PMO Specialist

Location:
Dubai, United Arab Emirates

In fast changing markets, customers worldwide rely on Thales. Thales is a business where brilliant people from all over the world come together to share ideas and inspire each other. In aerospace, transportation, defence, security and space, our architects design innovative solutions that make our tomorrow's possible.

Thales has built a presence in the United Arab Emirates for over 35 years, and today has over 300 employees. Thales in the UAE is part of our Middle East business that has 1,800 people across Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, KSA, Lebanon, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar and UAE. Together we delivered technology for the Dubai metro, the longest driverless metro network in the world and a fare collection system that processes up to 250,000 transactions per day. We make UAE a safer place by providing secure electronic payment solutions, cyber security systems and communications as well as security systems for Dubai International Airport and air traffic management and navigation systems for Abu Dhabi's airport.

JOB OBJECTIVE:

• Responsible to lead the PMO activities, with a good experience in schedule, risks, change control, document control, and reporting management.
• To support the HO PMO ME with bids & projects structuring, strategy definition and implementation, progress reporting including schedule updates, forecast to complete, variance identification and opportunities for improvement.
• Support development of AI-driven solutions for Project Management activities.

ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Assist the Head of PMO by coordinating PMO activities and initiatives to improve capability, including developing training material, communications and the analysis of information.
• Ensure on time and on quality reporting of the bids & projects.
• Lead inter-departmental coordination to anticipate, plan, optimize, coordinate and adjust project activities.
• Use advanced project management techniques to create detailed project schedules.
• Develop PMO team expertise in Project Management through the development of skills, training and certifications.
• Maintain documented PMO strategy taking into account project scope, organization, budget resource, assumptions…
• Ensures full compliance to Company safety and quality procedures.
• Deploy Group processes, methods and tools applicable to Project Management.
• Coordinate risks analysis and monitor ongoing bids & projects.
• Deploy Lessons Learnt practices over the project lifecycle.
• Implement Project management / Process improvement initiatives.
• Proactively analyze data to answer key questions from stakeholders with a focus on what drives business performance, investigating and communicating areas for improvement in efficiency and productivity.
• Primavera P6 Proficiency:
  Demonstrate strong expertise in using Primavera P6 for project scheduling and resource management. Ability to create, monitor, and update project schedules, ensuring alignment with project milestones and deadlines.
• Critical Path Analysis and Reporting:
  Utilize Primavera P6 to perform critical path analysis, track project performance, and generate detailed reports to assess project health. Leverage dashboards and data visualization features to communicate project status effectively to stakeholders.
• Act as a Process & Tools referent for MEA ensuring all Group Tools for Bid & Project management are deployed, well used with the good level of efficiency.
• AI Development Support:
  
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to define project scope, objectives, and deliverables related to AI development for Project management activities (planning).
• Assist in gathering, analyzing, and documenting requirements for AI solution development.
• Participate in the design and implementation of AI algorithms and tools, ensuring they meet project and organizational needs.
• Identify and implement best practices in project management and AI development processes.
• Provide training and support to team members on PMO and AI-related tools and methodologies.

WORK EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS:

• 5 years of experience of working on large scale and multi-countries Projects.
• 5 years of experience in managing Project Management Office.
• Strong experience related to Planning topics.
• Experience of implementing & embedding new PMO processes & governance model. Highly experienced in stakeholder management.

QUALIFICATION, CERTIFICATION & EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Master Degree or equivalent in relevant field.
• 5 years of managerial experience is necessary.
• Primavera expertise required.
• Professional qualifications in Project Management would be a plus (IPMA, PMI, APM etc.).
• Proven experience in project management, preferably within a PMO environment, with a strong emphasis on planning expertise and AI projects.
• Strong knowledge of strategic and operational planning methodologies, with experience in integrating AI into planning processes.
• Familiarity with AI technologies, machine learning frameworks and their application in planning or similar domains.

PREFERRED SKILLS:

• Exhibit leadership in identifying and resolving issues.
• Able to understand the baseline program timeline and work with the projects teams identifying risks and issues that could impact the delivery plan.
• Attention to detail.
• Able to engage and motivate people.
• Coordinating and updating project plans/documents.
• Ability to take on responsibility and use initiative to prioritize and work effectively under pressure and to tight deadlines.
• Digital thinking.
• Proficient in MS Office, advanced Excel and Power Bi.
• Attention to detail & Good Time management skills.

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