Project Manager at Mukuru

• The Project Manager will be responsible for organizing, leading, and helping primarily execute strategic company projects. This PM will handle a broad and diverse range of responsibilities and assignments, reporting directly to the PMO HOD, and ultimately the Head of PMO, to support the Executive team’s strategic objectives. This candidate will need to embrace attributes of adaptability and flexibility as the specific duties and responsibilities will evolve based on both the skills of the incumbent and the ever-changing environment of the business as it grows and scales. This role will require high levels of Change Management experience that will allow him/ her to plug into all areas of the business to effectively execute and deliver strategic projects, with a strong affinity to relationship building, collaborating and negotiating. Furthermore, business acumen is a necessity for the role, as well as the ability to engage Executives, Department Heads, and the Board. The application of, and adherence to PMO methodology will be a requirement for every strategic project. As such, candidates with significant experience and knowledge of appropriate project management methodologies will have a competitive advantage.
• Mukuru’s Project Management Office takes a hybrid project management approach, in which we apply both Waterfall and Agile methodologies. Our environment is fast-paced and requires a PM that can think on his/her toes and not be overwhelmed by pressure. Being able to communicate articulately and command a room (meeting) is a must!

Are you the person we are looking for?

• Proven experience in project management. This one’s important! Have you successfully planned, organized, led, and monitored activities of project teams? Do you maintain overall control of the schedule, budget, and scope, and ensure project plans and working products are based on approved, agreed-upon requirements? Do you have the ability to easily form collaborative and productive working relationships across the organization to ensure projects are adopted and understood in all areas of the business – managing multiple stakeholders and cross-functional teams? Do you have proven change management experience?
• Are you skilled at preparing project management deliverables (project plans, roadmaps/timelines, change requests and KPI’s) and using these to conduct and assess the Project? Does your knowledge base and experience include (and is not limited to) a deep understanding and application of project management methodologies?
• A unique requirement for this role is the ability to apply structured project management methods but being flexible enough to pivot and iterate, while regularly communicating changes to relevant stakeholders.

Responsibilities (include But Is Not Limited To)

• To plan, lead, organise and control multiple projects to ensure timeous delivery.
• To coordinate communication between project stakeholders, team members and suppliers to ensure that project objectives are achieved.
• To manage risks and issues on projects to mitigate negative impact on the project outcomes.
• To ensure the timeous resolution of project queries and barriers for the project team
• To report on all project statuses.
• To manage own professional and self-development.

What will you be doing, exactly?

• Work within a highly matrixed organisation, establish solutions and drive execution of projects to completion.
• Champions PMO methodology, tools, and techniques, supplementing any needs with traditional project management methods.
• Consults on project development and management of high-risk, high-impact Strategic projects.
• Represent the business during the project development and refinement, while communicating decisions and gaining buy in from business stakeholders on business value.
• Collaborating on project scopes and objectives, involving all relevant stakeholders, and ensuring operational feasibility - leading project planning/scoping sessions
• Develop detailed project plans to track progress – regularly report back to PMO and stakeholders on project performance (KPI’s)
• Ensures integrity of original project scope is maintained and any adjustments are communicated and understood by all key stakeholders.
• Use appropriate verification techniques to manage changes in project scope, schedule, and costs.
• Perform risk management to minimize project risks - identifies risks and vulnerabilities and creates contingency plans.
• Partner and lead projects across a broad spectrum of strategic initiatives
• Coordinate internal resources in the successful execution of projects – establishing communications plan for all projects and applying change management techniques.
• Manage stakeholder engagements, from meeting scheduling to agenda setting and minute taking.
• Ensures projects/intake requests are integrated with other business and related projects, where necessary
• Creating detailed Strategic Projects portfolio reports for executive staff – managing project data
• Measure project performance using appropriate systems, tools, and techniques.
• Create and maintain comprehensive project documentation.
• Must demonstrate strong project management skills, such as a thorough understanding and focus of the value to be delivered, engagement, collaboration, communication and management of key stakeholders and partners in a matrixed environment.
• Demonstrate the ability to plan effectively, monitor progress against goals, and exercise timely and appropriate escalation and mitigation of barriers.

Key Requirements

• Grade 12 or equivalent (Essential)
• PM or Agile Certification (PMP, PRINCE II, MPM, Scaled Agile etc.) (Essential)
• Bachelor’s degree in economics, Business Administration, or related field (Essential); MBA preferred.
• 10+ years of experience working in Project Management/PMO, with high-level management experience preferred (Essential)
• Experience in executing and delivering strategic projects (Essential)
• Background in financial services (Beneficial)
• Knowledge of the application of project management methodologies and standards
• Firm grasp of fintech products and services and operational best practice
• A deep understanding of system integrations and fintech product enablement
• Knowledge of payments and remittances

Additional Skills

• Able to exercise independent judgment and act on it.
• Excellent analytical and creative problem-solving skills
• Excellent listening, interpersonal, written, and oral communication skills
• Solid organizational skills including attention to detail and multi-tasking skills.
• Logical and efficient, with keen attention to detail
• Highly self-motivated and directed.
• Ability to effectively prioritise and execute tasks while under pressure.
• Strong customer service orientation
• Must be able to adapt quickly to change, be agile in approach, but thorough in execution.
• Ability to communicate technical and complex concepts to stakeholders.