Let's Write Africa's Story Together!

Old Mutual is a firm believer in the African opportunity and our diverse talent reflects this.

Job Description

You will form part of RMM within the Mass Foundation Cluster which is one of the largest customer-facing business segments in Old Mutual. Our vision is to be our customers' most trusted financial partner, passionate about helping them achieve their lifetime goals. Our mission is to enable positive futures for our customers, by bridging the gap between their resources and their financial service’s needs. Our primary goal is to facilitate access to financial solutions for our customers and to keep pace with their changing needs. Our target market is the low and emerging-middle income segment.

This pivotal role is responsible for the integration, oversight, and continuous improvement of the OMET student and graduate support model lifecycle.
OMET has defined a strategic roadmap for 2026–2028 with two core objectives: Student academic success and graduate employability. A key function of this role is to manage the full scholarship programme lifecycle - from entry to exit. The Head of Programmes will integrate new programme elements and identify synergies between student support and career readiness initiatives, with the goal of ensuring graduates are career ready.

The role reports to the Head of OMET and oversees two Programme Managers. It ensures that all programmes align strategically with the organization's mission, delivers measurable outcomes, and operate within budgetary, operational, governance and risk parameters.

The Head of Programmes will operate at both tactical and strategic levels, and be accountable for:

Leading and integrating programmes to foster student success and career readiness.

Championing innovative pathways to employment, internships, and alumni success.

Managing comprehensive budgeting across all student support initiatives and programmes.

Building professional relationships with Old Mutual senior leadership, related  private sectors, and Higher Education Institutions.

Collaborating with internal and external stakeholders to enhance programme delivery.

Providing oversight, contributing to, and participating in all deliverables.

Ensuring robust project management and implementation of monitoring and evaluation frameworks.

Mentoring programme teams to foster innovation and a culture of excellence.

Developing and delivering initiatives focused on student wellness, mentorship, and psychosocial support.

Leveraging data-driven insights to drive continuous programme offering improvements through robust measurement of progress and impact, supported by efficient and high-integrity data collection and reporting.

Leading implementation of career guidance offerings, job readiness workshops, and employment placement services.

Skilled in delivering high-quality written, verbal, and presentation communications tailored for board and executive-level audiences.

Strategic engagements with employers, alumni, and career service providers to unlock internship and job opportunities.

Monitoring student progress and employment outcomes to ensure strategic objectives are achieved.

Influence scholarship application data requirements through partnering with relevant function to inform and collect required information for in depth analysis and reporting.

Managing staff performance and supporting a professional, supportive work environment that advances the business unit’s culture objectives.

Requirements:

Relevant degree, preferably in Industrial Psychology.

Minimum 10 years of relevant work experience, five of which needs to be in a corporate setting.

Proven experience in programme design, implementation, and monitoring and evaluation.

Ability to operate both tactically and strategically.

Strong stakeholder engagement and relationship management experience, including senior/executive-level interaction.

Excellent verbal, written and presentation business communication skills.

Experience in working in corporate graduate development programmes, higher education sector, development sector. Ideally varied work experience in different settings.

Familiarity with graduate employment ecosystems and support models.

Skills

Budget Management, Communication, Program Designing, Program Evaluations, Program Implementation, Program Management, Program Monitoring, Project Management, Stakeholder Engagement

Competencies

Communicates EffectivelyCultivates InnovationDecision QualityEnsures AccountabilityManages ComplexityOptimizes Work Processes

Education

NQF Level 7 - Degree, Advance Diploma or Postgraduate Certificate or equivalent: Industrial Psychology (Required)

Closing Date

18 August 2025 , 23:59

The appointment will be made from the designated group in line with the Employment Equity Plan of Old Mutual South Africa and the specific business unit in question.

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