Senior Manager, Mortgage Retention and HELOC Strategy

Reporting to the Senior Director, Strategy and Operations, and working alongside senior management, the Senior Manager, Mortgage Retention and HELOC Strategy is responsible for devising strategies and launching initiatives to drive maximum customer retention and delightful customer experiences, as well as growth and profitability of our Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) product, while balancing return on equity requirements and risk reward trade-offs.

This role is part of Residential Lending Strategy, working closely with the Product Team, and requires strong senior leadership communication and presentation skills. The incumbent is responsible for driving cross-functional initiatives with key stakeholders (e.g. Renewals, Credit, Sales, Operations, Finance, and Risk).

Recommends strategies and initiatives to senior leaders that will drive better retention and delightful customer experiences for our single-family residential mortgage business, and support the growth and profitability of the HELOC product.

Participate in and influence the upgrade of new and existing strategies, programs, and initiatives by researching relevant data and developing proposals and recommendations.

Ensure the insights of the Renewals leadership team are captured and operational readiness is clear prior to any launch.

Engage with relevant internal stakeholders such as: Legal, Compliance, Risk, Credit, Mortgage Services, Technology, and other teams, to proactively ensure that new and existing initiatives are fully compliant with internal and external policies and regulations.

Research market activities to (1) ensure timely and comprehensive knowledge of target market and key customers is reflected in engagement plans; (2) identify and construct detailed proposed revenues for new opportunities; and (3) conduct assessments of strategies of key competitors and market dynamics on an ongoing basis to maintain a robust market analysis framework is in place to inform key decisions of the unit.

Act as subject matter expert on products and related policies and procedures

Lead and support the execution of strategic initiatives.

Evaluate the effectiveness of any implemented strategies, initiatives, or tactics, by interpreting results and research and make recommendations based on key learning.

Lead the review and assessment of pricing strategies and impact of decisions on acquisition and retention of clients and HELOC accounts; lead future forecast and budget requirements as they pertain to retention rates, HELOC growth, and margins and liaise with business, finance, and treasury partners to align on budget projects.

Own the ROE calculator as it pertains to the Renewals business, including ongoing review and assessment of key assumptions inherent in the calculator to ensure appropriateness.

Drive the delivery of business value, communicate progress, elicit feedback, and enable stakeholder reviews for validation in the process.

Manage and review competitive analysis on a quarterly basis or on ad hoc basis.

Managing various vendor relationships.

Identify and manage business activities (operating model, training, communications, etc.) required to support initiatives.

Facilitate problem solving on a day-to-day basis as required, working closely with development on implementation challenges.

Ensure the timely implementation of initiatives and programs by aligning approach, establishing goals & milestones, and effectively managing people to get to the finish line.

Key Technical Accountabilities:

• Launch and see through to completion product initiatives that will deliver against the company’s strategic roadmap.
• Manage discrete budgets associated with individual initiatives.
• Provide subject matter expertise on products, solutions, partnerships, and tools to enable the Bank’s strategic objectives specifically as it pertains to renewals related initiatives.
• Maintaining awareness of industry developments, market conditions and competitor offerings to continue to build product features.
• Conduct vendor management activities with key external stakeholders such as Brokers or other service providers to the Bank
• Ensure compliance with regulatory and legal requirements.

Leadership Accountabilities:

• Lead the Senior Analyst and any rotational students
• Effective collaboration with other internal and external stakeholders will be critical to success in the role.
• Must be able to effectively lead and execute program initiatives through others.

Key Internal and External Contacts:

• The incumbent will report to the Senior Director, Strategy and Operations
• The incumbent will often work closely with various internal departments (e.g. Credit, Sales, Marketing, Project Management, Legal & Compliance, Deposit Services, Finance, Technology, etc.) to gather information and interact with other business unit heads.
• The incumbent will need to interact with external stakeholders (e.g. technology vendors, research firms, consulting firms, etc.) to define solutions, optimize usability, or gather data/market intelligence

Physical Demands / Working Conditions:

• The incumbent works in a standard office environment, with in office collaboration being a key focus.
• The workload is demanding and subject to tight timeframes to produce results. There is frequently a need to re-prioritize activities.
• Hybrid work is expected with 1-5 days in person depending on the level and seniority of the role.

 

Knowledge/Skill Requirements:

Education: Post-Secondary Degree in Commerce, Management, Economics, Finance, Engineering, Computer Science, etc.

MBA or other graduate degree a plus

10+ years of Canadian Financial Institution experience in mortgage lending, product management, and/or mortgage sales, broker sales.

Experience in working closely with technology teams in all aspects of SDLC (requirements, development, testing), including vendor teams

Deep passion in first class customer experiences.

Understanding of Canadian banking regulatory context.

Proven ability to initiate and execute projects.

Previous work experience with significant accountabilities relating but not limited to:

• Product management and product development.
• Influencing senior executive decisions.
• Enthusiastic, thorough, inclusive, and results-oriented; ability and desire to help others thrive in a dynamic team-oriented environment.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, ability to communicate on a broad spectrum (from deep technical discussions to high level executive vision).
• Understanding of workplace collaboration tools (Microsoft Office, JIRA, and others) to achieve efficiency.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Work experience in facilitation and fact-based problem solving to resolve complex issues and drive actionable outcomes.

Job Complexities / Thinking Challenges:

• Mature, confident, personable, professional presence.
• Ability to work in ambiguously defined situations with minimal supervision.
• Strong organizational skills: demonstrated ability to manage time and adhere to tight deadlines.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with proven track record of developing relationships and maturity to interact with Senior Executives.
• Ability to communicate technical, digital-focused, or conceptual information and ideas effectively to individuals unfamiliar with the subject material, including senior management, regulators, etc.    
• Ability to deliver creative & effective solutions to retain customers in a rapidly changing banking environment, against significant incumbent competition.
• Ability to understand, prioritize and sequence rapid change considering customer demand, business need, technical challenges and operational risk.
• Be a key contributor to the evolution of Equitable Bank’s product roadmap at an enterprise level.
• Ability to prioritize assignments, projects and handle multiple competing priorities (multi-tasking) within restricted time constraints.
• Problem solver with sound judgment who takes initiative, accepts ownership and accountability.
• Relentless focus on customer experience.
• Independent, self-motivated, and enthusiastic.