Associate Director, New Business

Job description

Come join one of America’s fastest-growing insurance companies. Since 1848, National Life Group has aimed to keep our promises, providing families with stability in good times and in bad. Throughout that history, we have provided peace of mind to those families as they plan their futures.

Our mission extends beyond the insurance and annuities policies that we offer. We strive to make the world a better place through our grants from our charitable foundation, paid volunteer time for our employees, environmentally sustainable and healthy workplaces, and events that promote the work of nonprofits in our own backyard.

We foster a collaborative environment with opportunities for growth and encourage our associates to live our values: Do good. Be good. Make good.

Please note that we do not offer visa sponsorship for this position.

The Associate Director, Life New Business Operations drives operational performance, leadership effectiveness, and consistent execution across Life New Business teams to deliver an exceptional customer experience. This role leads and develops associates and serves as a trusted mentor and coach to other leaders, regardless of reporting relationships. Working collaboratively with operational leaders, the Associate Director shares accountability for outcomes across the new business lifecycle, from initial application submission through policy placement. The role fosters a culture of accountability, collaboration, employee development, and continuous improvement while driving measurable results across service, quality, productivity, capacity, and operational risk.

The Associate Director builds strong relationships with distribution partners and cross-functional stakeholders to understand the selling customer experience and identify operational improvement opportunities. Using customer feedback, performance data, and sound judgment, this role evaluates root causes, prioritizes improvements, and makes informed decisions that balance customer needs, operational efficiency, quality, compliance, and business risk. The Associate Director independently resolves most operational matters within established authority, escalating significant strategic or policy decisions as appropriate.

The Associate Director represents Life New Business Operations in cross-functional initiatives, providing operational expertise, customer insights, and data-informed recommendations. This role leads designated initiatives or collaborates with stakeholders to translate departmental priorities into actionable plans, coordinate execution across teams, support change adoption, and measure results.

This position currently offers an onsite work schedule, with the expectation that you will be in the office four (4) days per week during onsite core days. Our current onsite core days are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The work schedule type and core days are subject to change with advance notification and manager discretion.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

People Leadership and Performance Management

• Lead, coach, and develop high-performing Life New Business associates and, where applicable, other people leaders, fostering a culture of accountability, collaboration, engagement, and customer service excellence.

• Serve as a trusted mentor to emerging and established leaders, regardless of reporting relationships, providing coaching, constructive feedback, and guidance to strengthen leadership capabilities, judgment, and effectiveness.

• Establish clear performance expectations and operational priorities aligned with departmental objectives, holding associates accountable for individual and team results.

• Analyze productivity, quality, and performance trends to identify gaps, determine root causes, and implement targeted coaching, performance improvement, and recovery plans.

• Provide ongoing feedback, recognition, development opportunities, and appropriate delegation to strengthen associate capabilities, leadership effectiveness, adaptability, and sustained performance.

• Oversee staffing, workload capacity, training, and day-to-day execution within assigned areas, collaborating with operational leaders to maintain consistent service, productivity, quality, and risk outcomes.

Customer Experience and Data-Driven Process Improvement

• Build strong partnerships with distribution partners, actively soliciting feedback to understand the selling customer experience, identify friction points, and anticipate service needs.

• Analyze customer feedback and operational data to identify trends, evaluate business impact, determine root causes, and prioritize improvements across teams.

• Apply critical thinking and independent judgment to resolve complex operational issues within established authority, balancing customer experience, efficiency, quality, compliance, and business risk.

• Lead measurable process improvements in partnership with operational leaders and cross-functional stakeholders, establi

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