Vice President, Global People & Communications Operations

At Manulife, the foundation of our global strategy is putting customers at the center of everything we do, and as a Top Employer we are proud to have engaged, talented employees who are resourced and supported to deliver to the customer.

The Vice President, Global People & Communications Operation is a strategic partner and collaborative member of the broader People Comms team. With a mandate to develop and execute against our bold ambitions while leveraging economies of scale and driving end to end process and service improvements. The People Comms Operations team delivers comprehensive Tier 0, Tier 1, and Tier 2 support across our contact center, administrative services, Payroll, and Background Adjudication, forming the core of our end‑to‑end service delivery model.

This role requires a global mindset, broad leadership experience, and deep knowledge of People Comms services. The ideal candidate demonstrates the ability to balance strategic thinking with effective tactical planning and execution. They are a solution‑focused, people‑centered leader with strong stakeholder management capabilities and a proven track record of running and optimizing operational service functions.

Key Accountabilities:

Leading a team of approximately 175 employees across the globe, the incumbent will:

• Continue our ongoing transformation to deliver consumer grade experiences to our colleagues.

• Establish an AI-enabled AskHR ecosystem that leverages AI and Agentic AI to deliver pro-active, personalized, predictive colleague support and value add, leveraging best in class solutions.

• Partner with Technology teams to implement a comprehensive People Comms technology client roadmap with AI driven colleague experiences at the forefront.

• Optimize the function by driving increased utilization of global systems using an end-to-end employee viewpoint, while reducing operational costs over time and minimizing risk and balancing between global processes and standardization and local requirements.

• Lead a multi-disciplinary team in North America, EMEA and Asia including AskHR Contact Centers, Knowledge Management, Payroll, Workforce Data Administration, Recruitment, Learning, Pension and Benefit Operations.

• Continue to optimize payroll solutions to improve global governance, standards and controls; implement new technology solutions; streamline end to end processes; and proactively manage risks in this important function.

• Attract, Coach, Develop and Engage a large, globally dispersed team while evolving our regional operations hub strategy, which includes onshore and offshore teams

• Anticipate operational compliance risks and remove technical, procedural and process-related obstacles to minimize risks.

• Establish and monitor service level agreements and performance metrics for assigned services and motivate team members to achieve and exceed service standards.

• Use feedback loops (employee feedback and Contact Centre call indicators) and measure against benchmarks to inform areas of improvement and partner with appropriate stakeholders to drive continuous improvement and manage change.

Shared Accountabilities:

• Actively collaborate with and provide feedback to other areas of Shared Services, Centers of Expertise (COEs) and People Partners to continually improve managed services.

• Champion our self-service philosophy by monitoring and gathering feedback on utilization and effectiveness, applying user feedback and driving up global systems adoption.

• Work in partnership with policy owners in COEs and Shared Services to achieve global policy harmonization which is aligned with the global People Comms strategy.

• Delivery of People Comms products/services in coordination with COEs/SS.

• Governance and risk monitoring of the People Comms Operating Model; proactively identify and resolve issues with the model; minimize disruption of service and support to the business.

Qualifications:

• Significant leadership experience, ideally in an Operations environment with a globally diverse client base.

• Knowledge of Human Resources and payroll is a significant asset, as is experience working in or with Asia.

• Demonstrated experience leading change initiatives, transformation, and process and operations optimization on a global scale.

• Demonstrated ability to develop and implement a forward-looking plan and road map with pragmatic solutions and measurable milestones.

• Global mind set with cultural sensitivity and understanding of how to drive change and process improvements across multiple geographies and cultures.

• Innovative - uses design thinking principles to re-imagine the employee experience from a user perspective.

• Client centricity focus - use metrics, benchmarks and feedback mechanisms to gather client feedback and inform areas for continued improvement and efficiency opportunities.

• Experience working in a matrix environment - achieving buy-in through relationship building and influence is a critical competency.

• Leadership courage and the demonstrated ability to influence colleagues and key stakeholders.

• Strong coaching and feedback capabilities that enhance leadership effectiveness and elevate overall team performance.

• Demonstrated superior communications skills (written, oral, presentation), including the ability to motivate others and passionately communicate a vision.

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 hr@manulife.com.

Referenced Salary Location

Salary range is expected to be between

Employees also have the opportunity to participate in incentive programs and earn incentive compensation tied to business and individual performance. The actual salary will vary depending on local market conditions, geography and relevant job-related factors such as knowledge, skills, qualifications, experience, and education/training. If you are applying for this role outside of the primary location, please contact hr@manulife.com for the salary range for your location.

Manulife offers eligible employees a wide array of customizable benefits, including health, dental, mental health, vision, short- and long-term disability, life and AD&D insurance coverage, adoption/surrogacy and wellness benefits, and employee/family assistance plans. We also offer eligible employees various retirement savings plans (including pension and a global share ownership plan with employer matching contributions) and financial education and counseling resources. Our generous paid time off program in Canada includes holidays, vacation, personal, and sick days, and we offer the full range of statutory leaves of absence. If you are applying for this role in the U.S., please contact hr@manulife.com for more information about U.S.-specific paid time off provisions.