Executive: Portfolio Performance & Delivery

Network Finance; Randburg; On-site; ZAR 1,500,000 - 2,800,000; Full time

Job summary

Network Finance is seeking a proven collections and recovery leader to drive performance across large portfolios in a senior, executive-facing role. You will shape strategy, influence decisions, and balance growth with risk, delivering measurable financial outcomes while leading multi-layered teams.

The role offers significant exposure to senior stakeholders and the opportunity to impact portfolio valuation and commercial planning through people, process, technology, and strategy.

Qualifications

• Degree in Commerce, Economics, Law, Finance, Business Management, or related field.
• Postgraduate qualification advantageous.
• Minimum 8 years in senior leadership within collections/recoveries, financial services, or credit management.

Responsibilities

• Lead portfolio performance, collections, and recovery operations across portfolios and business units.
• Drive revenue, margin, profitability, and operational targets.
• Develop and implement collection and recovery strategies to maximise portfolio returns.
• Identify bottlenecks and implement remediation plans to improve operational outcomes.
• Oversee large-scale operational teams through multiple layers of leadership.
• Provide strategic oversight of inbound collections, recovery, and customer engagement functions.
• Drive operational optimisation, productivity improvements, and workforce effectiveness initiatives.
• Utilise data and analytics to influence decision-making and improve commercial performance.
• Partner with technology, operations, and leadership teams to implement scalable solutions.
• Manage regulatory compliance, governance, and risk frameworks within a collections environment.
• Present operational, financial, and strategic performance insights to executive leadership and stakeholders.
• Lead client engagements and maintain relationships with senior client stakeholders.
• Contribute to portfolio valuation discussions, investment decisions, and commercial planning.
• Support business growth initiatives and the acquisition of new opportunities.
• Develop and mentor senior leadership teams to build organisational capability.

Skills

Collections & recoveries

Portfolio performance

Data analytics

Executive stakeholder management

Leadership & mentoring

Strategic thinking

Regulatory compliance

Business acumen

Education

Degree in Commerce/Economics/Law/Finance/Business Management

Postgraduate qualification advantageous

Job description

The successful candidate will be a proven collections and recovery leader with extensive executive-level experience managing large operational teams, optimising portfolio performance, and delivering measurable financial outcomes. This role requires a commercially minded strategist who can leverage data to identify opportunities, influence decision-making, and drive business growth while balancing operational execution with long-term strategic objectives. Reporting into executive leadership, the role offers significant exposure to senior stakeholders and the opportunity to shape business performance through people, process, technology, and strategy.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead portfolio performance, collections, and recovery operations across multiple portfolios and business units
• Drive revenue, margin, profitability, and operational performance targets
• Develop and implement collection and recovery strategies to maximise portfolio returns
• Identify performance bottlenecks and implement remediation plans to improve operational outcomes
• Oversee large-scale operational teams through multiple layers of leadership
• Provide strategic oversight of inbound collections, recovery, and customer engagement functions
• Drive operational optimisation, productivity improvements, and workforce effectiveness initiatives
• Utilise data and analytics to influence decision-making and improve commercial performance
• Partner with technology, operations, and leadership teams to implement scalable solutions
• Manage regulatory compliance, governance, and risk frameworks within a collections environment
• Present operational, financial, and strategic performance insights to executive leadership and key stakeholders
• Lead client engagements and maintain strong relationships with senior client stakeholders
• Contribute to portfolio valuation discussions, investment decisions, and commercial planning
• Support business growth initiatives and the acquisition of new opportunities
• Develop and mentor senior leadership teams to build organisational capability

Education:

• Degree in Commerce, Economics, Law, Finance, Business Management, or a related field
• Postgraduate qualification advantageous

Experience:

• Minimum 8 years' experience in senior leadership positions within collections, recoveries, financial services, or credit management environments
• Demonstrated success leading large-scale collections and recovery operations
• Experience managing multiple layers of leadership and large operational teams
• Strong understanding of legal collections, recoveries, and regulatory requirements
• Experience analysing portfolio performance, profitability, and commercial outcomes
• Strong understanding of balance sheets, income statements, portfolio valuations, and financial performance metrics
• Proven experience influencing C-Suite and executive stakeholders
• Experience managing budgets, business cases, and operational investments
• Experience in highly regulated financial services environments preferred

Skills:

• Deep expertise in collections, recoveries, and portfolio performance management
• Strong commercial acumen with the ability to link operational activity to financial outcomes
• Excellent understanding of collections legislation and regulatory frameworks
• Advanced analytical and data interpretation skills
• Ability to use data to tell compelling performance stories and influence decision-making
• Strong strategic thinking and problem-solving abilities
• Exceptional stakeholder management and executive communication skills
• Strong leadership and people management capabilities
• Ability to balance operational execution with long-term business objectives
• Commercially focused, performance-driven, and results-oriented mindset