AVP, Payments Transformation & Operations

at  Massey Henry

Massey Henry is pleased to once again support Central 1 Credit Union (“Central 1”) — this time in the recruitment for an AVP, Payments Transformation and Operations (“AVP”). Central 1 is a leading financial services partner, providing treasury, payments, and digital solutions to 300 financial institutions and their more than five-million members and customers across Canada.

VISION

Central 1’s vision is to be a trusted partner of choice for financial and payment products and services across Canada, supporting the success of credit unions and clients, and by extension, the financial well-being of all Canadians.

The organization’s purpose, grounded by its role in enabling a thriving credit union system, is to cooperatively empower those who deliver banking choice; this purpose defines the direction for Central 1’s 2023-2025 Corporate Strategy and beyond, which includes:

• Our core has been and will always be the credit union system and we believe this heritage leads us to adjacent markets in banking in the mid-size financial institutions.
• We are a cooperative; these principles and values are expressed through the way we work
• As a system utility, we deliver the benefits of scale as an aggregator by serving a broader range of financial institutions, and we continue to look for areas of growth and opportunity.
• We are driven by enabling credit union success, which in turn provides banking choice to Canadians across the mid-size and alternative financial services market
• Central 1 is committed to building environmental sustainability, social responsibility, and effective corporate governance into all aspects of the business. Central 1’s approach is to target where core business functions and in-house expertise overlap with critical ESG issues.
• Central 1 integrates ESG factors into practices to grow and support responsible investing and strives to embed ESG to do business, continuing to take steps and further Central 1’s commitment to developing a sustainable financial system.

Products and Services
Coast to coast, Central 1 is a preferred partner for providing exceptional financial products, innovative end-to-end payments solutions, and intuitive online banking and mobile experiences that millions count on.
Central 1’s products and services are delivered through two core segments – Treasury and Payments:
Treasury: Central 1 enables a strong and stable credit union system as the primary liquidity provider to credit unions in B.C. and Ontario. This includes delivering a robust array of funding programs and investment products. Its Asset Management Services (AMS) enables credit unions to rely on the specialized investment expertise of Central 1.
Payments is an integral part of Canada’s banking system. With 148 financial institutions committed to the Forge Digital Banking Platform, Central 1 can process more than 645 million payments annually on behalf of over 200 financial institutions and government organizations in Canada. With more than 25 years of experience as a payments provider for Canadians, the organization is one of the largest payments processors in Canada.

Central 1’s corporate strategy is designed to guide the organization towards its purpose of enabling a thriving credit union system. Looking forward, Central 1’s Corporate Strategy will provide the roadmap for its direction through three core pillars:

• Strengthen Offerings: Meeting the system’s evolving needs centered around client experience.
• Transform Together: Adopting a system-first approach to engaging stakeholders to deliver value.
• Operate Reliably & Effectively: Operating reliably, effectively, and efficiently.

Aligned with this vision, Central 1 is focused on delivering the next stages of multi-year priority initiatives, including improved system reliability and performance, payments modernization, and treasury advisory services.
With a strong balance sheet, diverse business lines, and a deep understanding of its members and clients, Central 1 will continue to be innovative and adaptable to support the success of its members, clients, and the credit union system at large.
Additional Information
Please visit the Central 1 website for more information about their financial performance and operations, as well as their executive leadership team and Board of Directors . To learn more about Central 1, we also encourage candidates to review their 2023 Annual Report .

KEY QUALIFICATIONS

Technical Skills/Experience

• 10+ years of leadership experience in operations management, ideally with a strong background in payments operations and technology-driven B2B environments.
• Proven expertise in applying technology to drive efficiencies in business operations, leveraging workflow automation (artificial intelligence and/or low-code approaches), increasing self-service capabilities, and process reengineering and optimization.
• Proven ability to establish and manage stakeholder and client-facing relationships, with a focus on understanding client needs and delivering tailored solutions.
• Strong analytical abilities to navigate complex, high-quantity, and sometimes contradictory information to effectively solve problems.
• Proven ability to leverage data and insights to drive critical initiatives.
• Strong understanding of risk mitigation strategies, with the ability to apply them in operational contexts.
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to effectively deliver multi-mode communications across diverse audiences.
• Strong track record of developing innovative solutions using Lean and Agile methodologies.
• Strong interpersonal and relationship management skills across all levels of the organization.
• An engaging leader with the ability to motivate and inspire teams to deliver high-quality work.
• Ability to manage multiple and shifting priorities in a fast-paced and challenging environment.

Key Capabilities

• Strategic thinking
• Relationship management
• Influencing change and inspiring consensus
• Project management
• Continuous improvement
• Change management
• Technology integration
• Lean and Agile frameworks

Education

• Undergraduate degree in business administration, computer science, engineering, or a related field.
• MBA is preferred.

The organization’s purpose, grounded by its role in enabling a thriving credit union system, is to cooperatively empower those who deliver banking choice; this purpose defines the direction for Central 1’s 2023-2025 Corporate Strategy and beyond, which includes:

• Our core has been and will always be the credit union system and we believe this heritage leads us to adjacent markets in banking in the mid-size financial institutions.
• We are a cooperative; these principles and values are expressed through the way we work
• As a system utility, we deliver the benefits of scale as an aggregator by serving a broader range of financial institutions, and we continue to look for areas of growth and opportunity.
• We are driven by enabling credit union success, which in turn provides banking choice to Canadians across the mid-size and alternative financial services market
• Central 1 is committed to building environmental sustainability, social responsibility, and effective corporate governance into all aspects of the business. Central 1’s approach is to target where core business functions and in-house expertise overlap with critical ESG issues.
• Central 1 integrates ESG factors into practices to grow and support responsible investing and strives to embed ESG to do business, continuing to take steps and further Central 1’s commitment to developing a sustainable financial system

Central 1’s corporate strategy is designed to guide the organization towards its purpose of enabling a thriving credit union system. Looking forward, Central 1’s Corporate Strategy will provide the roadmap for its direction through three core pillars:

• Strengthen Offerings: Meeting the system’s evolving needs centered around client experience.
• Transform Together: Adopting a system-first approach to engaging stakeholders to deliver value.
• Operate Reliably & Effectively: Operating reliably, effectively, and efficiently