Senior Managing Director, Head of Digital Solutions and Innovation - SLC Management

Senior Managing Director, Head of Digital Solutions and Innovation - SLC Management

Locations: Toronto, Ontario
Time Type: Full Time
Posted On: Posted Yesterday
Job Requisition ID: JR00102456

SLC Management is a growing global asset management firm providing innovative and diversified investment solutions to institutional investors. We are breaking new ground with a full spectrum of solutions for a growing institutional client base of more than 1300 organizations. Our history of organic and strategic growth reflects this commitment with over CA$374/US$283 billion in assets under management (AUM). As a subsidiary of Sun Life, we are aligned with one of the world’s leading financial services companies, and benefit from the stability and strength of that relationship.

We are a performance-driven organization with a deliberate focus on fostering a development-focused, inclusive culture revolving around our Core Values of being client obsessed, valuing each other, acting with speed, and having an owner’s mindset. As part of our team, you play a role in fulfilling our purpose and making a difference. We offer a rewarding work environment that is filled with opportunity for growth where you will be empowered to meet the challenges of a highly competitive landscape.

SLC Management offers a mix of in-office and virtual work where our employees are empowered to do their best. Generally, employees are expected to work three or more days in-office each week with flexibility depending on their business, client, and team needs.

Job Description:

This position reports directly to Laura Money, EVP and Chief Information and Technology Innovation Officer, Sun Life and Candace Shaw, Senior Managing Director, Deputy Chief Investment Officer and Chief Operating Officer, SLC Management. Information Technology is a strategic differentiator in every Sun Life market that we operate in. By digitizing our products and services the organization becomes a more desirable, first choice provider.

As a member of the Digital Business and Technology Solutions (DBTS) and SLC’s Operations Leadership teams, the Head of SLC Management Digital Solutions & Innovation will lead SLC’s Digital Solutions and Innovation (DSI) team and assume executive level accountability for delivering agile, cloud-native, client-centric solutions that enable SLC Management to achieve its strategic objectives. You will foster a culture of collaboration, learning, digital innovation, and continuous improvement within your team and across DBTS.

As the Head of SLC Management Digital Solutions, you will champion the adoption of agile methodologies and practices within SLC and across DBTS, co-leading cross-functional SLC’s Agile Platform teams together with the COO and driving delivery of value to SLC and its clients in small increments, with frequent stakeholder feedback and collaboration.

You will be responsible for defining an operating model for the affiliates technology that balances agility with security and resiliency, while leveraging synergies and integration across teams. A proven, results-oriented leader who builds vision, teams, and processes to transform operations and meet business goals. Success requires digital expertise, asset management experience, influencing across decentralized teams, superior relationship management, experience leading large-scale change, and the ability to mobilize teams to solve complex problems.

What you will do:

• Collaboration and Strategic Partnership: Thought partner driving innovation and digitally enabled business models while collaborating closely with business leaders to align technology with business needs. Collaborate with the DBTS global team (Infrastructure and other business CIOs) to leverage Sun Life’s scale with the agility needed for a fast-paced Asset Management business.
• Vision and Strategy: Develops a compelling, achievable DSI vision, translating it into actionable goals that integrate with overall Enterprise ambitions, including setting the roadmap to determine key goals for Digital Leadership for SLC, while respecting and navigating existing legacy systems with creative approaches to innovation.
• Data Strategy: Provides Executive Sponsorship, leadership, and oversight for the Data Strategy and Governance function in SLC, ensuring alignment with the enterprise data strategy and governance framework, and enabling data-driven insights and decision-making across the business.
• Cybersecurity: Accountable for ensuring SLC’s cybersecurity strategy and risk management framework are effectively implemented to protect information assets and mitigate potential threats.
• Futureproofing: Pinpoints challenges in the DSI landscape, developing mitigation strategies and balancing innovation with the efficient operation of legacy systems.
• Market Awareness: Monitors market trends and industry changes specific to the asset management industry, advises on innovative technology solutions to enable strategic business goals.
• Relationship Building: Cultivates strategic relationships across SLC and Sun Life globally, while fostering a collaborative, innovative, performance-driven culture that drives business outcomes.
• Operational Excellence: Prioritizes strategic initiatives for maximum impact, ensuring financial discipline and executional excellence in technology spend and project delivery. Leads the team to capitalize on opportunities and innovations that drive Client impact.

