Latest Openings at MultiChoice

Purpose of the Position:

The Senior Product Researcher is responsible for leading UX and market research initiatives at Showmax, overseeing daily research operations, from recruitment to insight documentation. Develop and maintain a current understanding of user digital video habits, viewing behaviors, and purchasing needs. Investigate cultural and territorial variations in these behaviors. Collaborate with product managers and designers on product strategy, ensuring key decisions align with user needs. Establish efficient research processes, prioritizing and managing both short and long-term UX research activities to drive continuous improvement.

Research

• Lead and own research for Showmax
• Establish processes for organising user research and testing across product team, ensuring appropriate prioritisation of projects and managing short and long-term research plans.
• Provide regular reports to the Showmax product teamon deliverables, project status and any issues encountered.
• Conduct research using a wide variety of qualitative methods, subset of quantitative methods (i.e. surveys), and interpret analysis through the lens of UX, HCI, and social science.
• Drive best practices in user research, usability and analysis; lead research and protocol reviews, and provide feedback and guidance to larger team.
• Develop a healthy panel of participants from which we can recruit for various product, UX studies.
• Research market, customers and potential customers to keep an up to date view of digital video habits, behaviors and user needs.
• Generate profiles of Showmax customers to be used in product design e.g. in the creation of empathy maps and personas.
• Generate insights and recommendations, that both fuel ideation and evaluate designs.
• Design studies that address both user behavior and attitudes.
• Incorporate statistics and analytics as research tools where applicable when considering studies.
• Manage multiple projects simultaneouslyusing strong communication skills to manage time and expectations appropriately.

Stakeholder Management

• Work cross-functionally with designers, product managers and other key stakeholders.
• Collaborate with product leaders to prioritize research questions based on analysis of current knowledge, project goals, identified risks, and project impact. Identify best method or mix of methods to address research questions, with consideration for timeline and resources with minimal guidance.
• Advise product team on research opportunities and best practices at all stages of product development process.
• Build strong stakeholder relationships, effectively communicate with product managers and designers to make decisions based on a strong understanding of business, customer and design tradeoffs.
• Present results from usability tests and other user research activities to other teams.
• Evangelize good user experience, the importance and value of UX research, and encourage a customer first mind set.
• Foster a healthy tension between stakeholders, encouraging discussions that take into account business needs, user needs, and what is possible.

Qualifications

• B.A/B.S. in Anthropology, Psychology, Social Science, Multimedia or a related field or equivalent.
• User experience qualification and training beneficial.
• Management, systems thinking certifications beneficial.

Technical Competencies (List the key technical competencies)

• UX research + testing
• UX design
• Project management
• Market awareness
• Concept presentation
• Communication and negotiation
• Report writing
• Assertiveness
• User empathy
• Product Development
• Customer Behavior Analysis
• Data Analysis
• B.A/B.S. in Anthropology, Psychology, Social Science, Multimedia or a related field or equivalent.
• User experience qualification and training beneficial.
• Management, systems thinking certifications beneficial.

Experience

• 5 – 8 years experience in research, customer experience or related field.
• 2 – 3 years experience leading UX research projects.
• Comprehensive knowledge in a variety of industry-centric qualitative research methods, such as semi-structured interviews, contextual inquiries, usability studies, diary ethnographic studies, unmoderated remote studies, paper prototyping, surveys, A/B testing and Card sorting.
• Demonstrated ability to plan and conduct research in close collaboration with people in a variety of roles, including design, technology, and product management.
• Knowledge of quantitative, behavioral analysis, and statistical concepts.
• Experience with survey research (questionnaire design, sampling, analysis).
• Ability to ask, as well as answer, meaningful and impactful questions.
• Ability to clearly, concisely, and persuasively communicate your findings, translate data into actionable insights, verbally and in writing.
• Understanding of qualitative analysis and reporting methods suitable for the fast pace of industry; ability to quickly shift the methodology and scope of research projects to meet short deadlines while collecting the best possible data and delivering actionable results.
• Experience in creating user testing scripts and leading testing sessions.
• Experience creating UX test protocols, specifications and presentations.
• Good understanding of UX and user centered design principles.
• Ability to present findings to diverse audience.

