Senior Project Manager, Controls and Enablement
VanguardVanguard has a new Chief of Staff/Senior Project Manager opportunity with our Controls & Enablement (C&E) team in Malvern, PA. This is a highly visible, high impact role at the center of the subdivision’s most important work.
As Chief of Staff, this role serves as a trusted advisor and proxy to the Head of C&E, enabling the leadership team to operate at its best. This is a role for someone who will partner effectively with senior leaders—who can confidently challenge, bring structure to ambiguity, and rally the team to move forward together. This role also serves as an accountable leader for high-priority programs—setting plans, managing stakeholders, owning delivery, and ensuring outcomes are achieved.
As a strategic partner to senior leadership, this role drives clarity, alignment, and execution across priority initiatives—turning strategy into action and complexity into momentum. This role functions as a hybrid Chief of Staff and Senior Business Project Manager, going beyond traditional Chief of Staff support to also own and drive execution of large-scale initiatives on behalf of senior leadership.
About Controls & Enablement:
Simply put, Controls & Enablement enables Personal Wealth to do things the right way.
We exist to proactively guide, challenge, and enable the Personal Wealth business and its partners to operate as a client-centric, compliant, and well-governed organization. Our role is not to slow the business down, but to help leaders move forward with confidence—knowing risks are understood, controls are effective, and regulatory expectations are met.
Controls & Enablement brings together complementary capabilities that strengthen the first line of defense across Personal Wealth. We help the business identify and manage risk, design and evaluate controls, oversee critical activities, respond effectively to issues and events, and deliver remediation outcomes that protect client trust.
Responsibilities:
- Act as a strategic partner and trusted advisor to the Head of Controls & Enablement (C&E), serving as an extension of leadership as needed.
- Establish and manage governance, leadership cadence, and operating rhythms to enable effective decision making and accountability.
- Prepare concise, high impact executive materials that support clarity, alignment, and action at the senior level.
- Develops and coordinates C&E leadership team staff meetings and offsites. Crafts agendas and curates’ content that align with and enable the division’s strategic priorities.
- Orchestrate collaboration across leaders and business partners, navigating complexity to drive alignment and resolve issues.
- Bring structure to ambiguity, proactively identifying risks, dependencies, and opportunities to accelerate results.
- Support transformation and change efforts by reinforcing execution discipline, clear communication, and leadership alignment.
- Drive alignment and execution of priorities, translating strategy into clear plans, decisions, and outcomes.
- Lead high priority, cross functional initiatives, ensuring focus, momentum, and disciplined delivery.
Qualifications:
- Executive Communication is a critical requirement for this role. In addition to your resume, please submit a sample of Executive Collateral you developed along with a brief write-up on what the business context / problem was, who the audience was, and what your considerations were as you developed your collateral.
- Experience leading complex, cross functional initiatives with accountability for results in a matrixed environment.
- Demonstrated ability to influence and partner effectively with senior leaders, driving alignment without formal authority.
- Strong strategic and analytical skills, with the ability to synthesize complexity into clear insights and recommendations.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including development of executive level materials.
- Sound judgment, discretion, and the ability to bring structure and discipline to ambiguous situations.
Additional Qualifications:
- Minimum 10 years of experience in program management, strategic initiatives, or PMO functions within large organizations, preferably in financial services.
- Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Project Management, or a related field. Master’s degree or PMP certification is an advantage.
- Strong leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills to drive cross-functional alignment.
- Proficient in program lifecycle management, risk control frameworks, and change management strategies.
- Ability to handle complex interdependencies and manage competing priorities in a fast-paced environment.
Special Factors
Sponsorship
Vanguard is not offering visa sponsorship for this position.About Vanguard
At Vanguard, we don't just have a mission—we're on a mission.
To work for the long-term financial wellbeing of our clients. To lead through product and services that transform our clients' lives. To learn and develop our skills as individuals and as a team. From Malvern to Melbourne, our mission drives us forward and inspires us to be our best.
How We Work
Vanguard has implemented a hybrid working model for the majority of our crew members, designed to capture the benefits of enhanced flexibility while enabling in-person learning, collaboration, and connection. We believe our mission-driven and highly collaborative culture is a critical enabler to support long-term client outcomes and enrich the employee experience.