Director, Client Onboarding & Implementation

Includedhealth; United States; Remote; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus

Equity

Remote-first culture

401(k) plan

Medical coverage

PTO/DTO

Job summary

Included Health seeks a Director of Client Onboarding & Implementation to lead a team of managers, consultants, and project managers in onboarding and launching client contracts. You will partner with Sales, Client Success, Product, Engineering, and Operations to optimize workflows, playbooks, and systems, driving scalable, high-quality outcomes.

The role requires strong leadership, evidence-based decision making, and the ability to manage complex launches while aligning with executive

Qualifications

• 8+ years of progressive experience in SaaS implementation, client onboarding, implementation consulting, program management, or project management.
• 3+ years of experience leading and developing client-facing implementation or project management professionals.
• Proven experience leading complex, multi-workstream implementations with cross-functional dependencies and executive stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to lead strategic implementation consulting and disciplined project execution.
• Experience managing risks, escalations, and delivering high-quality launches.
• Executive presence and client leadership across governance forums and senior stakeholders.
• Experience building scalable implementation methodologies, playbooks, and operating processes.
• Strong cross-functional leadership across Sales, Client Success, Product, Engineering/Systems, Operations, Clinical.

Responsibilities

• Lead a high-performing organization of implementation leaders, consultants, project managers, and client-facing professionals.
• Set expectations for delivery quality, client experience, collaboration, and accountability; provide coaching and career development.
• Build leadership capacity through succession planning and development of future leaders.
• Staffing and capacity planning across the implementation portfolio.
• Oversee end-to-end implementation delivery for standard, complex, and transformational launches.
• Establish launch readiness metrics and ensure on-time delivery and smooth post-launch transitions.
• Manage dependencies, scope, timelines, and ownership of key deliverables.
• Monitor portfolio health and intervene when risks threaten outcomes.
• Establish governance models, escalation paths, and decision-making practices for complex implementations.
• Serve as escalation point for risks and client issues with strategic implications.
• Maintain quality controls, adoption mechanisms, and repeatable ways of working.

Skills

SaaS implementation

Leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Program management

Stakeholder management

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Salesforce

Jira

Cloud Coach

Job description

We're seeking a Director, Client Onboarding & Implementation to lead the team that will work with internal and external stakeholders to onboard and launch Included Health clients. You will lead a team of managers that support implementation & operations team members to bring our client contracts to reality. You will collaborate with leaders in sales, client success, operations, product, marketing, legal and finance to evolve processes and infrastructure, including optimization of implementation workflows, playbooks and other related systems. Your data-driven insights and leadership on strategic & operational initiatives will help influence the growth trajectory of Included Health and allow us to resolve the most important strategic and operational issues facing the business. The right individual must be able to manage multiple competing priorities and adapt to change in a fast-paced and continually evolving environment.

We’re seeking a Director, Implementation to lead the people, operating model, and portfolio delivery disciplines that bring Included Health client commitments to life. This leader will manage and develop Implementation Consultants and Implementation Project Managers, oversee complex client launches, and create the governance, and cross-functional operating practices needed to deliver consistent, high-quality outcomes. The role partners closely with Sales, Client Success, Product, Engineering/Systems, Operations, Clinical, and other leaders to improve launch readiness, resolve critical issues, and scale implementation capabilities as the business evolves.

The ideal candidate combines strong team leadership with deep implementation judgment. They can move between executive-level client and internal conversations, portfolio-level risks and tradeoffs, and the operating mechanisms that help implementation teams execute effectively. They should be comfortable using implementation and client-performance metrics to identify patterns and prioritize action, without needing to be an advanced data analyst.

People Leadership & Organizational Capacity

• Lead, develop, and retain a high-performing organization of implementation leaders, consultants, project managers, and related client-facing professionals.

• Set clear expectations for delivery quality, client experience, collaboration, and accountability; provide coaching, performance management, and career development.

• Build leadership capacity through succession planning, mentoring, and development of future people leaders.

• Partner with leadership on staffing, capacity planning, workload distribution, and seasonal readiness across the implementation portfolio.

Portfolio Delivery & Launch Outcomes

• Oversee end-to-end implementation delivery across the your team’s portfolio, ensuring appropriate strategy, resourcing, governance, and execution for standard, complex, and transformational launches.

