Head of Research & Development

Summary

Join Experian's Innovation and Strategy team in South Africa as the Head: R&D, leading the charge in identifying and assessing potential use cases for alternative data sources. You will be responsible for identifying opportunities to develop new or expand existing product offerings, supporting other teams in assessing feasibility and creating initial product designs. This role demands strong collaboration, a deep understanding of market needs, and a commitment to data-driven innovation. You will also ensure adherence to compliance, risk, data governance, and legal processes. The position involves managing an R&D team, developing MVPs, and presenting thought leadership insights to various stakeholders.

Requirements

• Honors or greater degree with strong focus in Mathematics, Statistics, Computer Science, Econometrics or similar
• Excellent communication skills (written and spoken)
• 15 years’ experience in data-related product development
• Proven evidence of thought leadership initiatives
• Keen understanding of market conditions and needs
• Keen understanding of existing credit bureau products
• Ability to engage meaningfully with market leaders in existing and new verticals
• Excellent interpersonal skills
• Ability to travel

Responsibilities

• Identify alternative data sources from what is currently leveraged in the business
• Identify new types of data ( net new ) that could be of value to the business, our clients or consumers
• Facilitate and participate in obtaining samples of such data
• Guide your team on analysing/investigating the data to assess suitability for new or enhanced products
• Decide on and communicate outcomes of assessment of data to business
• Facilitate and participate in the building of initial viable products (if applicable)
• Engage with executive stakeholders in the business re. data opportunities and findings from research
• Present ideas and viable products at various stages to clients to test market appetite and product applicability
• Initiate and pursue engagement with potential suppliers of data and inform/support commercial conversations that may apply
• Ensure adherence to processes prescribed by the Experian Governance, Legal, Compliance and Risk processes
• Stay abreast of existing Experian product offerings (both locally and in other markets)
• Identify potential future new product owners and engage them in the product development process at the right time, to facilitate effective handover to business
• Effective and solution focused engagements with Experian colleagues both locally and in other markets
• The CDI (Consumer Default Index) and BDI (Business Debt Index) are two quarterly publications that inform press releases and media engagement. You are responsible for ensuring that these products are maintained and delivered timeously
• The CDI and BDI are often enriched/expanded at an ad hoc basis as a means to test new ideas or to create thought leadership insights that can be shared in the market. This enhancement is performed by the R&D team
• Present on latest developments in market and at Experian in various forums (Conferences, Summits, Webinars, etc.)
• Ensure that Experian is perceived in the market as a thought leader and industry expert
• Cultivate and maintain a high-performance Innovation R&D team in a remote working environment
• Develop and mentor more junior team members
• Perform team managerial duties
• Leverage existing and new data assets to develop and test new MVPs with relevant partners
• Deliver successful MVP to relevant business owners empowering them to scale solutions post-handover

Benefits

World's Best Workplaces™ 2024 (Fortune Top 25), Great Place To Work™ in 24 countries, and Glassdoor Best Places to Work 2024