Portfolio & Resource Manager

If you're passionate about building a better future for individuals, communities, and our country—and you're committed to working hard to play your part in building that future—consider WGU as the next step in your career. Driven by a mission to expand access to higher education through online, competency-based degree programs, WGU is also committed to being a great place to work for a diverse workforce of student-focused professionals. The university has pioneered a new way to learn in the 21st century, one that has received praise from academic, industry, government, and media leaders. Whatever your role, working for WGU gives you a part to play in helping students graduate, creating a better tomorrow for themselves and their families. The salary range for this position takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs. At WGU, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for their position, and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. A reasonable estimate of the current range is: Grade: Professional 312 Pay Range: $106,700.00 - $165,400.00 Job Description Owns the single pane of glass across Program Development's work, as well as the enabling resources, vendors, and systems that power the portfolio. This role does not manage individual projects; it equips the managers and leaders who own that work with the business intelligence they need to deploy the right people and partners against the right work at the right time. The manager stands up and maintains the resource allocation and capacity models that turn a large, distributed team and a complex vendor landscape into a coordinated portfolio — tracking utilization, forecasting demand against the roadmap, and giving leadership the data to make headcount, sourcing, and investment decisions. In parallel, the manager aggregates what individual Design & Development project managers are tracking into a real-time, executive-ready view — what's in flight, what's at risk, what's coming, and what trade-offs need attention. Primary customers are Program Development leaders at all levels. Primary Responsibilities Portfolio Narrative & Reporting Aggregates new development, redevelopment, course improvement, and maintenance data into a unified portfolio view covering status, risk, upcoming milestones, and trade-offs. Translates operational detail into strategic insight for PDEV directors, executives, and university leadership; produces executive-ready dashboards, briefings, and narrative reports. Establishes and maintains the data standards, cadence, and tooling that keep the portfolio view current and trustworthy. Surfaces cross-portfolio dependencies, conflicts, and decision points that no individual PM is positioned to see. Serves as the authoritative source on "what Program Development is doing" and "how long does something take?" for internal and cross-functional audiences. Resource Planning & Internal Utilization Stands up and maintains a resource allocation and capacity model spanning the full Academic Program Development (APD) team. Tracks utilization rates, flags capacity gaps and surpluses, and provides the data foundation for managing surge capacity needs. Partners with Program Development's integration developer to update WGU systems and tools to gather data efficiently. Partners with people leaders to forecast staffing demand against the portfolio roadmap. General Maintains effective communication and coordination with embedded PMs, functional leaders, and executive stakeholders. Documents methodology, decisions, and assumptions so the portfolio view and operating models are durable across personnel changes. Provides mentorship and guidance to project managers and associate project managers on portfolio data, resourcing, and financial practices. Aggregates budget data from Design & Development project managers into leader-specific and portfolio-level financial views. Tracks cost-per-course, cost-per-program, and other unit-economic trends across the portfolio. Performs other related duties as assigned. This job description includes a general representation of job requirements rather than a comprehensive inventory of all required responsibilities or work activities. The contents of this document or related job requirements may change at any time with or without notice. Qualifications Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities Strong data communicator — able to translate operational detail into strategic narrative for executive audiences. Excellent quantitative and analytical skills, including resource modeling, budget aggregation, and unit economics analysis. Proficiency with portfolio reporting, BI, and spreadsheet tooling (e.g., Smartsheet, Coda, ServiceNow). Demonstrated experience in standing up frameworks and operating models from scratch, not just running existing processes. Strong understanding of project, program, and portfolio management methodologies and how to aggregate across them. Excellent oral and written communication; comfortable presenting to senior leadership. Works effectively across embedded teams without direct authority. Education Bachelor's degree in a related field of study. Experience Eight (8) years of project, program, or portfolio management experience in a large organization, including strategic planning, resource planning, and learning development operations. Demonstrated experience producing executive-level portfolio reporting or equivalent strategic data communication. Combination of education, credentials, experience, and/or demonstrable skills that equate to PMP certification at the PgMP (program management) or PfMP (portfolio management) levels. Additional Requirements Onsite collocation is required Prolonged periods sitting at a desk and working on a computer. Must be able to lift up to 15 pounds at times. Experience in lieu of education Equivalent relevant experience performing the essential functions of this job may substitute for education degree requirements. Generally, equivalent relevant experience is defined as 1 year of experience for 1 year of education and is the discretion of the hiring manager. Preferred Qualifications An advanced degree in a relevant discipline 10+ years of experience, preferably in an operations role for higher ed or a related field Experience in navigating a matrixed organization to achieve outcomes Demonstrated experience implementing AI or automation technologies within operational workflows. Travel This position requires occasional travel of up to 20%, including required attendance at designated company summits (typically one to two per year). Additional travel may include conferences, visits to company locations, and other business-related events as needed. Additional travel may be assigned as needed to support business requirements Position & Application Details Full-Time Regular Positions (classified as regular and working 40 standard weekly hours): This is a full-time, regular position (classified for 40 standard weekly hours) that is eligible for bonuses; medical, dental, vision, telehealth and mental healthcare; health savings account and flexible spending account; basic and voluntary life insurance; disability coverage; accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity supplemental coverages; legal and identity theft coverage; retirement savings plan; wellbeing program; discounted WGU tuition; and flexible paid time off for rest and relaxation with no need for accrual, flexible paid sick time with no need for accrual, 11 paid holidays, and other paid leaves, including up to 12 weeks of parental leave. How to Apply: If interested, an application will need to be submitted online. Internal WGU employees will need to apply through the internal job board in Workday. Additional Information Disclaimer: The job posting highlights the most critical responsibilities and requirements of the job. It's not all-inclusive. Accommodations: Applicants with disabilities who require assistance or accommodation during the application or interview process should contact our Talent Acquisition team at recruiting@wgu.edu. Equal Employment Opportunity: All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any protected characteristic as required by law. In 1997, a coalition of 19 U.S. governors founded Western Governors University with a singular vision: to make higher education more accessible by offering full degree programs online. Starting small, we quickly expanded. Today, we're one of the largest accredited online universities in the U.S. Click on the links below to learn more: Enrollment Counselor Evaluator Field Experience Roles (Part-time & Intermittent) Program Mentor Service Desk Technician Mexico Team