Team Leadership:

• Diversity and Inclusion: Furthers the diversity, equity, and inclusion goals of SLC Management and Sun Life, creating a high-performing, collaborative, and learning-driven culture that values diversity and belonging.
• Business Discipline: Embeds rigorous business discipline, performance management practices, and supports the development of initiatives that enhance industry awareness and delivery.
• Large, Dispersed, Multi-Disciplinary Teams: Provides leadership to approximately 80 employees in the SLC Digital Solutions and Innovations group across North America through clear direction, aligned goals, and proactive leadership. Lead and represent SLC on cross-functional key initiatives, projects, steering committees, and working groups supporting the key elements of the business strategy.
• Engagement and Collaboration: Cultivate team collaboration and engagement through leadership, communication, feedback, recognition, and empowerment. Foster a culture of innovation, learning, and continuous improvement within the team and across the organization.

Technical Skills:

• Demonstrates a strong technology background with an understanding of various aspects of IT, hardware, software, middleware, security, data/analytics, trading systems, API/architectural tools, cloud and data technologies, and collaboration tools.
• Strong knowledge of asset management technology applications and industry trends in technology.

What you will need to succeed:

• 10-15 years progressive experience leading multi-disciplinary teams to deliver results in a large, public and highly regulated entity.
• University education in a related discipline, with a commitment to lifelong learning.
• Experienced in influencing and presenting to senior executives.
• Demonstrates business acumen and understanding of large technology operations, adept in building high-achieving, cross-functional teams.

Additional Competencies:

• Business Acumen: Deep understanding of capital markets/wealth management businesses, including various asset classes and investment trends (i.e. ESG).
• Thought Leader: Abreast of developing trends and understands how these trends are being adopted and impact our businesses.
• Strategic and Tactical Balance: Exhibits a balanced combination of strategic and tactical abilities, capable of formulating complex plans while managing consumable, achievable work efforts.
• Communication: Acts as a world-class communicator, influencing decision-makers and driving outcomes with concise, convincing narratives with the ability to translate complex technical concepts into plain language.
• Leadership: Demonstrated leadership in navigating and balancing hybrid asset management models.
• Learning Agility & Adaptability: Comfortable in ambiguous situations, adaptable to a variety of management styles and priorities, thriving in a fast-paced, dynamic, matrix environment.

Why SLC Management?

• Opportunity to work for a growing global institutional asset manager.
• Excellent benefits and wellness programs to support the three pillars of your well-being – mental, physical, and financial – including generous vacation and sick time, market-leading maternity, parental and adoption leave top-up program, a partially-paid sabbatical program, and much more.
• Pension, stock, and savings programs with an employer-paid match to help build and enhance your future financial security.
• A flexible work environment with a friendly, caring, collaborative, and inclusive culture focused on career growth development.
• The opportunity to move along a variety of career paths with amazing networking potential.
• Award-winning workplace culture - Great Place to Work Certified in Canada and the U.S., “Best Places to Work” by Glassdoor, Award for Excellence for Mental Health at Work, “Best Places to Work in Money Management” by Pension & Investments.

SLC Management is a regulated business, and this means that there are certain financial reporting and trading preclearance requirements for all employees. Successful candidates will be required to declare personal investment accounts and securities investments as well as seek preclearance on future transactions including those of household members.

Job Category: General Management

Salary Range: 210,000 - 350,000

The Base Pay range is for the primary location of the job. It may vary depending on the work location of the successful candidate or other factors. In addition to Base Pay, eligible employees participate in various incentive plans, payment under which is discretionary and subject to individual and company performance. Certain sales-focused roles have sales incentive plans based on individual or group sales results.

We are committed to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment, where all employees feel valued, respected, and supported. We are dedicated to building a diverse workforce offering wide perspectives and creative ideas that benefit our clients, teams, and the communities where we operate. Research shows that women and underrepresented groups tend to apply only if they meet 100% of the criteria. We encourage applications from qualified individuals from all backgrounds even if they don’t meet every criterion in the job description.

We will make reasonable accommodations to known physical or mental limitations. Persons with disabilities who need accommodation in the application process or those needing job postings in an alternative format may e-mail a request to thebrightside@sunlife.com.

We thank all applicants for showing an interest in this position. Only those selected for an interview will be contacted.