Director, Specialist Sales, Consumer Issuing

Mastercard is hiring a Director, Specialist Sales, Consumer Issuing in Nairobi, Kenya. Level rates it ; you can apply on Level.

AI in this role

Our Purpose

Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in 200+ countries and territories worldwide. Together with our customers, we’re helping build a sustainable economy where everyone can prosper. We support a wide range of digital payments choices, making transactions secure, simple, smart and accessible. Our technology and innovation, partnerships and networks combine to deliver a unique set of products and services that help people, businesses and governments realize their greatest potential.

Title and Summary

Director, Specialist Sales, Consumer Issuing

Role Overview

The Consumer Issuing team is focused on driving sustainable growth across Mastercard’s consumer card portfolio, spanning credit, debit, prepaid and affluent products.

The Director, Consumer Issuing will be responsible for driving new product sales, portfolio optimization, consumer acquisition and revenue growth across existing and prospective issuing clients. The role will identify and convert new business opportunities, build and manage a strong sales pipeline, and partner with clients to launch new card products and grow existing portfolios.

A key part of the role will be working consultatively with clients to develop differentiated customer value propositions (CVPs) that increase product uptake, activation, usage and retention. The role will also champion the introduction and commercialization of new and innovative products, capabilities and services that strengthen client propositions and accelerate growth.

The successful candidate will work closely with Account Management, Product, Marketing, Digital, Loyalty, Services and other cross-functional teams to deliver integrated solutions that create value for clients and drive Mastercard revenue growth.

Key Responsibilities
-Drive the sale and commercialization of new consumer card products across credit, debit, prepaid and premium segments.
-Develop and manage a strong sales pipeline, progressing opportunities from identification and qualification through proposition development, commercialization and launch.
-Develop and execute client strategies to deliver revenue growth, card acquisition, activation, spend and transaction growth.
-Identify and implement portfolio optimization initiatives to improve the performance of existing card portfolios across acquisition, activation, usage, retention, migration and premiumization.
-Partner with clients to develop bespoke and differentiated CVPs tailored to priority consumer segments, combining relevant products, benefits, experiences and digital capabilities to increase product uptake and engagement.
-Develop compelling business cases, client propositions and go-to-market strategies that translate Mastercard capabilities into measurable commercial value.
-Champion the adoption and commercialization of new and innovative Mastercard products, services and payment capabilities.
-Leverage portfolio analytics, consumer insights, competitive intelligence and industry trends to identify new growth opportunities and recommend appropriate actions.
-Develop strategies and initiatives to drive consumer acquisition, engagement and usage, supporting clients throughout the cardholder lifecycle.
-Work with relevant teams to develop effective B2B and B2C marketing and customer engagement approaches supporting product launches and portfolio growth.
-Build strong relationships with senior client stakeholders and act as a trusted adviser on consumer issuing, product strategy, portfolio growth and proposition development.
-Collaborate across Sales, Product, Marketing, Digital, Loyalty, Services and other functions to deliver integrated client solutions.
-Track sales pipeline, portfolio performance and commercial outcomes against agreed business and revenue objectives.
-Manage multiple client opportunities, strategic initiatives and product launches concurrently, ensuring strong execution and delivery.
Experience & Skills Required
-Experience in consumer cards, payments, retail banking, product management, product sales or business development.
-Strong knowledge of consumer credit, debit, prepaid and premium card products and services, with a solid understanding of portfolio economics and profitability drivers.
-Proven experience in strategic and business planning, with the ability to translate opportunities into clear commercial plans and measurable outcomes.
Strong commercial orientation with demonstrated experience in sales, pipeline management and revenue growth.
-Experience launching new products and driving acquisition, activation, usage, retention and growth across consumer portfolios.
-Demonstrated experience in portfolio optimization, using data and insights to identify initiatives that improve portfolio performance and profitability.
Strong understanding of competitive offerings, industry trends, consumer behavior and emerging payment technologies.
-Experience developing compelling customer value propositions for different consumer segments.
-Strong consultative selling, influencing and negotiation skills, with the ability to develop persuasive commercial propositions and business cases.
-Experience across B2B and B2C marketing, including consumer acquisition, engagement and direct marketing strategies.
-Proven ability to operate successfully in cross-functional environments and collaborate effectively across multiple teams and disciplines.
-Ability to manage multiple projects, commercial opportunities and strategic initiatives concurrently, with strong prioritization and execution discipline.
-Excellent client and stakeholder management skills, including the ability to engage, influence and build credibility with senior stakeholders.
-Strong team player with an entrepreneurial, achievement-oriented and results-driven mindset.
-Outstanding written, verbal and presentation skills, with the ability to communicate complex product and commercial concepts clearly and persuasively.
-Strong proficiency in Microsoft PowerPoint, Word and Excel, with demonstrated capability in presentation development, proposal writing and business-case development.
-Bachelor’s degree or equivalent required; MBA or relevant postgraduate qualification preferred.

Corporate Security Responsibility

All activities involving access to Mastercard assets, information, and networks comes with an inherent risk to the organization and, therefore, it is expected that every person working for, or on behalf of, Mastercard is responsible for information security and must:

Abide by Mastercard’s security policies and practices;
Ensure the confidentiality and integrity of the information being accessed;
Report any suspected information security violation or breach, and
Complete all periodic mandatory security trainings in accordance with Mastercard’s guidelines.

How we rate this

Director, Specialist Sales, Consumer Issuing at Mastercard rates 37 out of 100 for how much of the daily work is AI. That makes it Little AI (AI Level 1 of 4). The level is about AI in the job, not seniority.

Classification

Little AI. AI is not part of the work.