Lead Product Manager (Western Cape)

Why this role matters

• As a Product Manager you will accelerate Flash’s business outcomes by setting a clear product direction, enabling high‑performing product teams, and ensuring that product investments consistently deliver measurable customer, commercial, and operational impact.
• This role exists to create clarity, alignment, and leverage across Flash’s product organisation—balancing strategic vision with execution excellence while building strong, empowered product leadership capability.

Role Scope & Decision Authority

The Lead Product Manager operates at a leadership level with accountability for:

• Defining product strategy and investment priorities across multiple product areas
• Establishing how product decisions are made, measured, and communicated
• Acting as the final escalation point for priority, trade‑off, and sequencing decisions
• Enabling PMs to operate autonomously within a clear strategic and commercial framework
• Lead strategic research initiatives

What you’ll own

Product Direction 

• Define and continuously evolve the overarching product vision aligned to Flash’s business strategy
• Establish prioritisation frameworks across the product portfolio
• Own strategic product roadmaps, ensuring initiatives link directly to business and customer outcomes
• Decide on major product trade offs where customer value, revenue, risk, and regulatory constraints intersect

Product Team Effectiveness & Talent Development

• Build, lead, and sustain a strong community of Product Managers
• Coach PMs on product judgement, stakeholder influence, and operating effectively under ambiguity
• Set clear expectations for discovery quality, problem definition, and outcome-based delivery
• Actively develop talent pipelines, succession plans, and career pathways within product

Operating Model & Ways of Working

• Establish and evolve a consistent product operating model across Flash
• Improve how strategy translates into execution through clear rituals, metrics, and decision forums
• Ensure alignment between product, engineering, data, compliance, marketing, and commercial teams
• Identify and remove systemic friction that slows delivery or erodes product quality

Product Performance & Outcomes

• Define success metrics for product initiatives that balance customer, financial, and operational impact
• Use data and insight to evaluate performance, stop low value work, and double down on high impact areas
• Lead product pivots or scaling decisions informed by evidence rather than opinion
• Ensure product performance reviews focus on learning, impact, and continuous improvement

Stakeholder & Executive Partnership

• Build strong, trust based relationships with executive and senior functional leaders
• Clearly communicate product strategy, progress, risks, and trade offs to non product audiences
• Represent product at senior leadership forums, shaping direction rather than reacting to it
• Partner with compliance and risk leadership to ensure regulatory requirements are embedded—not bolted on

Culture, Values & Leadership

• Role model Flash values through decision making, communication, and team leadership
• Create an environment of psychological safety, accountability, and ownership
• Champion a culture of experimentation, learning, and customer obsession

Research

• Lead strategic research initiatives into fintech trends, customer needs, and the competitive landscape
• Implement Research Democratization and Continuous Research across the domains of People, Process, and Impact.

Requirements

Experience we’re looking for

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field or equivalent advanced certification in Product Management
• 8+ years of experience in Product Management
• Demonstrated experience leading multiple products or teams
• Proven experience operating at senior leadership level within complex organisations
• Extensive leadership experience in defining and executing product vision and strategy across large-scale Fintech initiatives.
• Extensive experience and leadership in integrated fintech ecosystems, including mastery of APIs and Swagger, with a proven ability to drive strategic projects and guide cross-functional teams.
• Proven track record in managing end-to-end product lifecycles, with a focus on high-impact business outcomes.
• Deep expertise in South African market analysis, strategic planning, and financial modelling within the Fintech industry.
• Strong ability to align product performance strategies with organisational goals and regulatory requirements.
• Experience in mentoring and guiding PMs, fostering leadership skills, and driving organisational growth.

Bonus points if you have… 

• Advanced product, leadership, or strategic management training
• Experience within fintech, payments, or regulated environments
• Exposure to large scale platforms, APIs, or ecosystem products.
• Experience in spearheading innovation initiatives and driving digital transformation within a Fintech environment.
• Advanced knowledge of global Fintech trends, emerging technologies, and regulatory landscapes  including POPIA, FSCA, FICA, RICA etc
• Proven success in managing complex stakeholder relationships and influencing executive-level decision-making.
• Familiarity with advanced financial technologies and their application in product development.
• Experience in leading cross-functional teams through major product pivots, mergers, or acquisitions.

You’ll thrive in the Herd if you have… 

• Product Strategy & Vision: Sets and communicates a compelling, coherent product direction
• Product Judgement & Decision Making: Makes high quality decisions with incomplete information
• People Leadership: Develops strong, confident product leaders through coaching and feedback
• Influence & Communication: Persuades and aligns senior stakeholders without reliance on authority
• Execution Through Others: Scales impact by enabling teams rather than personal execution
• Analytical Thinking: Uses data to guide priorities, evaluate outcomes, and learn quickly
• Change Leadership: Leads teams through ambiguity, growth, and organisational change

Perks that make your life easier 

• Catered lunch four days a week for office-based team members. 
• An open coffee bar and snacks. 
• Employee Assistance Programme. 
• Corporate Social Investment events and opportunities to give back. Free on-site parking
• Access to LinkedIn Learning. 
• Social events throughout the year. 
• Group risk benefits.