MetLife

Title: Regional Sales Director – Kansas City/St. Louis - Group Benefits  

Location: Kansas City/ St. Louis 

Alternate Location(s): Southern Illinois 

Work Arrangement: Hybrid  

Reports to title: Regional Vice President  

The Team You Will Join The Group Benefits organization is responsible for the strategic direction, growth and management of MetLife's industry leading U.S. employee benefits business. Our sales force works directly with customers or through brokers, exchanges, and other third parties to distribute our broad range of Group Life, Dental, Vision, Group Disability, Global Services, Total Absence Management, Accident, Hospital Indemnity, Critical Illness, Pet, HS&SA, and Legal Plan products and services. Group Benefits sells a broad portfolio of insurance solutions to employers and other eligible groups helping to make MetLife the largest provider of group employee benefits in the United States.  

The Opportunity The Regional Director (RD) will be responsible for sales management within an assigned region for MetLife’s Group, Voluntary and Worksite Benefits Sales organization. They will be responsible for a portfolio of 22 products and maintain a high level of product acumen as the portfolio evolves/grows. They must maintain a strong in-market presence and build a robust customer relationship with the broker/consultant community. The leader manages a sales team that distributes MetLife products directly to employers (2 - 5,000 lives) and/or through brokers and consultants. The overall objective of the RD is to build and lead a highly productive sales team that increases both top and bottom-line growth of the business. This role handles territory encompassing Kansas, Missouri and Southern Illinois.  

How You’ll Help Us Build a Confident Future (Key Responsibilities)  

• Direct all sales and growth initiatives for MetLife within his/her region, working closely with the sales team and their brokers and customers along with internal partners 
• Identify, prioritize and help manage key relationships with targeted clients and brokers to create measurable business results 
• Oversee pipeline management within his/her sales team to deliver sales projections to senior leadership 
• Support and oversee negotiations with product and underwriting partners to achieve sales growth while meeting persistency and margin expectations 
• Collaborate with other Regional Directors and operations partners (including but not limited to product, service and underwriting) to coordinate and support all applicable products, marketing, client service, etc. initiatives 
• Recruit, develop and lead a results-oriented sales team, setting objectives for each individual and helping him/her to develop and execute on sales strategies to meet/exceed their goals 
• Serve as an effective leader ensuring that goals are aligned with the rest of the organization, and ongoing training and development initiatives become a key focus for the sales team 
• Lead a team of approximately 10 Account Executives 

What You Need to Succeed (Required Qualifications)  

• 10+ years of successful sales experience within the Group Insurance Industry. 
• Strong understanding of the Kansas City, Missouri and Southern Illinois preferred.

• Proven success generating top and bottom-line growth. 
• Extensive experience in applying financial insights and strategic thinking to position group benefits solutions that align with client goals and deliver measurable value.
• Demonstrated success in developing salespeople, fostering innovation and building a team. 
• Embraces and leads teams through change
• Strong background in sales management and leadership within respected competitors in the insurance industry where he/she developed and executed a successful business strategy that led to new business.
• Must have a player-coach profile with demonstrated excellence in managing and leading a successful sales group 
• An undergraduate degree is required. 
• FINRA Series 6 and 26 registrations along with appropriate state licenses including Life, Accident & Health along with Property & Casualty must be obtained (MetLife will support the attainment of licenses) 
• High standards of ethics, integrity and trustworthiness 
• Articulate: excellent presentation and communication skills 
• Results oriented with the ability to overachieve business objectives 
• An effective team member; highly collaborative. 
• Broad thinking business acumen, highly analytical, works well with data and information to draw appropriate conclusions
• Strong management and human relations skills in a style that exhibits maturity, leadership, sensitivity and teamwork 
• The ability to work effectively in a large company environment. 
• Strong written and verbal skills 

Leadership Competencies:  

• Think Strategically - Set direction aligned to the company’s strategy, applying external and global perspective to meet local and global needs.
• Create Partnerships - Authentically build trusted relationships and collaborate across global, diverse and multi-functional teams to successfully drive business objectives.
• Seize Opportunity - Seek new opportunities and ways to create balanced business growth while improving operational capabilities.

• Grow Talent - Inclusively and proactively develop talent, empower individuals and manages diverse teams to drive engagement and performance.
• Focus on Customers - Broker focused and Broker centricity, ensure focus on creating great customer and broker experiences.
• Drive Results - Set aggressive goals and is accountable for continuously driving improved performance, leading change and ensuring high standards.