Director, Product Owner - Lending Services

RBC • Toronto, ON

1d • Onsite

About The Position

This role is a key contributor to the Lending Services leadership team and will play a critical role in achieving our Vision to be recognized as the centre of excellence in delivering lending products to RBC’s Top Tier clients globally and proactively enabling global growth by leveraging deep expertise coupled with a transformational mindset. In this role you will execute on our Mission to deliver seamless and scalable solutions that mitigate risk and continually elevate the customer experience through continuous innovation, disciplined governance and collaboration to build out a corporate asset scalable for growth. As Director, Product Owner for Lending Services, you will spearhead the complete transformation of RBC's Lending Services Group—a strategic corporate asset serving multiple lines of business globally. This dual-mandate role combines product ownership with process engineering to deliver integrated solutions that improve client and employee experiences while ensuring safety and strategic alignment. You will drive the end-to-end product and process lifecycle modernization from customer discovery through delivery, optimization, and continuous improvement, and collaborate closely with other partners within the lending ecosystem. Leading a team of domain experts, you will shape the Lending Services product portfolio and underlying processes, ensuring they are modernized, operationally efficient, and aligned with business objectives through streamlined, automated, and digitally enabled solutions.

Requirements

• Proven ability to operate comfortably at the intersection of strategy, execution, and stakeholder leadership with a reputation that brings structure to ambiguity, influences senior executives, and translates complex data into clear decisions that drive business outcomes.
• 12 plus years of progressive experience in product management, strategy, transformation, or financial services leadership, with a minimum of 8 years in proven leadership roles managing high performing cross-functional teams, portfolios, or strategic initiatives.
• Deep expertise in lending products, processes, and business operations including deal structures, product and rate architectures, inherent risks, and regulatory considerations across multiple geographies.
• A proven track record of owning end-to-end product and process lifecycles: from customer discovery and requirements definition through roadmap prioritization, development execution, launch optimization, and continuous improvement.
• An ability to lead with authenticity and drive high-performing teams.
• Track record of building, mentoring, and inspiring product managers, process engineers, and analysts; fosters cultures of innovation and accountability; and facilitates effective cross-regional and cross-functional collaboration.
• An ability to communicate with clarity and presence.
• Ability to communicate complex product vision and process strategy to diverse audiences from frontline operations teams to executive leadership while building consensus across organizational boundaries, and escalating blockers with transparency.

Nice To Haves

• MBA or advanced degree in strategy, finance, engineering, or a related field.
• Expertise in lending regulations and compliance requirements; experience with process improvement methodologies (Lean, Six Sigma, or similar).
• Proven track record leading process optimization or transformation initiatives and driving measurable operational improvements.
• Experience implementing AI/GenAI solutions or automation tools.
• Strong understanding of Commercial Banking, Retail Banking, Payments, Trade, Cash, or Financial Shared Services operations.

Responsibilities

• Define and communicate the Lending Services product vision, strategy, and roadmap aligned with organizational and business objectives; prioritize the backlog based on business value, client impact, and operational efficiency.
• Lead the complete product lifecycle redesign from discovery through design, development, testing, and go-live; establish acceptance criteria and quality gates; deliver releases on schedule while conducting post-launch reviews for optimization.
• Lead the design, optimization, and reengineering of end-to-end lending processes; analyze operational data to identify inefficiencies and drive solutions that improve performance, reduce manual work and enhance experience.
• Set the strategic vision and accountability for Learning & Development of all Lending Services functions, including curriculum design, material curation, delivery standards, and quality assessments for newly onboarded employees
• Lead and mentor high performing teams fostering innovation, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Serve as the single point of accountability for product and process decisions; gather requirements from multiple regions, synthesize conflicting priorities, and build consensus across stakeholders.
• Ensure all product features and releases comply with regulatory requirements, data privacy standards, and security controls; establish escalation paths for compliance issues and drive timely remediation.
• Set strategic direction for AI/GenAI and digital transformation enhancements; partner with technology and operations to develop business cases and modernize both product and underlying technology.
• Establish risk and controls standards; shift from detective/manual to preventative/automated controls; ensure consistent standards for tools, documentation, communication, and training across the organization.

Benefits

• A comprehensive Total Rewards Program including bonuses and flexible benefits, competitive compensation, commissions, and stock where applicable.
• Leaders who support your development through coaching and managing opportunities
• Ability to make a difference and lasting impact.
• Work in a dynamic, collaborative, progressive, and high-performing team.
• Flexible work/life balance options.
• Opportunities to do challenging work.
• Opportunities to take on progressively greater accountabilities.
• Access to a variety of job opportunities across business.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director