18 Portfolio Manager jobs in Ireland

About the Housing Finance Agency (HFA)

The Housing Finance Agency plc (HFA) provides loan finance to Local Authorities, Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) and Higher Education Institutions to facilitate the delivery of social and affordable housing. The HFA is a key stakeholder in Ireland's national housing strategy, supporting the implementation of government policy.

The Housing Finance Agency (HFA) is seeking an experienced and strategic Senior Portfolio Manager to establish and lead a newly created portfolio management function. This two-year fixed-term position, reporting directly to the Head of Lending, is critical to the HFA's evolving mandate to support the funding and delivery of social and affordable housing across Ireland.

As the HFA's loan book continues to expand it is projected to reach €11.9 billion by 2026. This role will play a pivotal part in enhancing internal oversight of customers, customer engagement, and data-driven decision-making. The successful candidate will be responsible for building a high-performing team, transitioning key processes from external providers to in-house operations, and implementing robust systems for monitoring and reporting. This is a unique opportunity to shape a new function within a semi-State organisation at a time of significant growth and impact.

• Establish Portfolio Management Function: Set up and lead the new portfolio management team within the HFA, including systems training, and operational development.
• Transition Annual Review Process: Manage the transition of the customer annual review process from external provider to in-house operations, ensuring continuity and quality through team training and support.
• Implement MI Reporting System: Design and deploy a new Management Information (MI) reporting system to provide real-time insights into customer profiles, lending activity, product/customer/geographic concentration, and overall portfolio performance.
• Testing and Monitoring: Conduct covenant testing and ongoing monitoring across the loan book, with a particular focus on forward funding and construction exposures. Identify early warning signs and emerging risks.
• Quarterly Customer Reviews: Collaborate with the relationship management team to carry out quarterly reviews of larger Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) and high-value exposures.
• Strategic Data Support: Provide data-driven insights and analysis to support strategic decision-making by the Head of Lending and senior leadership, contributing to the HFA's long-term lending strategy.
• Compliance and Best Practice: Ensure adherence to compliance standards and best practices in portfolio oversight, in line with recommendations from the recent independent review of the HFA.
• Watchlist Oversight: Establish and maintain a watchlist of cases showing signs of deteriorating performance. Partner with the relationship management team to manage and monitor action plans to assist the customer return to acceptable level of business performance.
• Integrated Risk Collaboration: Work in close partnership with the internal risk team to ensure all relevant risks are comprehensively addressed in both the annual review process and individual scheme submissions.

Please note that the above is not an exhaustive list of duties, and you will be expected to perform different tasks as necessitated by your changing role within the organisation and the overall business objectives of the HFA.

The ideal candidate will possess the following:

• A degree-level qualification or higher in a relevant field such as Finance, Economics or Business
• A minimum of 3 years' experience in financial services, banking, or lending, with demonstrable exposure to portfolio management, credit analysis, or risk oversight.
• Proven experience in leading teams and establishing new functions or departments, ideally within a regulated or public sector environment.
• Strong communication skills-both oral and written-with the ability to engage effectively across internal teams and external stakeholders.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel and other Office applications; experience with data visualisation or MI tools (e.g. Power BI, Tableau) is highly desirable.
• Demonstrated experience in implementing new systems or processes, particularly in reporting, data management, or customer review frameworks.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to interpret complex financial data and identify emerging risks.
• A proactive leadership style with the ability to manage change, mentor staff, and drive continuous improvement.
• Desirable Experience:
• Knowledge of housing construction finance and Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) sector
• Experience in covenant monitoring, credit risk assessment, or construction finance oversight.
• Proven experience in risk identification, covenant monitoring, and early warning systems within a financial institution or lending environment.

The ideal candidate shall demonstrate the ability to deliver on the following competencies:

• Leadership: Provides strategic direction in lending operations, builds high-performing teams, and fosters a culture of accountability, compliance, and customer focus.
• Judgement, Analysis & Decision Making: Assesses complex financial and credit information to make sound, risk-aware lending decisions that align with organisational and regulatory priorities.
• Management & Delivery of Results: Oversees the efficient delivery of lending services and projects, ensuring timely, high-quality outcomes while adapting to market and policy changes.
• Interpersonal & Communication Skills: Communicates lending policies and decisions clearly, builds trust with clients and stakeholders, and promotes collaboration across teams and departments.
• Specialist Knowledge, Expertise and Self Development: Demonstrates deep knowledge of lending practices, credit risk, and financial regulations, while actively pursuing professional development in the lending domain.
• Drive & Commitment to Public Service Values: Upholds integrity and transparency in lending practices, ensuring fair access to credit and placing the needs of citizens and communities at the centre of service delivery.

• Tenure: The appointment is a two-year fixed-term contract subject to the satisfactory completion of a probationary period.
• Hours of Work: Operating on a 35-hour week with core hours between 08:00 and 18:30. The HFA currently operates a flexible work model, with staff required to work a minimum of two days per week in the office in Dublin 2.
• Salary Scale: The Assistant Principal Officer Standard salary scale for the position (rates effective from 1 August 2025) is as follows:

Assistant Principal Officer (PPC)

€1,475 ,475 ,518 ,569 ,617 ,375 ,449 1,535

This rate applies to new entrants and will also apply where the appointee is an existing civil or public servant appointed on or after 6th April 1995 and is required to make a personal pension contribution.

Assistant Principal Non-Personal Pension Contribution Salary Scale

,700 ,565 ,144 ,041 ,938 ,611 ,528 ,457

This rate will apply where the appointee is a civil or public servant recruited before 6th April 1995 and who is not required to make a Personal Pension Contribution. Long service increments may be payable after 3 (LSI 1) and 6 (LSI 2) years satisfactory service at the maximum of the scale.

Important Note

NB. Entry will be at the minimum of the scale and the rate of remuneration will not be subject to negotiation and may be adjusted from time to time in line with Government pay policy.

Subject to satisfactory performance increments may be payable in line with current Government policy. Different terms and conditions may apply if, immediately before appointment, you are a currently serving civil/public servant.

Annual Leave:

In addition to the usual Irish public holidays annual leave for this position is 30 working days, based on a five-day week.

The above represents the principal conditions of service and is not intended to be a comprehensive list of terms and conditions of employment which will be set out in the employment contract to be agreed with the successful candidate.

How to Apply

Applications should be submitted via HIREHIVE LINK only. Each candidate should submit a short covering letter outlining why you believe your skills, experience and values meet the requirements of the position along with an up-to-date CV.

The closing date for receipt of applications is 3pm on 7 October 2025.

If applicable, please contact our HR Manager, Katherina Sage if you require a job description in an accessible format. In addition, candidates called for interviews and/or aptitude tests may request reasonable accommodations.

Please note: all job offers are subject to satisfactory references and a pre-employment medical.

The Housing Finance Agency PLC is an equal opportunities employer.