Senior Strategy Lead, Debit Card

Vanguard; Charlotte (NC); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Vanguard seeks an experienced leader to own the debit card strategy, collaborate across Personal Investor, Advice/Wealth Management, Finance, Risk, Legal, Compliance, Technology, and Marketing, and drive market-ready solutions. You will manage external vendors, define KPIs, and lead go-to-market efforts for card programs.

You will guide cross-functional teams, align with broader cash initiatives, and ensure scalable, compliant implementations while optimizing client outcomes.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of payments strategy experience, preferably in debit card product management.
• Proven ability to lead complex, cross-functional initiatives with strategic impact.
• Strong understanding of debit card ecosystems, issuer processors, card networks, vendor management, and client experience design.
• Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and analytical skills.
• Experience with fraud prevention, operational risk, and regulatory compliance preferred.

Responsibilities

• Define and support the evolution of the strategic product roadmap of debit card capabilities, including spend enablement, client experience, and competitive positioning.
• Support cross-functional planning and execution across multiple business lines and stakeholders.
• Serve as a Vanguard stakeholder for external vendors for implementation, integration, and ongoing vendor management with a focus on network strategy.
• Support the development of the debit card product strategy and value proposition as well as marketing and go-to-market strategies.
• Support the development and launch of the debit card and ongoing optimization post-launch.
• Schedule and coordinate governance routines, reporting, and stakeholder alignment.
• Provide guidance and education to cross-functional teams involved in delivery and optimization.
• Develop and maintain all critical card-related processes and business requirements.
• Develop KPIs to measure adoption, usage, client satisfaction, and operational efficiency; report opportunities to leadership.
• Leverage data and insights to continuously improve product performance and client outcomes.
• Collaborate with Marketing, Distribution, Enablement, and Fraud teams for scalable market delivery.
• Assist with crew training, client communications, and support model development as well as cross-sell strategies.
• Identify and resolve operational dependencies, including backend processing and fraud controls.
• Align the debit card strategy with broader Cash & Savings initiatives and Segment Strategy.
• Ensure seamless integration with advice/wealth management and personal investor segments.
• Participate in special projects as assigned.

Skills

Payments strategy

Cross-functional leadership

Debit card ecosystem

Vendor management

Client experience design

Fraud prevention

Regulatory compliance (preferred)

Job description

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Ownership

• Define and support the evolution of the strategic product roadmap of debit card capabilities, including spend enablement, client experience, and competitive positioning.
• Support the the Director in cross-functional planning and execution across Personal Investor, Advice / Wealth Management, Finance, Risk, Controls, Legal, Compliance, Technology, Distribution/Marketing, and other cross functional stakeholders.
• Serve as a key Vanguard stakeholder for external vendors for implementation, integration and ongoing tactical vendor management with a focus on network strategy.
• Support the development of the debit card product strategy & value proposition as well as marketing and go-to-market strategies.

Program Management

• Support the development and launch of the debit card as well as ongoing optimization and performance management post-launch.
• Schedule and coordinate governance routines, reporting, and stakeholder alignment.
• Provide guidance and education to the cross-functional teams involved in delivery and optimisation.
• Develop, maintain, and support the creation and management of all critical card related processes and business requirements.

Data-Driven Decision Making

• Support the development and maintenance of KPIs to measure success across adoption, usage, client satisfaction, and operational efficiency; identify and report opportunities to the Director and business leads.
• Leverage data and insights to continuously improve product performance and client outcomes.

Go-to-Market Readiness

• Partner with Marketing, Distribution, Enablement, and Fraud teams to ensure scalable, protected, and successful market delivery of the product.
• Collaborate on the development of crew training, client communications, and support model development as well as cross-sell strategies across segments.
• Identify and assist as needed with resolving operational dependencies, including backend processing, and fraud controls.

Strategic Integration

• Support aligning the debit card strategy within the broader Cash & Savings initiatives including Money Movement Enablement, Product Health Scorecard, and Segment Strategy.
• Ensure seamless integration with advice / wealth management and personal investor segments, supporting use case clarity and positioning.

Participates in special projects and performs other duties as assigned

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in payments strategy, preferably debit card product management.
• Proven ability to lead complex, cross-functional initiatives with strategic impact.
• Strong understanding of debit card ecosystems, issuer processors, card networks, vendor management, and client experience design.
• Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and analytical skills.
• Experience with fraud prevention, operational risk, and regulatory compliance preferred.

Special Factors

Sponsorship

Vanguard is not offering visa sponsorship for this position.

About Vanguard

At Vanguard, we don’t just have a mission—we’re on a mission.

To work for the long-term financial wellbeing of our clients. To lead through product and services that transform our clients’ lives. To learn and develop our skills as individuals and as a team. From Malvern to Melbourne, our mission drives us forward and inspires us to be our best.

How We Work

Vanguard has implemented a hybrid working model for the majority of our crew members, designed to capture the benefits of enhanced flexibility while enabling in-person learning, collaboration, and connection. We believe our mission-driven and highly collaborative culture is a critical enabler to support long-term client outcomes and enrich the employee experience.