What's the opportunity?

RBC's Agentic AI Enablement team is a specialized engineering force that embeds directly into strategic use cases, delivers production-grade agentic systems, and builds institutional muscle for agentic AI at scale. We need a Portfolio & Strategy Lead to own the "what" and "when" of the team's engagement portfolio, deciding what enters the pipeline, in what order, and ensuring the team's finite capacity is deployed against the highest-value opportunities.

Reporting to the Senior Director, Agentic AI Enablement, the Portfolio & Strategy Lead owns intake prioritization, capacity planning, portfolio reporting, and engagement sizing. You'll lead a team of Engagement Product Managers (EPMs) and a Portfolio Analyst, building the product management and strategy function that bridges demand (Business Enablement) and supply (Engineering Pods + Delivery). You ensure the team works on the right things at the right time with the right resourcing, while your EPMs ensure each engagement is scoped correctly and delivers against business requirements.

This role requires someone who can think strategically about portfolio composition, communicate trade-offs clearly to senior leaders, and operate with rigor in a fast-moving environment where engagement demand consistently outpaces capacity.

Your responsibilities include:

Intake & Prioritization

• Own the intake process for new engagement requests, jointly prioritizing with Business Enablement based on strategic fit, value potential, executive sponsorship, and data readiness

• Maintain a transparent, prioritized pipeline that balances near-term delivery commitments with strategic bets

• Ensure every engagement entering the pipeline has clear qualification criteria met before squad formation is triggered

• Say no (or not yet) with conviction when capacity or qualification thresholds aren't met

EPM Team Leadership

• Ensure EPMs maintain scope integrity, requirements quality, and stakeholder alignment across their assigned engagements

• Allocate EPM coverage across engagements based on intensity (dedicated for complex engagements, shared for lighter ones)

• Set standards for requirements documentation, engagement charters, acceptance criteria, and adoption strategies

• Build a cohesive product management practice with shared standards while allowing engagement-level adaptation

Capacity Planning & Squad Formation

• Own capacity planning across the engineering pod structure, maintaining real-time visibility into available FDE capacity

• Trigger squad formation decisions based on engagement priority, sizing requirements, and available capacity

• Partner with the Delivery Lead on resourcing trade-offs when demand exceeds supply

• Manage ADT lending allocation decisions, balancing external support commitments against core enablement delivery

• Recommend squad sizing (light / standard / heavy) in partnership with Principal Engineers and EPMs based on engagement complexity

Portfolio Reporting & Value Tracking

• Maintain portfolio-level reporting for leadership: engagement status, pipeline health, capacity utilization, and value realization

• Track and report on engagement outcomes and success metrics post-delivery, informing future prioritization decisions

• Provide executive-ready portfolio updates for steering committees and leadership forums

• Identify patterns across engagements that inform strategic direction (e.g., recurring demand signals, capability gaps, reuse opportunities)

Strategic Planning & Alignment

• Translate enterprise AI strategy into portfolio-level planning for the Enablement team

• Align engagement portfolio with broader organizational priorities and funding cycles

• Identify capability gaps and inform hiring/investment decisions based on demand patterns

• Partner with Business Enablement on demand forecasting and pipeline development

• Inform team growth decisions (e.g., when sustained lending triggers the case for additional pods)

Engagement Lifecycle Governance

• Ensure structured handoffs at each lifecycle stage (Intake → Scope & Size → Build & Deliver → Transfer & Close → Measure & Learn)

• Own the "Measure & Learn" phase: capturing engagement outcomes, lessons learned, and feeding insights back into prioritization

• Ensure engagement artifacts (Opportunity Briefs, Engagement Charters, Delivery Packages) are produced at each transition point

• Approve engagement charters (produced by EPMs in partnership with PEs) before squad formation is triggered

You're our ideal candidate if you have:

Must Have:

• 7+ years in technology strategy, portfolio management, program management, or delivery leadership roles

• 3+ years managing technology portfolios, intake processes, or capacity planning across multiple concurrent workstreams

• Experience making prioritization decisions with incomplete information and communicating trade-offs to senior leaders

• Strong analytical capabilities: ability to synthesize demand signals, capacity data, and strategic priorities into clear recommendations

• Experience with resource planning and allocation in engineering or professional services organizations

• Proven ability to build and maintain executive-level reporting and portfolio dashboards

• Experience in regulated industries (banking/financial services preferred) with understanding of governance and compliance constraints

• Strong organizational and communication skills with the ability to influence without direct authority

Nice to Have:

• Background in professional services, consulting, or managed services operating models with portfolio/resource management

• Experience with AI/ML or agentic AI programs

• Familiarity with pod-based engineering organizations and variable squad sizing models

• Experience building portfolio management practices from scratch in a new or rapidly scaling team

• PMP, PgMP, or portfolio management certifications

• Background in demand forecasting or capacity modeling for technical teams

What's in it for you?

• Shape the strategic direction of one of RBC's most important AI investments

• Build a portfolio management practice from the ground up inside a high-visibility, high-autonomy team

• Work at the intersection of business strategy and cutting-edge agentic AI engineering

• Direct impact on RBC's enterprise AI transformation and competitive positioning

• Leaders who support your development through mentoring and career growth opportunities

• Comprehensive Total Rewards Program including competitive compensation, bonuses, flexible benefits, and stock options where applicable

About the AI Group:

RBC's AI Group is the AI accelerator for RBC, with a focus on driving the shift from early-stage AI projects to scaled, client outcomes that amplify the impact of RBC's people. In addition to helping scale the biggest AI opportunities at RBC, the AI Group is responsible for advancing research into emerging use cases across generative and agentic AI, while maintaining expertise in security, responsible AI and regulatory expectations. The Business Enablement function within the AI Group partners with LOBs and Functions to set AI ambition, originate transformation opportunities, and frame programs for delivery ensuring RBC remains at the frontier of AI-enabled value creation.

Inclusion and Equal Opportunity Employment

RBC is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion. We are pleased to consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, protected veterans status, Aboriginal/Native American status or any other legally-protected factors. Disability-related accommodations during the application process are available upon request.

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Job Skills

Business Oriented, Communication, Decision Making, Long Term Planning, Organizational Change Management, Program Management, Resource Coordination, Results-Oriented, Team Management, Time Management

Additional Job Details

RBC WATERPARK PLACE, 88 QUEENS QUAY W:TORONTOTorontoCanada37.5Full timeTECHNOLOGY AND OPERATIONSRegularSalaried2026-07-062026-07-31

Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the day prior to the application deadline date above

Our Employment Opportunities

At RBC, we are guided by living shared values of Client First, Integrity, Collaboration, Respect and Excellence and winning together as One RBC. We believe an inclusive workplace that has diverse perspectives is core to our continued growth as one of the largest and most successful banks in the world. Maintaining a workplace where our employees feel supported to perform at their best, effectively collaborate, drive innovation, and grow professionally helps to bring our Purpose to life and create value for our clients and communities. RBC strives to deliver this through policies and programs intended to foster a workplace based on respect, belonging and opportunity for all.

RBC is presently inviting candidates to apply for this existing vacancy. Applying to this posting allows you to express your interest in this current career opportunity at RBC. Qualified applicants may be contacted to review their resume in more detail.