Address
Form of work Mercer has a challenging and exciting opportunity for a suitably experienced and qualified candidate to bring their expertise, insight, and experience to a key senior leadership role within the organization. The role will be based in Sydney or Melbourne.
Chief Operating Officer, Investments, Pacific
What can you expect?
Mercer is a leading global consulting firm advising organizations on the health, wealth and career needs of their workforce. The firm is focused on redefining the world of work, reshaping retirement and investment outcomes and unlocking real health and well-being by helping their clients design and manage people strategies, employee health, retirement and benefits, and optimize human capital within the organization.
Mercer’s Pacific Investments business provides a range of investment, retirement and financial wellness services to super funds, endowments, foundations, insurers and wealth management businesses in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. The dominant service line in the Pacific region is the Investment Solutions (or “OCIO”) business, represented as a significant value of FUM through ~more than 100 multi-manager co-mingled unit trust vehicles across a very broad range of asset classes including alternatives, both single sector as well as diversified multi-asset strategies.
To accommodate the ongoing growth and evolution of this business, the organization is currently seeking potential candidates to join the organization as Chief Operating Officer (COO) Investments for the Pacific region. Reporting to both the Pacific Investments Leader and the Global Investments Chief Operating Officer (based in the UK), this COO role will have Executive Leadership responsibility for investment operations (middle & back office), data, technology and digital delivery, product management, operational risk, “line 1” compliance and client service and reporting for the Investments Solutions business line in Australia and New Zealand. As a member of the Pacific Investment Leadership Team, the COO is intended to support the Pacific Investments Business Leader and the Chief Investment Officer, Pacific in efficiently, reliably and safely implementing the organization’s best investment ideas, delivering an excellent client experience and operating a commercially sustainable organizational model. In addition to this, the COO is also responsible for ensuring compliance with external regulatory stakeholders and internal standards of operational risk management and control in line with management expectations. A primary responsibility of the role is to mitigate risk associated with Mercer operating an investment management business in the Pacific region.
We will count on you to:
Lead and manage Investment Operations, Data & Technology, Product, Governance & Risk teams to ensure exceptional client quality, delivery, and efficiency.
Drive and monitor process standardization, risk mitigation and offshoring efforts and related service level and cost efficiency KPIs.
Lead transformation and change initiatives.
Drive initiatives to ensure ongoing and progressive middle and back office people development and coaching.
Lead the execution activities on acquisition sourcing, due diligence and integration.
Implement the appropriate structure, people, process, and systems to provide excellent client facing sales support as a subject matter expert on operations.
Contribute, develop, and provide input into wider business management.
Be a strong contributor to local and global leadership meetings and forums as appropriate.
As a key ambassador of the Investment business, represent Mercer strongly across the organization and in the market place
What you need to have:
Highly developed leadership capabilities with a minimum of 15 years of Investment Operations Management experience (Middle and Back Office)
Strong analytical and technical abilities and the ability to deliver fast, but carefully thought-out results.
Strong and dynamic leadership capability to oversee work processes from beginning to end.
Excellent people and leadership skills, with an ability to partner and build relationships with a dynamic leadership team and varied stakeholders at all levels locally and globally
Client centric and commercially focused mindset
Demonstrated experience in financial and strategic planning and analysis with previous experience overseeing human resources and data and information technology.
Flexible with a demonstrated ability to multitask and the capacity to work with an ambiguous fast-moving environment, while also driving toward clarity and solutions.
Demonstrated resourcefulness in setting priorities and guiding investment in people and systems.
Highly developed communication and presentation skills with ability to support client and sales related activity.
Appropriate undergraduate degree is required with MBA qualifications preferred.
What makes you stand out?
Strategic Leadership. Defines, evaluates and communicates long and medium-term objectives for defined clients. Focuses activities on the achievement of a vision or desired long term outcome.
Results Focused. Expertise in delivering quality and consistently strong results
Communication and Influence. Conveys written and verbal messages effectively to various audiences, adapting approach as appropriate. Displays sound listening and comprehensive skills.
Innovation. Develops new and alternative approaches to existing practices, creates new or improved processes, solutions, products and services. Maintains an openness to experiment with alternative approaches.
Collaboration. Acts as a connector across the organization, bring colleagues together to bring the best of the enterprise to client solutions.
Decision Making. Identifies and understands issues, problems and opportunities; compares data from different sources to draw conclusions; uses effective approaches for choosing a course of action or developing appropriate solutions; takes action that is consistent with available facts, constraints and probably consequences.
Marsh and McLennan is committed to embracing a diverse, inclusive and flexible work environment. We aim to attract and retain the best people regardless of their sex/gender, marital or parental status, ethnic origin, nationality, age, background, disability, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
About Us
Mercer
Mercer believes in building brighter futures by redefining the world of work, reshaping retirement and investment outcomes, and unlocking real health and well-being. Mercer’s more than 25,000 employees are based in 44 countries and the firm operates in over 130 countries. Mercer is a business of Marsh & McLennan (NYSE: MMC), the world’s leading professional services firm in the areas of risk, strategy and people, with 76,000 colleagues and annual revenue of $17 billion. Through its market-leading businesses including Marsh, Guy Carpenter and Oliver Wyman, Marsh & McLennan helps clients navigate an increasingly dynamic and complex environment. For more information, visit https://www.me.mercer.com/. Follow Mercer on Twitter @Mercer.
