Chief of Staff - Kemper Life (AVP, Strategy & Executive Operations)

Kemper - San Antonio, TX

Full-time - Senior

Hybrid - San Antonio, TX

Insurance Carriers and Related Activities

About the position

As the AVP, Strategy and Executive Operations/Chief of Staff at Kemper Life, you will play a pivotal role in shaping and executing the organization's strategic initiatives. Reporting directly to the EVP and President of Kemper Life, you will collaborate with senior leadership and enterprise stakeholders to enhance operational efficiency and align the division's goals with corporate objectives. This position requires a high degree of creativity, initiative, and business acumen, as you will be a trusted partner to the President, facilitating communication and driving strategic planning efforts.

Responsibilities

• Drive the development and execution of strategic initiatives.
• Lead the recurring cadence for Kemper Life's strategy, collaborating with senior leadership to update, document, and communicate the strategy in alignment with corporate goals and objectives.
• Streamline activities across the executive team, ensuring efficient and effective executive operations, including meeting planning and program management.
• Facilitate clear and effective communication between the executive team and other stakeholders, ensuring alignment with division goals and strategic plans.
• Develop presentations and related documentation for board, C-level, and broader audiences.
• Establish long-term roadmaps and sequencing of individual projects, coordinating with Finance partners to develop business cases and related analyses.
• Provide governance oversight of planned and in-flight initiatives, identifying and tracking key performance indicators for strategic initiatives.
• Lead the division's marketing department, ensuring alignment with strategic initiatives and effective communication of the brand's value proposition.
• Mentor team members, fostering a culture of growth, efficiency, and high performance.

Requirements

• 7+ years relevant experience working with executive teams in a similar capacity.
• 8+ years of progressive leadership experience in program management, strategy, or executive operations management, ideally within the Life insurance or financial services sectors.
• Proven track record of leading multidisciplinary and matrix teams in a program management capacity, including management of cross-functional teams and complex projects.
• Experience with executive management and board-level presentations and decision-making processes.
• Strong analytical and decision-making capabilities with a thorough understanding of market dynamics and strong financial acumen.
• Ability to effectively manage and encourage professional development of direct reports.
• Superior communication skills, adept at building relationships and influencing at all organizational levels.
• Advanced practical experience with Microsoft Office applications (e.g., Word, PowerPoint, and Excel).

Nice-to-haves

• Experience in a consumer-focused business such as insurance, banking, or retail that has a distributed sales force.