Product Portfolio Manager

Manager – Product Operations & Portfolio

O’Fallon, MO

12 months contract

Summary:

We are seeking a Manager-level Product Operations & Portfolio Governance professional to support the SME product portfolio. This role will be responsible for establishing and managing scalable governance frameworks, portfolio operations, and lifecycle management processes that guide product initiatives from concept through commercialization.

Key Responsibilities:

• Establish and manage stage-gate / phase-gate governance processes for product initiatives.
• Define readiness criteria, governance standards, and lifecycle decision checkpoints.
• Partner with Product, Engineering, Finance, Risk, Compliance, Legal, and Go-to-Market teams to ensure successful product execution.
• Facilitate governance forums, leadership reviews, and portfolio decision meetings.
• Track portfolio progress, risks, dependencies, and performance metrics.
• Develop reporting dashboards, portfolio insights, and leadership-ready summaries.
• Support intake, prioritization, and capacity-aware planning processes.
• Create standardized templates, tools, and governance operating procedures.
• Coach and support teams on governance expectations and operational best practices.
• Continuously improve portfolio governance and operational efficiency.

Required Qualifications:

• 5+ years of experience in Product Operations, Program Management, Portfolio Management, or PMO environments.
• Experience implementing structured governance or lifecycle management frameworks.
• Strong understanding of product development lifecycles and launch readiness processes.
• Experience with portfolio tracking, reporting, and operational metrics.
• Excellent communication, facilitation, and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to influence cross-functional teams in complex environments.
• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering, Operations, or related field.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in enterprise or regulated environments.
• Familiarity with Agile, Lean, SAFe, or hybrid delivery methodologies.
• PMP, SAFe, Lean, or Six Sigma certifications preferred.