Job Description
MasterCard Labs: A culture of innovation
MasterCard Labs is MasterCard’s global Research and Development division, focused on the evolution of technological and consumer trends and the implication of these evolutions on the payments industry. Our tried, tested and proven methodologies enable us to generate new ideas from a variety of sources, and fast-track the best ideas from concept through prototype, pilot and into commercialization faster than ever before.
Diversity is critical to innovation success. MasterCard Labs runs projects across multiple geographies and comprises a diverse team of passionate individuals from a variety of cultures, backgrounds and disciplines. We operate as a single team collaborating on a global scale to identify and drive disruptive, breakthrough innovations in payments.
Over the last few years, MasterCard Labs has created hundreds of prototypes, in a variety of areas – commerce-related digital convergence, payment acceptance, loyalty and rewards, digital currencies, digital receipts, authentication, electronic bill presentment and payment, P2P payments, MPOS, disbursements, social commerce and many, many more – all focused on how MasterCard is executing on our strategy to drive preference for electronic payments and the MasterCard brand, with solutions that meet the needs of consumers, merchants, issuers, acquirers and governments.
MasterCard Labs for Financial Inclusion: Accelerating Financial Inclusion through innovation and technology
MasterCard Labs is excited to announce the launch of MasterCard Labs for Financial Inclusion which will leverage proven MasterCard Labs innovation methodologies, along with MasterCard assets and expertise, to ideate, prototype, pilot and bring to market breakthrough payment solutions which address the financial needs of the poor.
MasterCard is committed to providing the means for the unbanked and underserved to move out of poverty. We are passionate about leveraging innovative technology to drive wide scale growth of financial inclusion across Africa.
Summary of the role: Your opportunity to effect change
Finding the right person to lead MasterCard Labs for Financial Inclusion is critical to its success. We are seeking an experienced leader who shares our passion for innovative technology and its potential to make the world a better place from a financial inclusion perspective.
As the face of MasterCard Labs for Financial Inclusion you will play a pivotal role in launching and establishing the innovation Lab, with responsibility for driving strategy, as well as overall management of the Lab. You will lead, empower and motivate the Labs team comprising both technology experts and business people who are passionate about making a difference.
You will enable and catalyse innovation through the establishment, management and evolution of a comprehensive innovation program. You will leverage best practices and learnings, incorporate new ideas and assimilate with proven MasterCard Labs innovation processes.
To be successful in this role, you must possess strong people skills, and effective communication skills as you will be required to represent MasterCard Lab for Financial Inclusion and influence:
• Local government & authorities
• Media
• Financial institutions
• Local start-up community
• Senior executives
• Local universities
Key Accountabilities
• Provide day-to-day leadership of MasterCard Labs for Financial Inclusion team: hiring, setting and tracking objectives, obtaining resources, overseeing task completion; and reporting progress, accomplishments and hurdles to MasterCard Management.
• Represent MasterCard Labs for Financial Inclusion and influence the external perception of it.
• Assist with building out the Labs support model.
• Oversee and manage Lab’s budget and performance, including research and development budget as needed; ensure efficiency and effectiveness of spend.
• Serve as principal liaison between the Lab team and MasterCard core businesses.
• Provide regular updates on the progress of the Lab to the Steering Group.
• Orchestrate internal and external idea generation processes to generate new ideas to feed into the innovations process.
• Manage design, development and implementation of financial inclusion focused innovation programs; identify opportunities, anticipate barriers and develop roadmap/bridge to cultivate desired innovation mind-set.
• Continuously improve and scale the innovation program by sharing best practices and lessons learned.
• Evaluate all ideas’ against established criteria to determine their fitness for Labs, and then orchestrate the effort to incubate the most promising ideas taking them from concept, through rapid prototyping and market testing, to commercialization.
• Analyse incubation infrastructure needs and recommend framework, including staffing based on functional areas required, funding, technology and facility needs.
• Anticipate, define and help capture opportunities for Lab to partner with local start-up companies or other external entities to drive financial inclusion focused solutions.
• Serve as a trusted advisor and business partner to the Global Head of Innovation Management as well as the Chief Innovation Officer to ensure success of the Lab; helps build and develop Lab team.
• Deliver on the agreed to outputs of the MasterCard Lab for Financial Inclusion.
Skills and Competencies
• Strong management and communication skills: must be able to provide clear direction and feedback to team; must be able to establish realistic objectives, know how to measure for them and set/correct course as needed.
• Excellent people skills: must have ability to influence people who do not report to him/her.
• Strong organizational skills: must be able to maintain oversight of many moving parts and keep multiple large projects on track.
• High energy, can-do attitude, strong desire to succeed.
• Strong facilitation skills
• Analytical, strategic skills and strong presentation skills.
• Demonstrated experience in innovation.
• Entrepreneurial, experience in a start-up and corporate environment.
• Product development and commercialization, ideally including technology-driven products.
• Knowledge of the East African market and the current availability of financial services in that region is desirable.
• Experience in marketing communications disciplines, information technology, sales and payments industry.
Education
• Bachelor’s degree.
• MBA or relevant experience leading large teams or running a start-up company is desirable.
Work location Nairobi, Kenya