Behavioral Competencies

• Accountability
• Teamwork
• Delegation
• Interpersonal Support
• Motivating
• Prioritisation
• Relationship Building
• Conflict Resolution
• Decision Making
• Critical Appraisal
• Holistic, Strategic + Analytical Thinking

Persuading & Influence

• Coaching
• Active Listening
• Perseverance, good work ethic and initiative.

go to method of application »

Purpose of the Position

• The scope of responsibility will include all activities within the billing journey including operational support processes.

Maintaining an efficient billing and payment process

Responsibilities of this position include, but are not limited to, those listed below:

• Develop, review and update billing rules as needed and identify improvements that will affect the overall experience of the customer.
• Perform and sign off UAT testing on all billing and process related changes in the core billing systems.
• Leakage Management: Manage controls to ensure minimum OTC revenue losses by correcting the KPIs discrepancies on a daily basis.
• Collaborate with the Customer Group and operations to make sure that billing issues raised are resolved timeously.
• Resolve issues raised, by fixing customer accounts in the billing systems and log Technology change requests to fix system errors or system configuration updates (i.e. billing rules), as required
• Perform 1st line root cause analysis on persistent discrepancies and provide input for solutions.
• Agree on, and oversee performance against, clear SLAs with third party payment platforms and escalate issues when needed.
• Operational Excellence: Take accountability for ensuring that the department outputs are of expected standards as outlined in the SLA.
• Strategy Support: Support the Shared Services and product team on the strategic goals.
• Manage the partner management payment and settlement reconciliation in order to raise invoicing and calculate commission.
• Manage the creation of vouchers and reconciliation thereof.

People management

• Structure and manage the team from a day-to-day basis, measuring performance and actively managing, and taking proactive steps to fix, performance issues.
• Actively participate in growing the individual capabilities of the team keeping them abreast of leading practices
• Develop and coach the team to identify talent and build the team to support further growth and expansion of the company.
• Determine and analyse development needs for the team and ensure that identified training requirements are budgeted for and executed.
• Strengthen team skills through available training and developmental programs.
• Ensure efficient workflow and work distribution to meet deadlines.
• Provide positive climate for supportive working relationships.
• Manage the teams to ensure consistent and timeous delivery of daily and monthly outputs.
• Escalate any performance issues rapidly and sensitively.
• Motivate team members and ensure that their efforts are recognised.

Stakeholder Management and Project Management

• Provide billing related guidance to business partners based on performance metrics and feedback across the organisation.
• Build partnerships and working relationships within the business to create awareness of risk areas and potential improvements.
• Provide input to, and sign off the Business Requirements Specification (BRS) and/or Customer Journey for product development and enhancements.
• Approve User Acceptance Testing (UAT) and systems Integration Testing (SIT) results relating to Billing and Payments of new products and Services.
• Analyse and validate system enhancements required, in line with the full Clarity ecosystem to ensure no upstream or downstream impact from a process and rule perspective.
• Provide input into new products and system changes.

Qualifications

• BCom Business Informatics or a Degree in Financial Management 

Experience/Skills

Required

• 6+ years working experience in Billing Platforms within media, financial services or telecommunications
• 5+ years in a management role leading a team within a complex environment (preferably in a Shared Services environment)
• 2+ years in a management role leading a team within a complex environment.
• Proactive and capable of driving results without supervision
• Excellent leadership, teamwork and communication skills
• Detail oriented, Analytical, Investigative, problem solver

Preferred

• Experience in billing systems
• Exposure to SAP ERP, and billing system
• Technology acumen in Robotics Process Automation, Workflow automation, Business Intelligence and Analytics is advantageous

