Product Lead

Sanlam Fintech is a newly established digital first business within the Sanlam Group on a mission to democratize financial advice and solutions for everyone across the African continent. We exist to pioneer inclusive financial confidence helping people build strong foundations to bridge the gap in generational wealth. Our culture is that of agility and constant deployment, we believe in learning fast, learning cheap and learning forward. Our aim is to provide a work environment where knowledge workers can accelerate the development of their ideas and bring innovation to market, at the same time provide compelling career and development proposition that will enable them to realize their dreams.

The Product Lead for BOOST is responsible for defining and executing the rewards strategy across the insurance (MiWay, Santam, DigiSure) and health (Afrocentric) ecosystems. This role ensures that BOOST becomes the market-leading rewards engine, seamlessly integrating financial services, short-term and long-term insurance, and health solutions into one unified, data-driven loyalty ecosystem. You will drive the end-to-end product vision, roadmap, and delivery execution, ensuring that reward-based engagement mechanisms (e.g., telematics, health tracking, customer behaviour-driven incentives) create meaningful, sustained value for both customers and partners. This role works cross-functionally with Tech, Data, UX/UI, Business Intelligence, Marketing, and Partnerships, ensuring seamless product evolution that aligns with Sanlam FinTech (SFT) strategy, BOOST’s coalition model, and emerging digital trends.

What will you do?

• Define and drive the end-to-end CVP for BOOST Insurance & Health Rewards, ensuring alignment with Sanlam’s digital rewards transformation strategy.
• Leverage telematics and health tech innovations to embed rewards into driving behaviour, preventative health habits, and customer engagement patterns.
• Develop dynamic, hyper-personalized rewards models using behavioural insights, transactional data, and customer segmentation.
• Balance customer acquisition, retention, and engagement through progressive loyalty mechanisms (e.g., goal-based rewards, premium reductions, gamified achievements).
• Align BOOST’s insurance and health incentives with coalition partners to drive cross-engagement across ecosystems (e.g., fuel rewards linked to safe driving, wellness incentives linked to preventive care).

Product Execution & Delivery Management

• Own the end-to-end product roadmap, ensuring an agile, iterative rollout of features, integrations, and enhancements.
• Collaborate with Tech & Data teams to build, refine, and scale BOOST's real-time rewards infrastructure, ensuring optimal performance and seamless integration.
• Define agile product delivery methodologies with squads focusing on insurance rewards, telematics, and health-driven incentives.
• Prioritize MVP launches, feature iterations, and data-driven optimizations, ensuring that customer needs, partner integrations, and compliance are balanced.
• Maintain rigorous test-and-learn cycles, using customer insights, A/B testing, and analytics to refine and evolve product-market fit.
• Own the delivery pipeline, working closely with Delivery Leads, BAs, Tech, UX, and Legal to ensure the seamless execution of product features.

Qualification and Experience

Relevant Degree or Diploma with 8 to 10 years of experience.

Partnership & Stakeholder Management

• Work closely with MiWay, Santam, DigiSure, and Afrocentric to integrate BOOST into their core digital strategies, pricing models, and engagement frameworks.
• Engage external vendors, technology partners, and third-party platforms to enhance product capabilities (e.g., API integrations, AI-driven behavioural tracking).
• Align with Sanlam FinTech leadership on commercial viability, pricing strategies, and long-term revenue sustainability for BOOST rewards.
• Manage ongoing partner engagement with coalition stakeholders (banking, fuel, lifestyle, wellness, and retail partners) to create synergistic rewards ecosystems.
• Negotiate value-driven reward partnerships, ensuring that BOOST remains competitive and deeply embedded in customer financial behaviour.

Data-Driven Insights & Personalization

• Leverage AI, machine learning, and behavioural analytics to create intelligent, dynamic reward models that evolve with user behaviour.
• Ensure real-time, event-driven reward triggers (e.g., completing a safe-driving trip unlocks instant fuel rewards, reaching a health goal activates cashback on premiums).
• Build predictive engagement frameworks, driving higher reward redemption rates and sustainable long-term customer participation.
• Work closely with BI & Analytics teams to refine customer segmentation strategies, improving reward relevance and impact.

Governance, Compliance & Agile Ways of Working

• Establish clear governance principles to manage reward rules, fraud mitigation, and partner engagement policies.
• Ensure compliance with POPIA, TCF (Treating Customers Fairly), and other financial services regulations impacting BOOST rewards.
• Drive agile excellence across squads, ensuring alignment with Miro, Jira, and other product collaboration tools.
• Implement and refine BOOST's scaled agile operating model, balancing resource efficiency and rapid iteration cycles.

What will make you successful in this role?

As Product Lead for BOOST, you’ll be at the forefront of Sanlam’s digital rewards transformation, shaping the intersection of insurance, health, and financial behaviour incentives. You’ll pioneer innovations in embedded rewards, AI-driven personalization, and data-driven customer engagement, ensuring that BOOST drives real financial and lifestyle benefits for millions of users. This role is for a visionary leader who thrives in a fast-paced, impact-driven fintech environment. If you're passionate about scaling a next-generation loyalty platform that redefines rewards in insurance and health, this is the opportunity to make a lasting impact.

Knowledge and Skills

Business strategy development and implementation.
Manage P&L
Develop and maintain strategic partnerships.
Budgeting and expense management.
Risk and compliance management.
Management of employees.

Personal Attributes

Drives vision and purpose - Contributing strategically.
Business insight - Contributing strategically.
Manages complexity - Contributing strategically.
Balances stakeholders - Contributing strategically.

Build a successful career with us

We’re all about building strong, lasting relationships with our employees. We know that you have hopes for your future – your career, your personal development and of achieving great things. We pride ourselves in helping our employees to realise their worth. Through its five business clusters – Sanlam Fintech, Sanlam Life and Savings, Sanlam Investment Group, Sanlam Allianz, Santam, as well as MiWay and the Group Office – the group provides many opportunities for growth and development.

Core Competencies

Cultivates innovation - Contributing strategically.
Customer focus - Contributing strategically.
Drives results - Contributing strategically.
Collaborates - Contributing strategically.
Being resilient - Contributing strategically.

Turnaround time

The shortlisting process will only start once the application due date has been reached. The time taken to complete this process will depend on how far you progress and the availability of managers.

Our commitment to transformation

The Sanlam Group is committed to achieving transformation and embraces diversity. This commitment is what drives us to achieve a diverse, inclusive and equitable workplace as we believe that these are key components to ensuring a thriving and sustainable business in South Africa. The Group's Employment Equity plan and targets will be considered as part of the selection process.