Head of Succession Planning

The Opportunity:
The Head of Succession Planning is a pivotal leadership role responsible for designing, leading, and executing Manulife Wealth’s national advisor succession strategy and the Summit practice acquisition program across Canada. This role ensures continuity of client service, protection and enhancement of client relationships, and profitable growth by managing advisor/branch owner transitions and overseeing the acquisition and optimization of advisor practices.
 

You will take full ownership of the Summit Program end-to-end – from lead generation and pipeline management, through deal structuring and closing within target budget ranges, to operationalizing and enhancing the value of acquired businesses. This includes supporting both internal Manulife Wealth advisors and new recruits who have joined Manulife Wealth and are seeking an exit path.
 

You will build and lead strong cross-functional relationships across Manulife Wealth and the broader Manulife organization. They will be responsible for planning and directing succession planning initiatives, Summit program execution, and the programs and support required for advisors’ practices, their teams, and branch owners.

Adept at communicating vision, driving engagement, and challenging the status quo, this leader will bring the succession planning support and Summit strategy to life. Specifically, this role will support the build-out of an operating model to achieve and drive the following

This is a highly visible position that requires collaboration across the Manulife organization beyond Manulife Wealth. It is essential that the incumbent works in partnership with internal partners, distribution groups, and Canadian Segment partners such as Manulife Bank, Manulife Investments and Manulife Insurance to ensure respective strategies and initiatives are aligned and implemented in a mutually beneficial manner.

The role requires a delicate balance of relevant industry experience, advanced leadership skills, strategic and analytical thinking, deal-making capability, creative problem solving, perseverance, and agility to pivot from working on the business (strategy, design, governance) to working in the business (individual deals, advisor transitions, and integration) as needed.

Position Responsibilities:
 

Advisor and Branch Succession Support:

• Develop and implement national strategies to support advisors and branch owners nearing retirement or seeking an exit, ensuring smooth transitions with minimal client disruption and strong asset retention.

Summit Program Leadership:

• Spearhead the Summit practice acquisition program, including lead generation, pipeline development, deal negotiation, closing, and post-acquisition integration and value creation.

Recruitment-Linked Exit Options:

• Partner closely with advisor recruiting teams so that new recruits to Manulife Wealth understand and can leverage the Summit Program as a future exit option, integrating succession considerations into the recruitment value proposition.

Operational Excellence & Integration:

• Collaborate with regional and head office teams to operationalize succession and Summit deals efficiently, ensuring alignment with Manulife Wealth’s platforms, tools, and best practices.

National Collaboration:

• Establish and maintain strong partnerships across Manulife, including Manulife Bank, Manulife Investments and Manulife Insurance, to ensure strategic alignment and the successful implementation of shared initiatives supporting transitioning and acquired practices.

Growth Leadership:

• Support initiatives to drive advisor growth, including recruitment, retention, and development programs.

Advisor Engagement:

• Lead efforts to increase advisor engagement through innovative programs and resources. Gather and analyze feedback to continuously improve service offerings and support structures.

Strategic Planning and Execution:

• Drive the development and execution of strategic plans that align with Manulife Wealth’s growth ambitions, focusing on advisor success and enhanced client experiences.

Risk and Compliance:

• Maintain an up-to-date understanding of industry regulations and work closely with compliance and legal teams to mitigate risks and ensure adherence to regulatory standards.

Overall:

• Lead and expand a robust national succession planning and Summit program.
• Proactively identify advisors/branch owners and recruits seeking succession or exit options and build a strong opportunity pipeline.
• Structure and close Summit deals efficiently, effectively, and within target budget ranges and risk parameters.
• Operationalize acquired practices and enhance their value through improved practice management, technology adoption, and client experience.
• Support advisory teams and branch owners in planning and executing orderly transitions, with a strong focus on client retention and continuity of service.
• Help successfully transition and retain assets from advisors moving into retirement and move their books of business to the most cost-efficient and strategically aligned distribution options within the firm.
• Support our aggressive growth and recruiting plans.
• Enable advisor growth activities.
• Support acquired advisory practices for efficiency and implementation of new technologies, resources and programs.
• Help us successfully transition and retain assets from advisors who are moving into retirement over the next 5 years and move their books of business to more cost-efficient distribution options within the firm.

