Director, Defined Contribution Strategy

Director, Defined Contribution Strategy

The Position:

We are seeking motivated, experienced professionals with deep expertise in defined contribution retirement plans, plan administration, recordkeeping services, and large scale transformation initiatives to support the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board’s modernization and recompete of its recordkeeping services. In the role you will provide strategic and technical leadership in evaluating the current recordkeeping environment, defining future state requirements, conducting industry research and gap analyses, and developing acquisition and transition strategies. This position requires strong leadership, analytical, communication, and stakeholder engagement skills, as well as the ability to translate complex industry, operational, and technical information into actionable recommendations. A successful candidate will collaborate with agency executives, industry experts, and cross-functional teams to support a complex, long term acquisition serving the nation’s largest defined contribution retirement plan. Responsibilities for the role will include:

• Provide strategic and technical leadership for the evaluation and modernization of large, complex defined contribution recordkeeping and plan administration services.
• Serve as a senior subject matter expert on defined contribution plan administration, recordkeeping operations, participant services, technology, customer service, and industry practices.
• Lead or support current state assessments, discovery activities, process reviews, gap analyses, and development of future state recommendations.
• Define business requirements, desired outcomes, performance expectations, and strategic priorities for the future recordkeeping environment.
• Advise agency executives and project stakeholders on recordkeeping industry trends, leading practices, service delivery models, and transition considerations.
• Conduct or oversee market research, industry benchmarking, analysis of alternatives, and development of business cases for major recordkeeping decisions.
• Evaluate plan features, operational processes, service costs, customer service models, technologies, and other considerations affecting plan participants and beneficiaries.
• Lead the development of process models, requirements documentation, executive summaries, presentations, strategic recommendations, and other major deliverables.
• Plan and facilitate meetings and working sessions with agency executives, industry experts, project teams, and other stakeholders.
• Identify and communicate strategic, operational, technical, financial, and transition risks to agency and project leadership.
• Provide leadership, direction, quality oversight, and subject matter guidance to consultants, research analysts, and other project team members.
• Collaborate with acquisition, integration, cost modeling, and research teams to ensure a cohesive acquisition and transition strategy.

The Ideal Candidate: 

At Censeo, we are looking for unique candidates whose passion and enthusiasm will help shape Censeo’s client insights and workplace culture. Our staff have a wide range of backgrounds, areas of expertise, personality types, and favorite breakfast foods. Our client and cultural successes are rooted in our team’s innovation, creative problem solving, and collaboration. The unique perspective that you bring and the way you tackle problems are much more important to us than what’s printed on your diploma. Some of the core qualifications for the role include:

Required:

• Master’s Degree or Bachelor’s Degree in business administration, finance, economics, information technology, or a related field.
• Minimum of 8 years of professional experience in research, analysis, consulting, or leadership within the defined contribution retirement plan industry.
• Demonstrated experience leading or advising large, complex plan administration and recordkeeping transition initiatives.
• Extensive knowledge of defined contribution plan administration, recordkeeping operations, business processes, technology, and participant or customer services.
• Experience conducting current state assessments, process reviews, requirements development, gap analyses, market research, and future-state planning.
• Demonstrated ability to advise plan sponsors, plan administrators, recordkeepers, or comparable financial institutions and deliver actionable recommendations.
• Experience developing business and technology strategies and integrating recommendations across multiple workstreams or Lines of Business.
• Proven ability to plan and facilitate meetings with executive level stakeholders, develop consensus, and communicate complex findings clearly.
• Strong leadership, project or program management, research, analytical, written communication, and presentation skills.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, develop, and provide quality oversight to project teams.

Preferred:

• 10 years of professional experience in defined contribution plan administration, recordkeeping, or related consulting.
• Experience serving as a senior advisor, lead architect, executive subject matter expert, or primary technical point of contact for a major recordkeeping transformation.
• Experience integrating work across business, technology, customer service, financial, acquisition, and transition workstreams.
• Experience recruiting, developing, and managing multidisciplinary consulting or project teams.
• Experience advising large public sector retirement plans or other large financial institutions.
• Extensive knowledge of recordkeeping industry trends, sourcing models, service delivery practices, and major transition risks.

The Company:

Censeo Consulting Group is a top Washington D.C. based management consulting firm dedicated to helping public sector and non-profit clients build operational excellence, deliver better outcomes, and lower cost. We take a personalized approach to strategic consulting to solve our clients’ most complex problems and build operational excellence that transforms their organizations, allowing them to better deliver on their public and social missions. 

At Censeo, our award-winning culture means you’ll join a tight-knit community of 80 brilliant and passionate colleagues. We are advocates for a better functioning public sector, and we’re also good friends who know the names of each other’s dogs. Our philosophy is horizontal, not hierarchical, and our open-door policy encourages a culture of entrepreneurship at all levels. We share successes, make decisions together, and foster an environment for those with passion and initiative to lead. Our colleagues bring their own unique personalities to work every day and use them to help shape our growing firm in ways that reach far beyond client projects. 

The Location :

Censeo Consulting Group is based in Washington D.C., a fantastic city for working professionals. We work in a hybrid setting with flexibility to work from home and work in our office conveniently located in the heart of downtown, just a few blocks away from the White House. And with many of our clients also based in D.C., we have the luxury of leaving for a meeting and being back in the office in time for post-work happy hours, team dinners, and game nights.

The Fine Print:

• The salary range for this role is $120,000 - $170,000 depending on experience (or hourly equivalent for part-time)
• Expected travel 0-10%; may increase based on business needs 
• This is an exempt, full-time position but open to part-time/contracted arrangements
• This role is subject to a hybrid work schedule in the Washington D.C. 
• Essential Physical Functions
  • Sitting: Particularly for sustained periods of time
  • Light Carrying: Physically transporting items weighing less than 15 pounds from one location to another

Censeo offers a competitive compensation and benefits package, including paid vacation and sick leave, flexible and remote work opportunities, and tuition and training reimbursement. More information on our benefits and perks can be found at  

Censeo is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to providing equal opportunity to all applicants and employees in full compliance with all applicable state and federal laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, gender, religion, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other class protected by applicable state or federal law. 

Join Our Award-Winning Culture!
Our passion wins awards. But don’t just take it from us… 

• 2024 Vault #41 Consulting 50 North America
• 2024 Vault #7 Best Consulting Firm for Hours in the Office
• 2023 Vault #9 Best Consulting Firm for Work/Life Balance 
• 2023 Vault #23 Best Consulting Firm for Overall Diversity
• 2023 Management Consulted #3 Best Boutique Firms in Washington DC
• 2022 Vault #41 Best Overall Consulting Firm to Work For
• 2020 Vault #21 Best Boutique Consulting Firm 
• 2019 Ivy Exec #7 Best Boutique Consulting Firm 
• 2018 Consulting Magazine Best Small Firms to Work For  
• 2017 Vault #12 Best Boutique Consulting Firm 
• 2016 Forbes Best Management Consulting Firms in America 
• 2015 Washington Business Journal’s Philanthropy List 

#LI-Hybrid