Project Manager Real Estate Facilities

Guardian Life Insurance Company

The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America® (Guardian), currently ranked #218 on the Fortune 500, is one of the largest mutual life insurers. As of December 31, 2017, Guardian reports $1.6 billion in operating income, $8 billion in capital, and $71.5 billion in assets under management. Guardian consistently scores high marks for financial strength from all four major credit rating agencies and enjoys a strong competitive position in its major businesses: life insurance, disability income insurance, annuities, investments, dental and vision insurance and employee benefits. 

 

As a mutual company founded over 157 years ago, Guardian is owned by its policyholders. The company has paid dividends to policyholders every year since 1868 and the Company’s 8,800 employees and 2,750 financial representatives are aligned with its mission to help individuals, families, and small businesses achieve financial security and protection. 

 

Guardian states its aspiration in the following way: “To be the trusted mutual partner, delivering financial security how, when, and where our clients prefer.” 

Guardian is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to age, race, color, creed, religion, sex, affectional or sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, marital status, disability, military or veteran status, or any other classification protected by applicable law.

Project Manager, Real Estate Facilities

The Project Manager Real Estate Facilities is a client focused role and is expected to manage relationships and expectations on a corporate level. Managing the expectations of and influencing multiple diverse stakeholders across the company, through effective communication and well-tuned interpersonal skills, is critical to project success. The Project Manager must be focused on driving a project team and maintaining momentum. Acting as a change agent where necessary and motivating the project teams in support of meeting the project and business objectives are key competencies in this leadership role.  This role must be able to determine which project management approach is best suited and ensure the proper tools are effectively used to increase the likelihood of project success.

 

The Project Manager is responsible for managing all aspects of the construction and build projects throughout the project’s life cycle – Planning, Budgeting, Execution, Control and Closure.  This includes ensuring that all the project deliverables and outcomes are implemented on time, on budget, and within scope, to meet the expectations of the client, i.e. the Project Sponsor and Owner.  

 

This position requires travel throughout the United States. 

 

Major Opportunities and Decisions

 

Effective project management is the successful coordination of all aspects of a project, to bring about the desired results.  The areas of focus mentioned below represent key best practices that the successful project manager must demonstrate:

 

Relationship Management: The project manager must be client focused and is expected to manage relationships and expectations. Managing the expectations of and influencing several diverse stakeholders, through effective communication and well-tuned interpersonal skills, is critical to project success.

Leadership: Throughout the project’s life cycle, the project manager must also remain focused on driving the team and maintaining momentum. Acting as a change agent where necessary and motivating the project teams in support of meeting the project and business objectives are key competencies in this leadership role.

Continuous Improvement: Determining which project management tools are best suited to the project, and effectively using those tools to increase the likelihood of project success, is a key decision that project managers must continuously make when managing projects. Applying lessons learned from previous projects to current projects is another way to ensure continuous improvement.

Project Management Excellence: Responsible for the development and incorporation of project management best practices across the department. 

Manage External Resources: Manage external resources to supplement Real Estate & Facilities peak needs. 

 

Principal Accountabilities

 

·       Manage construction projects with loosely defined, complex/involved scope, with several cross work-stream and cross project dependencies.

·       Manage projects with scope that impact the enterprise, across several departments, profit centers and support centers.

·       Able to regularly manage concurrent projects, within a program or portfolio.

·       Ensure the project scope is adequately defined and agreed upon by all stakeholders.

·       Ensure that the project includes all the work required, and only the work required to complete the project.

·       Works closely with project sponsors to ensure requirements are complete, accurate and measurable.

·       Works closely with Construction Managers, Sub-Contractors, Architect, Engineers, IT consultants, vendors and trades to ensure projects are delivered on time and within budgetary constraints.

·       Takes the lead to ensure work progresses and all cost and schedule issues are resolved in timely manner.

·       Manage projects with a timeline > 12 months.

·       Create schedules based upon industry knowledge and project scope/duration.

·       Establish & maintain detailed master project work plan using the corporate project management tool.

·       Monitor project progress against baseline schedule.

·       Ensure that project resource time estimates are accurately reflected in the corporate project management tool, to facilitate reporting on actual cost vs. estimates. 

·       Ensure that any project change requests are assessed for impact to schedule, budget or business case, and that approved cost and/or schedule changes are implemented.

·       Responsible for overseeing a project budget of greater between $10,000 and $1 million.

·       Ensure that initial project estimates & financial forecasts are complete with sufficient level of detail to support baseline estimates.

·       Throughout each project, ensure that project budget/actuals are accounted for accurately, and in a timely manner.

·       Monitor the status of the project from a cost perspective.

·       Communicate / report financial performance throughout each project's life cycle.

·       Ensures that each project approach deploys adequate quality assurance techniques in accordance with Guardian standards.

 

Reporting Relationships

 

This position reports to the Assistant Vice President, Real Estate Project Management who reports to the Assistant Vice President, Facilities Services Administration. 

 

Qualifications

 

Key Competencies  

 

·       Fosters an understanding of how the team’s work is related to other areas.

·       Participates effectively on cross functional teams.

·       Creates opportunities for sharing information and knowledge among team members and beyond.

·       Fosters a high level of teamwork and collaboration between employees, teams, across departments and the field as appropriate

·       Leads by example by communicating constructively, honestly and candidly; seeks and provides timely helpful feedback as appropriate.

·       Addresses conflict directly and constructively; remains open to differing viewpoints; seeks to resolve issues by identifying win-win solutions.

·       Understands how to communicate effectively; articulates information in a manner that is easily understood.

·       Possesses excellent organizational skills.

·       Provides strategic support to Project Sponsors and Owners when defining project objective and approach.

·       Brings clarity to complex situations to help better define scope and other areas of obscurity.

·       Articulates the link between client requirements and business strategies and creates progress metrics that include both.

·       Manages vendors & rules of engagement to ensure accountability and adherence to contract, and statement of work deliverables.

·       Manage projects using Guardian’s approved methodologies, tools and processes.

·       Demonstrates a sense of urgency and a bias for action.

·       Investigates and incorporates best practice standards that improve processes and client service.

·       Sets realistic goals, understands how progress will be measured, and follows through dependably and consistently.

·       Performs preliminary stakeholder analysis and management.

·       Makes quick and thoughtful decisions to resolve issues; identifies opportunities to prevent recurrence of issues.

·       Demonstrates understanding of client service metrics and their importance in achieving business goals and defines measurement criteria for success.

·       Understands the priorities that drive deadlines, and measures progress to deliver quality results on schedule.

·       Plans for potential impediments to success and solicits appropriate assistance to support teams and remove barriers to success.

·       Prioritizes work based on client requirements and key business goals.

 

Technical Knowledge

 

·       An understanding of project management terminology, concepts, processes & tools, with an ability to creatively apply these in projects, without increasing risk.

·       Knowledge of the enterprise project management tool – Clarity PPM/ MS Project.

·       Knowledge of how project life cycle methodology interacts with other methodologies involved in project execution, e.g. Business Case Development, Sourcing, Contract Negotiation, Vendor Management, interdepartmental coordination.

·       Ability to coach and mentor project leaders and team members.

·       Ability to provide assistance on Resource Management to project sponsors/owners.

 

Education

 

·       This position requires a Bachelor’s Degree in architecture, construction, engineering or business management. 

·       PMP Certification or similar certification is preferred. 

 

Experience

 

·       5 to 6 years or more of formal project management experience.

 

Line of Business/Profit Center Experience

 

·       Solid experience in Construction Project Management.

·       Experience in Medical or Dental construction projects is a plus.

 

Travel

 

·       Travel throughout the United States: 40%.