• Establish clear expectations for launch readiness, quality, on-time delivery, post-launch stability, and client transition.

• Ensure teams identify dependencies, manage scope and timelines, and maintain clear ownership of critical deliverables and decisions.

• Review portfolio health and intervene early when risks, capacity constraints, or execution issues threaten client or business outcomes.

Client Governance & Executive Escalations

• Establish effective governance models, operating rhythms, escalation paths, and decision-making practices for complex implementations.

• Serve as the escalation point for implementation risks and client issues with strategic, commercial, operational, or reputational implications.

• Build trust through transparent communication, sound judgment, clear recommendations, and consistent follow-through.

Implementation Methodology, Quality & Continuous Improvement

• Use retrospectives, implementation learnings, client feedback, and performance trends to identify systemic gaps and prioritize improvements.

• Establish quality controls and adoption mechanisms that improve consistency, reduce avoidable escalations, and increase team efficiency.

• Ensure improvements are translated into practical guidance, enablement, and repeatable ways of working for implementation teams.

Cross-Functional Operating Model

• Align Sales, Client Success, Product, Engineering/Systems, Operations, Clinical, and other partners around implementation priorities, dependencies, decisions, and client outcomes.

• Surface recurring themes and implementation constraints to inform product, process, staffing, and business decisions.

• Clarify ownership and drive resolution when work crosses organizational boundaries or existing processes are insufficient.

Product, Technical & Operational Readiness

• Maintain sufficient product, systems, integration, and operational fluency to guide implementation strategy and challenge assumptions effectively.

• Partner with Product, Engineering/Systems, Care, Clinical, and Support leaders to ensure technology feeds, integrations, claims readiness, operational processes, and member-support pathways are prepared for launch.

• Ensure client requirements are translated into feasible implementation approaches while balancing client needs, operational sustainability, and scalable delivery.

• Support the development of tools and reporting that improve visibility into readiness, risks, dependencies, and portfolio performance without taking on day-to-day project administration.

Client Transition & Post-Launch Partnership

• Partner with Client Success and operational leaders to ensure a clear transition from implementation to ongoing client ownership.

• Monitor early post-launch performance and ensure material issues have clear owners, communication plans, and durable resolutions.

• Use implementation outcomes and client feedback to strengthen retention, advocacy, and future growth opportunities.

Required Qualifications

• 8+ years of progressive experience in SaaS implementation, client onboarding, implementation consulting, program management, or project management; 10+ years preferred.

• 3+ years of experience leading and developing client-facing implementation or project management professionals, including managers where applicable.

• Proven experience leading complex, multi-workstream implementations involving significant cross-functional dependencies, technical integrations, operational readiness, and executive stakeholders.

• Demonstrated ability to lead both strategic implementation consulting and disciplined project/program execution, either directly or through a blended team of consultants and project managers.

• Proven experience managing risks and escalations, improving quality, and delivering predictable, high-quality launches.

• Demonstrated executive presence and client leadership skills, including the ability to facilitate senior-level governance forums, navigate difficult conversations, and build alignment across competing priorities.

• Track record of building scalable implementation methodologies, playbooks, standards, and operating processes that improve consistency, quality, client experience, and team efficiency.

• Strong cross-functional leadership skills and experience influencing Sales, Client Success, Product, Engineering/Systems, Operations, Clinical, and other partners toward shared client and business outcomes.

• Experience in healthcare, employee benefits, health technology, or a closely related ecosystem, with the ability to understand client, carrier, partner, and operational requirements.

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with healthcare benefits administration, claims operations, carrier ecosystems, or related healthcare data/integration environments.

• Experience leading organizational change management or operating-model changes.

• PMP, CSM, or another relevant project/program management certification.

• Experience using Salesforce, Cloud Coach, Jira, or similar systems to manage implementation portfolios, capacity, risks, and delivery performance.

• Working fluency with operational and client-performance metrics, dashboards, and trend analysis to identify risks, prioritize improvements, and support decisions; advanced data analytics experience is not required.

• Experience mentoring leaders, building succession pipelines, and creating a culture of accountability and continuous improvement.

Benefits & Perks

• Bonus
• Equity
• Remote-first culture
• 401(k) savings plan through Fidelity
• Comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage through multiple medical plan options (including disability insurance)
• Paid Time Off ("PTO") and Discretionary Time Off (“DTO