Workplace Design Manager

Absa is seeking a seasoned Workplace Design Manager to join their Corporate Real Estate Solutions (CRES) division in Johannesburg. This pivotal role focuses on transforming the bank's strategic vision for its workspaces into tangible, high-performing environments across its extensive portfolio. The successful candidate will be instrumental in defining and implementing workplace design standards that foster productivity, enhance collaboration, and reflect Absa's corporate culture and brand identity. This is an opportunity to lead a centre of excellence in workplace design and planning, integrating architectural principles, space optimisation, and user experience into the broader real estate lifecycle.

About the Role

As the Workplace Design Manager, you will be at the forefront of shaping Absa's physical work environments. Your responsibilities will span the translation of overarching workplace strategies into actionable design standards and implementation frameworks. This includes developing and governing these standards to ensure consistency, quality, and alignment with business objectives, as well as the bank's brand and culture. You will be responsible for the successful rollout of workplace design initiatives, encompassing refurbishments and transformations. A key aspect of the role involves championing user experience, designing environments that not only look professional but actively contribute to employee well-being, collaboration, and productivity.

You will provide crucial architectural oversight, coordinating efforts between internal teams and external design partners. This role demands a high degree of cross-functional collaboration, working closely with Project Management, Facilities Management, Engineering, and Strategy departments to ensure seamless, end-to-end delivery of workplace solutions. The scope of your influence extends across Absa's diverse portfolio, addressing the unique needs of corporate offices, retail spaces, and future workplace concepts in various geographical locations.

The Workplace Design Manager will be accountable for several key areas within the CRES function:

• **Strategy Formulation and Execution:** You will act as the definitive source of expertise for workplace design standards across the entire CRES portfolio. This involves translating strategic workplace objectives into practical design frameworks, developing long-term planning models that accommodate hybrid work trends and business growth, and establishing robust design governance and approval processes. Ensuring the alignment between workplace design, capital investment, and portfolio optimisation will be paramount.
• **Enhancing Employee Experience:** Representing the voice of the employee and user experience will be central to your decision-making. You will strive to deliver environments that strike a balance between a positive experience, operational efficiency, and practical functionality. A critical challenge will be to enable a consistent workplace experience across different geographies while allowing for necessary local adaptations.
• **Driving Sustainable Growth and Efficiency:** Your design choices will contribute to cost optimisation through intelligent space planning and innovative workplace design. You will support Absa's expansion through scalable workplace models and integrate sustainability principles into all design and planning activities.
• **Fostering Innovation and Change:** Staying abreast of global workplace trends will be essential, allowing you to introduce innovative concepts and delivery models. You will lead workplace transformation programmes, including those focused on enabling hybrid work and designing for the future. Driving the adoption of new workplace solutions through effective change management approaches will be key to your success.
• **Operational Excellence and Digital Integration:** Ensuring that workplace designs are practical, deliverable, and align with operational realities is crucial. You will collaborate with Facilities and Engineering teams to ensure designs support efficient operations and maintenance, and work closely with the Projects function to ensure design intent is realised during execution. Establishing clear handover processes across the value chain will be vital. Furthermore, you will support the integration of workplace data into broader CRES reporting and drive the adoption of digital workplace tools and smart environment solutions.
• **Governance, Risk, and Stakeholder Management:** You will ensure all workplace designs comply with relevant regulatory, safety, and accessibility requirements, and support governance processes related to design approvals and capital investment decisions. Maintaining clear documentation and audit trails is also a responsibility. Engaging with senior business stakeholders to understand their requirements and acting as a trusted advisor on all aspects of workplace strategy, design, and planning will be a daily activity.

What They're Looking For

Absa is seeking a candidate with a strong educational foundation and extensive practical experience. A degree (NQF Level 7/8) in Architecture or Interior Design is mandatory, along with registration with the South African Council for the Architectural Profession (SACAP). While not mandatory, a postgraduate qualification in Architecture or Interior Design would be advantageous.

Professionally, you should possess between 10 to 15 years of experience in workplace design, architecture, or corporate real estate. Proven experience in planning large-scale workplace transformations is essential. You should have demonstrable experience working across both corporate and retail environments, with significant exposure to occupancy analytics, workplace strategy development, and design governance. The ability to effectively manage external design consultants and delivery partners is a key requirement, as is experience operating within large, complex, and multi-site portfolios.

Competencies for this role include strong strategic thinking, leadership in design, excellent influence and stakeholder engagement skills, a creative and innovative mindset, a collaborative spirit, a focus on delivery, and solid business acumen. Desired knowledge and skills include a deep understanding of workplace strategy and planning.

In South Africa, a role of this nature typically commands a competitive salary, reflecting the significant responsibility and specialised expertise required. Employers in this sector often include large financial institutions, multinational corporations, and major property developers. Career progression could lead to more senior roles within CRES, such as Head of Workplace Strategy or Director of Corporate Real Estate.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

Education:

• • Degree (NQF 7/8) in Architecture, Interior Design (Mandatory)
•  • Registered with SACAP (Mandatory)
• • Postgraduate qualification in Architecture and Interior Design advantageous

Experience:

• • 10–15 years’ experience in workplace design, architecture, or corporate real estate
• • Proven experience in large-scale workplace transformation planning
• • Experience working across corporate and/or retail environments
• • Strong exposure to occupancy analytics, workplace strategy and design governance
• • Experience managing external design consultants and delivery partners
• • Experience operating within large, complex and multi-site portfolios

COMPETENCIES

Leadership Competencies:

• • Strategic Thinking
• • Design Leadership
• • Influence and Stakeholder Engagement
• • Innovation and Creativity
• • Collaboration
• • Delivery Focus
• • Business Acumen

Knowledge and Skills:

• • Workplace strategy and planning
• • Architectural and design principles
• • Space utilisation and occupancy analytics
• • Change management and workplace transformation
• • Portfolio planning integration
• • Digital workplace tools and analytics
• • Cross-functional delivery coordination

Education

Bachelor`s Degrees and Advanced Diplomas: Business, Commerce and Management Studies (Required)

Absa Bank Limited is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. In compliance with the Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998, preference will be given to suitable candidates from designated groups whose appointments will contribute towards achievement of equitable demographic representation of our workforce profile and add to the diversity of the Bank.

Absa Bank Limited reserves the right not to make an appointment to the post as advertised