Life Product Manager

Life Product Manager

Brand, Product, and Affiliated Distribution

Full-Time

Springfield, MA or Boston, MA

The Opportunity

As the Life Product Manager you will focus on the design and definition of new Life Insurance solutions within our Product Manufacturing Process. It requires thought leadership and critical thinking abilities to lead the design efforts of a new product initiative, and to ensure the design meets strategic goals and objectives outlined in the business case. This is a hands-on role where you will need to independently drive the execution of developing a product concept through idea, definition, and implementation stages of a project as the lead subject matter expert on a life insurance product’s design.

In addition, this role is responsible for ensuring that any business needs are appropriately accounted for and implemented as part of a product launch. You will partner with the project management, operations, distribution, finance, legal, and enterprise technology teams to identify product impacts on processes, experiences, and ecosystems and ensure the holistic business experience is ready for new life insurance solutions. The role requires excellent communication abilities to convey complex product and business needs.

The Team

The Life Product Development team is responsible for the development and management of our life insurance portfolio, ensuring the continued growth of our core whole life franchise while diversifying our offerings to provide solutions to more customers. We collaborate with key partners across the organization to ensure our product suite is competitive and aligned to meet the needs of our customers, while delivering value to MassMutual.

The Impact

• Drives product feature definition and market research during feasibility assessment for new product concepts.
• Assists in prototyping activities around the evaluation of new product features.
• Studies competitive trends to provide perspective of our life product portfolio versus the industry and analyzes internal data on the current portfolio to identify trends.
• Manages strategic positioning of products by working with Product Leadership so that clear strategic direction is provided throughout the product manufacturing process.
• Evaluates project deliverables and provides Product Leadership with recommendations so that informed decisions on scope and capability tradeoffs can be made.
• Develops product specifications and calculations for new features and is the foremost expert on a product’s definition in the insurance contract, prospectus, illustrations, marketing, and other product materials.
• Technical expert for the development and/or review of training and marketing materials, as well as responses to product-related questions from distribution.
• Leads engagement with cross functional groups to understand their capabilities and identify their unique needs, impacts, and requirements resulting from a product initiative, including operational processes, applications, forms, and correspondence.
• Creates lean documentation that includes mockups and design examples as needed for teams to increase their understanding of both the product needs and the desired experience.
• Translates the needs of each operational capability to the technical requirements and software development teams so identified areas of impact can be addressed.
• Routinely connects with project management and development teams to ensure any product or business needs are clearly understood throughout the project.
• Continually improves the product manufacturing process, breaking through past precedence, and seeking opportunities to make processes more efficient.
• Leads other strategic projects as needed.

The Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree
• 8+ years of related experience in the financial services industry
• 4+ years of experience in life insurance products

The Ideal Qualifications

• Prior Retail Life Insurance experience
• Knowledgeable in relevant products and services, investments, financials, laws and regulations, industry standards and the competitive environment
• Ability to gather business needs, understand technical constraints, and propose alternative solutions
• Demonstrates initiative and sense of urgency; takes ownership and is detailed and results-orientated
• Ability to effectively manage and deliver on multiple concurrent deliverables
• Disciplined approach to strategic initiatives, business projects and day-to-day activities
• Experience leading business and strategic initiatives in a highly matrixed, collaborative organization to achieve business goals
• Ability to analyze and comprehend complex information, as well as convey complex materials to other business areas and senior executives
• Comfortable dealing with both complexity and ambiguity, with ability to explore multiple solutions
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills (written, verbal, presentation), with an ability to translate complex product concepts to ensure actionable outcomes

What to Expect as Part of MassMutual and the Team

• Regular meetings with the Life Product Development team
• Focused one-on-one meetings with your manager
• Access to mentorship opportunities
• Networking opportunities including access to Asian, Hispanic/Latinx, African American, women, LGBTQ, veteran and disability-focused Business Resource Groups
• Access to learning content on Degreed and other informational platforms
• Your ethics and integrity will be valued by a company with a strong and stable ethical business with industry leading pay and benefits

#LI-BO1

Salary Range:

At MassMutual, we focus on ensuring fair equitable pay, by providing competitive salaries, along with incentive and bonus opportunities for all employees. Your total compensation package includes either a bonus target or in a sales-focused role a Variable Incentive Compensation component.

Why Join Us.

We’ve been around since 1851. During our history, we’ve learned a few things about making sure our customers are our top priority. In order to meet and exceed their expectations, we must have the best people providing the best thinking, products and services. To accomplish this, we celebrate an inclusive, vibrant and diverse culture that encourages growth, openness and opportunities for everyone. A career with MassMutual means you will be part of a strong, stable and ethical business with industry leading pay and benefits. And your voice will always be heard.

We help people secure their future and protect the ones they love. As a company owned by our policyowners, we are defined by mutuality and our vision to put customers first. It’s more than our company structure – it’s our way of life. We are a company of people protecting people. Our company exists because people are willing to share risk and resources, and rely on each other when it counts. At MassMutual, we Live Mutual.

MassMutual is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer Minority/Female/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity/Individual with Disability/Protected Veteran. We welcome all persons to apply. Note: Veterans are welcome to apply, regardless of their discharge status.

If you need an accommodation to complete the application process, please contact us and share the specifics of the assistance you need.

At MassMutual, we focus on ensuring fair, equitable pay by providing competitive salaries, along with incentive and bonus opportunities for all employees.  Your total compensation package includes either a bonus target or in a sales-focused role a Variable Incentive Compensation component.  For more information about our extensive benefits offerings please check out our Total Rewards at a Glance.