, and operational transformation programs.
- Function as the primary authority for PMO standards, portfolio controls, reporting methodologies, and governance requirements.
Portfolio Performance, Delivery Excellence & Risk Management
- Establish performance targets, accountability measures, and operational success metrics.
- Monitor project delivery performance, portfolio health, milestone achievement, financial indicators, resource utilization, aging metrics, and client commitments.
- Lead portfolio review processes to identify performance gaps, risks, emerging trends, and opportunities for improvement.
- Drive executive-level corrective actions and issue resolution for underperforming projects, programs, and operational processes.
- Serve as the senior escalation point for portfolio risks, governance concerns, and client-facing operational issues.
- Develop and implement risk mitigation strategies that protect client interests, strengthen operational controls, and support successful project outcomes.
- Ensure portfolio data quality, reporting accuracy, and timely execution of governance requirements.
Client Relationship Management & Executive Engagement
- Serve as the senior PMO and portfolio operations representative for client stakeholders.
- Build and maintain strong executive relationships across client organizations.
- Lead client governance reviews, operational performance meetings, audits, and executive reporting sessions.
- Provide strategic recommendations regarding portfolio health, resource planning, operational risks, financial performance, and project priorities.
- Partner with clients to identify service enhancements, process improvements, operational efficiencies, and portfolio optimization opportunities.
- Ensure transparent communication of project performance, strategic initiatives, risks, and operational results to stakeholders at all levels.
Reporting, Analytics & Business Intelligence
- Provide executive oversight of portfolio reporting, analytics, KPI development, dashboard creation, forecasting tools, and business intelligence capabilities.
- Lead development and maintenance of operational dashboards, forecasting models, and portfolio reporting systems.
- Ensure reporting consistency, accountability, and accuracy across all delivery teams.
- Champion data governance initiatives that improve visibility, decision-making, and operational transparency.
- Leverage advanced analytics to identify trends, opportunities, performance challenges, and resource constraints.
- Present executive-level insights and recommendations to account leadership and client stakeholders.
- Drive development of predictive analytics, automation solutions, and advanced performance management capabilities.
Financial Performance & Resource Strategy
- Provide leadership oversight of portfolio financial performance, forecasting activities, productivity metrics, staffing models, and operational efficiency.
- Partner with account leadership to support achievement of financial objectives, profitability targets, and overall account performance.
- Monitor portfolio financial indicators and identify opportunities to improve efficiency, reduce risk, and maximize value delivery.
- Support budget planning, workload forecasting, workforce optimization, and resource allocation strategies across the account.
- Partner with delivery leaders to improve forecasting accuracy, financial compliance, and resource utilization.
- Develop long-term workforce strategies aligned with portfolio demand, business requirements, and anticipated account growth.
Operational Excellence & Continuous Improvement
- Lead initiatives that improve operational efficiency, delivery performance, client satisfaction, and organizational effectiveness.
- Develop and implement standardized workflows, tools, templates, and best practices across the organization.
- Identify opportunities to streamline processes, eliminate inefficiencies, reduce risk, and improve scalability.
- Establish performance benchmarks and operational maturity targets in support of continuous improvement objectives.
- Promote a culture of accountability, innovation, collaboration, and delivery excellence.
- Drive adoption of industry best practices across all portfolio management and PMO functions.
PMO Transformation, Technology & Innovation
- Develop and execute a PMO transformation roadmap aligned with Client and Cushman & Wakefield strategic objectives.
- Lead implementation of automation initiatives, AI-enabled solutions, digital workflows, analytics platforms, and emerging technologies.
- Drive enhancements to portfolio management systems, reporting tools, governance processes, and operational workflows.
- Identify opportunities to utilize technology to improve project delivery, portfolio visibility, client experience, and business outcomes.
- Establish best-in-class PMO capabilities that support scalability, future growth, and operational maturity.
Team Leadership & Organizational Development
- Lead, mentor, and develop PMO personnel, including Project Coordinators, Program Support resources, Reporting Specialists and Data Analytics teams.
- Establish performance expectations, development plans, succession strategies, and organizational objectives.
- Oversee workforce planning, organizational design, staffing models, and talent development initiatives.
- Build organizational capability through coaching, professional development, mentoring, and leadership development programs.
- Foster a culture centered on accountability, innovation, client service, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
- Support recruitment, onboarding, retention, and career advancement programs.
Qualifications
- Bachelor's Degree in Business, Project Management, Construction Management, Engineering, Architecture, Finance, or related field required.
- Master's Degree preferred.
- PMP, PgMP, Lean Six Sigma, PMI-ACP, or equivalent professional certification preferred.
- 12+ years of project management, portfolio management, PMO leadership, operational leadership, or program delivery experience.
- 10+ years of leadership experience within corporate real estate, capital project delivery, professional services, consulting, or financial services environments.
- Demonstrated success leading enterprise portfolios, PMO organizations, business transformation initiatives, and cross-functional teams.
- Experience presenting to executive leadership, C-suite stakeholders, and client organizations.
- Advanced knowledge of PMO governance, project controls, portfolio management, business intelligence, risk management, financial oversight, organizational effectiveness, and strategic planning.
- Advanced proficiency with Power BI, Microsoft Excel, portfolio management platforms, reporting systems, and business intelligence tools.
- This requires up to 25% travel.
Cushman & Wakefield also provides eligible employees with an opportunity to enroll in a variety of benefit programs, generally including health, vision, and dental insurance, flexible spending accounts, health savings accounts, retirement savings plans, life, and disability insurance programs, and paid and unpaid time away from work. In addition to a comprehensive benefits package, Cushman and Wakefield provide eligible employees with competitive pay, which may vary depending on eligibility factors such as geographic location, date of hire, total hours worked, job type, business line, and applicability of collective bargaining agreements.
The compensation that will be offered to the successful candidate will depend on factors such as whether the position is covered by a collective bargaining agreement, the geographic area in which the work will be performed, market pay rates in that area, and the candidate’s experience and qualifications.
The company will not pay less than minimum wage for this role.
The compensation for the position is: $ 148,750.00 - $175,000.00Cushman & Wakefield is an Equal Opportunity employer to all protected groups, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. Discrimination of any type will not be tolerated.
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA), if you have a disability and would like to request an accommodation in order to apply for a position at Cushman & Wakefield, please call the ADA line at 1-888-365-5406 or email Accommodations@cushwake.com. Please refer to the job title and job location when you contact us.
INCO: “Cushman & Wakefield”