Program Specialist

The Manulife Contingent Workforce Program is seeking a Program Specialist who is accountable for the day-to-day activities of the SOW Program. The role is responsible for SOW management from contract intake, ensuring consistency with the SOW contract terms, through to payments and service completion. This role will support the statement of work (SOW) business and assist People Leaders globally with all facets of the process: SOW setup, resource on and offboarding, project and assignment management activities, invoicing, customer support, training, etc. with varying degrees of complexity and/or sensitivity, ensuring quality and delivery terms are adhered to and achieved. 

Position Responsibilities: 

Day-to-Day Operations: 

• Operational Excellence: 

• Successful achievement of all service level agreements 

• SOW Intake: Complete a detailed Intake for all requirements with accuracy 

• SOW Fulfilment & Management: Manage requirements that are released to ensure timely action 

• Requirement Feedback/Communication: Communicate updates on the status of all open requirements by providing detailed feedback to internal partners and suppliers regarding requisition priority, submittal/feedback status, and next steps. 

• Resource On/Offboarding: 

• Completes onboarding Checklist for all new assignments 

• Confirms all onboarding requirements are completed per policy prior to worker starting assignment 

• Ensures all positions details (assignment details, start date, etc.) are documented in VMS 

• Executes end-to-end activation of standard SOW Worker profiles with accuracy and efficiency 

• Completes Off-boarding Checklist 

• Resource Assignment Management: 

• Ensures all assignment data is maintained and updated as needed in VMS 

• Conduct revisions review and approval 

• Responds to People Leader requests for assignment updates 

• Leverages reporting to proactively reach out to People Leader and Supplier on SOWs and assignments approaching end dates and budget thresholds 

• Ad Hocs – updates vendor POC for inflight SOWs, ensures BU point of contact for mail merges are up to date 

• Conduct resource onboarding and revisions review and approval on Headcount Tracking. 

• Perform HCT upload activities by validating upload data and ensuring all system prerequisites are completed. 

• Handles complex and high‑impact work across advanced SOWs, contracts, system uploads, and in‑depth invoice activities, including informed decision‑making and issue resolution. 

• Contract Management - Conduct non-contractual straight forward SOW revision. 

• Leads complex coordination and improvement efforts by working with business units, vendors, and SMEs to resolve escalations and strengthen processes and documentation. 

• Handle high‑level invoice management by validating invoice approver details and billed amounts 

• Consolidate invoice in VMS and prepare invoice file summary(ies) for approval 

• Exceptional organization and customer service skills  

• Ability to handle multiple projects and tasks concurrently 

• Proven ability to manage competing deliverables on-time and on-quality 

• Takes initiative and can work independently  

• Assure Program Processes and Procedures Adherence by ensuring Proper Documentation 

• Understand all facets of the program operations and identify areas of process improvement 

• Problem analyzer with attention to details; evaluates feasibility and practicality of ideas and options; takes ownership and makes informed and timely decisions.  

• Responsible for using independent judgment and making decisions that require a great degree of creative, analytical, and problem-solving ability 

• Identify risk situations and coordinate solutions with management  

Relationship Management:  

• Tier 1 support Training and Subject Matter Support 

• Strong customer service orientation 

• Maintain, influence and develop relationships with People Leaders, Internal Stakeholders and Partners as well as Third-Party Vendors 

• Manage expectations through timely feedback and proactive communication 

• Excellent interpersonal skills (written and verbal) required with the ability to interact with all levels 

Technology Operations Management:  

• Tier 1 support for all technology-related issues 

• Assess, diagnose and respond to basic questions concerning functionality and configuration settings in the technologies utilized by the Program 

• Responsible for the day-to-day VMS Technology health 

• Provide superior customer service and timely follow up and resolution for all incidents and service requests  

• Become knowledgeable in the integration strategy and functionality for the purpose of providing proper responses to clients, vendors and technology partner 

• Research and conduct basic troubleshooting on technology incidents to resolve issues prior to further escalation 

• Identify trends from day-to-day issues and present possible containment plans if applicable 

• Develop a strong partnership with internal IT teams and our VMS partner, Fieldglass, to be able to provide tactical support for Operations which include troubleshooting issues, testing of changes, and working as an advisor for issue prioritization and low-risk system changes.  

Required Qualifications:  

• 3-5 years in customer support, helpdesk, technical or vendor management support roles.  

• Familiarity with Fieldglass platform is an advantage. Other vendor management systems would be fine.  

• Familiarity with contingent workers or professional services category and processes, invoicing and payment, vendor billing, onboarding/offboarding of contingent workers in Fieldglass 

• Excellent communication skills and customer service skills 

• MS Office proficiency  

Preferred Qualifications: 

• Working knowledge of SAP Fieldglass modules (Contingent Workforce, Services Procurement). 

• Basic troubleshooting and issue resolution skills. 

• Proficiency in MS Office and collaboration tools (e.g., Teams, Outlook) 

• Clear and effective verbal and written communication. 

• Ability to explain technical concepts in simple terms. 

• Analytical thinking to identify root causes. 

• Resourceful in finding solutions or workarounds. 

• Takes initiative and can work independently 

• Perform other procurement duties as may be assigned. 

• Flexibility to shift schedules. 

When you join our team:  

• We’ll empower you to learn and grow the career you want.  

• We’ll recognize and support you in a flexible environment where well-being and inclusion are more than just words.