Head of Strategy and Execution Absa Group Limited

Job Summary
Provide complex advice and support in facilitating long term strategy development.
Responsible for developing and executing of Absa Uganda’s Strategy aimed at seeing the bank navigate an optimal strategic path over the next 5 to 10 years:
• Designing a clear strategy that materially alters the future fortunes and financial profile of Absa
• Implementing various immediate change programmers for instance Full Time Employee re-design and channel optimization
• Designing the banks operating model based on principles that underpin the new strategy.
• Designing the banks digital transformation strategy and supporting the incubation of critical initiatives that underpin the strategy
• Attending and participating in all Absa Uganda Board meetings, country management meetings, Absa Group senior leadership meetings (on invitation) to provide financial and strategic guidance
• Leading stakeholders’ engagements on the bank’s strategy, with the Board, the Central Bank, Investors, Media, Staff, and various executive committee members at the Group
• Acting as subject matter expertise on strategy for the bank-wide business and functional units as required.

Job Description
Accountability: Strategy Formulation
• Plays a leadership role in supporting the development of long-term strategic plans through the identification of strategic issues and opportunities that could influence business growth and profitability.
• Facilitates the Country Management Committee strategy formulation sessions.
• Acting as subject matter expertise on country strategic landscape to Group senior leadership
• Co-ordinates formulation of a clear strategy that ensures growth in Revenue and Market share of Absa Bank Uganda for approval by the Board.
• Develops a strategy communication plan for internal and external stakeholders and facilitates the cascading of the strategy to the rest of the Bank.
• Accountable for fact based research to inform business cases in support of new strategic initiatives including but not limited to: external market opportunity; regulatory landscape; competitor landscape; infrastructure maturity; our capabilities to compete; and outline of constraints, opportunities and potential linkages to facilitate growth strategies.
• Leads business and function units in building bottom-up strategies to ensure convergence to the overall bank strategy.
• Works closely with the Chief Financial Officer in developing the financial strategy to ensure the corporate strategy is grounded into an optimised financial plan
• Tracking the execution of the bank strategy with key milestones use as a refresh point for the strategy
• Leading specific strategy projects including and not limited to, operating model, restructuring, new investments, and critical hires

Accountability: Strategy Leadership and Business support
• Stays abreast of industry trends and role players and ensure that Absa Bank Uganda is well positioned to provide competitive and industry leading services. Build an understanding of in-country local market knowledge.
• Leads specific strategy and change projects including and not limited to channel optimisation, operating model and any strategic change projects or initiatives.
• Designs the Bank’s operating model based on principles that underpin the strategy in liaison with information technology design and supporting the incubation of critical initiatives that underpin the strategy.
• Participates in Absa Uganda Board meetings, Country Management meetings, Absa Africa Regional Office senior leadership meetings (on invitation) to provide financial and strategic guidance.
• Acts as the subject matter expertise on strategy for the bank –wide business and functional units as required.
• Actively manages the Managing Director’s office and coordinating key activities. Acts as the secretariat to the Country Management Committee. Provide secretariate services to the CMC. (7 days – minutes and packs including Non-financial and Financial, MBR, Board, Review of other committee packs)
• Provide the Business with market intelligence reports that highlight key Business opportunities and recommend actions on how to advance our play in specific areas of interest. (4 weeks per quarter)
• Follow up with the Business on key strategic actions. Validate the quality of delivery of the solutions agreed and provide support to action owners where required. (5 days – managing Planex, engage with stakeholders to achieve quality closure of strategic actions)
• Drive a high performing culture. Support in the creation/ maintenance and validation of function and individual balanced scorecards.

Accountability: Stakeholder Management
• Manages all stakeholders in the strategy formulation and execution process including but not limited to the Board, Country Management Committee, Staff members and ARO strategy team.
• Be liaison for the MD office in all Business monthly MBRs and strategy sessions.
• Develops and maintains excellent working relationships with the regulators, professional bodies and other industry participants with the objective of promoting the bank’s strategy and influencing the developing of the banking industry.

Accountability: Drive Business Performance
• Implements performance controls to proactively measure achievements against strategic targets and address changes or non-performance.
• Provides ongoing advice and direction to the operational environment managed by this role in terms of the areas of focus, opportunities, key targets, and relative policies, legislative and regulatory environment.
• Drives the proactive negotiations contacts with business unit heads that impact financial performance, with a continued focus on improved performance, reduction in turnaround times, reduced cost and optimal allocation of capital and resources to economic units.
• Continuously monitors service levels and implement strategic measures to improve overall profitability
• Works with finance and risk governance structures and stakeholder frameworks to ensure effective control framework for the respective units.
• Represents, participates and contributes to industry and bank wide forums and governance structure as required or directed, aimed at developing the banking industry and corporate and investment banking in picture
• Manages the preparation and co-ordination of all monthly business reviews and tracks execution of all actions by the various business and support functions.
• Hold client visits and work with Business teams to provide expedient solutioning of customer’s needs.

Accountability: Knowledge and Information Management
• Ensures effective event management; senior business visits; and open forums are held to standards and actions are followed through.
• Accountable to produce briefing material, presentation and reports required by the Managing Director for range of visits, meetings, conferences across the country; ensuring adequate engagement of key stakeholders; in liaison with External Affairs, PR and Communications business partners
• Accompanies the Managing Director on visits where required, recording feedback for wider communication and progressing follow up actions.
• Produces results communication and business information cascade for internal staff.
• Plans and monitors a calendar of events/annual diary of activity for Managing Director to ensure efficient use of time in line with strategy and co-ordinating functional leaders to the agenda.
• Accountable to provide reports required in the Africa Regional Office, Absa Bank.
• Run a think tank campaign that identifies ideas from our people with the aim to accelerate business growth.
• Run a budget to act on the best ideas with the aim to identify the one or two that would significantly accelerate growth.
• Work in partnership with Innovation Hubs to identify external fintech’s that the Bank can work with to achieve our ambition.

Education
Bachelor`s Degrees and Advanced Diplomas: Business, Commerce and Management Studies (Required)