Senior Manager - Customer Success.DataCo

MTN Group; Roodepoort; On-site; ZAR 1 200 000 - 1 500 000; Full time

Job summary

A leading telecommunications company seeks a Senior Manager for Customer Success to spearhead data monetisation initiatives. This role demands expertise in engaging with CxOs to integrate data solutions into their business strategies. The ideal candidate should have 5-8 years in customer success management and proficiency in AI and geospatial analytics. Competitive compensation and an inclusive work environment are offered to drive client value and sustainable revenue growth.

Benefits

Health insurance

Professional development opportunities

Qualifications

• 5 - 8 years experience in Customer Success or Enterprise Account Management.
• Demonstrated ability to engage with senior stakeholders.
• Proven experience in data monetisation and AI ecosystems.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute a Customer Success strategy for data monetisation.
• Act as an advisor to client CxOs on digital transformation.
• Build tailored adoption roadmaps for clients.

Skills

Customer Success Management

Data Monetisation

AI and Machine Learning

Geospatial Analytics

Stakeholder Engagement

Education

4 year degree in Business Administration, Data/Technology Management

MBA preferred

Tools

Cloud platforms (GCP, Azure, AWS)

Analytics Tools

Job description

Global Influences :

• Rapid rise of AI-native organisations and the need for strong data foundations


• Emergence of data monetisation as a critical growth lever for telcos and platform companies


• Convergence around open data ecosystems, clean rooms, and trusted data marketplaces

Industry Drivers :

• Telcos globally are building internal data businesses to diversify and scale new revenue streams


• CxOs demand ROI from data initiatives alongside regulatory trust and risk mitigation


• Geospatial and behavioural analytics are increasingly central to digital product innovation

Organisational Mandate : MTN aims to capture a significant share of Africa’s ~$2B external data monetisation market through DataCo, a Group-level capability. This role leads the stakeholder activation and monetisation engagement to make this vision a commercial reality, enabling MTN to unify, enrich, and productise its data assets while building trust, compliance, and sustainable revenue growth.

Organization Values :

At MTN we believe that understanding our people’s needs and aspirations is key to creating experiences that delight you at work, every day. We are committed to fostering an environment where every member of our Y’ello Family is heard, understood, and empowered to live an inspired life. Our values keep us grounded and moving in the right direction. Most importantly, they keep us honest. It is not something we claim to be. It is in our DNA.

As an organisation, we consider it our mission to create an exciting and rewarding place to work, where our people can be themselves, thrive in positivity and ignite their full potential. A workplace that boosts creativity and innovation, improves productivity, and ultimately drives meaningful results. A workplace that is built on relationships and achieving a purpose that is bigger than us. This is what we want you to experience with us!

Our commitments go beyond an organisational promise. It is in our leadership and managerial ethos to meaningfully partner with our employees, customers, and stakeholders with a vision to realise our shared goals. Our values dubbed, LIVE Y’ello, are the cornerstone of our culture.

Customer Success has become a defining differentiator in the global data-services economy, where long-term client value now depends on sustained adoption and measurable ROI rather than once-off sales. Within this environment, DataCo’s clients require continuous guidance to unlock the predictive, monetisation, and governance potential of MTN’s data assets. The Senior Manager operates amid rising expectations for AI-enabled client engagement, outcome-based contracting, and ethical data stewardship. As enterprises and governments pursue digital sovereignty, this role ensures MTN remains at the forefront of trusted data partnerships, linking customer impact to the Group’s strategic ambition of leading Africa’s data-monetisation and intelligence-as-a-service market.

Lead with Care

Can-do with Integrity

Collaborate with Agility

Serve with Respect

Act with Inclusion

Strategic Customer Success Leadership

• Define and execute a Customer Success strategy aligned with MTN’s external data monetisation mandate and also that maximises adoption and commercial outcomes from DataCo’s geospatial and behavioral analytics products.


• Partner with executive leadership to embed customer-centricity into MTN’s commercial growth model and align client engagement models with MTN’s broader organisational mandate of capturing external data monetisation opportunities.


• Act as advisor to client CxOs, influencing digital transformation, AI adoption, on embedding data products into their digital, AI, and growth strategies.


• Position MTN as a trusted leader in Africa’s data economy through thought leadership, partnerships, and advocacy.

Onboarding & Adoption

• Design and oversee world-class onboarding frameworks that accelerate time-to-value for clients adopting DataCo solutions and ensure early ROI.


• Lead change management efforts to guide clients from siloed operations into integrated, AI-ready environments.


• Build tailored adoption roadmaps with clear ROI milestones to ensure product stickiness and client satisfaction.

Expansion & Monetisation

• Drive expansion opportunities (cross-sell, upsell, co-innovation) across geospatial, behavioural, and consulting portfolios.


• Collaborate with Product, Commercialisation, and Sales teams to link client success to commercial revenue outcomes.


• Enable external telcos and platform companies to responsibly monetise their own data assets.


• Industry Context, must be able to contextualise the data within the customer’s sector to tailor use cases per industry.

Client Advocacy & Industry Engagement

• Act as the voice of the customer within DataCo, ensuring client needs inform product development, roadmaps, and ecosystem partnerships.


