Director of Product at Wellmark, Inc. in Des Moines, IA

companyDescription Why Wellmark: We are a mutual insurance company owned by our policy holders across Iowa and South Dakota, and we’ve built our reputation on over 80 years’ worth of trust. We are not motivated by profits. We are motivated by the well-being of our friends, family, and neighbors–our members. If you’re passionate about joining an organization working hard to put its members first, to provide best-in-class service, and one that is committed to sustainability and innovation, consider applying today! Learn more about our unique benefit offerings here. jobDescription At Wellmark, we’re redefining what health plans can deliver for employers and their people. This is a unique opportunity to shape the future of products that impact thousands of organizations and members across our markets. As Director of Product leading our Large Group segment, you will have the platform, partnerships, and executive visibility to bring bold ideas to life, influence enterprise strategy, and deliver meaningful innovation at scale. Join a purpose-driven organization committed to improving health outcomes, advancing affordability, and creating differentiated value in a rapidly evolving industry. About the Role: The Director of Product for Large Group is a pivotal leadership role responsible for shaping and executing a forward-looking strategy for one of Wellmark’s most critical product portfolios. This leader owns end-to-end product performance, including multi-year P&L accountability, growth, and long-term value creation, while translating enterprise priorities into a compelling product vision and roadmap. You will guide high-impact initiatives from concept through investment decisions and delivery, ensuring alignment, speed, and measurable outcomes. As a trusted advisor and matrixed leader, you will partner closely with actuarial, finance, analytics, sales, operations, and technology to deliver innovative, market-leading solutions that strengthen Wellmark’s position in the employer space. What You’ll Bring: You are a strategic, commercially minded product leader who thrives in complexity and is energized by building solutions that meet the evolving needs of large employers and their workforce. You bring a strong track record of leading cross-functional initiatives and delivering measurable results, supported by deep financial acumen and experience owning product performance and investment decisions. You excel at translating data, market trends, and competitive insights into clear, actionable strategies that drive growth and differentiation. A natural influencer, you build credibility with senior leaders and inspire alignment across matrixed teams, leading through both vision and accountability. You are passionate about developing high-performing teams, navigating change with confidence, and driving outcomes that create lasting value for customers and the business. qualifications Required: Bachelor’s degree in a quantitative or business focused field (e.g., STEM, Finance, Statistics), or an equivalent combination of education and experience demonstrating advanced analytical capability. 5+ years of progressive experience leading complex, cross functional strategic initiatives, including strategy development, execution, transformation, and change leadership. 3+ years of experience in product management, portfolio leadership, or initiative ownership in regulated, operationally complex environments. Demonstrated financial and P&L acumen, including multi-year business case development, investment evaluation, and performance management. Strong strategic and analytical skills, with the ability to apply and model critical thinking to evaluate complex systems, identify interdependencies, and translate insights into actionable decisions. Executive level communication and influence capabilities, with experience advising senior leaders and driving alignment across matrixed organizations. Proven leadership experience and ability to set direction, motivate teams, and foster accountability for outcomes across cross functional partners. Strong leadership experience of leading other leaders, including experience in coaching, developing, and maximizing the talents of both leaders and team members and effectively leading teams through change. Experience in managing others, demonstrated coaching and mentoring skills. Strong Interpersonal skills oriented toward client relationships. Data driven and outcome oriented mindset, with experience establishing metrics, monitoring performance, and adapting strategies to optimize results. Ability to travel as required. Preferred: Master of Business Administration (MBA) or equivalent advanced degree. Health plan, health insurance, or healthcare industry experience, particularly within Large Group or employer focused products. Experience partnering closely with actuarial, finance, analytics, and sales teams to drive enterprise investment and portfolio decisions. additionalInformation a. Own the product portfolio strategy and performance, with accountability for multi-year financial results (P&L), return on investment, and long-term value creation. Ensure alignment to enterprise priorities and evolving market conditions. b. Provide leadership and day-to-day management of financial and human resources, primarily focusing on recruitment and hiring; employee and leader coaching and development performance standards, metrics, and improvement; coordination and budgeting for multiple employees and/or team; and department(s) specific functions/services. Ensure appropriate use of financial, human, and other resources to meet budget, department/division goals, and customer needs. c. Lead the development, evaluation, and approval of multi-year business cases for strategically significant initiatives, including investment requirements, revenue growth opportunities, claims and operational savings, administrative efficiencies, and member or partner impact. Partner closely with actuarial, finance, analytics, sales, and divisional leadership to ensure rigor and transparency. d. Establish and own outcome-based performance metrics (e.g., ROI, financial targets, performance indicators) for prioritized initiatives. Monitor results against expectations and proactively adjust strategy, investment, or execution approaches to maximize value. e. Define, maintain, and evolve the product vision and roadmap, prioritizing initiatives based on value, risk, feasibility, and strategic alignment. Clearly cascade priorities to senior leaders and cross functional partners to drive shared understanding and execution. f. Serve as the product thought leader by leveraging deep domain expertise across product, sales, distribution, and operations to translate market insights and internal data into actionable strategic recommendations. g. Assess and act on strategically significant trends, including market dynamics, competitive shifts, regulatory changes, technology advancements, and utilization patterns. Benchmark performance internally and externally to identify opportunities and risks. h. Monitor aggregate product performance against annual and long-term goals, conduct root cause analysis on variances, forecast future performance, and lead corrective actions for underperforming initiatives. i. Identify and manage dependencies across initiatives, ensuring alignment and coordination across interconnected products, teams, systems, and processes while mitigating delivery and value risks. j. Oversee financial performance of prioritized initiatives, continuously identifying opportunities to optimize cost, efficiency, and value delivery while maintaining strategic coherence. k. Act as a trusted advisor and matrixed leader, influencing senior stakeholders across functions to drive disciplined decision making, alignment, and accountability without direct line authority. l. Other duties as assigned. This job requires a non-compete agreement. An Equal Opportunity Employer The policy of Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield is to recruit, hire, train and promote individuals in all job classifications without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or any other characteristic protected by law. Applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation due to a disability at any stage of the employment application process should contact us at careers@wellmark.com Please inform us if you meet the definition of a "Covered DoD official". At this time, Wellmark is not considering applicants for this position that require any type of immigration sponsorship (additional work authorization or permanent work authorization) now or in the future to work in the United States. This includes, but IS NOT LIMITED TO: F1-OPT, F1-CPT, H-1B, TN, L-1, J-1, etc. For additional information around work authorization needs please refer to the following resources:Nonimmigrant Workers and Green Card for Employment-Based Immigrants Wellmark supports and expects the responsible use of AI for our workforce! We welcome the responsible use of these tools by job seekers as well and are interested in learning from you; you will have an opportunity in the application process to share which tools you used and how you applied them.