Functional Competencies

• Strong working knowledge of payment gateway architecture.
• Knowledge of e-commerce, real-time payments and open digital payment strategies.
• Operational knowledge of financial shared services and its various components.
• Strong working knowledge of the Billing process and Payment platform processes.
• Practical knowledge of effective governance frameworks and continuous improvement methodologies.
• Project management expertise.
• Business Requirements Specification drafting.
• Knowledge of financial accounting theories and ability to apply them proficiently.
• Technical knowledge of financial accounting systems, process automation, Business Intelligence and analytics tools.
• Ability to understand, develop, refine and implement financial procedures and policies, and ensure its consistent application without deviation.

Behavioral Competencies

• Strategic: Able to think, develop strategy, learn fast, problem solve and move quickly in a complex and dynamic environment.
• Proactive: Able to plan ahead and manage time-dependent critical processes and projects.
• Outcomes driven: Able to prioritise and delegate in order to meet multiple tight deadlines – delivering accurately at speed.
• Engaged leader: Able to structure, motivate, mentor and manage teams effectively to deliver high performance.
• Negotiator: Able to collaborate with multiple stakeholders with divergent needs in pressurised situations.
• Diplomacy: Able to manage conflict and differences of opinion - upward, downward and lateral.
• Communicative: Demonstrate excellent written and verbal communication skills - upward, downward and lateral.
• Change agent: Able to motivate for and drive continuous improvement, manage change and mitigate risks.
• Ethical and trustworthy: Have and maintain absolute integrity with unquestionable ethical standards.
• Relationship Building
• Conflict Resolution
• Decision Making
• Critical Appraisal
• Holistic Thinking
• Persuading & Influence
• Coaching

go to method of application »

Purpose of the Position:

• Responsible for the management of a Portfolio of International and Local (SA) 3rd Party Channels.
• Responsible for the oversight of Content Portfolio Managers

Strategy Formulation & Execution

• Work closely with the MAH / SA lead to support & align the strategic 3rd Party content objectives to overall business strategy.
• Define a clear and comprehensive content portfolio strategy that outlines content acquisition, licensing, contractual compliance and production goals.
• Collaborate with monetization teams to develop strategies for maximizing revenue from content assets.
• Ensure that content investments align with the overall content strategy and company objectives.
• Identify and assess potential content partnerships and collaborations that align with the content portfolio strategy.
• Support a content licensing strategy that includes content acquisition, rights negotiation, and contract management.

Content Management

Supplier Management

Portfolio Management

Stakeholder Management

• Identify and categorize key stakeholders, which may include content creators, producers, distributors, investors, talent agencies, regulatory bodies, and more
• Develop strong relationships across GE, MAH and MCSA to ensure alignment of core business objectives.

