Chris Swanz
Minneapolis,MN
Summary
Dynamic and results-driven Operations, Client Experience and Sales Professional with a robust background in Technology Consulting. Adept at orchestrating strategic initiatives to enhance operational efficiency and elevate client satisfaction across diverse product lines. Proven ability to lead teams, optimize processes, and implement people or technological solutions that drive business growth.
Overview
10
10
years of professional experience
Work History
Director of Operations and Client Experience
Foster Klima
10.2023 - Current
- Successfully managed the transition of the entire practice from Northwestern Mutual to Foster Klima.
- Defined, implemented, and revised operational policies and guidelines.
- Collaborated with Advisors to define niche markets, go-to-market strategy, and annual revenue goals.
- Oversaw day-to-day production activities in accordance with business objectives.
- Collaborated with team to understand business and client experience inefficiencies and implement solutions.
- Ensured high client satisfaction and retention through effective relationship management.
- Deep understanding of the sales cycle.
- Developed and executed workflows for product-specific campaigns, ensuring timely client communications.
- Increased team productivity with an end-to-end client communications strategy and training on automation platforms.
- Managed compliance processes to ensure adherence to Regbi, CFP, licensing, and internal documentation.
- Established and maintained CRM workflows for accurate client data management, reporting and communications.
Director of Operations and Client Experience
Northwestern Mutual
02.2023 - 10.2023
- Ensured high client satisfaction and retention through effective relationship management.
- Transitioned team to project management software to more effectively plan, organize, and manage team resources for tasks and projects.
- Implemented and tracked product-specific campaigns (Roth campaigns, insurance conversions, cross-sell, reconsiderations).
- Identified cross-sell opportunities for the team and disbursed leads.
- Supported licensed teammates in maintaining up-to-date licenses for client meetings.
- Managed compliance processes, including Regbi and CFP requirements.
- Documented existing and new processes, creating the team's first Employee Onboarding Workbook.
- Tracked team revenue and provided quarterly progress reports.
- Led weekly stand-up meetings to review case open inventory, address blockers and distribute work.
Technology Success Consultant
Northwestern Mutual
07.2019 - 02.2023
- Supported clients with business analysis, documentation, and data modeling.
- Liaised with customers, management, and sales team to better understand customer needs and recommend appropriate solutions.
- Targeted specific adoption areas, identified customers in need of support and proactively set appointments to move them to action.
- Methodically led clients through a fact finding consultative approach, identifying inefficiencies and recommending appropriate solutions to meet their business goals.
- Trained over 100 new Financial Advisors on a multitude of platforms needed to run their business.
- Consistently consulted with 120 financial advisors annually, as the sole consultant accountable for the firm's technology adoption.
- Managed Advisor readiness for sunsetting of old tech and adoption of new rollouts.
- Exceeded corporate targets for annual technology adoption and aligned efforts with Agency business goals.
- Successfully moved 25 late adopter Advisor teams to esignable forms and proprietary dictation services, saving them $50-$100 per month.
- Created and facilitated Agency wide trainings for new and existing tools.
- shorten their sales cycle for 20% of their business, from 7-25 days to 24-48 hours by adopting digital medical questionnaires.
- Provided quarterly technology adoption updates to the Managing Partner and Chief Marketing Officer, collaborating on strategies to align with Agency goals, identify influential advisors needing support.
Senior Connections Specialist
Thrivent Financial
07.2018 - 07.2019
- Facilitated financial coaching calls with consumers in need of debt pay down strategies and cash flow guidance.
- Qualified inbound digital leads for national lead campaigns, assigning leads to salesforce.
- Supported the sales team on client inquiries, quotes, and service needs.
- Collaborated with marketing teams to provide insight on the quality and source of leads as they experimented with lead source.
- Participated in innovation and development trainings as a part of the jobs to be done framework.
Senior Sales Representative
Brightpeak Financial
11.2016 - 07.2018
- Led Brightpeak sales team in direct to consumer sales for Life and Disability Insurance, averaging 30 policies per month.
- Transformed retention efforts by creating processes within the sales force for proactive outreach on policies in their grace period.
- Managed company's consumer insights community of 150 participants - Created consumer insight surveys and reported findings to marketing team.
- Key member of sprint team using agile methodology.
- Collaborated with developers, identifying jobs to be done with our digital financial guidance platform.
- Reported any possible ticket items to scrum team.
- Collaborated with product teams to create customer persona's.
Operations Manager
Redhawk Wealth Advisors
06.2016 - 11.2016
- Provided white glove service and digital tools training to Clients and Contracted Advisors during onboarding.
- Transformed the client application experience and reduced application completion times by implementing digital e-signable applications.
- Executed trade orders for client investment accounts and processed all new business.
- Partnered with TDAmeritrade to resolve client issues.
Financial Representative
Northwestern Mutual
10.2014 - 06.2015
- Built up a book of business through warm market prospecting.
- Collaborated with senior advisors to make insurance recommendations to clients.
- Obtained life and health insurance license (no longer active).
- Obtained Series 6 investment license (no longer active).
Education
B.A. Sports Management -
Trinity International University
Deerfield, ILSkills
- Process efficiency & organization
- Problem Solving
- Consumer Insights
- Client Experience
- Coaching & Consulting
- Public Speaking
- Influence without authority
- Microsoft Dynamics
- Salesforce
- Strategic planning and execution
- Process Improvement
- Smart Office
- Hubspot
- Netx360
- Envestnet
- Microsoft Suites
- Adobe
- Jira/Confluence
Pronouns
They/Them
Proud Moments
- Mentored teammate Tech Success Consultants as they started their consulting career.
- Won a CX wide consulting challenge at Northwestern Mutual, delivering a new approach to a persistent adoption issue.
- Key contributor to DEI employee resource groups for over 5 years
References
Available upon request
Timeline
Director of Operations and Client Experience
Foster Klima
10.2023 - Current
Director of Operations and Client Experience
Northwestern Mutual
02.2023 - 10.2023
Technology Success Consultant
Northwestern Mutual
07.2019 - 02.2023
Senior Connections Specialist
Thrivent Financial
07.2018 - 07.2019
Senior Sales Representative
Brightpeak Financial
11.2016 - 07.2018
Operations Manager
Redhawk Wealth Advisors
06.2016 - 11.2016
Financial Representative
Northwestern Mutual
10.2014 - 06.2015
B.A. Sports Management -
Trinity International University
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