Director of Operations

GENERAL PURPOSE The Technology Department of World Logistics Council is responsible for all aspects of design, development, implementation, enhancement and maintenance of the B2B Digital Economy Platform known as Multi-Dimensional Digital Economy Applications System (MDDEAS). This platform is currently being built and will be governed in collaboration and partnership with the top technology firms of the world selected through an equal opportunity process. The MDDEAS consists of (but not limited to) technology platforms for supporting global e-commerce, e-finance, e-insurance and e-logistics app services. We are currently looking for a strong technology leader who will be a member of Service Transition Council and Program Management Office and will have responsibility for Operational Quality Assurance, management and oversight of all technology projects and programs. POSITION SUMMARY AND KEY RESPONSIBILITIES Director, Operations and Program Management is a key leadership position within Technology Department and will report directly to the Vice President of Technology. This position will be initially based at the HQ in Dearborn Michigan USA and will have responsibility for all project and program management of technology projects, and operational quality assurance of their delivery dealing with Development, Deployment and Service Transition of B2B Digital Economy Platform, MDDEAS. The project and program initiatives include development and deployment of MDDEAS platform, preparing and onboarding of technology partners as part of Digital Operational Readiness (DOR) plan, conducting Benchmark Trade Lane assessment. This position requires global travel. The travel may include to the regional council offices including MEA Regional Council, Beirut, Lebanon, or to the countries of clients and customer locations participating in the Benchmark Trade Lanes (BTLs) for MDDEAS deployment, or to the technology partner locations during the course of development, deployment and support operations of MDDEAS platform services. QUALIFICATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering or Information Systems is required. Master’s Degree in Technology, Information Systems, Engineering and/or Significant Industry Certifications and Recognition or an MBA is desirable. ITIL V3 Foundation Certification is required. PMP or Prince 2 Project Management certification is required. Intermediate Certification in ITIL V3 Service Transition, PgMP, PMI-ACP or Scrum Master Certifications, Scaled Agile Framework Certifications highly desirable. EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS SERVICE TRANSITION EXPERIENCE Proven track record of 12+ years in supporting the delivery of complex multi-stakeholder programs and projects in a program management office or similar, and/or in directly managing programs and projects. Minimum of 5 years of experience in software release management, software quality assurance with extensive interactions with user community to ensure software products deliver the desired benefits to end users. Experience in establishing new systems and supporting the establishment of new projects, in addition to managing existing systems and projects. Understanding of a range of different project management methodologies and System Development Life Cycle Processes, CMMI based process definitions that could be applied to projects including waterfall, incremental, agile, and Scrum. Expertise in a wide range of project management life cycle methodologies. Expertise in large scale change programs implementation is highly preferred. Strong track record in Continual Build, Integration, and Testing (CBIT). Experience with Requirement Management tools, Source Code Control tools, and Configuration Management Data Base tools are required. Solid understanding and implementation track record of service management frameworks and best practices. Understanding of service design and service introduction processes in relation to service transition. Thorough knowledge of project management, and in particular, risk management and decision-making. Must be effective in all forms of communication, with strong analytical and systems thinking. Knowledge of financial and human resource management as well as related government legislations pertaining to the deployment of software solutions to the end users. OPERATIONS AND PROGRAM MANAGEMENT EXPERIENCE Solid experience in resource planning and management Experience directly managing teams and people Strong organizational leadership and planning skills to build a new team and capability, with technical mastery in the main project management methodologies and processes Flexible and pragmatic, able to learn quickly and respond to project needs and priorities Ability to manage a number of projects and work streams simultaneously Proactive in initiating new opportunities while ensuring strong delivery of commitments Proven track record as a mentor, guiding and training senior and multi-disciplinary teams Highly collaborative working style dealing with diverse internal and external stakeholders and with the ability to enable and gain commitment and influence across teams and clients Strong communications skills, applying listening and learning to adapt and build better solutions. Effectively communicates expectations to team members and stakeholders, ensuring full engagement and partnership throughout the lifecycle of each initiative People management skills with ability to build, guide and motivate Experience of working in a consultancy environment and supporting the costing and administration or evaluation of consultancy proposals, project and program cost estimations, and preparation and evaluation of cost benefit proposals of complex, large scale projects and programs. LEADERSHIP SKILLS A member of the Service Transition Council and Program Management Office. Builds strong trusting relationships both internally and externally. Sharp analytical abilities and solid operational foundation. Articulate and confident; motivates people at all levels of a culturally diverse organization Strong sense for setting priorities and adjusting them as needed in order to accomplish all objectives in an effective and timely manner. Strategic thinker, demonstrating sound judgment and agile decision making. Committed to continually improve, and leverage quality systems, processes, and tools Experience leading large technology, project and program management teams spread across multiple geographies in multi-cultural environments. Energetic, forward-thinking and creative individual with high ethical standards and an appropriate professional image. An adaptable and flexible working style suited to a fast-evolving environment, working as a team and individually to make the new service a success. Experience of developing and delivering digital tools and resources. Strong written and verbal communication, inter-personal and team collaboration skills.  Proven ability to adapt to new technologies and quickly establish credibility across a large number of technologies and industries. International travel flexibility, and minimal visa restrictions.