About Accion 

Accion is a global nonprofit on a mission to create a fair and inclusive economy for the nearly two billion people who are failed by the global financial system. We develop and scale responsible digital financial solutions for small business owners, smallholder farmers, and women, so they can make informed decisions and improve their lives. Through targeted investment strategies, advisory solutions, and expert thought leadership, we work with local partners to develop and scale cheaper, more accessible, and customer-friendly financial solutions. Since 1961, Accion has helped build more than 235 financial service providers serving low-income clients in 75 countries, reaching more than 350 million people. More at https://www.accion.org.

About Accion Advisory

The Accion Advisory team combines decades of on-the-ground experience with insights into new technologies to help our partners become more sustainable and scalable. We work with a variety of organizations focused on serving the financial needs of low-income people and businesses in emerging markets. With a presence in Africa, Asia, and the Americas, our team provides strategic and operational support to strengthen our partners and maximize their impact on underserved customers.

Our team is comprised of Regional Program Managers (RPMs) and their teams who are responsible for driving new business, bringing local context and hands on experience to meet customer needs; and Practice Area Leads who are technical area experts responsible for building the Advisory team’s expertise in core areas, driving execution excellence, and capturing synergies across technical practice areas and regions. The Practice Area Leads seek to improve efficiency and effectiveness of the execution of our engagements and to develop reusable tools and collateral for specific areas of expertise that Accion Advisory brings to all of our clients.

Position Summary 

The Accion Advisory team has an opening for a Director, Digital Transformation Strategy – Latin America (LATAM). This role will be and responsible for spearheading the creation of innovative, customer-centric, and scalable financial solutions in emerging markets. Working as part of a global, cross-functional team, they will provide technical expertise in digital product development from discovery through implementation to support the customer growth strategies of our partners. 

The ideal candidate will have a deep understanding of product design methods and tools, data/business analytics, and digital distribution channels.  The right candidate will have experience working on an array of financial products and services, including embedded finance, Supply Chain Finance (SCF), remittances and payments. This person will have experience working with Financial Service Providers (FSPs), FinTech’s, Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCGs), digital platforms, etc. within the financial inclusion segment.

The person in this position will be based in Bogota, Colombia.

Bilingual English/Spanish is a must.

Position Responsibilities

Provide product development advisory services to our portfolio of clients (70%)

• Play a senior role in the execution and delivery of our projects in the region working closely with project managers and team members. Act as Product Development lead for the Latin America region. Key areas of responsibility include:
• Apply expertise in product development, supporting and/or leading the execution of projects in the region.
• As a product development subject matter expert, engage with senior leaders of Accion Advisory in the development of the client’s vision, objectives, and strategy for project initiatives.
• Ensure alignment with partner executive teams and boards in the implementation of project approaches and plans. Influence stakeholders through ongoing communication and advocacy to build cross functional buy in and commitment to shared vision.
• Based on strategic initiatives and project objectives, build product business cases and models to determine the feasibility and viability of product ideas.
• Apply Accion Advisory frameworks, collaterals, and guidelines in the execution of projects requiring product design in the scope of work.
• Identify and manage execution risk of the projects in the region.

Contribute to Accion Advisory strategy, business development, and thought leadership (30%)

• Play a senior role in shaping the Accion Advisory strategy at a global and regional level. Support LATAM business development in the identification of new leads and their conversion to active projects. Act as a thought leader, introducing new product design methodologies in the financial inclusion space, producing blogs, thought pieces, and knowledge sharing forums. Key responsibilities include:
• Drive business development in the region, generating leads, converting leads into opportunities, and driving sales.
• Foster relationships with local stakeholders and business partners to strengthen market presence.
• Support the development pitches and present Accion Advisory services to clients and/or donors.
• Actively participate in conferences, discussion forums, and other knowledge sharing and networking spaces to promote Accion and further our position as an industry thought leader.
• Identify opportunities to develop and showcase Accion Advisory learnings, insights and innovations resulting from our digital product strategy research and advisory projects.
• Stay abreast of industry trends, best practices, and innovations in digital transformation, providing strategic input and guidance on the Accion Advisory product development service offering and market positioning.
• Streamline new business efforts to align with Accion Advisory LATAM overarching strategic goals.
• Act as the Product Development LATAM representative; collaborate with Accion Advisory Practice Area Leads, aligning efforts with the overall vision and objectives of Accion Advisory LATAM. Communicate a clear vision for the Product Design Practice Area to the LATAM team and drive strategic development and growth within the team.
• Supporting the Product Development Practice Area Lead, work across regions to assess the impact of product design and its functionality on existing platforms, infrastructure, resourcing, and processes.
• Collaborate with the LATAM team to ensure seamless integration of operations with the team framework.

Position Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in relevant area, required; master’s degree, preferred.
• 10+ years of progressive professional experience in financial services and/or product development in emerging/low-income markets; 3 years of relevant technical expertise developing digital products; experience in embedded finance, platforms, supply chain finance, fast moving consumer goods (FMCG).
• Demonstrated success working on B2C products and strong connections in the local ecosystem.
• Experience in a leadership role, in one or more of the following: mobile money, digital payments, digital lending, human centered design for financial services, mobile banking, POS/card payments, agent banking, payment gateway, fintech for financial inclusion.
• Experience leading digital product development projects in financial services in emerging markets; including conceptualization, UI and UX design, piloting, and scaling, and change management.
• Track record of developing innovative and sustainable financial products that provide a world class customer-experience.
• Well-versed in best practices in digital product development, including agile methodologies, design thinking, business model design, behavioral economics, and customer discovery.
• Innovative mind-set and fresh perspective to the design and development of new and existing business models to support clients in achieving break-through results.
• Curious mindset and demonstrated initiative to learn the developments in fintech and financial inclusion domain; enjoys co-creation and has an entrepreneurial spirit.
• Excellent people skills, experience with multi-cultural environments is preferred.
• Team player who enjoys working in a semi/un-structured environment.
• Spanish and English fluency is required.

Travel Requirement

Ability to travel nationally and internationally (30%)

Please submit your resume in English to be considered for the role. 

Accion is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace culture. Accion seeks qualified applicants without regard to race, color, gender, sex, age, religion, creed, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, marital status, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, medical condition, military and veteran status, gender identity or expression, genetic information, change of sex or transgender status, or any other basis protected by law. Accion is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities.