When it comes to putting people first, we're number 1.
The number 1 Top Employer in South Africa. Certified by the Top Employer Institute 2026.
Role Purpose/Business Unit:
Product Manager: Card Issuing & Card Management is accountable for defining, managing, and executing the product roadmap for Vodacom Financial Services' card portfolio.
The role is responsible for driving customer value, revenue growth, card usage, transaction volumes, and operational excellence across the card ecosystem. The Product Manager works closely with internal stakeholders, issuing processors, acquiring partners, banking partners, and card schemes, particularly VISA, to deliver innovative, secure, compliant, and commercially successful card products.
The role serves as the primary owner of the card lifecycle, including card issuance, card management, tokenization, digital wallet enablement, card controls, fraud management, scheme compliance, customer experience, and ongoing product enhancements.
Your responsibilities will include:
Product Strategy & Product Leadership
Define and maintain the product vision and strategy for the card issuing and card management portfolio.
Develop and manage the card product roadmap aligned to Vodacom Financial Services objectives.
Identify opportunities to grow card issuance, card activation, card usage, and digital payment adoption.
Drive innovation across virtual cards, tokenized payments, e-commerce payments, and wallet integrations.
Evaluate emerging card ecosystem opportunities including digital wallets, tokenization, contactless payments, and value-added card services.
Ensure alignment with Financial Services growth, customer, and digital transformation strategies.
Commercial Performance
Own card portfolio revenue, transaction growth, activation rates, and profitability targets.
Develop business cases for new card propositions, card features, and strategic investments.
Monitor scheme economics, interchange revenue, issuer fees, and portfolio performance.
Drive card spend growth and increased customer engagement.
Identify opportunities to improve card utilization and customer lifetime value.
Optimize customer acquisition, activation, retention, and card usage strategies.
Card Product Development & Delivery
Own end-to-end card product lifecycle management.
Prioritize card product backlogs and delivery initiatives.
Lead development of card issuing, card management, and servicing capabilities.
Drive enhancements relating to:
Virtual cards
Contactless payments
Tokenization
Card controls
Card replacement
PIN management
Digital wallet integration
Transaction notifications
Fraud controls
Recurring payments
Ensure successful delivery through Agile methodologies.
Govern launches and post-launch monitoring of card products and features.
Drive continuous optimization of customer journeys and digital experiences.
Scheme Relationship Management (VISA)
Act as the primary product representative for engagement with VISA.
Build and maintain strategic relationships with card scheme stakeholders.
Drive alignment with VISA product roadmaps and innovation initiatives.
Represent Vodacom Financial Services in scheme working groups, forums, and product discussions.
Collaborate with VISA on:
Product development
Scheme certification
Compliance requirements
Tokenization programmes
Digital wallet initiatives
Contactless enablement
Risk and fraud controls
Marketing campaigns
Incentive programmes
Identify and leverage scheme funding opportunities and co-investment programmes.
Ensure compliance with all applicable scheme mandates, operating regulations, and implementation requirements.
Risk, Fraud & Compliance
Ensure card products comply with all regulatory requirements.
Ensure adherence to:
VISA Operating Regulations
PCI DSS requirements
Card security standards
AML requirements
KYC requirements
Consumer protection obligations
Drive fraud prevention and risk mitigation initiatives.
Support audit, governance, and regulatory activities.
Monitor portfolio risk and fraud trends.
Ensure implementation of appropriate card controls and customer protection measures.
Leadership
Lead and collaborate within cross-functional teams.
Promote product management and best practices.
Drive customer-centric and data-driven decision-making.
Mentor business analysts and junior product team members where applicable.
Foster collaboration across business and technology teams.
The ideal candidate for this role will have:
Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Business Administration, or other related field
A total of eight or more years experience of which at least 5 or more years are in the successful delivery in Product Management (or equivalent role) across full product lifecycles, from MVP to marketable products in iterations, including support transition
Experience in successfully Leading and mentoring agile / DevOps teams in Large multi-team environments
Experience in successful delivery against financial / resource constraints
Experience with requirements definition and use case modelling
Industry Experience:
Strong experience in:
Card issuing
Payments
Banking
Fintech
Financial services
Experience working directly with VISA or other global card schemes.
Proven experience delivering card-based or payment-based digital products.
Strong understanding of card processing ecosystems and payment rails.
Experience working in cross-functional delivery environments.
Leadership
Strategic thinking
Decision making
Collaboration and influence
Change leadership
Commercial
Business case development
Financial analysis
Product commercialization
Growth mindset
Product
Card product management
Product lifecycle management
Customer journey optimization
Agile delivery
Digital payments
Stakeholder
Stakeholder management
Negotiation
Communication
Executive engagement
Vendor and partner management
Technical & Domain Expertise
Card issuing
Card management
VISA products and services
Tokenization
Contactless payments
Digital wallets
Fraud prevention
Payment processing
Regulatory compliance
Financial services ecosystems
Core competencies, knowledge and experience:
Excellent problem-solving skills, with the ability to minimize overhead tasks for the team and manage interdependences with other teams
Excellent relationship building and influencing skills, with the ability to foster an inclusive team culture
Excellent business acumen and understanding of the role of the capability in contributing to business value
A strong customer-centric focus, with an entrepreneurial and ROI mindset. Ability to function with a high degree of autonomy
Strong financial management skills and acumen
Strong time-management skills and comfortable working under pressure
Excellent verbal and written communications and collaboration skills, with the ability to work closely with the delivery team to deliver user stories
Flexible with planning and work estimation, managing and empowering the team (without needing to micromanage), able to continuously balance between the customer and commercial needs
Market research, design thinking, and lean start-up methods; business modelling
Customer experience design of digital products and services
Data-driven decision making
We make an impact by offering:
Enticing incentive programs and competitive benefit packages
Retirement funds, risk benefits, and medical aid benefits
Cell phone and data benefits, advantages fibre connection discounts, and exclusive staff discounts offered in collaboration with partner companies
Closing date for Applications: 05 October 2026.
The base location for this role is Midrand, Vodacom Campus.
The company's approved Employment Equity Plan and Targets will be considered as part of the recruitment process. As an Equal Opportunities employer, we actively encourage and welcome people with various disabilities to apply. Vodacom is committed to an organisational culture that recognises, appreciates, and values diversity & inclusion.
#1 MOST LOVED - ENTERPRISE COMPANIES
