Job Title

Assistant Manager – PMO

Reports To

Manager – PMO

Location

Karachi, Pakistan

About j. awan & partners

j. awan & partners (JAP) is an international Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) consultancy headquartered in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), with offices across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Kingdom, Ireland, Singapore, Portugal, Pakistan, and South Africa. JAP serves over 1,000 financial institutions across the GCC, providing regulatory advisory, outsourced compliance and AML/KYC functions, risk management, financial reporting, and recruitment services.

azakaw, JAP’s RegTech platform, delivers KYC/KYB onboarding, transaction monitoring, and corporate compliance solutions to regulated firms. As part of our global expansion plan, we are looking for ambitious and agile professionals to join our team.

Mission / Purpose of the Role

The purpose of this role is to lead and own client engagements across all risk levels, ensuring structured project execution, high-quality delivery, and full adherence to PMO governance standards

— while acting as the internal quality gate between the delivery team and the Manager.

The Assistant Manager – PMO independently manages the full lifecycle of low, medium, and high-risk client engagements, serving as the primary relationship owner and senior delivery contact. The role operates with a high degree of autonomy on day-to-day delivery decisions, escalating to the Manager only on complex issues requiring senior judgment or out-of-scope commitments. The AM ensures delivery excellence through disciplined systems management, proactive risk handling, rigorous quality review of all deliverables before Manager approval, and consistent cross-functional coordination.

Key Responsibilities

Client Ownership

• Independently own and manage all assigned engagements across all risk levels — low, medium, and high — from initiation through to closure.

• Serve as the primary client relationship owner and senior point of contact, managing both day-to-day delivery and senior stakeholder relationships.

• Oversee client onboarding, information collection, and document request tracking, ensuring all mobilisation standards are met from day one.

• Review, quality-assure, and approve all policies, procedures, and governance documentation produced on owned engagements before submission to the Manager.

• Act as the internal quality gate — ensuring every deliverable is reviewed, corrected, and approved at AM level before it progresses to the Manager or client.

Portfolio Planning & Delivery

• Own and maintain ClickUp project plans across the full portfolio of engagements, ensuring plans are created within 24 hours of initiation and kept current at all times.

• Monitor milestones, timelines, and action items across all owned mandates simultaneously, proactively identifying and addressing risks or delays before they affect delivery.

• Drive client and internal meeting cadences, issue MOMs within 24 hours, and ensure all follow-up actions are tracked to closure without exception.

• Escalate material risks, scope changes, or delivery concerns to the Manager promptly and in a structured format, having first assessed and triaged the issue at AM level.

• Maintain clear, current, and audit-ready project documentation across all PMO systems for every owned engagement at all times.

Systems & Process Discipline

• Maintain accurate and up-to-date records across HubSpot, ClickUp, and PMO trackers for all owned projects.

• Ensure that no projects are managed outside approved PMO systems under any circumstances.

• Keep all project documentation current, version-controlled, and audit-ready at all times.

• Lead continuous improvement of PMO system usage and process compliance across the team, identifying gaps and implementing improvements proactively.

Quality Assurance &

• Review all deliverables produced on owned engagements before submission to the

Deliverable Review

• Manager, ensuring accuracy, regulatory alignment, and JAP quality standards are met without exception.

• Conduct structured quality checks against defined PMO templates and regulatory frameworks, identifying gaps and returning deliverables for correction where required.

• Maintain a QA log for all reviewed deliverables, tracking version history, review outcomes, and resubmission status across the portfolio.

• Provide structured written feedback on deliverables returned for revision, ensuring corrections are clear, actionable, and completed before re-review.

Billing & Reporting Support

• Coordinate billing inputs and invoice documentation for all owned engagements, ensuring accuracy and timely submission each month.

• Draft, validate, and submit financial projections for client applications, ensuring accuracy of financial data and first-time approval by the Manager in more than 90% of submissions.

• Own all engagement handovers, ensuring complete, accurate, and well-structured documentation is in place before any transition.

• Maintain an accurate active project list with current status updates at all times.

• Ensure 100% compliance with monthly PMO reporting requirements and deadlines.

Engagement Mobilisation & Onboarding

• Receive and review mandates — whether self-initiated or assigned by the Manager — ensuring full clarity on scope, deliverables, timelines, and client expectations before initiating engagement.

• Execute engagement mobilisation including client introductions, system setup in HubSpot and ClickUp, and initial document and information requests within 24 hours of mandate receipt.

• Coordinate client onboarding logistics including scheduling kick-off meetings, distributing onboarding documentation packs, and confirming key contacts and communication protocols.

• Maintain a structured engagement checklist for every new mandate to ensure no mobilisation step is missed and the project is set up correctly from day one.

Escalation & Risk Management

• Serve as the first escalation point for all delivery risks across owned engagements — assess, triage, and resolve issues independently where within AM authority, escalating only material or out-of-scope matters to the Manager.

