Business Operations Lead (Product/Tech Delivery)

In this Biz Ops role, help drive the strategic department vision, operating model, budget and planning activities, and outcomes for the Digital Product organization. Serve as a trusted, strategic advisor to a department head and leaders within this area. Be at the helm of huge transformation – forming one of the most powerful digital engines in the financial services industry!

Primary Duties & Responsibilities:

Strategic Planning

• Direct departmental strategy development and execution, ensuring alignment with key business priorities and outcomes.
• Lead department/functional central initiatives that drive business value.
• Collaborate, plan and coordinate with and through people to bridge strategies across teams. Business Operations
• Responsibility for strategy and planning to align business operations with the company's overarching strategy, mission and goals.
• Identify gaps between ideal and current state of operating model, with a focus on Product Management, and recommends solutions to close the gaps.
• Facilitate execution of departmental operating model to improve the health of the department and organization.
• Exhibit high level of local (departmental) discernment to identify and solve complex operational or organizational problems and identify innovative solutions.

Project Management

• Partner with department leadership team to identify and track priority work, including identifying business outcomes and benchmarks, portfolio management of department priorities, developing strategy for project execution, and creating transparency on priority work in the department and throughout the enterprise.
• Lead teams or projects with moderate resource requirements, risk, and/or complexity.

Department Planning Budgeting

• Lead department planning and financial/budgeting process.
• Provide data and recommendations and supervise budget forecasting, administration and reporting.
• Manage multiple and complex funding mechanisms and provides guidance to leadership on securing resources to achieve business outcomes.
• Align department planning and budget to functional and company priorities, working cross-functionally with peers in the function.

Trusted Advisor

• Represent and provide support to an executive, functional or department head to facilitate effective decision-making which has a significant impact on the organization; this includes strategic planning, roadmap development, operational planning, leading key departmental priorities, and meeting planning and preparation. Impact the implementation of strategic initiatives that carry out overarching departmental objectives.

Qualifications:

• Minimum of 7 years' business leadership experience, ideally in a consultative role or consulting industry.
• Proven leadership skills working with diverse teams, including technology.
• Superior interpersonal skills to lead a group of people.
• Experience in portfolio and/or project management, strategic and operational planning, and leading multiple complex projects with organization-wide impact.
• Demonstrated organizational agility to work across organizational boundaries, influence, and collaborate with all levels on solutions that benefit the organization.
• Ability to work horizontally w/ shared priorities elevate functional priorities over department objectives.
• Thinks within lateral accountabilities and interdependence.
• Proven skills in dealing with ambiguity and paradox, and leading change.
• Outstanding business insight and focus on achieving business impact through progressive practices and sound business judgment.
• Ability to translate goals and strategies into executable business plans.
• Strong integrity and proven track record to treat confidential information confidentially.
• Demonstrated learning agility and outside-in perspective to identify future trends and practices.
• Strong organizational skills; able to handle competing demands, and work under tight deadlines and short time frames.
• Strong problem solving and strategic/critical thinking skills. Track record using data analytics to support recommendations/decision making. Comfortable with modeling in Excel; experience with SQL, AirTable and data visualization tools (ex. PowerBI) is advantageous.
• Ability to identify underlying issues and influence others without formal authority.
• Facilitation and team building skills; ability to play an active, operational and communicative role.
• Interpersonal savvy and comfort interacting with and presenting to all levels of the organization, including senior leaders.
• High degree of self-motivation with leadership and initiative in sharing information, contributing towards group goals, and accepting responsibility for results.
• Pro-active and an ability to anticipate needs for a range of broad / sophisticated business problems and staying ahead of them; comfortable working in an ambiguous environment.
  
   

$112,560.00

$209,040.00

Northwestern Mutual pays on a geographic-specific salary structure and placement in the salary range for this position will be determined by a number of factors including the skills, education, training, credentials and experience of the candidate; the scope, complexity as well as the cost of labor in the market; and other conditions of employment. At Northwestern Mutual, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for their role and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. Please note that the salary range listed in the posting is the standard pay structure. Positions in certain locations (such as California) may provide an increase on the standard pay structure based on the location. Please click here for additional information relating to location-based pay structures.

We are an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, age or status as a protected veteran, or any other characteristic protected by law.

If you work or would be working in California, Colorado, New York City, Washington or outside of a Corporate location, please click here for information pertaining to compensation and benefits.

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We’re excited about the potential people bring to Northwestern Mutual. You can grow your career here while enjoying first-class perks, benefits, and commitment to diversity and inclusion.