Strategic Implementations Director

Why Great Gray? At Great Gray Group, we strive to set the bar for the retirement services industry. Our goal is to deliver advanced retirement solutions that combine our core fiduciary services with robust investment options, innovative technology, and dedicated client service. We focus on making choices clearer, transitions smoother, and the client experience more delightful. Complacency isn't in our vocabulary. Every day, we look for opportunities to better serve our clients, be an excellent business partner, and earn the trust of those who rely on us. 

The Role

Great Gray is looking to add a Director, Strategic Implementations to lead the most complex, high-profile customer implementations across our business.

Great Gray delivers bespoke implementations of our technology suite to our most premier customers - building something innovative with our existing technology to meet our customer’s more unique and critical needs. These engagements span multiple functions and require a single, accountable owner to hold them together end-to-end.

The Director, Strategic Implementations owns and manages custom and complex customer implementations from scoping through delivery. Acting as the primary point of contact for the customer, they organize project plans, keep stakeholders aligned, and ensures the Company delivers to the Statement of Work (SOW) by orchestrating the internal teams required to bring each implementation to life.

The responsibilities include scoping implementation requirements and establishing detailed project plans that are actively maintained, including meeting agendas, action items and status updates.  They articulate the implementation process and project plan to internal and external stakeholders, and constructively challenge requirements and delivery approaches to ensure quality outcomes.

Location

This position will work from our Boston, MA office. Great Gray currently supports a hybrid work model with 4 days onsite, and 1 day remote. This role also requires a willingness to travel as needed to support customer commitments.

Visa sponsorship or transfer of an existing visa is not available for this position. Applicants must be authorized to work directly for any employer in the United States without visa sponsorship or transfer.

Responsibilities 

• Owns and manages the end-to-end delivery of complex and customized customer implementations of Great Gray's SaaS technology suite, serving as the primary point of contact and ensuring alignment with the timelines, requirements and goals of internal and external stakeholders. Includes:
• Scoping implementation requirements and establishing detailed, actively maintained project plans, including meeting agendas, action items and status updates.
• Serving as the primary customer-facing owner - organizing project plans, aligning stakeholders and delivering to the Statement of Work (SOW).
• Reviewing and pressure-testing customer specification documents, and constructively challenging requirements to ensure they are sound and deliverable.
• Coordinating delivery across multiple internal cross-functional teams - including Product, Technology, Marketing and Onboarding - to connect the dots and keep work moving between functions.
• Driving on-time delivery through tight timeline and risk management, anticipating issues and removing barriers before they reach the customer.
• Interrogating the soundness of internal delivery approaches and raising the quality bar where needed to protect customer commitments.
• Responsible for the identification and implementation of the proper level of internal and external reporting for implementations, including key performance metrics and key risk indicator reporting to identify implementations at risk.
• Leads implementation communications, including collaboration and coordination across internal cross-functional teams and external customers and partners to ensure identification of implementation risks, proper resolution of open issues and questions, removal of barriers, and handling of general support inquiries.
• Identifies and executes opportunities for process improvement and operational efficiency related to implementations, helping turn bespoke, one-off delivery into repeatable practice.
• Complete other related duties as assigned

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in business, finance or a relevant field
• 10+ years of experience owning complex, cross-functional, customer-facing delivery or implementations, with accountability for outcomes; experience in financial services, retirement or wealth is a plus but not required; experience in a highly regulated industry is also preferred.
• 5+ years of experience specifically managing complex and innovative SaaS technology implementations.
• Demonstrated experience building bespoke solutions for customers on top of existing SaaS technology, coordinating multiple internal functions to deliver.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, particularly an ability to negotiate, influence, tell a story, bridge different vantage points and gain consensus with stakeholders at all organizational levels
• Technical literacy sufficient to read and challenge specification documents and judge the soundness of a delivery approach - without needing to build or configure the technology directly.
• Confidence and credibility facing off with sophisticated external customers, and the judgment to push back constructively on both customers and internal teams.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic, PE-backed, high-growth environment - staying effective and keeping customer commitments on track as priorities, leadership and organizational structure shift.
• Willingness to travel as needed to support customer commitments.
• Interest in and potential for people leadership as the function grows, with an entrepreneurial mindset to bring best-practice ideas to the team.
• Exhibits our Great Gray attributes: Results-Driven, Innovative, Resilient, and Decisive.

Base Pay Range*

$170,000-$200,000

*This base pay range is subject to change and may be modified in the future.

The pay range displayed above is the base pay compensation range that Great Gray expects to pay for this position at the time of this posting.  Individual compensation within this range, or that may warrant a provision for pay beyond this range, depends on multiple factors, including, but not limited to, candidate’s prior education and relevant work experience and training as well as position location and local market demands.  Our pay-for-performance culture also includes participation in an annual incentive bonus plan for this position which is not included in the ‘Base Pay Range’ noted above.

Benefits We have a comprehensive and competitive benefits package at Great Gray. Some of the highlights are: ·         Be an integral part of a high-growth organization! ·         Competitive compensation package ·         Group medical, dental and vision insurance ·         Employer-paid life and disability insurance ·         Annual well-being stipend ·         Eligible employees may also contribute to a 401(k) plan with an advantageous employer contribution model, upholding our mission to support our employees in retirement   Company Background  Great Gray is the leading independent provider of trustee and administrative services to Collective Investment Trusts (“CITs”), with over $385 billion in CIT assets under management, across more than 1,045 funds. We proudly work with more than 80 subadvisors, including leading firms such as AllianceBernstein, American Funds, BlackRock, Franklin Templeton, MetLife, Neuberger Berman, PGIM, PIMCO and Raymond James.    CITs are more than just an investment vehicle. They represent a forward-thinking approach to retirement planning. These tax-exempt, pooled investment vehicles are offered to employer-sponsored retirement plans, like 401(k)s. CITs are comparable to mutual funds, but, because they are tailored for the institutional retirement market, they can offer distinct advantages, including efficient administration and cost-effectiveness. CITs have a history dating back over 90 years; but they have gained favor over the past decade, driven by innovations, and Great Gray has been at the forefront.   Great Gray has consistently delivered year-over-year growth at an above market rate and is investing in the continued development of its core CIT business as well as complementary administrative services and technology solutions for the retirement market.   Madison Dearborn Partners (“MDP”) purchased Great Gray from Wilmington Trust in April 2023. As a result, Great Gray is an independent company owned by funds affiliated with MDP.   Investor Background  MDP is a leading private equity investment firm based in Chicago. Since MDP's formation in 1992, the firm has raised aggregate capital of over $37 billion and has completed over 160 platform investments across nine flagship funds. MDP invests across five dedicated industry verticals, including financial services, healthcare, technology and government services.   Equal Employment Opportunity Policy Great Gray Group, LLC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender perception or identity, national origin, age, marital status, protected veteran status, disability status or other non-merit factor.   Accommodation Statement Great Gray is committed to ensuring individuals with disabilities and/or those who have special needs participate in the workforce and are afforded equal opportunity to apply and compete for jobs. If you would like to contact us regarding the accessibility of our website, need assistance completing the application process, or need to request an accommodation for any part of our application or interview process, please contact us at: TalentAcquisition@GreatGray.com