• When escalating to the Manager, present issues in a structured format including a clear problem statement, delivery impact assessment, and at least one recommended course of action.

• Maintain a live risk and issues log across the full owned portfolio, updated in real time and included in the weekly portfolio status report to the Manager.

• Exercise sound commercial judgment in determining escalation thresholds — resolving routine delivery issues independently and escalating only where Manager-level authority, client relationships, or significant scope changes are at stake.

Client Communication Standards

• Conduct all client communications in line with JAP’s professional communication standards clear, concise, accurate, and within the 24-hour response SLA at all times.

• Manage all client-facing correspondence including email, meeting invitations, document transmittals, and status updates, ensuring tone and content reflect JAP’s brand and quality standards.

• Proactively update clients on project progress, upcoming milestones, and any changes to timelines or deliverables, without waiting to be asked.

• Copy the Manager on all material client communications; operate independently within agreed scope and seek Manager approval only for commitments that materially alter scope, timelines, or commercial terms.

Cross-Functional Collaboration & Time Management

• Collaborate with Finance on billing inputs, invoice documentation, and monthly reporting submissions, ensuring all financial data related to owned engagements is accurate and submitted on time.

• Liaise with the Recruitment team and azakaw as required to coordinate delivery resources, access platform support, or align on cross-functional workstreams affecting client engagements.

• Log all time accurately against projects in ClickTime on a daily basis, clearly distinguishing between billable and non-billable hours, and submit timesheets in full by the monthly deadline without exception.

• Contribute to internal PMO reporting requirements including weekly project status updates, monthly reporting packs, and any ad hoc internal reports requested by the Manager.

Core Competencies

Financial & Operational Acumen

Strong understanding of financial services environments, accounting principles, and operational workflows as they relate to client engagement delivery.

Portfolio Leadership & Ownership

Ability to independently manage complex, high-risk client engagements with full ownership of quality, stakeholder relationships, and delivery outcomes across the full portfolio.

Systems Discipline & Data Accuracy

Strong commitment to maintaining accurate, complete, and current project data across all CRM and PMO platforms at all times.

Quality & Detail Orientation

Ensures high documentation standards, minimal rework, and consistent quality across all deliverables and project records.

Accountability & Escalation Judgment

Operates as the first escalation point for delivery issues; exercises independent judgment on resolution vs. escalation and presents well-structured escalations to the Manager when required.

Role-Specific Competencies

•       Strong working proficiency in HubSpot, ClickUp, and Microsoft Excel.

•       Ability to manage a portfolio of client engagements across all risk levels simultaneously, maintaining quality, compliance, and client satisfaction without Manager oversight on routine matters.

•       Structured approach to meeting management, milestone tracking, MOM issuance, and action follow-up.

•       Understanding of regulatory mandates and the associated policy and procedure frameworks.

•       Demonstrated knowledge of compliance advisory environments and governance documentation standards within financial services, with the ability to apply this independently across complex mandates.

•       Strong written communication skills for professional client-facing correspondence and internal reporting.

Skills and Knowledge

•       Organisational Excellence: Strong time management and task prioritisation skills with the ability to manage multiple engagements and deadlines simultaneously without compromising quality.

•       Professional Communication: Clear, concise, and professional written and verbal communication with clients, senior team members, and internal stakeholders.

•       Analytical Thinking: Ability to gather information, identify quality or scope gaps, make independent delivery decisions within AM authority, and structure clear, solution-oriented escalations for Manager-level issues.

•       Process-Oriented Mindset: Strict adherence to PMO templates, workflows, system requirements, and governance standards across all activities.

•       Confidentiality & Professional Integrity: Handles all client data, sensitive information, and internal communications with the highest level of discretion and professional maturity.

Education & Experience

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Accounting, economics, project management or a related field from a recognised university.

Experience

3–5 years’ experience in project management, compliance delivery, consulting, or structured client engagement environments. Proven track record of independently managing medium to high-risk client mandates. Strong proficiency in HubSpot, ClickUp, and ClickTime is required.

Additional Requirements

Familiarity with financial services regulatory environments and compliance frameworks is advantageous. Strong Microsoft Office skills including Excel, Word, and PowerPoint are required.

Culture & Values Alignment

•       Embodies a growth mindset and takes ownership of outcomes, not just tasks.

•       Demonstrates resilience and adaptability in a fast-paced, evolving environment.

•       Exhibits professional maturity and integrity in handling sensitive issues with discretion.

•       Builds trust and credibility with both leadership and team members.

•       Aligns with j. awan & partners’ core values of Excellence, Integrity, and Innovation.

Rewards & Growth

•       Competitive salary and benefits package benchmarked to the relevant market.

•       Opportunities for career growth in a global, fast-scaling organisation.

•       Continuous learning and development opportunities including exposure to international regulatory environments.

•       Clear career progression pathway toward Manager – PMO with structured development support.