We are a leading Credit Union committed to delivering exceptional financial services to our members. With a strong focus on innovation for our members, we aim to provide secure, efficient, and reliable financial solutions. As we continue to grow, we are seeking a dynamic and experienced Head of IT & Strategic Partnerships to lead our technology strategy and operations.
This role, reporting to the CEO of Savvi Credit Union (‘Savvi’), will be responsible for overseeing all aspects of the IT function within the Credit Union. This includes developing and implementing the IT strategy, ensuring the security and integrity of our systems, liaising with Savvi’s IT partners /critical outsourced providers whilst working closely with internal teams to maintain these partnerships, identifying new opportunities and ensuring that Savvi is obtaining the highest standard of service that best supports its members and operations safely.
The ideal candidate will have a strong background in financial services, extensive experience in IT leadership, and a deep understanding of regulatory compliance within the financial sector in Ireland.
Key Responsibilities:
Strategic Leadership and Outsourced Service Management
- Steer, develop and execute the strategic technology roadmap aligned with the Credit Union’s strategic objectives.
- Manage relationships with existing critical IT service providers, including our outsourced managed IT support, cybersecurity and compliance service, our core banking provider and potential emerging new service providers as Savvi evolves further digitally.
- Manage outsourced providers in the procurement and maintenance of IT products and services.
- Promote a culture of continuous improvement and adaptability
IT Operations & Project Management
- Partner with internal stakeholders on operational resilience framework requirements.
- Monitor performance of systems, ensuring issues are appropriately escalated and resolved.
- Manage the IT budget, balancing technology and capacity to organisation and members’ needs.
- Identify and eliminate weaknesses, analyse and improve efficiency, increase transparency and knowledge in relation to operational and technological business decisions.
- Manage the IT Framework including risks, policies and procedures.
- Perform regular, critical IT supplier reviews to ensure service is being delivered against contracted SLA’s.
- Manage the end-to-end delivery of IT Projects, from initial business case through to handover.
Security & Compliance
- Maintain and test the organisation’s disaster recovery and business continuity plans.
- Coordinate and manage the IT change and incident management processes with suppliers.
- Explore the viability of emerging technologies and manage projects to implementation stage with relevant documentation.
- Ensure all technology practices adhere to regulatory and security standards.
Stakeholder Management
- Be a member of the Executive Committee (ExCo) of Savvi and provide IT reports on quality of service, technology issues, governance compliance and related projects to both ExCo, Audit Committee and Board.
- Promote collaboration between IT and other departments to ensure technology best supports business needs.
Necessary attributes for this role
IT qualification and experience:
- Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field. A Master’s degree or relevant certifications (e.g., ITIL, PMP, CISM) is a plus.
- A minimum of 5-7 years of experience in IT management, with at least 3 years in a leadership role within the financial services industry.
- Proven experience in leading digital transformation initiatives and managing complex IT projects.
- Strong understanding of core banking systems, financial services technology, and emerging fintech trends.
Strategic thinking and project delivery:
- Excellent leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills.
- Ability to think strategically and execute operationally.
- Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to handle complex and challenging situations.
- Ability to identify potential partnerships, evaluate their value, and develop a plan to establish and grow the partnership.
Systems Experience
- Experience of core banking platforms, Financial Management Software, CRM systems and Cybersecurity solutions.
- Knowledge of data warehousing solutions and business intelligence tools.
- Experience with cloud services such as Microsoft Azure, or AWS.
- Experience in maintaining and testing an organisation’s disaster recovery and business continuity plans.
Other Skills
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with English as a primary language
- Strong business acumen to cultivate internal and external business connections and effectively lead IT change management processes.
- Ability to communicate with technical and non-technical stakeholders including senior management to drive alignment
- Strong leadership & people management abilities
- Detailed and organised, with a track record for understanding urgency and delivering quality results.
- Able to manage multiple stakeholders and priorities simultaneously
- Knowledge of IT regulatory frameworks including DORA (Digital Operational Resilience Act)
Fitness & Probity and Individual Accountability Framework:
The role will be a Fitness & Probity Credit Union Control Function 1 and 2 and any offer of the role will be subject to satisfactory due diligence in this regard. Furthermore, the role holder will be required to adhere to, on ongoing basis, the conduct standards as outlined in the Central Bank of Ireland’s Individual Accountability Framework (IAF).
Interested candidates should email an up to date copy of their CV and cover letter to recruitment@savvi.ie The closing date for all applications is Friday 14th September 2024.
