SBU Head: Continental Strategic Business Unit (SBU)

SUMMARY:

To provide strategic leadership for the newly established Continental Strategic Business Unit (SBU), ensuring the successful execution of IDC’s Continental Strategy across Africa. The Head: Continental will champion the development and implementation of high-impact industrial initiatives in priority sectors such as Critical Minerals, Manufactu...

POSITION INFO:

To provide strategic leadership for the newly established Continental Strategic Business Unit (SBU), ensuring the successful execution of IDC’s Continental Strategy across Africa. The Head: Continental will champion the development and implementation of high-impact industrial initiatives in priority sectors such as Critical Minerals, Manufacturing, Agriculture, Chemicals, and Infrastructure, driving sustainable growth, regional value chain integration, and cross-border investment.

This role is responsible for building an impactful and financially sound continental portfolio for the IDC by driving investments across the rest of the African continent. Success will require close collaboration with internal sectoral resources to leverage and develop the SBU’s skills base, as well as fostering strong partnerships with both internal and external stakeholders.

The Head: Continental SBU is accountable for building and leading a high-performing team, embedding a culture of innovation, collaboration, and operational excellence. The role ensures all activities are aligned with IDC’s development mandate, financial sustainability objectives, and organisational values, while proactively managing risks and navigating the complexities of diverse African markets.

Ultimately, the Head: Continental SBU will spearhead the origination and development of investment opportunities, identify and evaluate viable business cases utilising IDC’s due diligence processes, and ensure the SBU achieves long-term sustainability through strategic objectives and priorities: Development Impact Effectiveness, Financial Sustainability, Customer Centricity, and People.

Financial / Shareholder Returns

• Monitor and optimise the profit and loss of the SBU
• Maximise shareholder value in terms of industry development and development impact.
• Development and management of the budget.
• Ensure financial soundness of all decisions and in particular financial credibility and astuteness in transactions led by the team so as to drive IDC’s financial sustainability
• Ensure developmental optimisation of decisions led by the team

Internal / Operational Processes

• Define and implement strategic objectives and business plans of the unit.
• Develop and manage proactive business development and deal origination approach for priority sectors (Critical Minerals, Chemicals, Agriculture, Infrastructure).
• Conduct detailed market assessment: identifying, researching, filtering and prioritizing of new market opportunities to improve deal sourcing.
• Provide strategic leadership and guidance to staff and stakeholders in policy, strategic and operational matters.
• Lead change management initiatives to embed the Continental SBU within IDC, ensuring buy-in from internal and external stakeholders
• Foster strong collaboration with sectoral SBUs and support departments to ensure seamless execution of continental and domestic strategies.
• Proactively drive key business initiatives and sourcing of clients and deals.
• Contribute to industry policy decision-making.
• Develop and implement required information and reporting systems to track and manage the progress of strategy implementation.
• Identify, assess, and mitigate strategic and operational risks associated with continental investments and partnerships.
• Ensure that processes to manage the portfolio of the unit are in place.
• Ensure the quality of assessments of applications for financing.
• Provide well-written and motivated reports for financing.
• Present reports to the relevant Credit and other committees as required.
• Manage budget and allocate resources in line with strategic priorities.
• Provide management reports to the Chief Operations Officer and other stakeholders as required.

Customer Focus Stakeholder Management

• Build and maintain influential relationships with strategic stakeholders (government, industry forums, clients etc.)
• Develop and maintain partnerships with DFIs, commercial banks, government entities, and regional organisations to enhance IDC’s continental presence.
• Optimise service delivery to address client needs and enhance IDC’s continental presence.
• Present strategic plans, priority objectives and operational plans to key decision-making stakeholders within IDC (Executive Committees, Shareholder, Board).
• Liaise, communicate, and promote the Continental SBU externally to position IDC as a leading DFI in Africa.
• Proactively identify and establish partnerships that will facilitate and enable the strategic direction and operational outcomes of the unit.
• Engage in formal partnerships through memoranda of understanding (MoU) and ensure delivery of expected outcomes from such MoUs. 

JOB DESCRIPTION CONTINUED . . . 

Learning, Leadership People Growth

• Provide strategic leadership and management to ensure high performance
• Ensure the effective management of people in the unit, including employee motivation and development and the application of Corporate policies and procedures and ensuring optimal performance
• Protect the interests and well-being of employees and establish suitable communication lines with them
• Oversee the implementation of talent management initiatives within the division (Employee Engagement, Mentoring and Coaching, Skills Development and Succession Management)
• Provide leadership and drive culture transformation that fosters a culture consistent with the Corporation’s values (Passion, Professionalism and Partnership) and leadership ethos.
• Champion IDC’s values and culture, ensuring alignment throughout the SBU’s operations and partnerships.

Qualifications

• Minimum qualification: relevant Post Graduate Degree or equivalent qualification.
• MBA or master’s would be an advantage

Knowledge Experience

• 10+ years relevant experience with a development finance institution, a commercial bank, an international financial institution or a private equity firm with tasks related to private sector financing and development.
• 8+ years’ experience in business development, deal origination, structuring, and closing private sector investment projects in industrial driving economic sectors, with proven experience in concluding investments in the Africa region.
• Minimum 5 years’ experience in leadership and management of teams in priority sectors (Critical Minerals, Chemicals, Agriculture, Infrastructure).
• Strong understanding and proven exposure and delivery in African markets, regional value chains, and industrial development dynamics.
• Strong technical and operational skills demonstrated by a track record of structuring and closing investments of complex transactions.
• Strong commercial acumen with the ability to balance growth, risk and sustainability
• Experience in interacting, developing, pitching, and presenting business cases to executive stakeholders.
• Experience in engaging, managing, and negotiating with DFIs, governments, and industry associations.
• Strong stakeholder and relationship management skills, with a well-established network of partners, clients, and investors across public and private sectors.
• Client management expertise and ability to lead complex transactions across multiple jurisdictions.

Leadership Competencies

• Resilience
• Decisiveness in Execution
• People Engagement
• Communication and Engagement
• Diverse Stakeholder Management
• Teamwork
• Innovation
• Change Leadership
• Strategic Thinking
• Business Mindset

Technical/Functional Competencies

• Financial and business acumen
• Business Development
• Macro-economic and analytical thinking
• Risk identification and mitigation
• Innovative strategic thinking
• Results and solution-oriented
• Portfolio management
• Customer insights and focus
• Strategic Planning and directing
• Political astuteness and operating in diverse environments

Behavioural Competencies

• Presentation and communication skills
• Negotiation skills
• Relationship building and Networking skills
• Persuading and Strategic Influencing skills
• Coaching and Mentoring

IDC is committed to equality, employment equity and diversity. In accordance with the employment equity plan of the JDC and its employment equity goals and targets, preference may be given but not limited to candidates from underrepresented designated groups.

 

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