Retention Strategist Director

Principal International; Charlotte, Northern (NC, KY); Hybrid; USD 141,000 - 191,000; Full time

Job summary

Principal International is seeking a Retention Strategist Director to lead the retention process for large retirement clients. You will drive strategy, proposals, and final presentations while partnering with Relationship Management, Sales and RFP teams.

Strong pricing, contracting, and regulatory knowledge will be essential to succeed in this senior role. You will manage multi-project pipelines, mentor teams, and leverage market intelligence to protect and grow client relationships.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent education and work experience in retirement services.
• 10+ years of retirement sales or client care with strong technical knowledge.
• Strong pricing, contracting, and regulatory understanding.
• Proven ability to manage complex RFPs and multi-stakeholder programs.

Responsibilities

• Lead retention process and RFP coordination for large defined contribution clients.
• Develop client-specific retention strategies and proposals.
• Own retention sales efforts and influence decision makers.
• Build internal relationships and deliver market insights.
• Oversee proposal delivery and final presentations with visuals.

Skills

Strategic sales

Project management

Analytical skills

Communication skills

Relationship management

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

FINRA Series 6 License (or ability to obtain)

Tools

Salesforce

Job description

What You're Doing

The Retention Strategist Director will drive retention process leadership through strategy, proposal, presentation and successful client retention. The position will partner closely with various roles such as Relationship Management, Administration, Sales, Strategic Relations Team, and RFP team focusing primarily on the retention of large defined contribution and total retirement solution clients ($200 AUM and up.) Specific sales activities include strategy development, customer presentations, proposal development, contract negotiations, market intelligence, Salesforce reporting, and service team mentoring and coaching.

• Manage and supervise the retention process, including coordination of all aspects of RFPs and Finals presentations
• Identify client needs and develop client-specific solutions
• Own the retention sales efforts
• Develop and manage internal relationships
• Provide appropriate market and competitive information
• Supervise delivery of proposals to clients/consultants/advisors, including preparation of custom finals presentations employing visual storytelling concepts
• Provide timely, accurate and concise analysis to senior management on retention status and performance
• Develop full understanding of internal pricing, contracting, and operational requirements
• Strategically position Principal by customizing the approach with client knowledge gained

We take pride in being a purpose-led firm, motivated by our mission to make financial security accessible to all. Our mission, integrity, and customer focus have made us a trusted leader for more than 140 years!

Who You Are

• Bachelor's degree or an equivalent combination of education and professional work experience.
• Must have 10+ years of retirement sales or customer care experience with strong technical expertise in one or a combination of defined contribution, defined benefit, and executive benefits
• Must have strong understanding of industry, portfolio construction, capital markets, financial service products and regulations.
• Ability to manage multiple projects
• Adept at problem-solving
• Advanced analytical skills regarding pricing and different plan designs
• Ability to project manage highly complex projects/RFPs and work with senior executives
• Demonstrate experience in successfully building alliances and influencing key decision makers (at all levels), competitive drive and determination and results
• Strong written and oral communication skills, presentation skills, and leading sales processes
• Outstanding collaborative and team skills, contributing to the team's collective knowledge and success
• Skilled in establishing relationships with peers and executives in a variety of capacities
• Travel as required.

Licenses Needed

• FINRA Series 6 License or ability to obtain within 5 months required. Current licensing STRONGLY preferred. Must meet firm standards for registration within applicable jurisdictions.
• You'll be required to become a non-registered fingerprint person of PSI.

Salary Range Information

Salary ranges below reflect targeted base salaries. Non-sales positions have the opportunity to participate in a bonus program. Sales positions are eligible for sales incentives, and in some instances a bonus plan, whereby total compensation may far exceed base salary depending on individual performance. Actual compensation for all roles will be based upon geographic location, work experience, education, licensure requirements and/or skill level and will be finalized at the time of offer.

Salary Range (Non-Exempt expressed as hourly; Exempt expressed as yearly)

$141000 - $191000 / year

Time Off Program

Flexible Time Off (FTO) is provided to salaried (exempt) employees and provides the opportunity to take time away from the office with pay for vacation, personal or short-term illness. Employees don't accrue a bank of time off under FTO and there is no set number of days provided.

Pension Eligible

Yes

Location

This is a remote position unless you live within 30 miles of Charlotte, NC or Des Moines, IA. If near Charlotte or Des Moines, this role offers in-office, hybrid (blending at least three office days in a typical work week), and remote work arrangements (only if residing more than 30 miles from Des Moines, IA, or Charlotte, NC).

Work Authorization/Sponsorship

At this time, we're not considering applicants that need any type of immigration sponsorship (additional work authorization or permanent work authorization) now or in the future to work in the United States. This includes, but IS NOT LIMITED TO: F1-OPT, F1-CPT, H-1B, TN, L-1, J-1, etc. For additional information around work authorization needs please use the following links.

Nonimmigrant Workers and Green Card for Employment-Based Immigrants

Investment Code of Ethics

For Principal Asset Management positions, you'll need to follow an Investment Code of Ethics related to personal and business conduct as well as personal trading activities for you and members of your household. These same requirements may also apply to other positions across the organization.

Experience Principal

At Principal, we value connecting on both a personal and professional level. Together, we're imagining a more purpose-led future for financial services – and that starts with you. Our success depends on the unique experiences, backgrounds, and talents of our employees. And we support our employees the same way we support our customers: with comprehensive, competitive benefit offerings crafted to protect their physical, financial, and social well-being. Check out our careers site to learn more about our purpose, values and benefits.

Principal is an Equal Opportunity Employer

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or veteran status.

Principal uses artificial intelligence tools to assist in reviewing and evaluating job applications, fraud prevention, and candidate matching and comparisons. These AI tools support our human recruiters in the initial review process but do not make final hiring decisions without human involvement. By submitting your application, you acknowledge this use of AI in our recruitment process. Please review our Workforce (U.S.) Privacy Notice for more details on our practices and your data privacy rights.