Senior Manager - Merchant Services and Acquiring, Account Executive

Visa; Johannesburg; Hybrid; ZAR 1,300,000 - 1,600,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading payment technology company is seeking a Merchant Services Senior Manager in Johannesburg. This hybrid role focuses on driving merchant acceptance for mobile payment solutions across Africa while ensuring strong relationships with key merchants and clients. The ideal candidate has over 10 years of experience in the payments industry and a proven track record in strategic business growth and partnership negotiations.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 10 years in progressive leadership in the Payments industry.
• Established networks with decision-makers in B2B sales.
• Knowledge of Visa acceptance and other products/services.

Responsibilities

• Drive growth and development of merchant relations in African markets.
• Execute merchant acceptance strategies to grow Visa's market share.
• Lead negotiations for Strategic Partnerships with key clients.

Skills

Business-to-business sales

Sales and relationship management

Negotiation skills

Project management

Mobile technology

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Master's degree in a business field

Tools

Microsoft Office tools

Project management tools

Job description

Overview

Senior Manager – Merchant Services and Acquiring, Account Executive

Job Description

Visa is a world leader in payments and technology, with over 259 billion payments transactions flowing safely between consumers, merchants, financial institutions, and government entities in more than 200 countries and territories each year. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, convenient, reliable, and secure payments network, enabling individuals, businesses, and economies to thrive while driven by a common purpose – to uplift everyone, everywhere by being the best way to pay and be paid.

Visa’s Merchant Sales and Solution Team is seeking a Merchant Sales and Solutions Senior Manager who will have responsibility for driving in-market acceptance efforts of a new mobile payment solution. The Senior Manager has the responsibility of driving growth and development of meaningful and profitable merchant relations in African markets, specifically being accountable and owning on key markets from a Merchant Servicing and Acquiring perspective. In addition, this role is responsible for working with the Head of Merchant Sales and Acquiring and the Group Country Manager/Country Managers on industry & regulatory initiatives and interchange management for the region. The Director - Merchant Sales and Solutions executes on the implementation of agreed merchant acceptance strategies that grow the penetration of electronic payments in this geography to drive the increase of Merchant Sales Volume (MSV) via implementing the new payment solution and building strong working relationships with client banks, key merchants and third party partners. The role is also responsible for understanding and communicating local market needs in order that the CEMEA Hub, Digital Team and Global Merchant Sales and Solutions organizations are able to effectively and efficiently define market specific strategies required to manage strategic and complex Acceptance issues.

Job Scope

Key Results Areas

• Develop and execute the merchant acceptance, merchant relations and partner strategy for the region to increase Visa MSV, market share, data processing revenues and create acquirer, merchant and consumer preference for Visa.
• Partner with the Head of Merchant Sales and Acquiring and the Group Country Manager/Country Managers to execute on Nano Merchant Acceptance Strategy which will transform the landscape over a 3-year horizon.
• Drive acceptance of Visa payment solutions in the African market, with a focus across various business segments, key among them top tier and marquee merchants
• Take the lead in negotiating large Strategic Partnerships with key clients and or partners to ensure that Strategic Imperatives are met.
• Develop strong market relationships with key merchants meant to protect and grow Visa business and brand standing with these merchants
• Conduct quarterly business reviews with key merchants with the aim of ensuring Visa relationship adds value to clients
• Develop and execute the merchant acceptance,merchant relations and partner strategy for Africa, increase Visa MSV, market share, data processing revenues and create acquirer, merchant and consumer preference for Visa.
• Play a hands-on role in the deployment and go to market of a new mobile based technology solution.
• Development of new initiatives/solutions, implement marketing/usage initiatives targeting traditional and new merchant segments, both in physical world and virtual world, with a focus on mobile based acceptance solutions.
• Successfully translate broad strategies into specific objectives and action plans, aligning efforts of the Acceptance and Interchange organizations with other key Visa stakeholders in particular the Country and Digital Teams.
• Establish and foster relationships with Clients and internal stakeholders at all levels of staff and senior management.
• Understand client needs, solution deployment requirements in different environments and develop models of engagement that are easily replicable across organizations with similar characteristics for faster onboarding.
• Support local Client Sales and Digital Teams with their sales and enablement efforts. Maintain current knowledge of technologies, products, services, methods and applications and implement new approaches and practices as required.
• Maintain and build rapport with Digital and functional teams across Visa Inc. to exchange, learn and leverage best practices.

Qualifications (experience and skills)

• Local market and regulatory knowledge and functional experience in acceptance, merchant acquiring, interchange management, consulting, financial transaction processing knowledge and client sales, preferably Visa, supporting highly complex clients and/or services within a highly matrixed environment
• Established networks at decision making levels with a strong business-to-business sales track record.
• Years of Experience: A minimum of 10 years of success in progressive leadership positions in the Payments industry
• Education (required): Bachelor's degree or equivalent. Masters degree in a business field is an added advantage
• Technical: Working knowledge of payments network and processing services; mobile technology; knowledge of the full breadth of Visa acceptance and other products and services; knowledge of project management tools and applications; Microsoft Office tools; working knowledge of Visa systems (preferred)
• Business: Strong Sales and relationship management skills; broad and multiple industry exposure; general finance and accounting knowledge; strong influencing and negotiation skills; project management experience; strong oral and written communication skills; experience shaping and delivering defined strategies; proven track record of driving growth and taking new products from conception to commercial launch; executive presence; global mind-set and cross-cultural capability; exposure to emerging payment solutions (mobile wallets, mobile money ecosystems, agent banking, mobile money transfers)

This is a hybrid position. Expectation of days in office will be confirmed by your Hiring Manager.

Qualifications

Basic Qualifications
8 or more years of relevant work experience with a Bachelor Degree or at least 5 years of experience with an Advanced Degree (e.g. Masters, MBA, JD, MD) or 2 years of work experience with a PhD

Preferred Qualifications
9 or more years of relevant work experience with a Bachelor Degree or 7 or more relevant years of experience with an Advanced Degree (e.g. Masters, MBA, JD, MD) or 3 or more years of experience with a PhD
Years of Experience: A minimum of 10 years of success in progressive leadership positions in the Payments industry
Education (required): Bachelor\'s degree or equivalent. Masters degree in a business field is an added advantage

Additional Information

Visa is an EEO Employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or protected veteran status. Visa will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with EEOC guidelines and applicable local law.