Business Optimization Manager

Gallagher; Rolling Meadows (IL); Hybrid; Confidential; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health plans (medical/dental/vision)

401(k) and Roth options

Paid parental leave

Mental health support (Talkspace)

Training programs

Job summary

Gallagher Benefit Services is seeking a Business Optimization Manager to design and execute continuous improvement across Client Service and back-office operations. You will work with senior leaders and staff to address critical issues, develop business cases and performance metrics, and drive end-to-end projects in a hybrid role based in Rolling Meadows, IL.

You will lead cross-functional teams, craft actionable recommendations, and partner with IT, HR, and Finance to implement solutions while

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree preferred.
• 4+ years of management consulting or operations strategy experience.
• Experience in Employee Benefits brokerage or HR consulting is a plus.
• Strong strategic thinking, problem solving and analytical framing.

Responsibilities

• Prioritize operational improvement ideas with senior leadership.
• Lead a team of consultants in project execution and coaching.
• Develop analyses, business cases, and performance metrics for initiatives.
• Document requirements and end-to-end processes and monitor outcomes.

Skills

Consulting experience

Data analysis

Project management

Stakeholder communication

Leadership coaching

Education

Bachelor's degree

MBA preferred

Tools

PowerPoint

Excel

Word

Job description

Introduction

At Gallagher Benefit Services, you’re a trusted partner to organizations navigating some of their most important people decisions. We help clients build better workplaces, where people feel supported, empowered, and inspired to thrive. Whether it’s shaping benefit strategies, designing wellbeing programs, or advising on workforce challenges, the work you do here creates meaningful change for businesses and the people who power them. We’re a community of bold explorers, trusted experts, and compassionate partners; working side by side to solve problems, and shape the future of work. Here, curiosity is encouraged, collaboration is second nature, and your ideas have room to grow. If you’re looking for a place where your contribution matters and where you can help build a better world of work; think of Gallagher.

Overview

We are seeking a Business Optimization Manager to join our team. In this role, you will function as a part of the GBS US team that designs and executes continuous improvement projects along with rolling out new operating models to Client Service and back‑office operations. You will work with senior team members and operational staff to address the company’s most critical business process issues. Assignments may involve cross‑functional and cross‑business analysis support, problem solving, solution design, execution and support. Specific tasks will include conducting data analysis, developing business cases, documenting requirements, building performance scorecards, supporting projects through definition, pilot and implementation phases, among others. Reporting to the Vice President of Operations Strategy, you will develop strong relationships with divisional leadership in Gallagher Benefit Services, along with functional leadership, including but not limited to IT, HR, and Finance.

This is a hybrid role with flexible work encouraged, based out of Gallagher’s global headquarters in Rolling Meadows, IL ideally 2‑3 days per week.

How You’ll Make An Impact

• Work with senior leadership to prioritize operational improvement ideas.
• Lead a team of consultants in project execution and provide problem solving guidance and coaching support.
• Collaborate with various divisional and functional groups to aid in strategy, and own projects end‑to‑end, developing insightful analyses and communicating in a compelling manner.
• Generate process improvement hypotheses and perform data analysis for assigned tasks for one or more projects.
• Develop business cases, requirements, and performance metrics.
• Analyze and reengineer business processes with input from management and staff.
• Determine comprehensive business requirements.
• Document ‘as‑is’ processes and information flows.
• Develop ‘to‑be’ process flows and process change diagrams to identify needed organizational and workflow changes.
• Write detailed action plans, including timeframe, work to be performed, sequence of events, etc. to be performed by team members, consultants and contractors.
• Identify performance metrics to monitor cost, quality, timeliness, and customer satisfaction.
• Address other critical business issues such as organizational effectiveness, management reporting and overall performance improvement.
• Exercise problem solving skills, craft and present actionable recommendations, and work with management and staff to implement solutions.
• Develop training on assigned projects.
• Update project management documents.
• Produce performance reports.
• Identify actionable recommendations.
• Participate in the implementation of performance improvement initiatives.

About You

• Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred.
• 4+ years of management consulting or operations strategy experience.
• Experience in the Employee Benefits brokerage or HR consulting industry preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to think strategically, identify and solve difficult business problems.
• Strategic mindset with an ability to think broadly, frame key questions, develop analytical frameworks and then create a work plan to deliver an answer and clearly synthesize the results.
• Well‑developed business judgment. Ability to understand financial and non‑financial aspects of a problem and use sound business judgment to recommend actions.
• Definition and development of strategic frameworks to articulate Gallagher’s strategies to various stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently with limited guidance.
• Demonstrated ability to interact with senior leadership.
• Demonstrated ability to coach and mentor team members in achieving team goals.
• Strong communication skills, both verbal and written.
• Strong quantitative and qualitative analysis skills.
• Ability to gather, synthesize and analyze data and draw logical conclusions.
• Advanced proficiency in PowerPoint, Excel and Word.
• Commitment to professional and personal growth.

Compensation And Benefits

We offer a competitive and comprehensive compensation package. The base salary range represents the anticipated low end and high end of the range for this position. The actual compensation will be influenced by a wide range of factors including, but not limited to, previous experience, education, pay market/geography, complexity or scope, specialized skill set, lines of business/practice area, supply/demand, and scheduled hours.

Below are the minimum core benefits you’ll get, depending on your job level these benefits may improve:

• Medical/dental/vision plans, which start from day one!
• Life and accident insurance.
• 401(K) and Roth options.
• Tax‑advantaged accounts (HSA, FSA).
• Educational expense reimbursement.
• Paid parental leave.

Other benefits include:

• Digital mental health services (Talkspace).
• Flexible work hours (availability varies by office and job function).
• Training programs.
• Gallagher Thrive program – elevating your health through challenges, workshops and digital fitness programs for your overall wellbeing.
• Charitable matching gift program.
• And more.

We Value Inclusion and Diversity

Inclusion and diversity (I&D) is a core part of our business, and it’s embedded into the fabric of our organization. For more than 95 years, Gallagher has led with a commitment to sustainability and to support the communities where we live and work. Gallagher embraces our employees’ diverse identities, experiences and talents, allowing us to better serve our clients and communities. We see inclusion as a conscious commitment and diversity as a vital strength. By embracing diversity in all its forms, we live out The Gallagher Way to its fullest.

Gallagher believes that all persons are entitled to equal employment opportunity and prohibits any form of discrimination by its managers, employees, vendors or customers based on race, color, religion, creed, gender (including pregnancy status), sexual orientation, gender identity (which includes transgender and other gender non‑conforming individuals), gender expression, hair expression, marital status, parental status, age, national origin, ancestry, disability, medical condition, genetic information, veteran or military status, citizenship status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws.

Equal employment opportunity will be extended in all aspects of the employer‑employee relationship, including, but not limited to, recruitment, hiring, training, promotion, transfer, demotion, compensation, benefits, layoff, and termination. In addition, Gallagher will make reasonable accommodations to known physical or mental limitations of an otherwise qualified person with a disability, unless the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of our business.