Director, Brand and Marketing Services

Manulife Wealth & Asset Management (Manulife WAM) is a key area of growth for Manulife Financial Corporation (MFC). It consists of four direct and intermediated customer segments: Retail, Wealth, Retirement and Institutional across the US, Canada, Europe, and Asia.

The Director, Brand and Marketing Services for Manulife WAM will be responsible for leading initiatives that will build the Manulife WAM brand in key global markets across our businesses and for managing the workflow process across the marketing teams to meet creative production requirements. The incumbent will lead research and strategy development for brand initiatives, media planning and content positioning that increase brand awareness/ consideration and influence brand perception with target audiences across channels globally. The incumbent will work closely with channel marketing teams, creative, media partners, events, production and analytics leadership, and will be the champion and voice of the customer for global brand campaigns, curating the most effective approaches to meet our brand goals, business objectives. and measure success. The role will also require a focus on optimizing workflow processes and supporting the marketing organization with leading workflow tools and processes.

This position is hybrid and can be based in one of our office locations such as Toronto or Boston.

Position Responsibilities:

Build Global Manulife Wealth and Asset Management Brand

• Collaborate with marketing colleagues, corporate brand team and agency partners to develop brand strategy and messaging that will resonate with our target wealth and asset management audiences

• Contribute to global Manulife brand approach and strategy working closely with other segments and corporate brand team

• Lead the evolution of our brand strategy as we deploy a new brand architecture and aim to grow awareness, consideration and ultimately conversion / retention with prospective investors, advisors and institutional clients (across Retail, Wealth, Retirement and Institutional audiences)

• Build integrated campaigns across paid, earned and owned channels that connect brand mission/values and business objective(s) with client insights

• Collaborate with internal and external creative and media teams to develop breakthrough campaigns and media strategies that deliver on business objectives

• Research, write and share creative briefs that inspire best-in-class ideas. Briefs will include insights, business objectives and measures of success/critical metrics delivered to creative teams for concept/campaign development

• Guide the development and presentation of creative work and ensure that creative deliverables are "on brief" and "on brand"

• Champion the global brand and manage brand governance

Brand Tracking and Reporting

• Manage research, both qualitative and quantitative, to develop and share unique and powerful insights that serve as a foundation for marketing campaigns

• Manage regular brand health and tracking research with third party research firms

• Stay current with latest marketing trends within and outside of the investment industry that can be maximized in the organization

• Collaborate with corporate brand to share insights and leverage enterprise approach.

• Manage global campaign reporting with critical metrics dashboards and budget tracking, ensuring campaign spend is optimized and drives MROI

• Develop strong partnerships with marketing leadership and business leaders, providing regular updates on brand strategy and progress

• Work closely with Advanced Analytics team to continuously refine the mixed media model and develop robust reporting on campaign and initiative attribution analysis

Brand Governance

• Partner with corporate brand, corporate communications, marketing colleagues and distribution teams to ensure brand consistency across visual identity, tone of voice and messaging.

• Collaborate with Legal team to ensure brand assets are trademarked and protected. Oversee new requests for additional trademarks across the business.

Workflow and Resource Management

• Oversee continued evolution of workflow tool and continue to drive enhancements to the process, achieving greater efficiencies and ease of use

• Coach, lead and support team of resource management professionals who prioritize and assign creative tasks

• Coach, lead and support team of proofreaders and translators.

• Work with risk and compliance partners to ensure any potential gaps are addressed with the workflow process

• Help manage prioritization of projects with key stakeholders and marketing partners

• Support a change management effort as new workflow enhancements are implemented

Required Qualifications:

• Minimum of 10 years of relevant, progressively senior experience in marketing and building brands within the investment (wealth and asset management) industry

• Extensive marketing experience and background in wealth and asset management is essential

• Result oriented with an ability to multi-task, prioritize multiple initiatives and develop solutions where blueprints may not exist

• Proven ability to lead and inspire people, both within and beyond area of accountability

• Strong business insight with the skills for strategic, critical and analytical thinking

• Superior communication skills, both verbal and written

• Exceptional storyteller with the ability to develop highly effective strategy and communication presentations

• Strong emotional intelligence and proven ability to navigate complex matrix structures with all levels of seniority

• Deep understanding of campaign measurement and optimization, using advanced media mix models and other analytical models

• Extensive experience leading integrated brand building campaigns with proven track record of increasing brand awareness and consideration

• Proven experience building highly effective content strategies that drive meaningful outcomes across the marketing funnel (awareness, consideration, conversion, retention)

• Experience leading marketing teams in the investment industry with workflow tools and production teams

• BA/BS degree, MBA preferred

Preferred Qualifications:

• Inspire change and lead transformative brand initiatives

• Deep knowledge of wealth and asset management intermediary audiences

• Proven ability to drive highly effective brand campaigns in wealth and asset management with impressive measurement and results

• Ability to think strategically, and act tactically

• Strong storyteller with the ability to communicate vision, objectives and outcomes in an impactful way

• Highly collaborative with strong impact & influence skills

• Brings an efficiency and curious mindset to explore new technologies and ways of working

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.

#LI-Hybrid

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 recruitment@manulife.com.

Referenced Salary Location

Salary range is expected to be between

If you are applying for this role outside of the primary location, please contact recruitment@manulife.com 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 recruitment@manulife.com for more information about U.S.-specific paid time off provisions.