MD- IT Services & Innovation at Equity Bank Kenya

Description

Our purpose is transforming lives, giving dignity, and expanding opportunities for wealth creation.

The purpose of this role is to lead in driving our organization's innovation agenda while ensuring the seamless integration of technology solutions and robust IT service delivery. You will play a pivotal role in fostering a culture of innovation, spearheading collaboration with internal and external stakeholders, and identifying emerging technologies to drive business growth. Additionally, you will oversee the strategic planning and management of IT services, infrastructure, application support, security compliance, team leadership, vendor management, budgeting, resource allocation, strategic partnerships, external engagements, and market analysis for business development.

Job Responsibilities

• Develop and execute a comprehensive innovation strategy aligned with the company's objectives and market trends.
•  Identify emerging technologies, business models, and industry trends to drive innovation initiatives.
• Lead open innovation processes to identify, research, and screen potential platform technologies, fostering a culture of curiosity and learning.
•  Collaborate with internal stakeholders across departments to generate new ideas, concepts, and prototypes.
• Foster a culture of collaboration and knowledge-sharing to drive innovation across the organization.
• Lead ideation sessions and brainstorming workshops to generate innovative ideas and concepts.
•  Evaluate ideas based on strategic alignment, feasibility, and potential impact. Develop business cases and prototypes to test and validate concepts.
• Stay abreast of emerging technologies and industry trends relevant to the company's business.
• Create and uphold a structured opportunity assessment framework to steer the identification, promotion, and advancement of new ventures, fintech and BAAS partnerships, and/or engagements within the ecosystem.
• Identify potential technology partners, startups, and research institutions for collaboration on innovation projects.
• Set and manage timelines for evaluation, development, integration, and deployment of all technical services and solutions.
•  Identify opportunities for intellectual property creation and protection.
• Work with legal counsel to develop intellectual property strategies, including patents, trademarks, and copyrights.
• Build and maintain relationships with external innovation partners, including startups, accelerators, universities, and research institutions.
• Identify opportunities for collaboration, investment, and co-development.
• Manage the policy for VC and fintech startups, including guidelines for VC entry, partnership agreements, funding and cost management strategies, performance management for VC firms, revenue sharing models, entry and exit protocols for VCs, M&A models, innovation funding models, selection and engagement of venture capitalists, and matching startups with VC partners.
• Ensure the delivery of reliable and efficient IT services to meet organizational needs.
• Oversee the design, implementation, and maintenance of IT infrastructure, ensuring scalability, security, and reliability.
• Lead and mentor a team of IT professionals, providing coaching and professional development opportunities.
• Evaluate, select, and manage relationships with IT vendors, service providers, and technology partners.
•  Develop and manage the IT department budget, allocating resources effectively to support ongoing operations, innovation initiatives, and strategic objectives.
• Undertake market analyses to identify clients and validate product opportunities in key market sectors.
• Develop business cases, pricing strategies, and promotion plans for new products and services.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree preferably in Technology, Design, or Business-related field. A master’s degree will be an added advantage.

Knowledge and Experience Required

•  Minimum of 10 years of relevant work experience, including leading digital product development, business development, and managing teams.
• Experience in digital product and platform management, innovation and product development management, and delivery of mobile financial products and services in a high-growth environment.
•  Strong background in building relationships, networks, managing teams, project management, and mobile money, payments, or lending platform support.
• Proven leadership and people management skills.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills