Sr. Director, Project Management Office

Who we are:

Our mission at FHLBank Chicago: To partner with our members in Illinois and Wisconsin to provide them competitively priced funding, a reasonable return on their investment, and support for their community investment activities.

Simply said, we're a bank for banks and other financial institutions, focused on being a strategic partner for our members and working together to reinvest in our communities, from urban centers to rural areas. Created by Congress in 1932, FHLBank Chicago is one of 11 Federal Home Loan Banks, government sponsored in support of mortgage lending and community investment.

What it’s like to work here

At FHLBank Chicago, we bring people together. We are committed to a high performing, engaged workforce, and to supporting the communities we serve across Illinois and Wisconsin. Our Buddy Program pairs new hires with tenured employees to guide their onboarding. Our professional development and training opportunities through upskilling, mentorship programs, and tuition reimbursement allow employees to grow their career with us. Our collaborative, in-office operating model brings teams together to foster innovation, connection, and shared success. To support balance and flexibility, employees are provided an allocation of remote days to use as needed throughout the year.

What You’ll do

We are seeking a dynamic and experienced Senior Director of Project Management Office (PMO) to lead our enterprise-wide project management function, including a team of seasoned project managers and oversee our process optimization team.

This position requires oversight of initiative governance, ensuring that projects align with strategic objectives and are executed within established parameters.

This role will also involve comprehensive oversight of change management, ensuring that new systems, processes, and methodologies are adopted effectively across the organization.

This role is critical to driving the successful execution of strategic initiatives, fostering operational excellence, and enabling sustainable transformation through disciplined project delivery, process improvement, and effective change adoption.

The ideal candidate is a highly credentialed project management expert with a proven track record of leading high-impact programs, developing and mentoring teams, and driving results across a complex organization.

How you’ll make an impact:

• Drive strategic alignment and execution by overseeing a portfolio of high-impact initiatives, ensuring projects are prioritized, resourced, and delivered in line with the Bank’s goals.
• Enhance cross-functional collaboration and accountability through standardized project governance, reporting, and risk management frameworks that improve transparency and decision-making.
• Elevate project delivery performance by building PMO capabilities, optimizing processes, and championing best practices and drive continuous improvement.

What you can expect:

• Provide strategic direction and day-to-day leadership for the PMO, change management and process optimization teams.
• Oversee the planning, execution, and delivery of a portfolio of complex, cross-functional projects aligned with business priorities.
• Develop and refine project management frameworks, methodologies, and standards to ensure consistent, high-quality delivery.
• Monitor initiative budgets to ensure financial accountability and alignment with planned resources.
• Lead the change management function to ensure successful adoption of new systems, processes, and ways of working across the organization.
• Partner with senior leadership to prioritize initiatives, allocate resources, and track key performance metrics.
• Collaborate closely with IT, product owners, business analysts, and other cross-functional teams to ensure alignment and seamless execution of initiatives.
• Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement
• Establish and maintain a robust governance structure to track progress, manage risk, and report outcomes.
• Develop talent by mentoring team members and identifying opportunities for professional growth and certification.
• Champion the use of project and process management tools and technologies to enhance transparency and efficiency.

What you’ll bring:

• Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree preferred (e.g., MBA).
• 20+ years experience in project/program maangement with at least 10 years in a leadership role management both people and portfolios.
• PMP (Project Management Professional) certification required; additional credentials (e.g., Lean Six Sigma, SAFe) strongly preferred.
• Proven experience overseeing or integrating change management into project delivery and transformation initiatives.
• Demonstrated success leading enterprise-wide initiatives, change management efforts, and process improvement programs.
• Deep knowledge of project lifecycle methodologies (Waterfall, Agile, etc.)
• Strong financial acumen and experience managing project budgets and resource allocation.
• Exceptional communication and stakeholder engagment skills, with a track record of influencing at all levels of the organization.
• Proven ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional partners including IT, product teams, business analysts, and operational leaders.
• Experienced in regulated industries (e.g., financial services, healthcare, etc.)
• Strategic thinker with a bias for action
• Skilled at simplifying complexity and aligning teams toward a common goal.
• Proficient in project management and process tools.

The Perks

At FHLBank Chicago, we believe in rewarding our high performing workforce. We offer a highly competitive compensation and bonus package, and access to a comprehensive benefits program designed to meet the needs of our employees. Our retirement program includes a 401(k) and pension plan. Our wellbeing program supports employees at work and in their personal lives: Our PTO plan provides five weeks of vacation for new employees and 11 paid holidays per year; our Lifestyle Spending Account provides an annual stipend for employees to support wellbeing activities; and our central downtown location at the Old Post Office provides easy access to public transportation and breathtaking views from our award-winning rooftop. Visit FHLBCbenefits.com for additional details about our benefits. Step into a brighter future with us.

Salary Range: $260,950.00-$458,800.00

The above represents the expected salary range for this job requisition.  Ultimately, in determining your pay, we may also consider your experience, and other job-related factors. In addition to the base salary, we offer a comprehensive benefits package which can be found here: https://hrportal.ehr.com/fhlbc