Head of Change Absa Kenya

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Job Summary

Responsible for the managing and delivery of a significant portfolio of local and Centre projects and programs, potentially within a geographic area or region, comprising of both experienced and less experienced project managers.

The jobholder will represent the whole change community for a given location and will have key influence with local executives up to MD level as well as key stakeholders within the Country Management Committees (CMC).

The job holder will be responsible for the timely delivery and appropriate quality of the portfolio which will represent local as well a Pan-African strategic change initiatives.

Job Description

Key Accountabilities

Change Delivery - (50%)

• Develop on-going plans for delivery activities in conjunction with the PMO.
• Accountable for the effective resource planning, management, reporting and coordination of projects, managing allocated resources to ensure that the team delivers committed tasks in line with business requirements.
• Lead and Direct change activities across the business in relation to project delivery and ensures best practices and processes across the team for the consistent delivery of projects.
• Responsible for delivery reporting to the Absa leadership, Product Owners, and key stakeholders.
• Assist business stakeholders in development of holistic Business Proposals and Documentation to maximize the delivery of project objectives.
• Conduct Impact Analysis on the level of change, readiness, key stakeholders, and influencers.
• Testing Support, aid the test team in the development of testing approaches / strategies and the agreement of Scope / Testing Acceptance Criteria. Includes, overseeing testing phases.
• Responsible for change communications strategies for all change programmes ensuring effective communication and feedback to all Stakeholders.
• People change support to aid the embedment associated with project/program roll-out.
• Impact Analysis, conducted on the level of change, readiness, key stakeholders, and influencers.
• Responsible for ensuring that all projects within the portfolio conform to Absa change Governance standards and that all apply appropriate management & control systems.
• Responsible for working and supporting Project Managers to ensure that new capability is embedded within the business line.
• Responsible for shaping new requests for work into interim work plans to be taken-forward by the allocated project manager.
• Responsible for maintaining the portfolio plan of projects; that all projects are effectively sequenced, and any inter-dependences are identified and managed appropriately.
• Responsible for identifying and managing dependencies of their portfolio against other portfolios of change.
• Responsible for the resolution of issues escalated to them by the In-country Chief Operating and Digital Officer (CODO), Sponsors within their portfolio of change that cannot be resolved by the respective Accountable Executive or Steering committee.
• Responsible for working with the Chief Operating and Digital Officer (CODO), Sponsors, ARO/Group Heads of Change and Project managers to ensure that new capability is embedded within the business and associated benefits are discharged to the business area accepting the change.
• Responsible for directly managing local change activities within CTA commitments permit.

Leadership - (25%)

• Responsible for facilitating Project Definition workshops within own cluster, planning, and completing ad hoc project health checks including the completion of the corrective action with the Project managers.
• Responsible for managing and resolving all programme level risks and issues in their Country or region as appropriate.
• Responsible for taking and encouraging others to take informed risks and new approaches that enhance the delivery of projects.
• Responsible for adherence to the quality and integrity of the portfolio of projects / programme.
• Responsible for providing support for project management governance to the Accountable Executives of projects within their portfolio including the attendance at CMC meetings, and management of Steering Committees.

People Management - (25%)

• Develop and agree individual and team performance objectives, standards, and targets.
• Perform regular review of individuals and team performance against agreed objectives.
• Responsible for the provision of coaching & support to the Senior Project Managers, Project Managers and Project Professionals within the portfolio to increase their skills and the quality of their respective projects.
• Manage individual development plans for direct reports.
• Responsible for the development and embedding of change management best practice models to optimize the delivery and governance of change.

Qualifications

• Proven Senior Management experience in programme management – at least 5 years extensive project management experience.
• A consistently high record of delivering large projects and programmes to budget, timescales and quality.
• Proven experience of regular communication with Senior Executives.
• PMP certification
• Leading and Rewarding Performance and Performance Management
• Experience in a project governance environment
• Experience of working in partnership with senior change practitioners to deliver large change
• MS project online /Project Management Planning tools with ability to train/coach others.

Experience

• Effective leadership and team development skills to manage change resources, potentially between different countries/culture
• Understands the best combinations in terms of specific attributes or capabilities as well as team behaviours required to produce high performing teams and team cohesion through challenging times
• A learning mindset with proven capability to rapidly assimilate complex business issues, to quickly solve problems in a structured manner or pre-empting issues that may arise where there is limited precedence.
• Effective negotiating skills to secure both internal resources and deal with external service providers
• Expert capability for facilitating project definition workshops and performing project health checks
• Highly skilled in influencing and stakeholder management to ensure the successful delivery of change projects. Confident and able to influence Senior Executives at Country Level.
• Able to adopt and/or coach the use of a variety of methods to keep projects on schedule and within budget.
• Expert knowledge of techniques for planning, monitoring and controlling complex portfolios of change to ensure projects are sequenced to maximize the delivery and to reduce dependencies through

Knowledge & Skills

• Detailed knowledge of the Absa Game-plan and Strategic Transformation Plan
• An understanding of Absa products and services to assess the impact of change
• Expert knowledge of the Absa change governance and policy framework is essential
• Practical knowledge and application of project /programmes management and systems development techniques and Managing Successful Project/Programmes portfolios
• Proven management experience with responsibility for delivering projects for at least 5 to 10 years in a structured environment

***Application Deadline - 17th March 2026***

Absa Bank Kenya is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. Preference will be given to suitable candidates from designated groups whose appointments will contribute towards achievement of equitable demographic representation of our workforce profile and add to the diversity of the Bank.

Education

Bachelors Degree and Professional Qualifications: Business, Commerce and Management Studies (Required)