About the Client
Our client is an international markets infrastructure business. Its diversified global business focuses on capital formation, intellectual property and risk and balance sheet management. The company operates an open access model, offering choice and partnership to customers across all of its businesses.
Role Profile
The Director, Equity Index Wealth reports to the Head of Equity Index Product Management, within the Information Services division. The role will be responsible for the development and execution of a 1, 3, and 5-year product strategy and plan for the Wealth segment, with initial focus on the Americas, and will collaborate with Sales leadership to develop a segment strategy. The Director will partner with Research and Marketing to lead the development of new index products for the wealth channel, including creation of product requirements, value proposition and go-to-market execution. The Director will deliver index expertise for flagship and wealth-specific index products and will guide the sales team in assessing client fit for new product solutions.
The role will also play a key role in the integration planning and execution of Equity index products. In the event that the Transaction does not complete, the requirements of the role and responsibilities may be subject to change.
Core Responsibilities
- Define and execute the product strategy and roadmap (target segment, use cases, commercial policy, distribution channels)
- Manage the product lifecycle, including the execution of go-to-market plans (revenue goals, product positioning, competitive analysis, target segments, use cases, marketing materials, sales training)
- Work with external and internal stakeholders such as Research, Sales and Marketing to understand market needs and continue to drive innovation
- Collaborate with Research, Index and Data Management, Development and Governance to define product requirements, resolve product issues, and deliver new products and/or enhancements
- Support cross-functional projects to improve product offering
- Support key client engagement
- Participate in client consultations to understand client needs and/or product opportunities
Key Behaviours
- Integrity: as a very visible leader it is imperative that the candidate demonstrates the highest standards of integrity and professionalism, leading by example
- Partnership: the candidate will be required to work in strong collaboration with colleagues across the business (Legal, Finance, Research as well as Global Sales). They should also take a strong collaborative approach with clients and business partners
- Excellence: this is a highly delivery-focused role. To be successful in this role requires high levels of energy, strong commitment and focus. These are key traits that need to be fostered throughout the sales organisation, setting examples across our wider business
- Innovation: the candidate must demonstrate the ability to anticipate and react to evolving market conditions in order to maximise opportunities and manage risks
Candidate Profile / Key Skills
Essential skills:
- Written and verbal communications: Communicate effectively to audiences with differing levels of domain expertise (presentations, reports, external communications)
- Execution: Strong organizational/coordination skills and attention to detail with the ability to prioritize effectively, handle multiple projects under tight deadlines, identify/ flag/resolve potential issues early on
- Client focus and service mind-set: Understanding of client segments and ability to align with Sales and Client Service teams (expectation management, commercial awareness)
- Quantitative fluency: High level of skill and comfort with numbers (basic financial modeling)
- Commercial fluency: Ability to take a strategic view on commercial opportunities
- Collaboration: Ability to influence and work through others to get things done in a matrixed, multi-site organization; willingness to help colleagues; openness to take on new responsibilities
- Self-motivated: Takes initiative and demonstrates a high level of enthusiasm
Desired experience and qualifications:
- Deep understanding of the wealth segment and ecosystem, investment process and index industry
- Understanding of the investment management and portfolio construction across asset classes
- A proven track record of contributing to strategy development and decision making, as well as building and managing a product roadmap and product development process.
- Extensive experience of working on and project managing integration and change in large and global organisations.
- Experience in a client facing environment providing customer support, integration, and implementation services
- 7+ years of relevant industry experience in financial services
- Undergraduate degree in finance, economics, or equivalent experience required
- MS or MBA in finance, financial engineering, economics, statistics, or other quantitative fields a plus
- CFA, CAIA designations (or participation in the programs) viewed very favorably
- Possible background includes consulting, project management, product management, business development roles at financial services firms