Director, Asia Strategy
As a senior member of the Asia Strategy and Transformation team, the Director, Asia Strategy plays a dual role: shaping and executing the strategic direction of Manulife’s Asia Segment, while also supporting the CEO Office responsibilities. This role combines strategic leadership with operational excellence, ensuring alignment, execution, and communication of key priorities across the region and with the group office.
You will lead high-impact initiatives, provide thought leadership, and act as a strategic partner to senior executives, enabling decision-making, and driving performance across the Asia Segment.
Position Responsibilities:
1. Management reporting and CEO Office support
Manage executive priorities, coordinate leadership team agendas, and ensure follow-through on key decisions.
Lead the preparation and coordination of materials for Asia Segment Executive Leadership Team, Board meetings, executive offsites, and global leadership forums.
Support the cascade of executive goals, KPI tracking, and performance reviews across the Asia Segment.
Act as a liaison between the Asia CEO Office and business units, ensuring alignment and timely execution of strategic initiatives.
Ensure consistent and compelling communication of strategic priorities and progress across the organization
2. Market Intelligence & Competitive Insights
Guide the development of market and competitor intelligence frameworks to inform strategic decision-making.
Translate external trends into actionable insights and strategic recommendations for the Asia Segment.
Collaborate with finance, and other regional functions and local business units for rating agency meetings, investor presentations, and quarterly results announcements.
3. Strategy development and execution
Lead the development and refinement of the Asia Segment’s long-term strategic roadmap in alignment with global and regional priorities.
Support the annual strategic planning process, manage specific plan deliverables and ensure alignment across business units and functions on strategic objective.
Establish governance frameworks to monitor progress, manage risks, and ensure accountability across initiatives.
Collaborate with Finance, Actuarial, and Corporate Development to assess the financial impact and feasibility of strategic initiatives.
Partner effectively with functional teams and local strategy teams by demonstrating collaboration, adaptability, and influence.
4. Team Leadership & Development
Manage and mentor a high-performing team of strategy professionals.
Foster a culture of collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement within the strategy and transformation function, and the broader organization.
Required Qualifications:
10+ years of experience in strategy, corporate development, or management consulting, preferably within financial services or insurance.
Experience supporting C-suite executives or working in a CEO Office.
Proven track record of leading strategic planning and transformation initiatives at a regional or enterprise level.
Strong financial acumen and experience with financial modeling, business case development, and performance tracking.
Exceptional communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence at the executive level.
Advanced proficiency in PowerPoint and Excel; ability to synthesize complex data into clear, actionable insights.
Bachelor’s degree required; MBA or equivalent advanced degree preferred.
Fluency in English, and an additional Asian language preferred.
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.
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 recruitment@manulife.com.
Working Arrangement
Hybrid