Strategic Operations Transformation Lead at Mastercard Foundation

Mastercard Foundation is a global foundation based across four hubs in Kigali, Rwanda, Nairobi, Kenya, Accra, Ghana and Toronto, Canada. Our programs promote financial inclusion and advance education and learning in Africa, primarily for young people, and in Canada for Indigenous youth. The Foundation was established in 2006 through the generosity of Mastercard when it became a public company. From inception, the Foundation was designed to be a separate entity and independent from Mastercard. Our policies, operations, and funding decisions are made by our President and Board of Directors.

The Foundation believes that youth employment is key to unlocking prosperity, both for youth and their societies. Enabling young women and men from disadvantaged communities to secure dignified and fulfilling work will ensure inclusive development and economic growth in Africa.

Job Title: Strategic Operations Transformation Lead

Location: Nigeria

The Work at the Foundation

• We have entered a very exciting time at the Foundation as we scale up our operations across Africa to realize our Young Africa Works strategy. Our role at the Mastercard Foundation is to be a catalyst. Our Young Africa Works strategy focuses on working with others to spur systemic change so young people have the opportunity to find work that is dignified and fulfilling.
• The Foundation has opened offices in Rwanda, Kenya, Ghana, Senegal, Ethiopia, Nigeria and Uganda, building a broader leadership presence in Africa to develop specific strategies that support youth employment.  Within a country, we work with governments, the private sector, educators and other funders to improve the quality of education and vocational training, prepare young people for the work force, expand access to financial services for entrepreneurs and small businesses, and connect job seekers to dignified and fulfilling work.
• We are ambitious and driven. Our values transcend and rise above everything else as our guide. We encourage you to bring your bold ideas, curiosity, and expertise to your work. We laugh at ourselves and with each other. We are a team. Our journey together makes our impact even more meaningful.
• We have entered a very exciting time at the Foundation as we scale up our operations across Africa to realize our Young Africa Works strategy. If you are a Strategic Operations professional ready to build something new and increase your impact, read on!

The Opportunity

• The Transformation Lead will report to the Head of Strategic Operations and is responsible for leading the day-to-day delivery of the Enterprise Transformation Team by managing and supporting workstreams through problem-solving and facilitation; support on-the-ground implementation of new operating model on continent; and supporting the Head of Strategic Operations on key initiatives.
• This role is open to candidates in any of our country offices in Africa (Kenya, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Uganda, Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal).

Ways You Can Contribute

• Design, institute, and manage a rigorous transformation office structure to house, coordinate, and enable cross-functional, typically enterprise-level efforts that fundamentally expand the organization’s capabilities or substantive alter how the organization does its work.
• Scope, structure and develop workplans for individual workstreams with clear tracking of milestones and interdependencies, by engaging functional leadership.
• Structure, convene, and drive problem solving through facilitation and output synthesis to address process and content bottlenecks with workstream leaders as required.
• Create or utilize appropriate technologies to track and manage against integrative milestones with specific focus on complex workstream dependencies that impact ability to deliver.
• Develop KPIs and metrics to manage workstreams against to ensure timely delivery and dependency management.
• Maintain rigorous meeting cadence of workstreams and stakeholders (e.g., weekly transformation office stand-ups, bi-weekly retrospectives, problem-solving sessions).
• Create well-structured top-down documents to drive problem solving sessions, workstream management, quantify / clarify workstream progress and potential impacts.
• Proactively identify potential risks /roadblocks to execution timelines and design targeted hands-on interventions to solve challenges.
• Design and manage all transformation office infrastructure to enable core transformation functions, including, management structures and processes, tools, templates, systems, team, and resourcing.
• Work closely with Communications and senior leadership to develop and action communication and change management strategies in concert with transformation office, workstream leads, implementation efforts, and any other cross-functional activity in service of organizational transformation.
• Engage senior leadership as necessary to maintain execution pace and standards.

Who You Are

• 10+ years’ experience in designing and executing complex projects that are cross-functional and implicate multiple dependencies, and against stringent timelines
• Bachelor’s degree with strong preference for experience in management and strategy consulting
• Expertise in Microsoft Office applications (i.e., Excel, PowerPoint); familiarity with more advanced project management / planning platforms (e.g., Asana) also an asset
• Seasoned experience facilitating at C-level and Board-level to drive problem-solving and strategy dialogues
• Proven problem-solving skills, pragmatic (80/20) efficiency, with the ability to prototype approaches to different problem types
• Experience managing a global team with the willingness to drive and hold cross-functional workstream leaders accountable for KPIs/milestones
• Possess excellent verbal, written, and presentation skills with the ability to articulate information to a variety of constituents across cultures and at all levels
• Positive and proactive project / process management with an eye for detail and a strong ownership mentality
• Possess keen emotional intelligence, polished professional maturity, sensitivity with different cultures, and impeccable integrity that exemplify the Foundation’s values
• Resilient, flexible, adaptable, and able to execute a range of job duties and changing priorities
• Commitment to Mastercard Foundation’s values and vision and passion for the development and well-being of youth
• French language and/or local language skills are an asset

Deadline: 16th April, 2021.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online