Governance

People Management

• Drive and support the achievement of performance objectives within the content portfolio team by actively monitoring and tracking KPIs.
• Create a high performance and motivated work ethic within the team.
• Determine and analyze development needs for the team and liaise with HR to manage & implement.
• Participate in Interviews and recruitment of new members of the team.
• Resolve grievances raised by team members and escalate as required.
• Ensure employees are participating at their absolute best by creating a safe environment for the team.
• Proactively manage channel performance review process and the annual performance review calendar: brief research and marketing teams, provide content insights and scheduling input. Oversee, co-ordinate and review final presentations with insights, summaries and recommendations.
• Utilise viewing data/trends and other available research and content analytics tools to track performance of key content and make scheduling/programming recommendations.
• Source, analyse and make recommendations for new content and/or channels based on content gaps and/or needs assessment.
• Receive, collate and present new channel proposals at intervals required by stakeholders, including clear and timeous communication to applicants.
• Oversight maintenance of the channel proposal portal with the relevant online support teams.
• Drive the content engagement and retention agenda with genre deep dives, trends & insight discussions and prepare quarterly briefs for GE EXCO
• Manage customer content queries.
• Facilitate regular marketing and/or content highlights meetings between channel suppliers and GE marketing and content discovery teams to ensure channel content is promoted to the right viewers.
• Continuously review and update department workflows and periodically assess and report of improvement in efficiencies
• Provide guidance to channel suppliers and support to internal divisions to ensure compliance to regulatory and EPG.
• Liaise with MultiChoice channel suppliers for all content-related requirements for new channels and/or changes to existing channels (in conjunction with Content Portfolio Managers and Head of Content Strategy)
• Maintain and update supplier account management system (contract extracts), ensuring all relevant information is current.
• Ensure that contracts include provisions for quality control, deadlines, and penalty clauses for non-compliance.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with key suppliers and vendors.
• Manage assigned 3rd Party channel portfolio, develop good business relationships and act as liaison as needed with various internal divisions to ensure consistent, timeous delivery and compliance with contractual and operational requirements.
• Monitor and maintain performance of assigned 3rd Party channel portfolio in line with overall business and content strategies per country and/or tier, identifying under-performance and implementing action plans accordingly.
• Manage channel portfolio and liaise with relevant product/ CVM/ marketing / regional teams to refine content offering as required.
• Oversee title selection for catch up and that VOD rights are optimised across all available platforms.
• Continuously assess portfolios to determine if adjustments are needed based on changing market conditions and audience preferences.
• Develop and maintain portfolio management workflows to monitor efficiency and productivity
• Manage licensing agreements and distribution strategies for the content portfolio, including negotiations with distributors, broadcasters, and streaming platforms.
• Develop crisis management plans and protocols to handle unexpected events, such as scandals, controversies, or disruptions.
• Maintain a network of internal & external supplier relationships.
• Maintain effective communication with stakeholders, including content creators, producers, distributors, and executives.
• Clearly define roles, responsibilities, and expectations for each stakeholder group.
• Engage with stakeholders on sustainability and social responsibility initiatives related to content production and ethical considerations.
• Use audience feedback and data to guide content, channel and marketing strategies.
• Ensure contractual compliance for 3rd party channels
• Work closely with MAH / SA Regional Content Heads & Regulatory to manage all content & 3rd Party channel related compliance or regulatory issues
• Ensure compliance with industry regulations, copyrights, licensing agreements, and other legal requirements.
• Utilise reports from CII where feasible and/or conduct annual channel audits to track contractual fresh hours, holdback and overlap compliance, implement appropriate strategies
• Develop and enforce policies related to content creation, distribution, copyright, ethical standards, and other relevant areas.
• Identify and assess potential risks related to content production, distribution, and other operations.
• Develop risk mitigation strategies and plans to address identified risks.
• Ensure compliance with data privacy regulations and best practices.

Qualifications Essential:

• Post Grad in Business Management/ Sales/ Marketing / Communication / Media studies or equivalent

Experience

• A minimum of 10 years of years of television programming and broadcasting / media industry experience
• Knowledge of current and future global content trends across multiple markets and platforms
• Extensive local and international content knowledge
• Knowledge of MC products and platforms
• Demonstrate in-depth knowledge of content research, able to contextualise performance, Insights and recommendations

Technical Competencies (List the key technical competencies)

• Stakeholder Relationship Management
• Regulatory Management
• Scheduling and research Management
• Financial Management
• Governance and Compliance
• Fully computer literate (PowerPoint, Excel, etc.)
• Excellent Presentation & Communication  Skills – written and verbal
• Content Production
• Media Technology
• Content Management Systems
• Audience Engagement Metrics
• Portfolio Management

Behavioral Competencies (List the key behavioral competencies)

• Relationship & team Building
• Conflict Resolution
• Analytical thinking
• Decision Making
• Holistic Thinking
• Persuading & Influence
• Attention to detail, performance driven, goal orientated
• Ability to build relationships
• Flexibility and adaptability to change
• Ability to work under pressure, quickly and accurately
• Initiative and self-motivated                        
• Professional maturity        
• Solution-driven
• Service and delivery oriented