Lead: Organisation Design

Absa is seeking an experienced Organisation Design Lead to join its Johannesburg team. This pivotal role will involve providing expert consulting and best practice guidance on large-scale organisation design initiatives. The successful candidate will play a crucial part in shaping and maturing the enterprise's organisational structures, ensuring they are agile, efficient, and strategically aligned.

About the Role

The core of this position lies in translating strategic objectives into tangible organisational designs. You will be responsible for defining and implementing enterprise-wide frameworks, standards, and toolkits that guide practical, business-specific solutions. This includes clarifying roles, defining levels of work, and establishing clear accountabilities across the organisation. A significant aspect of the role involves leveraging data, insights, and workforce analysis to inform design decisions, support leaders through periods of change, and facilitate effective workforce planning.

You will act as a key partner to business stakeholders, collaboratively implementing sustainable organisation design solutions. The ultimate goal is to enhance efficiency, agility, and strategic alignment, ensuring that Absa's organisational structure supports its overarching business goals. This will involve preparing documentation, facilitating workshops for operating model discussions, and ensuring that organisational design principles are embedded in all decision-making processes.

The Organisation Design Lead will be instrumental in a range of critical activities:

• **Consulting and Best Practice:** Provide expert consulting and best practice support for large-scale organisation design reviews.
• **Framework Development:** Define and implement enterprise frameworks, standards, and toolkits that enable effective organisation design.
• **Role Clarification:** Ensure clarity around roles, levels of work, and accountabilities within the organisational structure.
• **Data-Informed Design:** Utilise data, insights, and workforce analysis to inform design decisions and support strategic planning.
• **Change Leadership:** Support business leaders through organisational change, ensuring smooth transitions and adoption of new structures.
• **Stakeholder Partnership:** Collaborate closely with business stakeholders to implement sustainable and effective organisation design solutions.
• **Workshop Facilitation:** Prepare documentation and facilitate workshops related to operating model discussions and design decisions.
• **HC Alignment:** Partner with Human Capital (HC) Services to ensure accurate job authoring and position management in line with established standards.
• **Organisational Health Monitoring:** Track organisational health through key performance indicators (KPIs) and dashboards, providing actionable insights to senior leadership.
• **Transformation Contribution:** Contribute to broader enterprise transformation initiatives by embedding organisation design principles and frameworks.
• **Strategy Execution:** Lead and coordinate organisation design reviews in collaboration with Chief People Officers and business leaders, ensuring alignment with strategic priorities.
• **Customer Centricity:** Ensure that organisation design solutions support seamless customer journeys and operational agility, embedding practices that promote customer-centricity.
• **Sustainable Growth:** Apply organisation design principles to foster sustainable growth and operational resilience, aligning structural decisions with long-term objectives.
• **Innovation and Change Management:** Drive continuous improvement and innovation within the team, supporting the adoption of new ways of working and structural changes through effective change management practices.
• **Talent Development:** Provide specialist guidance to HC Partners and business leaders, and build capability within the organisation design team through mentoring and knowledge sharing.

What They're Looking For

Absa is looking for a candidate with a strong background in organisation design, strategic thinking, and a proven ability to influence stakeholders. Key requirements include:

• Substantial experience in organisation design consulting, with a track record of leading large-scale reviews.
• A deep understanding of organisation design principles, frameworks, and methodologies.
• Proficiency in using data, workforce analytics, and insights to drive design decisions.
• Experience in facilitating workshops and preparing documentation for strategic discussions.
• Strong collaboration and partnership skills, with the ability to work effectively with business leaders and HC services.
• Familiarity with change management practices and supporting organisational transitions.
• The ability to monitor organisational health through KPIs and dashboards and provide strategic insights.
• A strategic mindset, capable of translating long-term objectives into actionable plans.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to influence and guide senior stakeholders.
• An understanding of customer journeys and the ability to embed customer-centricity into organisational structures.
• A proactive approach to driving innovation and continuous improvement.

This role offers an exciting opportunity to make a significant impact on Absa's organisational effectiveness and contribute to its exciting growth journey within the African financial landscape.

In South Africa, roles such as this typically require significant experience in organisational development, human resources, or strategic consulting. Salaries can vary widely based on experience and the specific organisation, but can range from R600,000 to over R1,000,000 per annum. Large financial institutions like Absa, as well as major consulting firms and large corporates, are common employers for such positions. Career progression often leads to more senior leadership roles in HR strategy, transformation, or operations.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE:

Education/ Qualification:

• Post Graduate Degree: Honours Degree, Post Graduate Diploma and Professional Qualifications [NQF8]
• Field of Study: Industrial Psychology, Strategic Management, or other relevant qualification

Work Experience:

• 12–15 years’ experience in organisation design or related capability, including a track record of 5 years in a people management or specialist advisory role in a large enterprise.
• Experience must include developing integrated organisation design frameworks, operating models, and structural governance while managing stakeholders across business and functional areas.
• Exposure to digital transformation and data-driven decision-making is preferred.

COMPETENCIES:

Leadership Competencies:

• Strategic Thinking
• Business Acumen
• Communication
• Influence
• Leadership
• Creativity and Innovation
• Delivering Results
• Adaptability
• Collaboration

Knowledge and Skills:

• Organisation design frameworks and methodologies
• Operating model design and implementation
• Workforce analytics and organisational diagnostics
• Governance and structural standards
• Change management and adoption strategies
• Digital tools and platform integration
• Stakeholder engagement and advisory
• Talent development and capability building

Education

Postgraduate Degrees and Professional Qualifications: Industrial and Organisational Psychology, Postgraduate Degrees and Professional Qualifications: Strategic Management

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