Director, Group Benefits Data Services

Manulife/John Hancock; Toronto; Hybrid; CAD 113,000 - 210,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health and dental insurance

Wellness programs

Retirement plans

Job summary

Manulife/John Hancock is seeking a Director to lead the data strategy for Group Benefits, moving between project management discussions with Data Analysts and strategic data conversations with Senior Leaders.

You will define vision, prioritize data initiatives, and hold teams accountable for delivery across multiple partners while advocating strong governance and data protection practices. This hybrid Toronto-based role emphasizes collaboration and strategic influence.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of data management experience.
• University degree in a related field.
• Ability to engage and influence IT, business and other partners.
• Clear communication of complex concepts (written and spoken).
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with compliance interpretation.
• Proven track record of program development and delivery.
• Flexibility, creativity, and prioritization ability.
• Ability to make risk-based decisions in a fast-paced environment.
• Highly organized with good time management.
• Demonstrates values: Own it, Think big, Obsess about our customers, Do the right thing, Get it done together, Share your humanity.

Responsibilities

• Execute a data strategy with accountability and progress reporting to Senior Management.
• Understand business drivers and data requirements to fuel growth.
• Set strategic direction for data usage and gain approval from senior leadership.
• Prioritize data requirements and reusable data objects with data teams.
• Manage execution of the data strategy and report progress to leadership.
• Identify resource gaps to meet project timelines.
• Manage partners across Advanced Analytics, IT, Product, Operations and more.
• Collaborate with Legal, Privacy, and Business Development to ensure data inflow for partnerships.
• Adopt and advance data governance and protection policies.
• Educate peers on data protection policies and participate in special projects as needed.

Skills

Data management experience

Stakeholder engagement

Communication

Analytical thinking

Program delivery

Prioritization

Risk-based decisions

Time management

Values alignment

Education

University degree in a related field

Job description

Group Benefits is looking for a self-motivated, well-rounded Director, who can move between conversations on project management with Data Analysts to data strategy conversations with Senior Leaders. This opportunity will require a broad range of skillsets to pave the vision for data usage with Group Benefits, prioritize steps to create that vision, and hold the teams reasonable for delivery accountable. It’s a great opportunity for a person evolving their career from mid and large projects to a data leader within the organization.

Position Responsibilities

• Executing a data strategy within Group Benefits comes with many accountabilities and the successful candidate will cover all of the following:
• Quickly gain an in-depth understanding of business drivers and the data requirements needed to fuel growth
• Set the strategic direction of data usage within Group Benefits and reinforce with Senior Management approval
• Prioritize data requirements and re-useable data objects with data teams responsible for the handling, storage, and reporting
• Hold teams, responsible for the execution of the data strategy, accountable and report progress to Senior Management
• Proactively identify shortcomings in resources to ensure project timelines are met
• Manage partners in Advanced Analytics, IT, Product, Operations, and other areas throughout Group Benefits
• Work with Legal, Privacy, and Business Development teams to ensure contracts create the inflow of data required to mange partnerships and achieve our data strategy
• Adopt, develop, and accelerate Manulife’s data governance and data protection strategy and processes
• Promote and educate peers on data protection policies
• Be an active member of the Business Analytics Management Team Lead special projects as required

Required Qualifications

• You have 3 years+ of data management experience
• You have a university degree in a related field
• You effectively engage and influence others - building strong relationships with IT, business, and other partners across the organization
• You effectively and clearly communicate complex concepts (written and spoken)
• You have strong analytical and problem-solving skills, and the ability to interpret complex compliance concepts
• You have a proven track record of successful program development and delivery
• You are flexible, creative, and can prioritize effectively
• You can make informed risk-based decisions in a fast-paced environment
• You are highly organized, planful and excellent at time management
• You embody our values: Own it Think big Obsess about our customers Do the right thing Get it done together Share your humanity

Preferred Qualifications

• Bilingualism (English and French) is an asset. If the successful candidate is in Québec, proficiency in both languages will be required to support clients from various provinces outside of Quebec.

When you join our team

We’ll empower you to learn and grow the career you want. We’ll recognize and support you in a flexible environment where well‑being and inclusion are more than just words. As part of our global team, we’ll support you in shaping the future you want to see.

The role being advertised is an existing vacancy.

About Manulife and John Hancock

Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider, helping people make their decisions easier and lives better. To learn more about us, visit https://www.manulife.com/en/about/our-story.html.

Manulife is an Equal Opportunity Employer At Manulife/John Hancock, we embrace our diversity. We strive to attract, develop and retain a workforce that is as diverse as the customers we serve and to foster an inclusive work environment that embraces the strength of cultures and individuals. We are committed to fair recruitment, retention, advancement and compensation, and we administer all of our practices and programs without discrimination on the basis of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, religion or religious beliefs, creed, sex (including pregnancy and pregnancy‑related conditions), sexual orientation, genetic characteristics, veteran status, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, family status, disability, or any other ground protected by applicable law. It is our priority to remove barriers to provide equal access to employment. A Human Resources representative will work with applicants who request a reasonable accommodation during the application process. All information shared during the accommodation request process will be stored and used in a manner that is consistent with applicable laws and Manulife/John Hancock policies. To request a reasonable accommodation in the application process, contact [e-mail].

Referenced Salary Location

Toronto, Ontario

Hybrid

Salary range is expected to be between $113,260.00 CAD - $210,340.00 CAD

Employees also have the opportunity to participate in incentive programs and earn incentive compensation tied to business and individual performance.

The actual salary will vary depending on local market conditions, geography and relevant job-related factors such as knowledge, skills, qualifications, experience, and education/training.

If you are applying for this role outside of the primary location, please contact [e-mail] for the salary range for your location.

Benefits

• health, dental, mental health, vision, short- and long-term disability, life and AD&D insurance coverage, adoption/surrogacy and wellness benefits, and employee/family assistance plans

We also offer eligible employees various retirement savings plans (including pension and a global share ownership plan with employer matching contributions) and financial education and counseling resources.

Our generous paid time off program in Canada includes holidays, vacation, personal, and sick days, and we offer the full range of statutory leaves of absence. If you are applying for this role in the U.S., please contact [e-mail] for more information about U.S.-specific paid time off provisions.

We use data and analytics technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), and automated processing tools, to analyze and process the information you provide to us or third parties in the application process. For more information, please refer to our personal information collection statement.

We're Manulife. And we’re on a mission to make decisions easier and lives better. Better is what drives us. It’s what inspires us to find new ways to support customers and colleagues in living longer and healthier lives. It’s the reason we’re dedicated to investing in digital innovation and industry-leading AI, and accelerating a sustainable and economically inclusive future.

Joining us means you’ll be empowered to learn and grow your career. We’ll recognize and support you in a flexible environment where well‑being and inclusion are more than just words. And as part of our global team, you’ll help shape the future you want to see – and discover that better can take you anywhere you want to go.

We’re proud of our accomplishments and recognition. Recent awards include: 2026 Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award Winner Manulife Named one of Forbes World’s Best Employers 2025 Financial Times World’s Best Employers Asia‑Pacific 2026 We’ve been recognized as one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers 2026 #1 Life Insurer for AI Maturity by Evident 2026

To receive our latest job opportunities directly to your inbox, create an account or sign in and navigate to the ‘Job Alerts’ section located in the top right corner of the page. From there, you can sign up to receive job alerts. Our ambition is to be the number one choice for customers. Learn more at https://www.manulife.com/.