Head of Direct Retail Strategy & Performance

Overview

Lead the strategy, transformation, and performance agenda for Direct Retail at AXA Ireland. You will shape the future direction of Direct Retail, lead strategy development and execution, drive large-scale transformation initiatives, and enhance business performance to support sustainable growth, operational excellence, and outstanding customer outcomes.

Reporting to the Director of Direct Retail, you will work with senior leaders across AXA Ireland and the AXA Group to modernise customer journeys, accelerate innovation, and enable the Direct Retail function to deliver its growth ambitions. This role can be based in Dublin, Derry, or Belfast with hybrid working.

What You'll Be Doing

You will lead the strategy, transformation, performance, and governance agenda for Direct Retail to deliver sustainable growth, operational excellence, and exceptional customer outcomes.

Key Areas

• Strategic Leadership & Planning - Develop, refine, and communicate the Direct Retail strategy; ensure alignment with objectives, customer needs, and market opportunities.

• Translate strategic priorities into clearly defined projects and initiatives with delivery milestones and performance measures.

• Monitor market trends, customer behaviour, competitor activity, and technology developments to identify opportunities for growth and innovation.

• Provide strategic recommendations and insights to senior leaders to support decision-making and long-term planning.

• People Leadership - Lead, motivate, and develop the Strategy & Performance teams (including First Line Risk and Product Owners across ROI and NI).

• Foster accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement; support talent development through coaching, mentoring, succession planning, and capability-building initiatives.

• Promote cross-functional collaboration to deliver strategic priorities and operational excellence.

• Customer & Project Delivery - Oversee Product Owners in defining and managing product roadmaps aligned to strategy, customer needs, and risk management standards.

• Lead transformation and change initiatives from concept to implementation, delivering within timelines, budgets, and benefit expectations.

• Prioritise projects that drive modernisation, operational efficiency, customer satisfaction, and growth.

• Ensure customer needs remain central to decision-making and that initiatives improve journeys and experiences.

• Operational Performance & Governance - Drive continuous improvement across processes, systems, and tools to optimise performance and value.

• Ensure Direct Retail remains focused on strategic objectives and delivers measurable outcomes.

• Collaborate with senior leaders in HR, IT, Compliance, and other areas to embed strategic initiatives.

• Act as a trusted advisor, providing performance reporting, insights, and recommendations.

• Lead transversal projects of strategic importance, working with AXA Group and external partners as required.

• Monitor external trends and innovations, including the evolution of the contact centre of the future, to identify opportunities for AXA Ireland.

• Ensure supporting processes comply with CPC and other regulatory requirements, working with Compliance teams.

• Lead the Direct Retail Risk function, ensuring projects comply with regulatory, legal, risk, and governance requirements; proactively identify and mitigate risks.

• Financial Management - Develop robust business cases with analysis, recommendations, and financial rationale to support investment decisions; evaluate strategic opportunities to support growth and performance.

What We're Looking For

Experience

• 10+ years in financial services or insurance, including at least 5 years in senior leadership, with a proven track record of driving strategic change, transformation, and performance improvement.

• Minimum 10 years in General Insurance/Financial services with at least 3 years delivering operational change and innovation projects.

• Experience delivering large-scale transformations and embedding sustainable change across customer-centric organisations.

• Experience delivering operational change and innovation in insurance or financial services; strong record of leading complex programmes and cross-functional teams to measurable outcomes.

• Hands-on experience applying Agile methodologies and change management in delivery environments; ability to engage and influence senior stakeholders.

• Specialist Knowledge - Excellent programme, project, and change management; strong business acumen including financial planning, budgeting, analysis, and performance management; knowledge of insurance products, customer journeys, and market dynamics; understanding of risk management in operations, product development, and transformation; awareness of regulatory, compliance, health and safety, IT security, and data protection; knowledge of emerging technologies relevant to retail insurance and customer engagement.

• Specialist Skills - Translate strategy into practical initiatives; strong leadership and team development; excellent analytical and problem-solving skills; data-informed decision-making; strong stakeholder management; outstanding communication and presentation skills; highly organised with planning, prioritisation, and execution capabilities; ability to lead change in complex, fast-paced environments; strong financial and business case development capability.

Desirable

• Experience leading major transformation programmes or enterprise-wide strategic initiatives.

Qualifications

Essential

• Third-level degree or equivalent qualification.

Desirable

• APA and/or CIP qualification; Agile Product Owner or related Agile certification.

Regulatory Requirements

This role is designated as a Controlled Function (CF1) under the Central Bank of Ireland's Fitness and Probity Regime. The successful candidate will be required to: meet and maintain Fitness and Probity standards; demonstrate integrity and financial soundness; comply with the Minimum Competency Code where applicable; adhere to the Consumer Protection Code and all applicable regulatory requirements; ensure continued compliance with the Central Bank of Ireland's Conduct Standards. This role is also identified as a Certificated Function under the UK Senior Managers and Certification Regime with annual certification and ongoing assessments.

Further guidance can be obtained from . This recruitment campaign will be used to support permanent, temporary, and/or extension for upcoming similar positions.