Programme Manager - LIFE INSURANCE ESSENTIAL - Hybrid - R 1200 Per hour

e-Merge IT Recruitment; South Africa; Hybrid; ZAR 1,364,000 - 1,942,000; Full time

Job summary

e-Merge IT Recruitment is seeking an experienced Programme Manager to lead a major technology programme within the long-term insurance sector in South Africa. You will drive end-to-end delivery, manage client relationships and govern commercial performance in a highly regulated environment.

The role requires 10+ years in programme management, 5+ years leading large-scale technology initiatives (R50 million+ or 20+ team), strong data migration and governance experience, and the ability to engage

Qualifications

• 10+ years in programme or project management.
• 5+ years leading large-scale technology programmes (R50 million+ or 20+ people).
• Experience in long-term insurance and SA regulatory context.
• Experience delivering programmes on the vendor side with change control and contracts.
• Experience in regulated financial services with governance and audits.
• Knowledge of SA long-term insurance regulations relevant to migrations.

Responsibilities

• Manage programme budgets, resource utilisation and margins.
• Control programme scope via change requests and protect commercial position.
• Act as primary day-to-day senior counterpart to the client’s Programme Lead.
• Lead and coordinate onshore delivery teams, delivery-hub teams and partners.
• Drive programme execution, aligning project objectives with governance and client expectations.
• Oversee governance, reporting and stakeholder engagement with clear progress visibility.
• Plan and manage transition to BAU and handover to service management.

Skills

Programme management

Programme leadership

Vendor management

Data migration

Regulatory experience

SA insurance regulations

Hybrid delivery

Communication

Job description

Ready to take the lead on big, complex technology programmes and make a real impact?

Are you an experienced Programme Manager with a strong background in large-scale technology programmes and financial services? Do you have a proven track record of successfully delivering complex technology implementations, managing substantial budgets and leading diverse delivery teams?

We are seeking a highly experienced Programme Manager to take ownership of a major technology programme within the long-term insurance environment. The successful candidate will be responsible for driving end-to-end programme delivery, managing client relationships, overseeing commercial performance and ensuring successful project execution within a highly governed financial services environment.

What You Bring to the Table:

• At least 10 years' experience in programme or project management, with 5 or more years leading large-scale technology programmes (indicatively R50 million+ or teams of 20+ people)
• Proven experience leading at least one end-to-end policy administration system implementation or legacy book migration within long-term insurance, ideally in South Africa
• Strong understanding of data migration processes, including mapping, transformation, trial runs, reconciliation and financial balancing of policy books.
• Experience delivering programmes on the vendor side, managing scope, change control and commercial obligations against client contracts.
• Experience working within a banking, bancassurance or highly regulated financial services environment, including formal governance, steering committees and audit processes.
• Strong working knowledge of South African long-term insurance regulations relevant to migrations, including policyholder protection and data protection requirements.
• Long Term and or Life insurance experience essential.
• Experience with hybrid delivery methodologies, combining waterfall governance and stage gates with agile delivery teams.
• Excellent written communication and reporting skills, with the confidence to engage and present to senior client executives

What You Will Be Responsible For

• Manage programme budgets, resource utilisation and margins, ensuring effective financial control and commercial performance.
• Control programme scope through formal change requests and protect the organisation's commercial position in accordance with contractual obligations.
• Act as the primary day-to-day senior counterpart to the client's Programme Lead, managing expectations and building trusted relationships with business and IT stakeholders.
• Lead and coordinate onshore delivery teams, delivery-hub teams and third-party partners, ensuring clear accountability, commitments and delivery standards.
• Drive programme execution, ensuring alignment between project objectives, delivery milestones, governance requirements and client expectations.
• Oversee programme governance, reporting and stakeholder engagement, providing clear visibility of progress, risks and delivery challenges.
• Plan and manage the transition to business-as-usual (BAU) support, ensuring a structured handover to service management at programme completion

Reference Number for this position is GZ61583 which is a contract position based in Randburg / Hybrid offering a contract rate of R1200 per hour negotiable on experience and ability.