AVP, Marketing, Product & Digital Strategy

Why FirstOntario?

• Competitive compensation packages
• Top-tier health and wellness benefits, along with a Health Spend Account
• Up to $1000 per year towards professional development
• Pension Plan
• Company-wide Employee Volunteer program (Blue Wave Program)
• Employee and Family Assistance Program
• Exclusive banking benefits

Job Overview

This is the team leader (head of marketing) responsible for the overall strategy and performance of FirstOntario's marketing. AVP ensures that digital transformation goals (e.g. expanding online member services) are met. They will align marketing initiatives with business objectives, driving both new member growth and existing member satisfaction.

This role will lead marketing initiatives to advance the brand and reputation of FirstOntario and its sub-brands, as a financial services leader in communities and Credit Union system. This position will support the Senior Vice President, Marketing, CommunicationsCommunity Partnerships in providing strategic direction, oversight and resource management to define and enhance FirstOntario's brand identity and position.

Role

• Lead in the development and implementation of marketing strategies in alignment with FirstOntario's Strategic Plan and translate this strategy into marketing activation, initiatives, and tactics that will enhance the brand image, drive engagement to increase brand awareness, and utilize a broad range of traditional and non-traditional channels.
• Support in the development and lead of the comprehensive marketing strategy (annual marketing plan) in line with FirstOntario's strategic goals, emphasizing digital channel growth and innovation.
• Lead the development and implementation of new products a service with stakeholders
• Champion digital transformation within marketing by adopting new tools (e.g. marketing automation, data analytics) and ensuring seamless, user-friendly digital member experience.
• Allocate and manage the marketing budget, balancing resources between member acquisition efforts (campaigns, ads) and member engagement initiatives (loyalty programs, communications) for maximum ROI.
• Set KPIs and track performance of marketing campaigns (e.g. membership growth, digital engagement metrics, event impact), adjusting strategy based on data-driven insights
• Collaborate with the communications and sales teams to develop campaigns that will achieve desired results, while managing costs. Following each campaign, this role will complete an analysis on the effectiveness of the campaign with a focus on ROI.
• Ensure timely and effective execution of marketing objectives and programs that provide strategic support to the organization's objectives and examine the effectiveness of these programs through the analysis of results.
• Provide strategic oversight to ensure high quality marketing and brand management creation including but not limited to brand building, print publications, web, and social media platforms.
• Present to all levels of the organization
• Partner with senior leaders, the communications team and business units to develop brand positioning in support of marketing strategies. Examine product, marketing and branding opportunities, and define and execute appropriate strategies to address them.
• Oversee all brand and marketing agency relationships to develop and execute specific and measureable creative strategies in support of business plans.
• Serve as a key partner to other business units on marketing and product initiatives working closely with the communications team to support products/services, brand positioning, and specific program tactics.
• Prepare and deliver concise, compelling verbal presentations to senior decision-makers, and respond quickly and thoughtfully to being challenged in meeting situations.
• Recommend and lead thorough marketing research and analytic initiatives to support innovative brand and business building objectives.
• Analyze, evaluate, plan, and execute both existing and new potential product and marketing activities.
• Identify, interpret, and capitalize on marketing trends in the financial services industry.
• Diligently enforce brand standards/consistent messaging across FirstOntario, ensuring consistency and adherence to the standards and the protection of FirstOntario's reputation and intellectual property.
• Prepare business cases to support marketing and product initiatives and assist in managing the budget for the department.
• Manage resources to meet the business operations budget, business plan objectives, and service level agreement monitoring variances and taking action to ensure targets are met.
• Impart your expert knowledge on the marketing team to help them keep relevant to the evolving business environment.
• Mentor, coach, and inspire your team to contribute to the continuous growth of the Marketing and Product Strategy team to ensure overall success of the department.
• Consider healthsafety as a primary concern to ensure the overall well-being of your team and members
• Perform other duties as required

Required Skills

• Have a university degree in business, marketing, or a related field with at least ten (10) years of field experience

• Keen understanding of products and services and ability to demonstrate strong brand, marketing and financial product knowledge
• Experience developing marketing strategies and campaigns that deliver strong business results.
• Background in Environics considered an asset.

• Extensive experience in developing and leading successful marketing and product strategies that achieve specific, measurable results
• Lead a dynamic team of professionals and provide oversight to ensure department objectives are met
• Strong analytical skills that translate data into actionable insights
• Be an expert in marketing, banking market trends, and best practices and incorporate into department strategy
• Superior interpersonal skills and ability to engage at all levels of the organization
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills and ability to communicate with a variety of audiences
• Demonstrate your proven experience working with business teams and developing programs to drive brand awareness and ultimately sales
• Ability to manage multiple complex priorities within demanding timelines in a changing environment

• Be quick to respond to requests for service from all of your clients
• Demonstrate a high level of integrity and be trustworthy
• Use problem solving in difficult and challenging situations and deal with uncertainty
• Be aware of and mitigate enterprise risk factors and ensure compliance with applicable regulations, legislation and FirstOntario policies and procedures
• Be willing to work flexible hours including evenings and weekends as the job demands and travel as required

Interested in this role, but don't meet every requirement? We encourage you to apply! We know from experience that a candidate doesn't need 100% of the qualifications listed to bring incredible value to our team. We're actively seeking diverse backgrounds and perspectives to help make FirstOntario better. At FirstOntario, inclusion, diversity, and equity aren't just "nice to have" - they're essential to our success.

Our inclusive work environment welcomes diversity and supports accessibility. If you require accommodation at any time during the recruitment process, please let us know.