Director of Development Job Description

The Director of Development is a key member of the leadership team, responsible for managing the training and development infrastructure for advisors with less than 1 year of experience in the Oregon/Southwest Washington offices. This individual must be knowledgeable about activity, productivity, and career milestone expectations for full-time financial advisors, with the skills needed to influence behavior and achieve results across all categories. The role involves coaching advisors in their first 12 months (with ongoing support thereafter), contributing to retention efforts, and participating in the advisor selection process. The Director of Development will also play a significant role in enterprise goal creation and tracking, adding value in every interaction, and conducting trend analysis. Key duties include leading leadership meetings, engaging with mentors, planning strategically, and reporting on key performance indicators/goals.

Primary Responsibilities

Training & Development

• Oversee training and development initiatives during the candidate selection process.
• Conduct onboarding meetings, monitor licensing status, and create study plans and timelines for insurance and securities exams.
• Become well-versed in the Culture Index and related coaching technique
• Meet and coach new representatives on maintaining activity and effective sales habits with ongoing coaching as needed.
• Assist in coaching and mentoring college interns, with a focus on conversion-eligible seniors.
• Train representatives on CRM software usage and ensure accountability for accurate data entry.
• Partner with the National Training Program (NTP) to organize training schedules and communicate participant readiness, addressing any gaps or issues.
• Coordinate Expert Insight Sessions, facilitating and instructing experts on content delivery.

On-going Training

• Oversee the Extended Learning Program (ELP), including the design of unique training modules tailored to meet organizational goals.
• Attend, supervise, and facilitate training modules to ensure effective delivery and participant engagement.
• Facilitate debrief meetings with the leadership team and individual faculty members post-academy to review outcomes and identify areas for improvement.
• Organize and schedule follow-up training sessions throughout the year to reinforce learning and development.

Activity Coaching/Board of Review

• Coordinate and manage the schedules of all leadership team members to effectively support U5 development initiatives.
• Strategize, manage, and track office expectations (Blueprint for Success) for the Oregon/Southwest Washington offices, including monitoring activity, production, and commitment for new Financial Representatives (FRs).
• Prepare, schedule, and lead Board of Review meetings to assess advisor progress and growth alongside mentors and key leaders.
• Manage the Board of Review process, ensuring accountability to expectations.
• Create content for and coordinate weekly in-office development meetings, including but not limited to: Monday Morning Meeting, ELP, Road to MDRT.
• Send Monday Morning Meeting agenda in advance to leadership and conduct all related preparation, including speaker confirmation, preparation of recognition slides, and running activity report.
• Prepare end-of-week coaching summary emails to be sent to the leadership team (cc MP/CDO).
• Conduct or supervise activity coaching meetings, ensure coaches are trained, and provide development opportunities. Manage weekly Development Team Meetings to review new FRs' progress and identify strengths and areas of opportunity
• Prepare end-of-week coaching summary emails for the leadership team and run activity reports, ensuring continuous communication and feedback loops are maintained

Strategic Planning & Liaison

• Collect and track business data to ensure pacing for individual and collective goals.
• Connect with the Sales Execution Team (SET) on a weekly basis to monitor the pipeline and implement a production tracker with SET.
• Partner with the leadership team to monitor advisors progress and results; provide recommendations for coaching and mentorship opportunities.
• Serve as a liaison between Oregon district offices and the San Diego network office to coordinate local development sessions and events.
• Weekly connection and coaching with mentors to align on development strategies.
• Monitor progress toward and coach advisors to achieve Performance Pathway Incentives.
• Lead Oregon/SW Washington teams preparation and planning for district, enterprise, and national meetings; finalize and submit districts slides.

Joint Work & Mentoring

• Travel between the Portland, Vancouver, and Lake Oswego offices as needed to support mentoring and development activities.
• Maintain the joint work list and oversee its use by new advisors.
• Manage mentor pairings, ensuring mentors are trained and effectively support new representatives.
• Conduct case consultation meetings to facilitate learning and development.
• Support the MD executive leadership team with reporting tasks and communicate mentoring and joint work results to the leadership team.

Qualifications & Skills

• Bachelors Degree preferred.
• Five seven years of professional experience, preferably in the sales or financial services industry.
• Superior meeting facilitation and presentation skills.
• Experience coaching and providing feedback to peers.
• Aptitude for addressing issues in a proactive and creative manner and lead crucial conversations. using a results-focused approach.
• Effective time management to address multiple priorities at multiple levels.
• Strong analytical skills, detail oriented, and ability to maintain a high degree of confidentiality.
• Superior written and oral communication skills.
• Committed to professional development (e.g., licensing, registration, designations).

Compensation

• Base Salary: $60,000 - $65,000 per year with additional earnings potential based on performance

The Perks

• Medical Coverage
• Dental Coverage
• Vision Coverage
• Life & Disability Insurance
• 401(k)
• Paid Time Off

Equal Opportunity Employer

Northwestern Mutual believes that every individual makes a significant contribution to our success and recognizes the diversity and worth of all individuals and groups. It is the policy of Northwestern Mutual that there will be no discrimination or harassment of individuals or groups based on race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, marital status, age, veteran status, genetic information or disability in any activities, or employment.

If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, please direct your inquiries to gabriela.garnica@nm.com.