Environmental, Social, and Governance Platform Lead

Illinois City, IL

As a part of C&W’s Recurring Revenue (Services) team within the Technology & Data Solutions function, the ESG Platform Lead provides product management expertise and leadership for the strategy, definition, roadmap and go-to-market approach for C&W’s global ESG technology solutions. ESG Platform Lead provides business and technology relationship and solution management with the global and regional service lines, while partnering on key technologies, which currently focus on core and regional platforms. An ideal candidate in this role must be able to communicate and collaborate across other service lines, other technology teams, delivery and support teams, and clients.

New Idea Intake / Solutioning

Stakeholder Engagement – partner with key service line stakeholders to review backlog of new ideas and enhancements to review and prioritize. Validate needs and overall requirements for each new idea and take part in annual business-technology strategy.
Solution Design – in conjunction with service line Business Sponsors, design the overall solution considering data standards, standard deliverables and reports. Validate and advice through architectural reviews, usability and integration methodologies.
Backlog Management – own the backlog and usher each item through the review phases to validate business case, proof of concept (if necessary), funding, vendor contracting, standardization including staff plan, communication plan, requirements, vendor engagement, data modelling, acceptance, as well as transition to delivery, support and operations.
Software Vendor Selection – responsible to partner with the vendor selection process including buy / build / partner decisions. Responsible to have a strong understanding of the service-line specific software marketplace, ability to provide a functional and technical comparative matrix, as well as manage the rating and assessment with key stakeholders. Partner with internal teams to usher software vendor through various stage gates including IT Compliance reviews, Product Review Board, procurement due-diligence and legal.
Funding – in conjunction with stakeholders, complete a one-page business plan and establish a detailed cost estimate and ROI model that includes hardware, software and headcount requirements for all phases of acquisition, proof of concept, standardization and delivery. Usher the business case through a formal Request for Authorization (RFA) and establish a purchase order for full funding.
Contracting / Legal / Commercial – organize and lead internal partners, executive sponsors and the vendor through agreement on commercial terms & conditions. Assist and advise the executive sponsor through the negotiation process until final agreement is reached.
Product Roadmap – own the formal communications of the product roadmap considering various audiences (internal vs. external).
Delivery & Support Planning – build the structure and processes necessary for turn-over to Delivery and Support teams. This includes, but not limited to:
Go-to-Market Materials (marketing, videos, pricing, one-pagers, RFP materials)
Enable Demo environment and script
Vendor Order Document / SOW template
Standardized Deployment Definitions
Standard Integrations
Standard Delivery Schedule
Delivery Workshop Materials
Training Plan
Knowledge Base
Change Management Process
Access Policy and Process
Risk & Compliance Testing Schedule
Data Retention Policies

Existing Product Governance

Backlog & Prioritization – own the backlog and prioritization of ongoing maintenance activities with the vendor including enhancements and integrations.
Configuration Maintenance – in conjunction with the service line sponsor, aid in the maintenance of standard configuration through a regular cadence of leadership meetings.
Enhancement Launch – in conjunction with the service line sponsor, own the launch and communication of product enhancements for the service line
Business Intelligence & Reporting – serve as subject matter expert and partner with internal analytics and architecture teams for respective service line and engage with service line sponsor on requirement execution.
Vendor / Partner Management – own the ongoing relationship with the vendor including organizing annual business reviews, bi-weekly rolling action item list (RAIL) management, Contract & Billing Management, Escalation Management, Application Performance Monitoring, Support SLA monitoring.
Marketing (internal & external) – serve as the evangelist for the CAS Technology platform and seek to elevate messaging to internal partners and external clients. Coordinate with internal marketing teams to define required content and calendar.
Ideation / Thought Leadership – as a value-add partner to the business, partner with all levels of teams in thought in an evolving portfolio of ideas and viable technology outcomes. This may include coaching, internal collaboration and business requirements definition.
Product Sunset Rationalization

Client Collaboration

Client Pitch – support but not own, client-based pursuits and advise on solutioning with respect to platform solution, integrations and roadmap.
Client Consulting – support but not own, existing client solutioning with respect to transformation of service line or technology transformations.

Primary Duties

This position has matrixed responsibility through portfolio, projects and client delivery teams, mentoring of developing BA and Delivery Manager resources but no direct reports.

Primary duties include:

40% New Idea Intake / Solutioning
45% Existing Product Governance
15% Client Collaboration

Guidance will include weekly / bi-weekly one-on-one meetings with your direct supervisor, team monthly and quarterly meetings with Technology leadership. Additionally, Tier 1 projects are supported by Project Managers (PJM), in which the Delivery Manager (DM) reports to the PM. All project materials by DM or PJM are regularly audited for adherence to process. There are “dotted-line” reporting relationships into the client account manager or client executive for overall transition management.

Specific Credentials or Work Experience Requirements

Mastery of product management experience in real estate, business intelligence and / or technology.
Ability to develop strong partnerships across a global, multi-layered organization and vendor engagement leadership experience.
Candidates with experience of software development methodologies (ex. Agile, Scrum, Lean, waterfall, etc.) are preferred. Software vendor management and Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) experience is highly desirable.
Bachelor’s or master’s degree in an Environmental Engineering, Analytics, Computer Sciences or related field.

Additional Knowledge and Experience preferred:

Awareness of the ESG technology landscape and market leading solutions
Mastery of the corporate real estate service-provider industry and technology landscape
Strong project management capabilities to manage multiple project streams and complexity
Experience with Business Intelligence tools such as Power BI
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including management of executive presentations required
Experience with data architecture and data transfer protocols
Strong hands-on analytical skillset with attention to detail required
Experience in managing global solutions and products across a diverse set of requirements and stakeholders.
Understanding of emerging technologies, and operating solutions at a large scale.

Technical and Functional Requirements

Technical fluency required with the following:

Product Management Methodologies
ESG software experience and be able to demonstrate knowledge of key deliverables throughout the project life-cycle.
Microsoft Office 365, including Project, Visio and SharePoint
Microsoft Power BI

Cushman & Wakefield also provides eligible employees with an opportunity to enroll in a variety of benefit programs, generally including health, vision, and dental insurance, flexible spending accounts, health savings accounts, retirement savings plans, life, and disability insurance programs, and paid and unpaid time away from work. In addition to a comprehensive benefits package, Cushman and Wakefield provide eligible employees with competitive pay, which may vary depending on eligibility factors such as geographic location, date of hire, total hours worked, job type, business line, and applicability of collective bargaining agreements.

The compensation that will be offered to the successful candidate will depend on factors such as whether the position is covered by a collective bargaining agreement, the geographic area in which the work will be performed, market pay rates in that area, and the candidate’s experience and qualifications.

The company will not pay less than minimum wage for this role.

The compensation for the position is: $191,250.00 - $225,000.00Cushman & Wakefield provides equal employment opportunity. Discrimination of any type will not be tolerated. Cushman & Wakefield is an Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by state, federal, or local law.In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA), if you have a disability and would like to request an accommodation in order to apply for a position at Cushman & Wakefield, please call the ADA line at 1-888-365-5406 or email HRServices@cushwake.com. Please refer to the job title and job location when you contact us.

In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA), if you have a disability and would like to request an accommodation in order to apply for a position at Cushman & Wakefield, email HRServices@cushwake.com or HRServices@cwservices.com. All inquiries not related to accommodations will go unanswered.