The purpose of this position is to provide strategic leadership, execution and tactical planning for the technology and environments of the Merchants Group, ensuring the Merchants Group is at the forefront of creating and delivering leading edge solutions to its clients whilst maintaining overall management and control of the technology and environmental delivery across all geographies.
What you’ll be doing
What would make you a good fit for this role?
Technology Strategy
- Views the organization from a future systemic perspective and composes enterprise wide IT strategy that accommodates the future world of work in line with the business strategy.
- Identifies a roadmap and sources technology platforms, solutions and functionalities to meet future requirements against specific global benchmark positioning.
- Advise on the strategic technology planning of the organisation ensuring that strategic and high impact technologies are utilised to ensure competitive positioning
- Ensure that network equipment, hardware and software, services meet the business requirement.
- Develops and directs all networking safeguards to reduce the risk of outside breaches and protect sensitive internal and external client information
- Directs the development and possible implementation of policies in instances of a breach and as disaster recovery plans internally and for clients
- Provides reliable technical assessments of potential mergers and acquisitions for inclusion into the business strategic decision-making process.
- Monitors all new relevant technologies across different domains and assessing their potential to become new products or services.
- Oversees the selection of research projects to ensure that they have the potential to add value to Merchants.
- Designs solutions for geographical area of responsibility based on the technologies assessed and selected by the Executive Team.
- Develops annual technology goals for the global organisation and detailed plans for goal accomplishment.
- Leads and manages the technology overlap of IT delivered to internal customers and external customers where synergies exist.
- Advises on the establishment of infrastructure to support and guide the global organisation in their information technology efforts.
- Oversees the development, design and implementation of new applications and changes to existing systems and software packages.
Strategic Technology Partnerships
- Ensures the continual functioning of mission critical operations and contributes to the planning, organising, directing, controlling and evaluation of the operations of the information systems.
- Engage with internal stakeholders and relevant vendors to discuss system requirements, specifications, costs and timelines.
- Responsible for developing long-term strategic relationships in order to drive Merchants Group competitiveness from the use of its technology
- Develops Service Level Agreements with Technology partners, including favourable penalty clauses and acts as the escalation point for non-delivery.
- Ensures that any current or future commercial risk is minimized or mitigated.
- Negotiates and concludes favourable contractual agreements with partners.
- Continuously contribute to the improvement of internal effectiveness by contributing to improving current methodologies, processes and tools.
- Assessments of stakeholders in the regional market as potential partners and vendors that Merchants can collaborate with and maintains relationship with key partners.
- Co-ordinate the commercial and contractual aspects of the vendor relationships across the region and review hardware and software acquisition and maintenance contracts and pursue commercial agreements to capitalize on economies of scale.
- Defines and communicate corporate procedures, policies, and standards for acquiring, implementing, and operating new systems, equipment, software and other related technologies.
- Contributes to the management of global external technology projects and manage corporate projects as required.
Policies, Procedures and Best Practice
- Advises on the development and maintenance of technology and environment policies, standards and procedures.
- Ensures the provision of written policy guidance to senior management in the business.
- Maintains knowledge on current technology and environmental issues in order to incorporate strategy and ensure the organization is at the leading edge of developments. Continuously contribute to the improvement of internal effectiveness by contributing to improving current methodologies, processes and tools.
Financial Management
- Develops an annual but live business plan and operating budget for the Technology and Environment departments and monitors the implementation of these to ensure financial targets are met
- Weighs business effectiveness against cost and ensures risk-free spend.
- Outlines clear business cases for future investments
- Constantly looks to implement cost optimization measures across the business
Environmental Leadership
- Identifies and delivers technologies to support Merchants’ environmental sustainability with the specific goal to reduce the company’s carbon footprint.
- Assess environmental impact of technology processes and products.
- Develops and implements a ‘Green’ procurement policy for all technological products and services in respect of acquisition, use and disposal, and recommends improvements
- Explores and recommends energy conservation measures that reduce power consumption
- Maintains a thorough understanding of the relevant legislation, current developments and best practices in relation to sustainable development
- Develops, implements, and evaluates short and long-range goals and objectives based on the assessment of facility maintenance needs
- Assumes accountability for health and safety direction and implementation
- Plans and participates in strategic and fiscal planning with respect to facilities management
People Management
Leadership
- Leads by example in living the values of the organisation
- Ensures the department is fully equipped to handle the work load and distribute work flow
- Coaches to ensure a full understanding of consequences of errors
- Creates an environment that fosters team work and co-operation amongst team members
- Creates awareness of Merchants strategic objectives and their alignment to the department and company objectives
- Communicates effectively, building and maintaining relationships
- Ensures consistent compliance to company policies and procedures, corporate governance and relevant legislation
Attraction & Selection
- Ensures appropriate staffing and action accordingly
- Identifies need for creation of position and forward recommendation to direct manager and HR
- Ensures appointments are in line with EE targets / strategy
- Selects and places candidates in terms of agreed recruitment and selection process
Retention
- Develops and empowers people, recognizing and rewarding value-added performance
Training and Development
- Continually strives to up-skill and motivate staff through effective leadership, mentoring, coaching, performance improvement and the creation and implementation of individual development plans
- Monitors implementation of training needs as per individual development plans
- Guides in Career Pathing and ensures Succession Planning
- Identifies, manages and develops talent
- Assumes responsibility for identifying key roles and potential successors for the roles
- Ensures successors are placed within an acceptable time frame.
Performance Management
- Sets direct reports quantitative and qualitative performance objectives and ensure individual performance objectives are in place and reviewed to meet organisational and individual needs
- Ensures bi-annual performance reviews take place with direct reports, identifies poor performance and takes corrective action
Knowledge
- Minimum 12 years leadership experience at a senior level
- Minimum 5 years as an IT lead in the BPO industry including experience in Advanced Technology Solution Architecture
- Minimum 3 years at an Executive Level managing Technology
- Measurable track record in delivering success across technology, commercial and people management
- Environmental impact understanding
- Governance and legal understanding of environmental and facilities impact issues
Skills
- Change Initiation (L5)
- Collaboration
- Concern for Excellence (L5)
- Entrepreneurial Thinking (L5)
- Innovation (L5)
- Strategic Planning (L5)
- Technical Expertise (L5)
- Leadership (L5)
Attributes
- Initiative
Join our growing global team and accelerate your career with Dimension Data. Apply today.
Diversity in Dimension Data
Dimension Data is an equal opportunity employer with a global culture that embraces diversity. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be unfairly discriminated against on any arbitrary ground including race, colour, sex, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, or other protected category.
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