 Accountabilities: 

Succession Planning for Advisors/Branch Owners

• Design, lead, and continuously refine Manulife Wealth’s national advisor and branch owner succession strategy, ensuring orderly transitions and strong client and asset retention.

• Proactively identify advisors and branch owners (both internal and newly recruited) approaching retirement or seeking an exit and assess readiness for transition based on tenure, business volume, client relationships, and practice health.

• Coach advisors and branch owners to clarify their succession goals, contingency plans, understand practice valuation and options (including Summit), and design transition plans aligned with their personal objectives and corporate goals.

• Segment advisors and branch owners based on strategic value to the organization and tailor succession and transition support to retain top talent and protect and grow results.

• Support advisors in maintaining and growing their businesses during the transition period, improving client retention and staff development/retention, and ensuring continuity of service.

• Develop and maintain a strong national network of relationships at the branch and field level to stay close to upcoming succession needs and opportunities.

• Coordinate with internal support teams (Practice Management, Operations, Technology, Compliance) to ensure advisors have the resources required for successful transitions.

• Ensure consistent messaging, frameworks and processes across regional teams to support succession planning and transitions.

• Lead initiatives that measure and improve client satisfaction and Net Promoter Scores (NPS) related to succession and transition experiences.

Summit Program: Lead Generation, Pipeline & Deal Execution

• Take full ownership of the Summit Program nationally, including strategy, targets, pipeline, deal execution, and post-acquisition performance.

• Build and manage a disciplined pipeline of Summit opportunities, including internal advisors and newly recruited advisors considering an eventual exit, leveraging regional leadership, recruiting, and market intelligence.

• Establish and manage standardized pipeline stages, reporting, and forecasting to provide visibility to leadership on upcoming Summit transactions and succession-driven deals.

• Lead the valuation, structuring, and negotiation of Summit transactions, ensuring deals align with target budget ranges, risk guidelines, and strategic priorities of Manulife Wealth.

• Ensure Summit deals are closed efficiently and effectively, reducing cycle times from identification to closing and maintaining strong stakeholder communication throughout.

• Partner with Finance, Legal, Compliance, and Operations to ensure appropriate governance, documentation, due diligence, and approvals for each Summit transaction.

• Support the recruitment process by positioning the Summit Program as part of Manulife Wealth’s differentiated value proposition, ensuring that potential recruits understand available succession and exit pathways.

• Leverage industry networks and external relationships to identify new Summit opportunities and supplement the deal pipeline.

Post-Acquisition Integration & Value Creation

• Lead the development and execution of integration plans for acquired practices, ensuring smooth onboarding to Manulife Wealth’s platforms, tools, and operating model.

• Work with Practice Management and regional teams to implement best practices in client segmentation, pricing, workflow, and staffing for acquired practices to enhance profitability and growth.

• Drive the adoption of financial planning tools, CRM systems, portfolio management platforms, and digital capabilities within acquired practices to improve efficiency and client experience.

• Monitor the performance of Summit acquisitions against business cases (AUMA, revenue, client retention, profitability) and implement corrective actions as needed.

• Continuously refine the Summit integration playbook based on learnings, with an eye to scalability and consistency across regions.

Strategic Planning, Collaboration & Risk Management

• Contribute to short- and long-term business planning for Manulife Wealth, including setting succession and Summit Program targets, key results, and resource requirements.

• Build and maintain effective relationships across Manulife Wealth and the broader Manulife organization, ensuring alignment between succession/Summit strategies and national advice and distribution strategies.

• Drive automation and digitization of succession and Summit processes to better utilize global Manulife tools and platforms and enhance data-driven decision making.

• Support development of succession planning toolkit and resources for advisor use and education.

• Establish systematic processes for collecting and analyzing feedback from advisors, branch owners and acquired practices to improve succession and Summit offerings and address gaps.

• Maintain an up-to-date understanding of industry regulations and market trends related to advisor transitions and practice acquisitions.

• Work closely with Risk, Compliance and Legal to identify and mitigate risks in transitions and Summit transactions and ensure full adherence to regulatory and internal standards.

Marketing & Communications – Succession & Summit

• Provide guidance and insights on communications and marketing initiatives related to succession planning and the Summit Program, ensuring alignment with Manulife Wealth’s brand and strategy.

• Influence the strategic planning of marketing and communications to articulate Manulife Wealth’s succession and Summit value proposition to internal advisors and prospective recruits.

• Maintain ongoing communication with branch owners, advisory teams and acquired practices on pertinent information related to succession, Summit opportunities, processes and expectations.

Required Qualifications:

• Minimum 10 to 15 years of experience in the financial services or wealth management industry, with significant experience in succession planning, advisor transitions, practice management, or M&A/practice acquisition.

• CFP, CIM, CFA or other relevant designations are an asset.

• Extensive knowledge of Canadian regulatory frameworks (CIRO, Insurance, etc.) and their application to advisor transitions and practice sales.

• Strong understanding of the Portfolio Manager (PM) model and discretionary wealth management platforms.

• Demonstrated experience in structuring, negotiating, and closing complex financial transactions (e.g., advisor transitions, practice acquisitions, mergers).

• Experience with sales management or business development, including building and managing pipelines, recruiting, and leading advisors or advisory teams.

• Strong financial acumen, including practice valuation, P&L understanding, and return-on-investment analysis for deals.

• Leadership and people management skills with the ability to motivate and energize cross-functional teams towards common goals.

• Experience in networking, negotiation, influencing and creative thinking.

• Proven ability to build and manage relationships across functions, divisions, and external partners.

• Resilient delivery mindset with a strong execution focus and the ability to manage multiple deals and initiatives simultaneously.

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, including the ability to convey complex concepts simply and manage sensitive succession discussions.

• Ability to travel as required across Canada.

• Strong organizational and prioritization skills to work effectively in a multitasking environment.

• Capacity to engage constructively and respectfully with individuals at all levels of the organization and to achieve high-quality outcomes.

• Highly developed conflict resolution skills, particularly in negotiations involving advisors, successors, and stakeholders.

• Comfortable making presentations to groups, including advisors, leadership teams, and external partners.

The role being advertised is an existing vacancy.

About Manulife and John Hancock

Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider, helping people make their decisions easier and lives better. To learn more about us, visit https://www.manulife.com/en/about/our-story.html.

Manulife is an Equal Opportunity Employer

At Manulife/John Hancock, we embrace our diversity. We strive to attract, develop and retain a workforce that is as diverse as the customers we serve and to foster an inclusive work environment that embraces the strength of cultures and individuals. We are committed to fair recruitment, retention, advancement and compensation, and we administer all of our practices and programs without discrimination on the basis of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, religion or religious beliefs, creed, sex (including pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions), sexual orientation, genetic characteristics, veteran status, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, family status, disability, or any other ground protected by applicable law.

It is our priority to remove barriers to provide equal access to employment. A Human Resources representative will work with applicants who request a reasonable accommodation during the application process. All information shared during the accommodation request process will be stored and used in a manner that is consistent with applicable laws and Manulife/John Hancock policies. To request a reasonable accommodation in the application process, contact [email protected].

Referenced Salary Location

Salary range is expected to be between

Employees also have the opportunity to participate in incentive programs and earn incentive compensation tied to business and individual performance. The actual salary will vary depending on local market conditions, geography and relevant job-related factors such as knowledge, skills, qualifications, experience, and education/training. If you are applying for this role outside of the primary location, please contact [email protected] for the salary range for your location.

Manulife offers eligible employees a wide array of customizable benefits, including health, dental, mental health, vision, short- and long-term disability, life and AD&D insurance coverage, adoption/surrogacy and wellness benefits, and employee/family assistance plans. We also offer eligible employees various retirement savings plans (including pension and a global share ownership plan with employer matching contributions) and financial education and counseling resources. Our generous paid time off program in Canada includes holidays, vacation, personal, and sick days, and we offer the full range of statutory leaves of absence. If you are applying for this role in the U.S., please contact [email protected] for more information about U.S.-specific paid time off provisions.

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