Head of Innovation at Britam

Job Purpose and Key responsibilities

Reporting to the Customer Experience Director, the role holder will be responsible to manage and supervise innovation center initiatives inclusive of projects supporting consumer innovation, research & development, and commercial & individual products and services. He/she must have a strong innovation and digital delivery record, proven and impressive digital transformation or innovation consulting project leadership experience. Significant experience in project leadership roles at a proposition testing / design specialist could be highly relevant. 

Key responsibilities

1. Develop and execution of the innovation strategy for the segment ensuring use of agile methodology;
2. Appraise projects for commercial viability; 
3. Coordination of innovation projects across the business to ensure timely and on-budget delivery; 
4. Ensure appropriate cross functional representation to deliver innovation projects
5. Manage idea collaboration from stakeholders in collaboration to drive a continuous pipeline of innovative solutions;
6. Ensure innovation projects are managed with an urgent sense of testing, learning and delivery;
7. Continuously scan the external and global environment for new products and solutions that will give Britam a competitive edge and with a focus on enhanced customer satisfaction and experience;
8. Continuously identify opportunities to partner with other organizations (beyond Insuretechs, Fintech, Banks etc) to deepen insurance penetration in the region;
9. Develop and maintain strong professional and collaborative professional relations with project teams and stakeholders;
10. Develop and present proposals, update issues and findings to Customer Experience Director inclusive of suggestions, risk mitigations, cost benefit analysis and action plans;
11. Develop complete project design and execution documents with task-level project plans to manage external partners and cross functional teams;
12. Collaborate with project team members to identify business requirements.

Knowledge, experience and qualifications required

1. Minimum 5 years’ experience in a similar role with proven innovation experience;
2. University degree in Engineering IT of Commerce
3. Project Management certification and experience
4. Proven ability to review and appraise commercial viability of projects 
5. MBA will be an added advantage 

Leadership category responsibility framework (Core Competencies) 

Change Leaders in Britam need to

• Strategically lead a function to service customers from a sustainable and growing customer base whilst increasing profit;
• Continuously configure and adapt the functional area to most effectively suite the future view of the business;
• Introduce new concepts so that they are adopted appropriately at the right time (manage the rate of change);
• Be in touch with the changing industry, customer needs and international best practice; 
• Improve the efficiency of the function by appropriately challenging managers about operational and tactical issues; 
• Ensure the function has the most appropriate people capability through effective inspirational leadership, people development, and optimized succession planning; 
• Ensure clarity of expectations for individuals in the function and other stakeholders across the group;
• Facilitate functional integration; 
• Ensure the development and establishment of appropriate behavior and values (culture) within the function that aligns with the strategic direction and values of the business; 
• Co-ordinate between functions and divisions to ensure optimization of the value chain and resources; 
• Ensure alignment of strategy, objectives and deliverables within the function;
• Develop innovative partnerships and distribution channels to increase Britam’s market penetration;
• Ensure a seamless experience for clients;
• Appropriately allocate funds and capital to maximize shareholder value;
• Adequately manage operational risk;
• Increase operational efficiency; 
• Provide access to accurate and consistent information and services across all channels;
• Improve quality and speed of decision making across the business.