Head of Project Management Office at MasterCard

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.
• If you are a passionate transformational leader ready to influence real change and increase your impact, read on!

The Opportunity

• The Head of Project Management Office will be responsible for managing a team of who use best practice methodologies to deliver business critical project i.e., critical facing, enterprise software development projects, business intelligence, logistics and any other foundation critical systems.
• S(he) will lead efforts to improve our processes, making our teams highly productive and also champion the adoption of engineering practices like Continuous Integration and Test-Driven Development.

Ways You Can Contribute

• Contributes to the development and delivery of overall Technology strategy in collaboration with internal and external stakeholders.
• Builds, deploys and operates a PMO Office. Defines the approach for Continuous Improvement of the PMO Office including tools used, education requirements, management systems, metrics, review cycles, projects execution governance and value realization measurement.
• Reviews project proposals to ensure they are complete, and aligned with the overall foundation strategy.
• Manages the strategic aspects of large programs/engagements and mitigates projects execution
• Establish projects governance structures adjusted to project size, complexity, risk level and priority.
• Run the project governance calls and address stakeholders concerns. Request support from the governance structure where needed.
• Establishes appropriate project standards, communicates to the cross-functional teams the standards and enforces them across the organization.
• Within the context of approved projects, review and oversee the delivery of business change management activities and business process improvements.
• Review and approve the project communication deliverables and advocacy for the delivered solution and supported business vision.
• Build project plan in alignment with project scope and priority. Ensure business quarterly and yearly activities are considered when planning projects key milestones.
• Validate project timelines with internal and external stakeholders including project sponsors, IT Operations Team, and vendors.
• Ensure risks and issues are tracked and reported. Mitigation plans are built and executed.
• Ensure project methodologies are properly selected (waterfall, agile) and take into consideration the project scope, nature, priority and stakeholders’ expectations.
• Manage project vendors contracts and deliverables.
• Leads and maintains a strong team of project and program managers by providing training & skill development in addition to coaching and mentoring.

Who You Are

• 15+ years of business work experience, including significant leadership responsibilities with proven ability to influence senior level management and key stakeholders.
• Experience working as a Project Manager delivering large scale global programs in a complex organization.
• Appropriate project management and/or business analysis training/qualifications are an asset (PMP/PMIBOK, BCS/ISEB diploma, IIBA or equivalent certifications).
• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously with a global scope.
• Experience delivering projects with various methodologies: waterfall or agile.
• Experience in project management delivery with a scope across several business processes, business applications, data & analytics applied for core business (Finance, HR, Logistics, Operations, Sales, etc.).
• Experience delivering projects in IT infrastructure space is a plus.
• Experience reviewing and examining business processes and systems, modelling data, organizing activities and developing business strategies leading to successful business projects execution.
• Strong experience with data analysis, management reporting and project management tools is an asset.
• Are results driven and motivated by a sense of performance excellence and a sense of urgency; possesses a proactive and ‘self-starter’ mentality.
• Possesses a global mind-set and professional maturity and demonstrates sensitivity to working within different cultures.
• You have a commitment to Mastercard Foundation’s values and vision.
• French language and/or local language skills are an asset.