Senior Manager, Product Expertise

Company: CGIC

Department: Retail Sales

Employment Type: Regular Full-Time

Work Model: Hybrid

Language: English is required, French is an asset.

Additional Information: This/these role(s) is/are currently vacant

The Opportunity:
We are a leading Canadian financial services co-operative committed to being a catalyst for a sustainable and resilient society and our team is essential to deliver on this strategy. That's why we prioritize our people, to ensure we provide a strong culture and development opportunities which enables our team to thrive and to live our purpose. The best part is that you will work with people that care passionately about you, our clients and our communities.

The Senior Manager, Product Knowledge Enablement is responsible for developing and implementing strategies to build product proficiency in the field. The Product Knowledge Enablement team is ultimately accountable for ensuring Advisors are equipped with the necessary expertise to best position products to help meet their clients' financial needs. Their primary focus is on building product proficiency within the field, providing subject matter expertise, support, and guidance to advisors and Sales Managers to help them meet and exceed their sales targets. This role focuses on leading a team of Product Consultants (life, wealth, farm/commercial, home/auto) while collaborating with cross-functional teams to align product knowledge initiatives with broader business objectives and goals. The team aims to build awareness and understanding of product features, benefits, applicable use cases and effective communication methods to enhance client engagement and drive business growth. Additionally, the team provides expert, on demand product support to advisors as required to close deals and manage client expectations.

How You Will Create Impact:
implementing strategies to build product proficiency in the field. The Product Knowledge Enablement team is ultimately accountable for ensuring Advisors are equipped with the necessary expertise to best position products to help meet their clients' financial needs. Their primary focus is on building product proficiency within the field, providing subject matter expertise, support, and guidance to advisors and Sales Managers to help them meet and exceed their sales targets. This role focuses on leading a team of Product Consultants (life, wealth, farm/commercial, home/auto) while collaborating with cross-functional teams to align product knowledge initiatives with broader business objectives and goals. The team aims to build awareness and understanding of product features, benefits, applicable use cases and effective communication methods to enhance client engagement and drive business growth. Additionally, the team provides expert, on demand product support to advisors as required to close deals and manage client expectations.

*How You Will Create Impact:*

• Oversee a team that provides subject matter expertise on Life products to advisors, helping them understand product features, benefits, and applications.
• Build proactive outreach strategies to anticipate Advisor needs and build product confidence; ensure alignment and integration across product teams, collaborating where possible. Utilizing descriptive data to identify impacts, opportunities and solutions to support the development of an analytical framework.
• Act as an escalation point for advisor queries related to Life products, ensuring timely and accurate responses.
• Oversee the delivery of advisor support within their designated product line, ensuring that product consultants respond to advisor queries with accuracy and consistency.
• Collaborate with other product expertise teams to ensure a cohesive approach to product support.
• Act as a subject matter expert for their product within RSS and with Advisors, participating in audits, advising on restrictions, and providing key inputs into business, succession planning and distribution strategy.
• Act as a key partner to cross-functional teams within RSS, including Retail Sales (Sales, Next Best Action, Sales Planning & Forecasting) and Business Enablement (Practice Management, Advisor Experience & Compensation and Agency Planning & Distribution Strategy).
• Partner with the learning team to ensure product learning resources are accurate and managed appropriately.
• Deliver talks and attend industry events to help in the development of advisor knowledge and proficiency in their product line.
• Understand their designated products and develop strategies for rolling out product changes or net new products.
• Lead mentor, and develop their product expertise team, including Sr. Product Consultants and Product Consultants, to ensure high performance and professional growth.
• Set performance goals and conduct regular performance reviews to ensure team members meet and exceed expectations.

How You Will Succeed:

• Ability to lead, mentor, and develop teams to achieve high performance.
• Strong interpersonal skills to foster collaboration and a positive team culture.
• Ability to make data-driven decisions to refine strategies.
• Detailed understanding of Co-operators' product shelf, including features, benefits and competitive positioning.
• Knowledge of effective sales strategies and customer engagement techniques to guide Advisors and Sales Managers with positioning.
• Experience in managing a team and fostering a collaborative and high-performance culture.
• Customer-centric mindset that prioritizes the needs and experiences of advisors, ensuring that product support services are aligned with delivering exceptional service.

To Join Our Team:

• You have 6 to 9 years of experience in financial services or insurance industry, with a focus on advisor enablement, distribution support, or related areas.
• Bachelor's Degree in Finance/Insurance or related areas
• Relevant industry certifications and licenses such as: CFP, CFA, Cfs, CIP, CISR, etc.
• Strong leadership and team management skills.
• Excellent communication and collaboration abilities.
• Ability to foster a positive and collaborative environment.
• Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills.
• High emotional intelligence to understand and address the needs and concerns of advisors.
• Ability to build and maintain strong relationships with advisors, senior leadership, and cross-functional teams

What You Need To Know:

• You will travel occasionally.
• You will be subject to a Background check as a condition of employment, in the event you are the successful candidate.

What's in it for you?

• Training and development opportunities to grow your career.
• Flexible work options and paid time off to support your personal and family needs.
• A holistic approach to your well-being, with physical and mental health programs and a supportive workplace culture.
• Paid volunteer days to give back to your community.
• In addition to our competitive salary and incentive programs, eligible employees also benefit from a comprehensive total rewards package including group retirement savings plans, pension and benefits (e.g., health and wellness, dental, disability and life coverage), mental health support and an employee assistance program.