Director, Operations Strategy & Transformation

The Group Benefits Operations team is seeking a Director, Operations Strategy & Transformation to lead our back‑office transformation agenda and strengthen operational excellence across our Canadian Group Benefits business.

Reporting to the Vice President, Group Benefits Operations, this role is a pivotal member of the leadership team. The Director is accountable for shaping and executing strategic initiatives that advance both Operations and Group Benefits priorities. You will partner across teams, geographies, and value streams to translate strategy into measurable outcomes. This role is ideal for a highly motivated, collaborative leader who thrives in a complex, senior‑stakeholder environment and is passionate about driving meaningful change.

Position Responsibilities:

Strategic Planning & Execution

Lead a small, high-performing team in delivering initiatives of varying scale and strategic importance. You will ensure initiatives deliver intended business outcomes through direct accountability and influence. Key responsibilities include:

• Developing integrated initiative roadmaps, ensuring success metrics align with business priorities.

• Leading milestone planning, impact reviews, budgeting, and governance activities.

• Prioritizing strategies and making clear recommendations to senior leadership.

• Overseeing change management activities to enable successful adoption of transformational initiatives.

• Driving timely decisions, actions, and issue resolution.

• Monitoring execution progress, providing visibility into risks and milestones, and ensuring accountability to timelines.

• Tracking initiative outcomes to ensure benefits and financial commitments are realized.

• Designing effective performance‑tracking approaches to keep teams aligned and on track.

• Facilitating annual strategy development and offsite leadership sessions.

• Supporting and enhancing the overall Strategic Planning Process across Operations.

Reporting, Communication & Stakeholder Management

• Develop compelling executive‑level presentations and business cases that clearly articulate insights, recommendations, and outcomes.

• Present initiative performance and strategic insights to senior stakeholders, enabling clear understanding and informed decisions.

• Drive alignment across stakeholders and enable decision-making by identifying trade‑offs and influencing outcomes when necessary.

• Motivate, mentor, and develop both direct and indirect team members.

• Act as a change agent who builds awareness, engagement, and commitment to the transformation agenda.

Required Qualifications:

• 10+ years of combined education and experience in strategy roles within large multinational organizations, ideally in financial services.

• Experience leading small teams and navigating complex, fast‑moving, and ambiguous environments.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Extensive experience in strategic planning, execution, and reporting.

• Strong analytical skills and comfort with financial and quantitative analysis.

• Exceptional PowerPoint and storytelling capabilities.

• Demonstrated ability to influence senior leaders and drive decisions to implementation.

• A reputation for being practical, solutions‑oriented, and dependable in delivery.

• Strong facilitation and communication skills.

• High attention to detail and commitment to delivering executive‑ready work.

• Strong problem‑solving abilities informed by research, structured thinking, and thoughtful analysis.

• Proven experience leading projects and managing stakeholders effectively.

• Strong business acumen, customer focus, and strategic execution capability.

• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in diverse teams.

• Experience in top‑tier consulting, investment banking, or corporate strategy roles is an asset.

When you join our team:

• We’ll empower you to learn and grow the career you want. 

• We’ll recognize and support you in a flexible environment where well-being and inclusion are more than just words. 

• As part of our global team, we’ll support you in shaping the future you want to see.

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About Manulife and John Hancock

Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider, helping people make their decisions easier and lives better. To learn more about us, visit https://www.manulife.com/en/about/our-story.html.

Manulife is an Equal Opportunity Employer

At Manulife/John Hancock, we embrace our diversity. We strive to attract, develop and retain a workforce that is as diverse as the customers we serve and to foster an inclusive work environment that embraces the strength of cultures and individuals. We are committed to fair recruitment, retention, advancement and compensation, and we administer all of our practices and programs without discrimination on the basis of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, religion or religious beliefs, creed, sex (including pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions), sexual orientation, genetic characteristics, veteran status, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, family status, disability, or any other ground protected by applicable law.

It is our priority to remove barriers to provide equal access to employment. A Human Resources representative will work with applicants who request a reasonable accommodation during the application process. All information shared during the accommodation request process will be stored and used in a manner that is consistent with applicable laws and Manulife/John Hancock policies. To request a reasonable accommodation in the application process, contact [email protected].

Referenced Salary Location

Salary range is expected to be between

If you are applying for this role outside of the primary location, please contact [email protected] for the salary range for your location. The actual salary will vary depending on local market conditions, geography and relevant job-related factors such as knowledge, skills, qualifications, experience, and education/training. Employees also have the opportunity to participate in incentive programs and earn incentive compensation tied to business and individual performance.

Manulife offers eligible employees a wide array of customizable benefits, including health, dental, mental health, vision, short- and long-term disability, life and AD&D insurance coverage, adoption/surrogacy and wellness benefits, and employee/family assistance plans. We also offer eligible employees various retirement savings plans (including pension and a global share ownership plan with employer matching contributions) and financial education and counseling resources. Our generous paid time off program in Canada includes holidays, vacation, personal, and sick days, and we offer the full range of statutory leaves of absence. If you are applying for this role in the U.S., please contact [email protected] for more information about U.S.-specific paid time off provisions.