Head of Marketing and CRM for Italy

BBVA is a global company with more than 160 years of history that operates in more than 25 countries where we serve more than 80 million customers. We are more than 121,000 professionals working in multidisciplinary teams with profiles as diverse as financiers, legal experts, data scientists, developers, engineers and designers.

Marketing and CRM defines the strategy and drives the execution of all communications to BBVA current and prospect customers, with a major responsibility on acquisition effectiveness and efficiency, as well as on cross-selling.

About the job:

Role Overview

The Head of Marketing and CRM for BBVA Italy will be responsible for adapting and executing global marketing, engagement, and CRM strategies in the Italian market , ensuring alignment with the overall strategy and goals of the central Marketing, Engagement & CRM, and BI value streams of BBVA Digital Banks. 

This role involves directly leading a small team with local expertise in research, copy, and insights, while acting as a connector between local needs and central execution, in close collaboration with the central Marketing and CRM teams located in BBVA's Madrid headquarters. Therefore, the role requires a mid-senior level of knowledge and experience as well as a Fintech mindset and hands-on working approach.

The role ensures Italy's insights and regulatory needs are represented in global decision-making while guaranteeing consistent execution of centrally defined strategies.

Core Responsibilities

Local Strategy & Insights:

• Collect and prioritize local customer and market insights to inform central value streams (Growth & Marketing, Engagement & CRM, BI).

• Contribute to the global marketing and CRM strategy by reflecting local market needs.

• Ensure local requirements and key insights are addressed by connecting them to central execution.

Team Leadership & Coordination:

• Manage and develop a small local team with expertise in research, copy, and insights.

• Act as the single point of contact for marketing, engagement, and CRM for BBVA Italy General Manager.

• Coordinate local resources and ensure their effective contribution to marketing efforts.

• Collaborate closely with the central Marketing and CRM teams in Madrid, ensuring coherence of brand and message.

• Drive the localization of marketing messages and ensure their implementation in coordination with the central team.

• Actively represent Marketing & CRM Italy in local governance forums and in multi-country forums (Strategy Forum, Customer Bonding Forum) to ensure Italian priorities are reflected in global decisions.

Marketing & CRM Execution:

• Drive the implementation of central growth and brand strategies in Italy, ensuring their effective adaptation to local market dynamics. Responsibilities include localizing campaigns, applying market knowledge to support media mix decisions (focusing in particular on offline media), and building strong relationships with Italian media partners. Marketing investment budget will therefore be managed in coordination between central and local structures.

• Looking for new local opportunities in channels & vendors agreements that fit within the global strategy and CAC.

• Oversee the design and execution of lifecycle engagement strategies and customer journeys defined and implemented centrally, adapted for the Italian market, focusing on both customer loyalty and retention plus promoting digital sales and cross-sell.

• Ensure operational efficiency and continuous improvement of customer satisfaction.

• Support cross-sell initiatives through effective communication and data utilization, leveraging both marketing outreach and CRM insights.

Reporting and Alignment:

• Report hierarchically to the GM of Digital Bank Italy.

• Report functionally to the Digital Banks Chief Marketing Officer, and systematic coordination and alignment to the Global Heads of Marketing and CRM  

• Ensure all activities are in alignment with central standards and execution to maximize scale and cost efficiency.

Key Competencies

• Commitment to BBVA's cultural principles: One Team, trust, care, accountability, and substance before form.

• Deep knowledge of the Italian market and customer behavior, preferably acquired through a 10+ years Marketing career in banking/financial services, telco, or other regulated services sectors.

• Strategic thinking with an ability to translate global strategies into local action.

• Experience operating in matrix organizations, balancing local adaptation with global consistency.

• Strong understanding of data-driven marketing and BI integration.

• Familiarity with multi-country governance and forums, ensuring disciplined alignment with central planning cycles.

• Proven ability to lead and develop a team in a collaborative, connector role.

• Strong understanding of Marketing and CRM principles and strategies.

• Proven ability to lead and develop a team.

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills for effective collaboration with central and local teams.

• Deep knowledge of the Italian market and customer behavior.

• Strategic thinking with an ability to translate global strategies into local action.

• Results-oriented with a focus on measurable outcomes.

• Native Italian speaker, fluency in English a must, Spanish preferable.

Skills: