Senior Manager - Head of Platform Operations ICT Center of Excellence

Job title : Senior Manager - Head of Platform Operations ICT Center of Excellence

Job Location : Gauteng, Johannesburg

Deadline : April 17, 2025

Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership & Implementation

• Formulate and implement platform strategies, aligning the technology vision with business objectives for Converged Solutions.
• Lead the development of the BSS (Business Support Systems) Solution Architecture and ensure its scalability and flexibility across multiple markets.
• Define platform roadmaps and prioritize initiatives based on business needs, technology advancements, and operational requirements.
• Ensure the platform strategy integrates seamlessly with broader IT and business strategies, driving value and efficiency.
• Regularly assess and refine the strategy to accommodate new technologies, evolving customer needs, and business demands, ensuring the strategy remains future-focused and competitive.
• Develop and ensure execution of a strategic plan for effective platform and application first-line support. Set strategic goals for operational efficiency and increased productivity.
• Integrate and drive synergies on business streams and fostering alignment to and governance requirements among the different sub divisions.
• Provide guidance and expertise with regards to business plans and execution alignment to Regional performance.

Platform Operations Delivery Excellence

• Lead team responsible for platform operations and oversee the management, deployment, and optimization of CS platforms and applications, ensuring high availability, scalability, and performance.
• Monitor system health and performance metrics, proactively addressing potential risks and ensuring uptime.
• Ensure platforms and applications meet the evolving needs of the business, identifying opportunities for upgrades and innovation.
• Work closely with Solution Engineering teams, business lines, and other internal stakeholders to ensure platforms support current and future business requirements.
• Engage with stakeholders across the organization to gather feedback, drive platform improvements, and align on business objectives.
• Facilitate cross-functional collaboration to ensure smooth platform integration, updates, and deployments.
• Establish metrics and KPIs for platform performance, generating regular reports for leadership on system health, uptime, and operational efficiency.
• Track platform utilization, performance issues, and capacity planning to ensure systems meet current and future business demands.
• Provide regular updates to executive leadership on platform operations, challenges, and ongoing improvements.
• Develop and maintain operational processes and frameworks that support the consistent delivery of high-quality services, ensuring that teams are prepared to manage both current and emerging customer needs.
• Define the standards and set targets across the Platform Operations area and identify the parameters for measurement of performance.
• Maximize efficiency and productivity through process analysis and interdepartmental collaboration. Mobilise resources, and develop processes and systems to ensure delivery of targets.
• Act on significant deviations from defined performance metrics.
• Manage relationships with third-party vendors, ensuring delivery of services according to agreed-upon SLAs and performance standards.
• Lead contract negotiations and manage renewals for platform-related services, ensuring cost-effective and high-quality service delivery.
• Assume a pivotal role in developing thought leadership concerning area-specific trends and industry best practices within the Portfolio.
• Participate in communities of practices and conferences to facilitate knowledge sharing and positioning of MTN’s intellectual property and employer of choice brand towards the external marketplace.
• Identify and implement process improvements to optimize platform operations, reducing downtime, improving performance, and enhancing efficiency.
• Drive automation initiatives to streamline platform management tasks and increase operational effectiveness.
• Stay current with emerging technologies and trends, integrating innovations that enhance platform capabilities and business performance.
• Research and keep abreast of new innovations, identify and share leading practices, concepts and benchmarks on a continual basis with own teams.

Customer Experience and Satisfaction

• Monitor and analyse Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) and Net Promoter Score (NPS) data to identify trends, areas for improvement, and actionable insights.
• Develop and implement strategies to improve customer satisfaction and loyalty, ensuring that customer feedback is effectively incorporated into product and service enhancements.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to address key pain points in the customer journey, resolving issues that negatively impact customer experience.
• Ensure that customer-facing processes are optimised for efficiency, quality, and consistency, aligning with customer expectations and company standards.
• Track and report on the performance of customer satisfaction initiatives, providing insights and recommendations to senior leadership.

Cost Control / Budget Management

• Forecast, plan, develop and review budgets that provide MTN with return on investment for Platform Operations and seek OPCO approval thereof.
• Develop and manage the budget in line with business objectives and collaborate closely with finance business partners and executives in the process.
• Manage and optimise the budget, ensuring all expenditure is in line with the agreed budgets.
• Ensure that the “cost of operations” is reduced, in line with a least cost operating strategy stemming from the business drivers. Monitor costs and determine initiatives to increase efficiencies and optimize resources - maximise cost / benefit ratios.
• Ensure that all MTN company financial targets are met.
• Ensure Vendor & IT costs are effectively managed.

Governance, Policies and Procedures

• Lead risk management initiatives to protect platform infrastructure from cyber threats, data breaches, and other security risks.
• Ensure rapid response and resolution for platform incidents, implementing corrective actions to prevent future occurrences.
• Develop and oversee disaster recovery plans and business continuity strategies for critical platforms.
• Design policies that align with overall strategy.
• Implement efficient processes and standards within area of responsibility.
• Ensure effective implementation of (and compliance towards) company policies, processes, and procedures. Put effective methods and standards in place in alignment with aforementioned.
• Manage and provide solutions to escalations that have multiple processes/functions impact on critical path of service delivery.
• Continuously review key risks, issues and dependencies and set mitigation actions. Proactively flag and escalate issues and manage impacts on resources, cost and productivity.
• Responsible for a predictive risk view (financial and sales) from an MTN perspective.
• Check, analyse and understand regulatory and technological environments and shifts which impact the business, continuously.
• Set integrated goals and objectives for the team within MTN in order to achieve a future-focused, future-fit high-performing organisation.
• Provide technical, procedural and policy guidance to staff, colleagues, partners and vendors.
• Attract, develop and retain appropriate talent. Build talent by identifying and developing new leaders for the respective environment.
• Create and implement personal development plans.
• Define the KPAs and KPIs that will be cascaded down to each area.
• Manage Performance and identify training needs. Coach and guide subordinates.
• Enable and model healthy employee relations and collaborative teamwork.
• Manage diversity, develop, and embed an Employment Equity plan for the business area.
• Contribute to building a culture of continuous evaluation and improvement. Drive a culture of high performance, accountability and consequence management.
• Act as an ambassador for the team by living the values and vital behaviours and changing and influencing employees’ behaviour.

Qualifications

• 3-year degree equivalent / 4-year tertiary qualification (Technical / Commercial) or related.

Experience

• Minimum of 10 years in platform operations, software application management, or IT infrastructure.
• Proven track record of leading teams and managing platform operations within a large, complex organization.
• Experience working with third-party vendors and managing platform-related contracts.
• Strong background in both on-premise and cloud-based platforms and applications.
• Familiarity with telecommunications or ICT industries is highly advantageous.