Head of Product Growth & Customer Value
Dublin, IE
Canada Life Assurance Europe plc (‘CLE’) is a dynamic insurance company with over 700 people across our offices in Germany and Ireland. We have been operating in Germany since 2000 and have established a fast-growing presence in one of the world’s largest and most established markets. We specialise in providing innovative unit-linked pension, savings, and protection solutions and have become a trusted partner for life insurance products distributed through independent brokers. It is our priority to support our customers at every stage of life with the best products and service, tailored to their needs - and we’re doing it all in a culture that promotes equality and inclusion for all of our current and future employees.
Role Overview
We are currently recruiting a Head of Product Growth and Customer Value for our German business. This is an exciting new role in the organisation, created to ensure Canada Life Europe has a market-leading product strategy to execute on our ambitious growth plans.
Reporting to the Chief Actuary, the Head of Product Growth and Customer Value will be commercially driven, with a successful track record in product development, strategic planning and leadership. They will be a visionary, bringing creative solutions and enjoy working collaboratively with key stakeholders to deliver great outcomes. They will enjoy using their skills and knowledge to create innovative solutions that will drive value and impact for our customers, our brokers and our shareholder, generating measurable business results.
Collaborating with cross-functional teams, this role will ensure the successful development and execution of product initiatives that align with the company's goals and market demands and satisfy the Desirability Feasibility Viability (‘DFV’) framework:
• Desirability - does it satisfy a customer / broker need?
• Feasibility - can we implement the solution?
• Viability - is there a market and is it financially sustainable?
Key relationships and partnerships for the Head of Product Growth and Customer Value will include the CLE Executive Team, the Pricing and Product Development Team, the Commercial Product Management Team and the Strategy Execution Office.
More specific responsibilities will include
• Market and competitive analysis, in collaboration with the Commercial Director and Product Management Team based in Germany
• Understand customer and broker needs and devise innovative product solutions that address these needs and differentiate CLE positively in the German market.
• Direct activity to ensure coherent positioning of existing and new products to align with customer and broker segments as well as business priorities.
• Oversight of product lifecycle management from concept to sunsetting.
• Collaboration with Digital, IT and Data teams to enable digital-first solutions.
• Identify opportunities for embedded insurance and innovative ways to place solutions.
• Work with the Actuarial Pricing and Product Development Team, the ALM and Capital Solutions and the Commercial Teams, to develop proposals for product developments that effectively balance considerations relating to profitability, capital, risk with commercial considerations.
• Engage with CLE’s Investment Managers to develop investment solutions within products.
• Develop CLE’s overall product development strategy over multiple years, ensuring consistency with CLE’s overall strategic ambitions and effective integration with CLE’s broader strategic plans.
• Lead assessments to support prioritisation decisions in relation to the product strategy.
• Review performance of product related initiatives and derive insights to feed into future product strategy decisions.
• As a senior leader and member of the Actuarial, Risk and Data Leadership Team, contribute to a culture of innovation, curiosity, ambition and continuous improvement across the organisation.
Key measures of success
• Product solutions that meet customer needs and deliver growth and profitability targets.
• Target diversification in product portfolio achieved.
• Clear product development strategy and prioritisation process, enabling efficient delivery.
What you will need to be successful in the role
The preferred candidate will ideally have:
• An appropriate professional qualification, ideally an actuarial qualification or other qualification relevant to the industry and role, with multiple years of post-qualification experience in the life insurance industry.
• A proven track record of developing and delivering solutions that have a commercial impact.
• Excellent commercial awareness combined with a strong technical understanding of the financial dynamics of products.
• An innovation growth mindset, with a solution focussed approach, strong decision-making skills and an ability to operate at pace.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence across the organisation at all levels.
• A proven ability to communicate, collaborate and influence effectively across a wide range of stakeholders to deliver positive outcomes for the business.
• Strong work ethic and a good sense of energy and urgency and priority setting.
• Knowledge of the German life insurance market, or an ability and commitment to acquire this knowledge quickly.
• German language skills would be an advantage but are not a requirement.
Key Competencies
The company reserves the right to draw up a shortlist as part of the selection process. Where Agency assistance is required the Canada Life Recruitment Team will engage directly with suppliers. Unsolicited CVs / profiles supplied to Canada Life by Recruitment Agencies will not be accepted for this role.
Canada Life Group Services is proud to be an Equal Opportunities employer. We have created an environment of inclusion and growth to help people achieve their potential, to ensure they can bring their whole selves to work and to feel valued. We celebrate diversity of thought and perspective and want all of our employees to feel valued, respected and supported. We have built a culture that promotes equality and inclusion for all of our current and future employees and strive to ensure that our behaviours, processes and practices are aligned to this culture.
If you require any accommodations during the recruitment process please contact lifecareers@irishlife.ie and we will be delighted to ensure you are fully supported to be your best.
CLGS supports Equal Opportunity and is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.