Head: Software Development (CH1158)

SUMMARY:
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POSITION INFO:

Our client, in the Payments and Lending industry, is seeking a visionary and experienced Head of Software Development to lead and evolve our enterprise software delivery function. This role is pivotal to building scalable, secure, and innovative software systems that support our strategic goals and drive real business impact.

As a senior leader, you’ll lead multiple agile software delivery teams, drive the adoption of fit-for-purpose frameworks, and cultivate a high-performance culture that values technical excellence, agility, collaboration, and continuous improvement.

Key Responsibilities:

• Leadership & People Development:
  • Attract, recruit, and retain top software development talent with the skills to meet PPL’s evolving technology and business needs.
  • Build and nurture high-performance, self-organising teams by setting clear expectations, defining team purpose, and promoting continuous learning.
  • Provide strategic direction, mentorship, and hands-on coaching to drive excellence in team delivery and personal growth.
  • Develop succession planning and manage individual development plans to minimise knowledge concentration risks.
  • Cultivate a psychologically safe and inclusive work environment that values diversity, transparency, and emotional intelligence.
  • Address performance concerns constructively and manage disciplinary processes where necessary, in collaboration with People Support.
• Software Delivery & Quality:
  • Drive the delivery of scalable, maintainable, and secure software systems that meet business objectives and architectural standards.
  • Ensure adoption of Agile practices, with a strong emphasis on continuous integration, test automation, and built-in quality frameworks.
  • Champion the use of metrics to assess software quality, delivery velocity, and team health—enabling early identification of issues and opportunities for improvement.
  • Oversee technical design reviews, code quality assessments, and best practice alignment across all development teams.
  • Encourage innovation through technical experimentation while maintaining the stability and integrity of the production environment.
  • Ensure all software changes are tested, reviewed, and deployed in compliance with regulatory and internal risk management guidelines.
• Strategic Alignment:
  • Translate business strategy into actionable development goals and long-term delivery plans in collaboration with Product and Architecture leads.
  • Actively participate in strategic planning forums and ensure software development priorities support the broader mission of the organisation.
  • Ensure software delivery initiatives contribute measurable value to business KPIs, including customer experience, operational efficiency, and digital transformation.
  • Align technology capabilities with evolving customer and market demands, ensuring that development efforts stay relevant and impactful.
• Process Ownership:
  • Define, govern, and continuously improve the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC), ensuring it is pragmatic, scalable, and fit for PPL’s delivery environment.
  • Lead the implementation and evolution of Agile frameworks such as Scrum and Kanban across teams, promoting standardisation without stifling contextual flexibility.
  • Monitor adherence to delivery processes, facilitating retrospectives, process audits, and continuous improvement cycles to boost productivity and predictability.
  • Design visibility mechanisms like dashboards and information radiators to ensure clear reporting and accountability.
  • Align delivery processes with compliance, data protection, and audit requirements.
• Transparency & Communication:
  • Foster a culture of open and honest communication within teams and with business stakeholders.
  • Maintain transparency on project progress, risks, dependencies, and team capacity using clear visual management tools and performance dashboards.
  • Establish mechanisms for regular updates to executives, including milestone tracking, delivery forecasts, and retrospectives.
  • Create an environment where innovation, experimentation, and constructive failure are encouraged as learning opportunities.
  • Ensure that team goals and outcomes are clearly aligned and communicated across functions.
• Vendor & Budget Oversight:
  • Lead the strategic sourcing, onboarding, and management of external development partners and contractors to supplement in-house capability.
  • Negotiate and maintain service level agreements (SLAs), ensuring vendors deliver on scope, quality, and time commitments.
  • Oversee the software delivery budget (annual and 3-year plans), ensuring effective cost management and ROI on technology investments.
  • Monitor vendor performance, mitigate delivery risks, and take corrective actions where contractual obligations are not met.

Skills & Competencies:

• Agile expertise: Scrum, Kanban, XP, SAFe.
• Strong communication, facilitation, and coaching skills.
• Secure development, risk mitigation, and compliance awareness.
• DevOps, CI/CD, automation, and code quality metrics.
• Crisis and incident response management.
• Strategic thinking and product-centric delivery mindset.

To excel in our environment, you would require the following:

• Bachelor’s Degree or 3-year tertiary qualification in IT (e.g., BSc Info Science, BTech, NDip).
• Certified Scrum Master (CSM) or equivalent Agile certification.
• 12+ years in IT, including 6+ years leading software development teams.
• Proven success in enterprise software release and Agile delivery.
• Experience with vendor management and contract negotiation.
• Strong technical leadership and team development record.

General:

• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Should you not hear from us after 30 days you may consider your application unsuccessful.
• In keeping with our client’s employment equity requirements, only South African citizens will be considered.
• Please include your current salary and salary expectations.