Senior Programme Director (Strategic Projects)

Our client is a rapidly expanding fintech and financial services organization delivering complex lending, financial inclusion, and institutional partnership programs across Africa. As the company scales, they are increasingly engaged in high-impact initiatives involving governments, banks, telecommunications providers, development partners, and large beneficiary populations.

They are looking to hire a Senior Programme Director to lead the successful delivery of strategic initiatives that require exceptional coordination, governance, stakeholder management, and execution discipline. This role is designed for a leader who can navigate complexity, align diverse stakeholders, and transform ambitious commitments into measurable outcomes.

Job Overview

The Senior Programme Director will take full ownership of major strategic projects, partnerships, and program deployments from initiation through execution. This individual will serve as the central coordinator across internal teams, external partners, government agencies, financial institutions, and operational stakeholders to ensure projects are delivered on time, within scope, and within budget.

Success in this role requires the ability to establish governance structures, manage competing priorities, mitigate risks proactively, and maintain alignment among multiple parties with different objectives.

Job Responsibilities

Strategic Programme Leadership

• Lead the planning, execution, and delivery of large-scale strategic initiatives.
  
• Translate executive commitments and partnership agreements into structured implementation plans.
  
• Define project scope, milestones, timelines, ownership structures, and performance measures.
  
• Ensure projects are delivered according to agreed objectives, schedules, and budgets.
  

Multi-Stakeholder Project Governance

• Establish and oversee governance frameworks for complex projects involving multiple organizations.
  
• Coordinate project planning, resource allocation, and execution activities.
  
• Facilitate decision-making processes and escalation pathways.
  
• Maintain project documentation, risk registers, and progress reporting systems.
  

Stakeholder & Partnership Management

• Serve as the primary operational lead for strategic partners, government agencies, financial institutions, and enterprise stakeholders.
  
• Build strong working relationships with counterpart organizations.
  
• Translate regulatory, operational, legal, and technical requirements into actionable project deliverables.
  
• Manage stakeholder expectations and ensure alignment throughout project lifecycles.
  

Cross-Functional Coordination

• Align Product, Technology, Risk, Operations, Legal, and Business teams around project goals and deliverables.
  
• Identify dependencies, resource constraints, and execution risks.
  
• Facilitate collaboration across departments to prevent delays and execution bottlenecks.
  
• Ensure accountability among stakeholders regardless of reporting structures.
  

Programme Deployment & Operations

• Design scalable implementation frameworks for field operations, beneficiary profiling, onboarding programs, and verification initiatives.
  
• Lead operational deployment activities for strategic programs and market expansion initiatives.
  
• Develop repeatable implementation methodologies and programme delivery playbooks.
  
• Monitor program performance and drive continuous improvement initiatives.
  

Risk Management & Issue Resolution

• Anticipate project risks and identify challenges before they become visible to senior leadership.
  
• Analyze the root causes of delivery risks and recommend corrective actions.
  
• Present practical solutions, options, and recommendations when issues arise.
  
• Maintain effective escalation mechanisms and contingency plans.
  

Strategic Programmes May Include

• Institutional partnerships
  
• Government programs
  
• Large-scale verification and onboarding initiatives
  
• New product launches
  
• Banking integrations
  
• Strategic transformation projects
  
• Regional expansion programs
  
• Multi-country deployment initiatives
  

First 90 Days Priorities

• Establish structured program management frameworks, including:

• Project plans and Gantt charts
  
• Risk registers
  
• Governance structures
  
• Weekly stakeholder review meetings
  

• Successfully lead the deployment of an active strategic partnership, bank integration, or expansion initiative.
• Develop a standardized program delivery playbook for large-scale operational projects.
• Create reporting systems that provide visibility into project performance, risks, and dependencies.

Job Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Project Management, Public Administration, Engineering, Finance, or a related field.
  
• Significant experience managing large-scale, cross-functional programs or strategic initiatives.
  
• Proven track record coordinating multiple stakeholders across organizations and functions.
  
• Experience delivering projects involving government agencies, financial institutions, technology teams, or large operational deployments.
  

Core Competencies

• Programme and project management
  
• Stakeholder engagement
  
• Strategic planning and execution
  
• Governance and risk management
  
• Cross-functional leadership
  
• Operational delivery
  
• Problem-solving and decision-making
  
• Change management
  
• Executive communication
  

Success Measures

Within 90 Days

• Governance frameworks are established for all major strategic initiatives.
  
• Key stakeholder relationships are effectively managed.
  
• Active strategic projects are progressing according to plan.
  

Within 6 Months

• Major programs operate with clear ownership, reporting, and risk management structures.
  
• Cross-functional coordination improves project execution speed and quality.
  

Within 12 Months

• Strategic initiatives are delivered consistently, on time, and within budget.
  
• The organization develops a repeatable framework for managing complex multi- stakeholder projects at scale.