Senior Project Manager(Innovation)_2581

About the Job

The "Innovation Partner" position is integral to empowering Allianz's innovation teams by providing expert guidance and support throughout their innovation journey. This role focuses on making the lives of innovation teams easier by offering tailored coaching, addressing impediments, and facilitating smooth progress in innovation sprints. The Innovation Partner is committed to collecting and aggregating learnings from these sprints to identify insights and opportunities for systemic improvements. By proactively suggesting changes, the Innovation Partner enables faster and more effective innovation processes. Embracing innovation methodologies and fostering a culture of experimentation and learning are essential, as they drive the continuous evolution of ideas and solutions

What you do:

Provide innovation methodology and coaching to teams, ensuring they have the tools and guidance needed to succeed in innovation sprints.

Take full ownership of the Innovation Council, AzT's internal innovation process modelled after venture capital practices. This involves screening ideas, preparing promising concepts for presentation to the Council, and providing coaching to teams that receive seed funding from the Council.

Accompany teams throughout their innovation journey, simplifying their path by resolving obstacles and ensuring smooth progress. This may also involve integrating team members from outside the Allianz Group, such as those from startups.

Collect and aggregate learnings from innovation sprints to identify patterns, insights, and areas for improvement.

Make proactive suggestions on systemic changes to enable innovation to happen faster and better within the organization.

Foster a culture of continuous improvement and learning, encouraging teams to experiment and innovate.

Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure alignment and integration of innovation efforts across the organization.

Communicate insights and recommendations to senior leadership and other stakeholders to drive strategic decision making

What you bring 

Demonstrated experience in coaching, innovation management, or a similar role, with expertise in methodologies such as Human-Centered Design, Open Innovation, and Lean Startup.

Possess an entrepreneurial mindset and spirit, demonstrating resilience and positivity while adeptly navigating organizational processes and structures to drive swift and effective outcomes. Excel in finding solutions to complex problems and overcoming challenges that involve multiple stakeholders.

Exhibit a strong customer-centric approach, consistently keeping the needs and perspectives of our Operating Entities (OEs) and end-customers at the forefront of all innovation efforts and decision-making processes. By doing so, we aim to systematically enhance our customers' trust in our innovation capabilities.

Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.

Ability to work collaboratively with cross-functional teams and manage multiple priorities.

Basic knowledge of AI technologies, principles, and their practical use. Experience in implementing innovation methodologies and frameworks 

What we offer:

We offer a hybrid work model which recognizes the value of striking a balance between in-person collaboration and remote working incl. up to 25 days per year working from abroad.

 We believe in rewarding performance and our compensation and benefits package includes a company bonus scheme, pension, employee shares program and multiple employee discounts (details vary by location).

From career development and digital learning programs to international career mobility, we offer lifelong learning for our employees worldwide and an environment where innovation, delivery and empowerment are fostered.

Flexible working, health and wellbeing offers (including healthcare and parental leave benefits) support to balance family and career and help our people return from career breaks with experience that nothing else can teach.

Allianz Group is one of the most trusted insurance and asset management companies in the world. Caring for our employees, their ambitions, dreams and challenges, is what makes us a unique employer. Together we can build an environment where everyone feels empowered and has the confidence to explore, to grow and to shape a better future for our customers and the world around us.  

At Allianz, we stand for unity: we believe that a united world is a more prosperous world, and we are dedicated to consistently advocating for equal opportunities for all. And the foundation for this is our inclusive workplace, where people and performance both matter, and nurtures a culture grounded in integrity, fairness, inclusion and trust. 

We therefore welcome applications regardless of ethnicity or cultural background, age, gender, nationality, religion, social class, disability or sexual orientation, or any other characteristics protected under applicable local laws and regulations. 

Join us. Let's care for tomorrow. 

Note: Having different strengths, experiences, perspectives and approaches is an integral part of Allianz‘ company culture. One means to achieve this is a regular rotation of Allianz Executive employees across functions, Allianz entities and geographies. Therefore, the company expects from its employees a general openness and a high motivation to regularly change positions and collect experiences across Allianz Group.