• Lead Executive Steering Committees with strategic accounts, demonstrating measurable business impact and future potential.


• Champion thought leadership on geospatial and AI-driven analytics in industry forums to position MTN as a market leader.


• Actively identifies where MTN’s internal data assets can be leveraged to solve customer problems. Demonstrates the ability to connect customer pain points with available datasets eg. such as mobility, transaction, or activity data, and collaborates with Product and Technology teams to design implementable, value-creating solutions.

Operational Excellence & Governance

• Establish KPIs, frameworks, and dashboards to track adoption, retention, ROI, and revenue impact and growth from customer engagements.


• Ensure compliance with data governance, privacy, and regulatory frameworks, embedding trust as a cornerstone of DataCo’s client engagements.


• Drive operational discipline with a scalable engagement model for multi-market success.


• Build, mentor, and inspire a high-performing Customer Success team capable of managing strategic accounts across multiple geographies.

Customer Value Realisation & ROI Management

• Establish structured success plans linking adoption metrics to measurable commercial and operational ROI.


• Track business impact through quantifiable KPIs such as cost optimisation, customer retention uplift, or revenue expansion.


• Develop joint success frameworks with clients to validate and communicate value delivered through DataCo solutions.


• Demonstrates deep understanding of the products’ purpose and features, translating technical capabilities into clear customer outcomes.


• Guide clients in realising the full value of each product and to inform product-market fit insights internally.


• Advises customers on pricing structures and scaling paths that maximize both ROI and product adoption.


• Understand how pricing logic (modular pricing or bundled products) can improve cost efficiency eg. such as adding a new module that reduces a client’s blended cost while increasing measurable outcomes like churn reduction or customer acquisition.

AI & Data Adoption Acceleration

• Partner with client technical teams to operationalise AI-ready data environments and predictive analytics use cases.


• Lead customer enablement programmes focused on data literacy, governance, and responsible AI deployment.


• Facilitate co-innovation sessions that convert proof-of-value (PoV) outcomes into production-ready deployments.

Customer Health & Predictive Retention

• Implement advanced health-scoring models to identify risk, adoption patterns, and churn indicators early.


• Use data-driven insights to proactively engage clients, improving satisfaction and lifetime value.


• Institutionalise quarterly success reviews with executive stakeholders.

Partner Co-Innovation & Ecosystem Engagement

• Drive joint innovation with hyperscalers, fintechs, and public-sector agencies aligned to MTN’s data-for-good initiatives.


• Build playbooks for co-branded solutions showcasing measurable impact.


• Strengthen participation in cross-industry data alliances and regional innovation hubs.

Operational Scalability & Excellence

• Standardise onboarding and engagement processes across OpCos for multi-market efficiency.


• Introduce digital success platforms and automation tools to manage client lifecycle at scale.


• Embed feedback loops from Customer Success into Product, Engineering, and Monetisation teams.


• Collectively establish Proof of Concept (POC) criteria with sales and product and align the customer’s success definition with what can be realistically achieved.

Education

• 4 year degree in Business Administration, Data / Technology Management, or Digital Transformation


• MBA preferred


• Additional certifications in AI, Data Commercialization, Customer Success Leadership, or Innovation Management advantageous.

Experience

• 5 - 8 years in Customer Success, Enterprise Account Management, or Strategy Consulting in data, SaaS, telco, or technology sectors.


• Proven track record of leading customer success strategies that delivered adoption, retention, ROI, and commercial growth at scale.


• Demonstrated ability to engage with senior stakeholders (Board / CxO level) and influence complex decision-making.


• Deep expertise in data monetisation, geospatial analytics, AI ecosystems, and digital transformation.


• Strong background in leading teams across multiple markets and cultural contexts.


• Proven experience leading enterprise Customer Success functions for data, AI, or SaaS solutions across multiple markets.


• Familiarity with data governance frameworks (POPIA, GDPR) and ethical AI practices in client engagements.


• Hands-on exposure to data platforms, APIs, cloud ecosystems (GCP, Azure, AWS), and analytics tools.


• Experience driving revenue expansion through success-led growth models (upsell, cross-sell, renewal).

Competencies

• Strategic Influence : Shapes board-level agendas and aligns client outcomes with MTN’s growth mandate.


• Commercial Acumen : Translates adoption and engagement into measurable commercial growth.


• Innovation Leadership : Champions AI-ready ecosystems, open data marketplaces, and customer-led growth models.


• Execution Excellence : Delivers onboarding, adoption, retention, and monetisation consistently across regions.


• Customer Advocacy : Embeds long-term client value creation while maintaining trust and compliance.


• Transformational Leadership : Inspires and scales high-performing teams across diverse markets


• Value-Engineering : Quantifies and communicates client ROI through data-driven business cases.


• Customer Insight Analytics : Uses adoption data and predictive metrics to inform engagement strategy.


• Change Leadership : Leads client transformation programmes integrating data, AI, and process modernisation.


• Relationship Governance : Balances advocacy with accountability, ensuring compliance and trust.


• Ecosystem Orchestration : Connects clients, partners, and MTN internal teams into cohesive success ecosystems.


• Practical Technical Understanding : Provides first-line technical guidance and knows how to distinguish against a client issue vs. platform issue.