Senior Specialist, Product Development

Mastercard; Toronto; On-site; CAD 94,000 - 138,000; Full time

Job summary

Mastercard in Toronto is seeking a Senior Specialist, Product Development to help shape partnerships with emerging fintechs and drive strategic initiatives across product teams.

You will source high-potential startups, build commercial engagements, and translate market trends into actionable partnership strategies while collaborating with stakeholders across Mastercard to elevate the fintech program.

Qualifications

• Proven track record working with startups and fintech partnerships.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration across product and commercial teams.
• Strategic understanding of the payments industry and competitive landscape.
• Excellent project management with multiple initiatives simultaneously.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.

Responsibilities

• Sourcing high-potential startups for partnerships.
• Driving partnerships and engagements with startups for commercial and strategic outcomes.
• Collaborating with product teams on developing partnership strategy.
• Tracking market trends, due diligence, and delivering strategic insights.
• Driving innovative commercial engagements with startups in payments, banking, financial inclusion, and data analytics.
• Advocating fintech strategy with internal and external stakeholders, including leadership and portfolio companies.
• Liaising with Product teams to align roadmaps and partnership opportunities.
• Anticipating domestic and regional fintech trends and adjusting strategies.

Skills

Startup engagement

Cross-functional collaboration

Project management

Payment industry knowledge

Fast-paced environment

Job description

Title and Summary

Senior Specialist, Product Development

Our Purpose

Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. We build a sustainable economy where everyone can prosper, supporting a wide range of digital payment choices and delivering secure, simple, smart, and accessible transactions.

Overview

Do you have a passion for startups and emerging technology, and possess an entrepreneurial spirit?

Are you motivated by a fast‑paced environment where you would be a subject‑matter expert, a connector, and a leader with a reputation for impact?

Do you thrive leading highly visible, high‑impact initiatives with innovative partners?

Start Path is Mastercard’s award‑winning fintech engagement team, working with elite fintechs across the world to drive business with Mastercard and our customers. The team is agile, well‑connected, and has a big vision: to partner with the best fintechs across the payments ecosystem to build the future of commerce.

Role

This Emerging FinTech Senior Specialist, Product Development role will support the Emerging Fintech team within Start Path in thesis‑building for fast‑emerging categories, working directly with Mastercard product teams to understand their product roadmap and partnership needs, startup sourcing and selection, managing relationships with the existing portfolio of Start Path companies, supporting partnership strategy across multiple fintech areas, and helping to build a powerful brand halo for Mastercard in the startup community.

Key Responsibilities

• Sourcing high‑potential and strategic startups.
• Driving partnerships and engagements with selected startups for commercial and strategic outcomes.
• Collaborating closely with product teams on developing partnership strategy.
• Tracking and analyzing fast‑emerging market trends in the startup space, conducting market landscaping, startup due diligence, and delivering key strategic insights to build investment hypotheses.
• Driving innovative commercial engagements with startups across diverse areas including payments, banking, financial inclusion, sustainability, data analytics, and more.
• Advocating and evangelizing the fintech strategy with internal and external stakeholders, including senior leadership at Mastercard, startups, venture capital firms, industry organizations, governments, and more.
• Liaising with Product teams across Mastercard on their product roadmaps and strategies to identify opportunities for startup partnership.
• Anticipating significant domestic and regional fintech trends while developing and modifying strategies to manage these trends.

Qualifications

• Proven track record working with startups, well‑versed in the fintech, startup engagement, and venture capital domains.
• Strong experience in cross‑functional collaboration – driving alignment across product and commercial teams to achieve commercial outcomes.
• Strategic understanding of and interest in the payment industry, evaluating trends and competitive landscape.
• Strong project management skills – highly organized, meticulous attention to detail, and experience executing multiple projects concurrently.
• Comfortable in a fast‑paced team environment.

Mastercard is a merit‑based, inclusive, equal‑opportunity employer that considers applicants without regard to gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disabled or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. We hire the most qualified candidate for the role. In the US or Canada, if you require accommodations or assistance to complete the online application process or during the recruitment process, please contact [e-mail] and identify the type of accommodation or assistance you are requesting. Do not include any medical or health information in this email. The Reasonable Accommodations team will respond to your email promptly.

Corporate Security Responsibility

• Abide by Mastercard’s security policies and practices.
• Ensure the confidentiality and integrity of the information being accessed.
• Report any suspected information security violation or breach.
• Complete all periodic mandatory security trainings in accordance with Mastercard’s guidelines.

Pay Ranges

Toronto, Canada: $94,000 - $138,000 CAD