Head of Finance – Technology & Digital

Absa Group

Sandton

On-site

ZAR 1,200,000 - 2,000,000

Full time

5 days ago

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Job summary

Absa Group invites a strategic Technology Financial Leadership role, focused on delivering measurable business value through end-to-end financial oversight of the Technology portfolio. You will partner with Technology leaders to optimise run and change costs, drive investment prioritisation and build compelling business cases for cloud migrations and platform transformations.

The position requires advanced FP&A, NPV/IRR analysis, and strong cost-management skills across cloud, software licenses,

Qualifications

Finance leadership for technology portfolio.
Expertise in FP&A, budgeting and forecasting.
Ability to build and challenge business cases for cloud migration and digital platforms.
Strong investment appraisal skills including NPV, IRR and payback.
Proficient in TCO modelling and cost allocation.

Responsibilities

Own financial planning, forecasting and performance management for the Technology portfolio.
Develop transparency of technology costs across applications, platforms, infrastructure, vendors and services.
Define Run vs Change expenditure and key cost drivers; challenge allocations and consumption.
Develop business cases for cloud migrations, automation and platform transformations; monitor benefits realization.
Lead on cloud economics, identify optimisation opportunities and governance of cloud spend.
Create financial views at application/platform/service level; consolidate with run costs and licenses.
Provide vendor cost trend analysis and support commercial negotiations.
Ensure technology decisions translate into clear financial value and Exco insights.

Skills

Technology finance

FP&A

Investment appraisal

TCO modelling

Cost allocation

Benefits realisation

Capex/Opex

Vendor analysis

Account modelling

TBM concepts

FinOps

Cloud economics

Application economics

Licensing economics

Vendor management

Infrastructure/Cloud

Investment lifecycle

APIs & integration

Education

Postgraduate Degrees and Professional Qualifications: Financial Sciences

Job description

Empowering Africa’s tomorrow, together…one story at a time.

With over 100 years of rich history and strongly positioned as a local bank with regional and international expertise, a career with our family offers the opportunity to be part of this exciting growth journey, to reset our future and shape our destiny as a proudly African group.

Belonging at Absa

Absa is committed to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone can thrive. We are an equal opportunity employer and welcome applications from suitably qualified individuals from diverse backgrounds. In support of our Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) commitments and Employment Equity objectives, preference may be given to candidates from underrepresented designated groups, including persons with disabilities. We encourage applicants who may require reasonable accommodation during the recruitment process to let us know so that appropriate support can be provided.

Job Summary

To provide strategic financial leadership and commercial challenge to the Business Banking Technology & Digital function, ensuring technology expenditure, investments and architecture decisions deliver measurable business value.
The role will provide end-to-end financial oversight across technology run costs, infrastructure, cloud, applications, software and licensing, technology vendors and strategic change. It will translate complex technology decisions into clear financial and commercial insights that enable informed investment, prioritisation and cost optimisation.

Job Description

Key accountabilities

1. Technology financial management

Own financial planning, forecasting and performance management for the Technology portfolio.
Develop transparency of technology costs across applications, platforms, infrastructure, vendors and business services.
Establish clear views of Run vs Change expenditure and key cost drivers.
Understand and challenge technology allocations and consumption-based charges.
Develop Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and unit-cost perspectives for major technology services.
Identify structural cost optimisation opportunities rather than relying only on tactical budget reductions.

2. Strategic technology investment and business cases

Partner Technology executives on investment prioritisation and portfolio decisions.
Build and challenge business cases across cloud migration, application modernisation, automation, digital platforms and technology transformation.
Evaluate NPV, IRR, payback, P&L, cash-flow and balance-sheet implications of investments.
Monitor benefits realisation against approved investment cases.
Provide financial challenge on build vs buy, migrate vs retain and invest vs decommission decisions.

3. Cloud economics and FinOps

Build sufficient understanding of Azure/AWS economics to challenge cloud consumption and optimisation opportunities.
Understand consumption-based pricing, tagging and allocation methodologies.
Partner Technology teams to improve transparency of cloud spend and accountability.
Identify opportunities to optimise cloud utilisation and reduce inefficient consumption.
Understand the financial implications of cloud migration and architecture decisions.

4. Application and technology portfolio economics

Develop financial views at application/platform/service level , not only cost-centre level.
Integrate application run costs, infrastructure, licences, vendor expenditure and change investment to determine full economic cost.
Identify duplicate, underutilised or high-cost applications and platforms.
Support application rationalisation and decommissioning decisions.
Translate technology architecture choices into understandable financial consequences.

5. Technology commercial and vendor management

Provide financial challenge on technology contracts, software licensing, SaaS, outsourcing and professional services.
Analyse vendor cost trends and commercial commitments.
Support contract renewal and commercial negotiation decisions.
Challenge licence utilisation, demand and unit pricing.
Assess the long‑term TCO implications of major vendor and platform choices.

6. Technology performance and value management

Establish a stronger connection between:

Technology spend, technology performance, customer/business outcome, financial value

7. Data, analytics and management insight

Develop decision‑quality reporting through Power BI and advanced Excel.
Analyse large datasets to identify technology cost drivers and optimisation opportunities.
Create executive dashboards linking financial and technology KPIs.
Perform scenario, sensitivity and driver‑based modelling.
Translate complex technology financial information into concise Exco‑level insights.
Use data to move Finance from retrospective reporting toward forward‑looking commercial insight.

8. Strategic business partnering

Act as a credible financial adviser to BB CIO and Technology leadership.
Constructively challenge technology investment, architecture and sourcing decisions.
Translate technical discussions into financial and commercial implications.
Influence decisions through fact‑based analysis rather than financial control alone.
Connect Technology priorities to BB strategy, customer outcomes, productivity and financial objectives.

Critical skills and experience

Finance and commercial

Essential