Job Description
The Identity Fabric Program Manager will lead and be accountable for the end-to-end delivery of the Identity Fabric transformation, including vendor management and integration, migration from legacy systems, and implementation across a complex, hybrid IT landscape, within the regular business constraints of time, budget, and quality. The role requires coordination across security, architecture, procurement, and business stakeholders.
This is a high-visibility, high-accountability role, operating with significant autonomy and direct engagement with senior leadership. The successful candidate will influence strategic direction, ensure delivery predictability, and drive measurable business outcomes — especially improved security posture and successful partner execution.
Program Leadership & End-to-End Delivery:
- Own and lead the full lifecycle of a large-scale IT program: initiation, planning, execution, monitoring/control, and closure.
- Drive delivery of the Identity Fabric transformation, including:
- Privileged Access Management (PAM): Migrate from the on-prem PAM system to CyberArk SaaS. Implement Just-In-Time (JIT) access with zero standing privileges across infrastructure, cloud, SaaS, and non-server environments. Transition PAM service support to an in-house team.
- Identity Governance & Administration (IGA): Replace Nokia’s Identity Management System (NIMS, based on NetIQ) with a modern IGA platform. Automate role-based lifecycle management, entitlement governance, access certification, and user provisioning to 200+ applications. Manage the internal team’s transition from supporting NIMS to supporting IGA platform.
- Access Management (AM): Extend Microsoft Entra ID as the enterprise-wide access layer — enforce password less, phishing-resistant authentication and risk-based adaptive access consistently across all M365 and connected workloads.
- Identity Verification (IV): Deploy IV capabilities for contractor onboarding and selected employee use cases using Microsoft IDV partners.
- Non-human identities: Establish governance controls for non-human identities (service accounts, RPA/automation identities, APIs, and AI agents).
- Threat & analytics integration: Integrate the fabric with ITDR (Identity Threat Detection & Response) and Identity Analytics for continuous risk visibility and posture management.
- Translate strategic objectives into a pragmatic execution roadmap with clear milestones, dependencies, and outcomes.
- Ensure delivery within agreed scope, schedule, cost, and quality expectations.
Large-Scale Transformation Execution:
- Apply strong program governance and delivery discipline across complex, cross-functional environments.
- Operate confidently with SAFe / Agile at scale, hybrid models, or Waterfall as needed to ensure execution success.
- Establish and maintain an effective delivery rhythm, executive reporting, RAID management, and decision frameworks.
Lead through influence across architecture, security, infrastructure, end-user services, and business stakeholders.
Executive Stakeholder Communication & Adoption:
- Act as the primary program interface to executive stakeholders and senior governance forums.
- Communicate complex topics with clarity using structured storytelling, decision-ready framing, and outcome-based reporting.
- Drive stakeholder alignment on transformation roadmaps, investment decisions, trade-offs, and adoption strategy.
Ensure program benefits realization and business readiness through change/adoption planning.
Financial, Vendor & Risk Management:
- Own program financials (budgeting, forecasting, business case tracking), program resourcing, and vendor delivery performance.
- Proactively identify, assess, and mitigate risks across delivery, security posture, vendor execution, and adoption.
Ensure effective collaboration and accountability with external partners, including SI delivery governance.
Success Measures:
- Program success will be measured against the following outcomes (targets to be confirmed):
- Migration milestones achieved on schedule (PAM, IGA, AM, IV workstreams)
- Percentage of applications onboarded to IGA platform
- PAM JIT / zero-standing-privilege coverage across in-scope environments
- Password less, phishing-resistant authentication adoption across M365 and connected workloads
- Audit and access-certification findings closed; improvement in security posture
- Delivery within approved budget and partner/SI execution performance
- Strong understanding of Identity & Access Management domains, including Identity Governance (IGA), Privileged Access Management (PAM), Access Management (AM), and Identity Verification (IV).
- Proven experience with large-scale identity transformations, including migration from legacy IAM systems to modern, integrated platforms.
- Knowledge of non-human identity (NHI) and API-based access governance, including service accounts, RPA/automation identities, APIs, and emerging AI/agent access patterns.
- Solid understanding of Zero Trust security principles and policy-based access control models.
- Experience managing multi-vendor ecosystems, including system integrators and software providers, with strong commercial and delivery alignment capabilities.
- Ability to lead complex, phased migrations with coexistence of legacy and target solutions.
- Strong capability in program dependency management, especially where vendor decisions and procurement timelines define the critical path.
- Experience aligning security, architecture, and delivery stakeholders to a unified operating model.
- Ability to translate identity architecture and security controls into business outcomes (risk reduction, user productivity, compliance).
Certifications / Methodologies:
- SAFe certification (preferred / strong advantage) or equivalent.
- PgMP, or equivalent program management certification (preferred / strong advantage).
- Comfortable working across Agile, Waterfall, and hybrid delivery models.
Nice-to-Have:
- Experience working in telecom or large regulated environments.
- Prior exposure to the Nokia IT landscape or comparable enterprise ecosystems.
- Experience driving adoption, change management, and communications for security transformations.
- Master’s degree or MBA an advantage, given the executive engagement and business-case ownership in this role.
Advancing connectivity to secure a brighter world.
Nokia is a global leader in connectivity for the AI era. With expertise across fixed, mobile and transport networks, powered by the innovation of Nokia Bell Labs, we’re advancing connectivity to secure a brighter world.
Our recruitment process
We act inclusively and respect the uniqueness of people. Our employment decisions are made regardless of race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, marital status, disability, protected veteran status or other characteristics protected by law. We are committed to a culture of inclusion built upon our core value of respect.
If you’re interested in this role but don’t meet every listed requirement, we still encourage you to apply. Unique backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences enrich our teams, and you may be just the right candidate for this or another opportunity.
The length of the recruitment process may vary depending on the specific role's requirements. We strive to ensure a smooth and inclusive experience for all candidates. Discover more about the recruitment process at Nokia