Director, Business Development - Small Business Banking
EQ Bank
Sales & Business Development
Toronto, ON, Canada
Posted on May 28, 2025
Join a Challenger
Being a traditional bank just isn’t our thing. We are big believers in innovating the banking experience because we believe Canadians deserve better options, and we challenge ourselves and our teams to creatively transform what’s possible in banking. Our team is made up of inquisitive and agile minds that find smarter ways of doing things. If you’re not afraid of taking on big challenges and redefining the future, you belong with us. You’ll get to work with people who will encourage you to reach new heights. We like to keep things fun, ask questions and learn together.
We are a big (and growing!) family. Overall we serve more than 670,000 people across Canada through Equitable Bank, Canada's Challenger Bank™, and have been around for more than 50 years. Equitable Bank's wholly-owned subsidiary, Concentra Bank, supports credit unions across Canada that serve more than six million members. Together we have over $125 billion in combined assets under management and administration, with a clear mandate to drive change in Canadian banking to enrich people's lives. Our customers have named our EQ Bank digital platform (eqbank.ca) one of the top banks in Canada on the Forbes World's Best Banks list since 2021.
The Work
Reporting to the Vice President, Product – Digital Banking (Small Business Banking), this critical role will lead partnership strategy and execution with fintech platforms, SaaS solutions and other potential partners to bring innovative solutions for our small business customers. In addition, the Director will lead end-to-end planning and execution of customer acquisition campaigns through partnerships, in close collaboration with the Marketing team. The ideal candidate will combine financial services knowledge with strong strategic and business development skills to create and execute innovative partnership arrangements for the bank and its small business clients.
Strategy development, partnership acquisition and management
- Develop and implement the strategic roadmap for our partnerships program with a focus on embedded finance opportunities
- Identify high-potential partnership categories and specific targets with clear value propositions based on market research and business objectives; build and manage a pipeline of potential partners; create businesses cases for partnership opportunities
- Initiate and lead partnership discussions, from initial outreach through contract negotiation; structure creative and mutually beneficial partnership agreements with clear performance metrics; be responsible for monitoring and communicating KPIs for partnership success
- Work cross-functionally with product, technology, and marketing teams to align the partnership strategy with the product roadmap; ensure the successful integration of banking services with partner platforms, supported by compelling go-to-market strategies and marketing plans
- Maintain strong relationships with partners to identify expansion opportunities and resolve issues
Partnership marketing development and execution
- Work closely with Marketing to develop and implement comprehensive GTM strategies for different small business segment communities via partnerships
- Work closely with Marketing to optimize channel strategy to reach target communities effectively, ensuring consistent messaging and positioning
- Co-develop the marketing, content and events calendar for specific small business communities with the Marketing team; Lead the planning and execution of key business development events and develop engaging content strategies from product information to thought leadership that speak to target communities
Market Intelligence
- Stay current on fintech trends, emerging players, and evolving customer needs in the small business banking space; Provide regular insights to leadership on partnership landscape and strategic opportunities
- Monitor competitor partnership activities and identify differentiating opportunities
- Represent the company at industry events to identify potential partners and build the company's profile
Let's Talk About You!
- 10+ years’ strategy or business development experience in the B2B space
- Proven track record in small business banking, fintech or B2B SaaS products
- Proven track record of developing and executing successful partnership strategies
- Strong understanding of the small business ecosystem and influencer networks
- Exceptional relationship building and stakeholder management skills; especially ability to influence other teams
- Strong communication skills, both verbal and written. This role involves working with peers, presenting to the senior leadership team and ability to lead multiple and challenging work priorities
- Strategic thinking with strong analytical and execution capabilities
- Experience managing cross-functional projects and initiatives
- Excellent time management and organization skills, ability to self-initiate on projects is essential.
What we offer [For full-time permanent roles]
💰 Competitive discretionary bonus
✨ Market leading RRSP match program
🩺 Medical, dental, vision, life, and disability benefits
📝 Employee Share Purchase Plan
👶🏽 Maternity/Parental top-up while you care for your little one
🏝 Generous vacation policy and personal days
🖥 Virtual events to connect with your fellow colleagues
🎓 Annual professional development allowance and a comprehensive Career Development program
💛 A fulfilling opportunity to join one of the top FinTechs and help create a new kind of banking experience
The incumbent will be working hybrid and in office time will be spent working from Equitable Bank’s additional office space located at 2200-25 Ontario Street, Toronto, ON.
Equitable Bank is deeply committed to inclusion. Our organization is stronger and our employees thrive when we honour and celebrate everyone’s diverse experiences and perspectives. In tandem with that commitment, we support and encourage our staff to grow not just in their career path, but personally as well.
We commit to providing a barrier-free recruitment process and work environment for all applicants. Please let us know of any accommodations needed so that you can bring your best self to the application process and beyond. All candidates considered for hire must successfully pass a criminal background check and credit check to qualify for hire. While we appreciate your interest in applying, an Equitable recruiter will only contact leading candidates whose skills and qualifications closely match the requirements of the position.
We can’t wait to get to know you!