Head of Business Technology Strategy, Design and Delivery

About Chartered Accountants Ireland   

The world of professional accountancy is changing at an unprecedented pace, adapting to its crucial role in climate reporting, AI and emerging technologies, increasingly sophisticated regulation, and evolving ways of working. This pace of change ensures that the non-stop demand for professional accountants and their services will continue to grow and expand to 2030 and beyond.

Chartered Accountants Ireland, the longest established and fastest growing professional accountancy body on the island of Ireland, is changing rapidly too, drawing on best-in-class organisational design and state-of-art Technology solutions to provide forward-looking education, support, and regulation to members, firms, and students in the years ahead as well as for the organisation running Chartered Accountants Ireland. We are embarking on a complete business transformation programme, the most exciting and ambitious in our 135-year history.

Institute Values

The Institute seeks to ensure an environment based on its values of Innovation with Ambition, Collaboration for Impact, Speed and Simplicity, Trust, Inclusion, and For Tomorrow, For Good. Candidates should be able to demonstrate how these may apply to them in the role for which they are applying and how their previous experience is relevant to them.

Summary of the Role

As the Head of Business Technology Strategy, Design and Delivery you are responsible for ensuring we keep innovating and leverage technology to the benefit of our end customers (Members and Students) in collaboration with the business areas responsible for these. In addition, you will be working with internal departments like finance, Education, Membership, Professional standards and Advocacy and policy to ensure they are enabled to do their best work with modern technology supporting them.  You will play a pivotal role in shaping and advancing the organisation's transformation and customer-centric strategies. This leadership role combines a set of responsibilities; Strategy, design and delivery of the technology components of the transformation and in steady-state to ensure we keep being at the forefront of what is possible and makes sense for the organisation and its customers. This role reports to the Chief Information Officer.

Responsibilities

Strategy, design and delivery leadership:

• Continuously develop the technology strategy to ensure it is fully aligned with the organisation's overall objectives.
• Provide visionary leadership in the wider technology space, fostering innovation and a customer-centric approach.
• Working with internal teams across the organisation to ensure we have the right roadmaps in place and deliver on these through suppliers, external resource and key internal roles.
• Work with the Support team to ensure smooth service introduction handover, foster a process of continuous improvements and ensure an appropriate degree of self-service and automation for all users.
• Build and lead high-performing teams responsible for Strategy, Design and Delivery using internal and external resources
• Provide mentorship and development opportunities to team members as the transition from legacy platforms to the new platforms

SaaS applications:

• Leveraging customer facing and internal SaaS applications; Working closely with internally and externally focused functions to deliver the required functionality with as little customisation as possible and with a focus on customer experience.
• Ensure clear technology ownership for applications and integrations.
• Hands-on assistance in Strategy, Architecture and design incl. UX
• Lead efforts to enhance the experience across various customer (internal and external) touchpoints, ensuring seamless, engaging, and consistent journeys.
• Lead transparent prioritisation of roadmaps and opportunities

Process change and optimisation:

• Calling out opportunities for process improvement and change within the organisation leveraging the SaaS applications, tight integration and automation.

Cross-functional collaboration:

• Foster a culture of collaboration and cross-functional problem-solving.

Data-Driven decision-making:

• Utilise data and insights to inform decision-making.
• Identify trends, pain points, and opportunities for improvement.

Performance measurement:

• Define key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics to track the success and impact of the transformation as well as steady-state and encourage the other business areas to define similar measurable KPIs

The candidate

Requirements:

• Education: A degree in a relevant field such as Computer Science or Engineering.
• Experience: A track record of at least 10 years in senior technical leadership role with demonstrable experience in transformation through SaaS
• SaaS implementation experience is a requirement and experience from the MS suite e.g. Power Platform and F&O as well as experience in educational SaaS solutions like Moodle and Area9 RAPSODE would be a distinct advantage.
• A customer-centric mindset with a strong commitment to improving customer experiences.
• Strong vendor management experience is essential.
• Analytical Skills: Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to derive insights from data.
• Leadership Skills: Exceptional leadership and team management skills, with the ability to provide vision, inspire and guide teams to achieve organisational goals related to the new generations of members.
• Communication: Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, including the ability to effectively collaborate with individuals at all levels of the organisation.
• Process Improvement: Familiarity with process improvement methodologies (e.g., Lean, Six Sigma) and a demonstrated ability to drive process change and optimisation.

Flexible work arrangements

The Institute is seeking and encourages applications from experienced candidates who may be looking for flexible work arrangements. If such arrangements are being sought please bring these to the attention of your interviewer.

The Institute will use the information which you have provided in this form to respond to your request or process your application and will hold and protect it in accordance with the Institute's privacy statement, which explains your rights in relation to your personal data.  By submitting this application acknowledge you have read our privacy statement.

Chartered Accountants Ireland is an equal opportunities employer.

Applications, including curriculum vitae, should be sent directly via email to hr@charteredaccountants.ie or alternatively be sent via post to:

Human Resource Department
Chartered Accountants Ireland,
Chartered Accountants House,
47 Pearse Street,
Dublin 2

Role closes 20th September.