Head of Product, Merchant Solutions (SMME)
AI summary
Safaricom is hiring a Head of Product, Merchant Solutions (SMME) in Nairobi to lead merchant product strategy, build scalable SMME payment tools, and drive adoption across acceptance, credit, and merchant platforms. The role requires a Business or STEM degree and 10+ years of product management experience, with strong preference for mobile money, payments or fintech experience in Africa. The deadline to apply is 07/10/2026.
- Senior management product role at Safaricom in Nairobi
- Focus on SMME/merchant payments, credit and platform strategy
- Requires 10+ years product management experience
- Deadline: 07/10/2026
AI job guide
Use this guide to check salary signals, requirements, documents, application steps and safety before you apply.
AI salary guide
Source salary availableThe source lists Open. Confirm the final pay, benefits, contract terms and allowances directly with the employer before accepting an offer.
Can you qualify for this role?
- Required10+ years of relevant experienceThe job post includes a minimum experience signal.
- RequiredEducation or certification mentioned in the postThe captured text mentions education, a diploma, certificate, or licence.
- PreferredPractical evidence in internship, entregador, Product ManagementThe tags and summary point to skills connected with this role.
- RequiredAvailability to work in Not specifiedThe vacancy is associated with this location.
- UnclearComfort with the Full Time contract termsConfirm hours, duration, probation and benefits at the original source.
Documents to prepare
- Likely requiredUpdated CV
- Role specificCover letter or short employer message
- OptionalProfessional references
- Role specificAcademic or professional certificates
- VerifyID or passport only after verifying the employer
Application tips for this job
- Place your strongest Head of Product, Merchant Solutions (SMME) evidence in the first half of your CV.
- In your cover letter or employer message, connect your experience to Safaricom and the role in Not specified.
- Add concrete examples related to internship, entregador, Product Management, ideally with measurable outcomes or clear responsibilities.
- Follow the instructions from Corporate Staffing Kenya; avoid sending documents to unofficial contacts or copied links.
- Confirm the deadline, interview location and employer contact before sharing personal documents.
- Plan to submit before the listed deadline: 2026-10-07.
Source and safety check
- Corporate Staffing Kenya
- Original source link available
- Application method is clear
- Deadline is available: 2026-10-07
- HighThe post may mention payment. Verify directly with the official source before continuing.
Never pay for interviews, shortlisting, medical checks, uniforms, or job placement. Confirm every application at the original source before sharing personal documents. Report suspicious listing.
Interview preparation
- What experience makes you a strong fit for this Head of Product, Merchant Solutions (SMME) role in internship, entregador?
- How have you handled responsibilities similar to those in this job post?
- Are you available to work in Not specified under the listed contract or schedule?
- Prepare examples with clear responsibilities, tools used and measurable outcomes.
- Review the source and research Safaricom before the interview.
Ask what the first priorities will be in the role and how success will be measured.
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Original source description
Job Title: Head of Product, Merchant Solutions (SMME)
Date Posted: 30/09/2026
Job Type: Full Time
Job Level: Management
Employer: Safaricom
Industry: IT
Salary: Open
Location: Nairobi
Country: Kenya
Deadline: 07/10/2026
IT Jobs, Safaricom Jobs. Head of Product, Merchant Solutions (SMME) leads merchant product strategy, builds scalable SMME payment tools, and drives product adoption, requires a Business or STEM Degree and 10+ years product management experience.
Key Accountabilities
- Strategy and roadmap: Define the merchant product vision, segmentation and multi-year roadmap across micro, small and medium merchants, tied to clear commercial outcomes (active merchants, usage, revenue, credit attach).
- Portfolio: Own the full merchant stack: acceptance (till, Buy Goods, Paybill, QR), merchant apps and portals, notifications, reconciliation, business tools and value-added services.
- Activation before build: Prioritise getting merchants to use what already exists before building new. Run structured experiments on onboarding, configuration and engagement, and hold the team to measurable movement.
- Working capital and credit: Partner with financial services to design merchant working-capital and credit journeys that use transaction data well, and fix where the funnel breaks.
- Identity and platform foundations: Drive a single merchant identity and a common data model across products, so every merchant has one view of their business, and every market can reuse what Kenya builds.
- Data and insight: Set the evidence base: define the core merchant metrics and denominators, instrument journeys, and make roadmap decisions from data and merchant research rather than opinion.
- Vendors and delivery: Lead product input into vendor selection and contracts, with particular attention to data rights, IP and reuse across markets. Manage delivery with internal engineering and external partners.
- Team and practice: Build and lead a high-performing product team; set the product operating rhythm (discovery, PRDs, release, post-launch review).
Qualifications
- Essential
- 10+ years in product management, with at least 4 years leading product teams or a product portfolio.
- Deep experience in mobile money, payments or fintech in Africa, ideally with merchant, SME or agent products at scale.
- A track record of launching and growing products in Kenya or comparable East African markets, with measurable commercial results.
- Strong grasp of merchant payments economics: acceptance, pricing, settlement, reconciliation and merchant lifecycle.
- Data fluency: comfortable defining metrics, working with analysts and SQL outputs, and designing experiments.
- Experience working across complex stakeholder environments (operators, group functions, regulators, partners) and influencing without direct authority.
- Excellent written and verbal communication, including presenting to senior executives.
- Bachelor’s degree in business, economics, engineering, computer science or related field.
- Desirable
- Multi-market product experience across several African countries.
- Exposure to SME lending, working capital or data-driven credit products.
- Experience managing third-party technology vendors and commercial contracts.
- Knowledge of Central Bank of Kenya and regional payments and data protection regulation.
- MBA or relevant postgraduate qualification.