Assistant Vice President Innovation

Assistant Vice President – Innovation - Full relocation package

We are looking for an experienced Assistant Vice President – Innovation to help drive strategic innovation initiatives and embed a strong culture of innovation across a large and complex financial services organization.

In this role, you will work closely with senior leadership to identify emerging technologies, manage innovation initiatives, and support the development of new capabilities across the business. You will play a key role in shaping innovation strategy, coordinating cross-functional initiatives, and ensuring innovation programs deliver measurable value.

This position is ideal for someone with a strong background in innovation, change leadership, and project portfolio management within financial services .

Key Responsibilities

Innovation Strategy & Execution

• Support senior innovation leadership in driving the organization’s innovation agenda and strategic priorities.
• Identify, explore and validate strategic innovation themes such as:
• Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning
• API and Open Banking
• Platforms and Digital Marketplaces
• Robotics and Automation
• Manage and monitor innovation initiatives to ensure they are delivered on time, within budget, and aligned with defined outcomes.
• Conduct post-implementation reviews of innovation initiatives to assess value creation and capture key learnings.

Culture & Collaboration

• Foster a bottom-up innovation culture by empowering employees to contribute ideas and improve products and services.
• Lead cross-functional process improvement initiatives with business and support teams.
• Organise and support innovation-focused initiatives such as innovation days, hackathons, and innovation labs.

Governance & Performance Management

• Develop and implement innovation tracking metrics and reporting frameworks for leadership stakeholders.
• Maintain and update performance metrics across innovation programs and initiatives.
• Support the development of innovation policies, processes, and standards.
• Manage a portfolio of innovation initiatives across the organization.

Thought Leadership & Market Insight

• Monitor external innovation trends and emerging technologies in financial services.
• Provide regular updates to executive leadership on innovation trends and program progress.
• Support teams during evaluation phases of innovation initiatives and act as a coach for subject matter experts.

Learning & Development

• Contribute to innovation learning resources accessible across the organisation.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of banking processes, regulatory environments, and industry best practices.
• Promote continuous learning and professional development within the innovation ecosystem.

Skills & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree from a top-tier university or equivalent.
• 10+ years’ experience in innovation, change management, or strategic advisory roles within financial services .
• Proven experience driving innovation programs in a global or large financial institution .
• Demonstrated ability to lead organizational and cultural change initiatives .
• Strong experience engaging with senior leadership and executive stakeholders .
• Experience building or scaling innovation functions or programs .
• Strong understanding of banking business and support functions .

Key Skills

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong leadership, stakeholder management and facilitation capabilities.
• Expertise in at least one of the following domains:
• AI / Machine Learning
• API & Open Banking
• Platforms and Digital Ecosystems
• Robotics & Automation
• Strong project and portfolio management capabilities.
• Ability to work in fast-paced, complex, and multicultural environments .
• Structured, analytical, and results-driven mindset.
• Strong facilitation skills in Design Thinking methodologies.
• Agile / Scrum certification or experience preferred.

Why Join?

This is an opportunity to play a key role in shaping the future of innovation within a leading financial services environment. You will work alongside senior leadership and cross-functional teams to drive transformation and implement cutting-edge initiatives that create real business impact.