Head of Product & Innovation

About the role

A vacancy exists for a Head of Product and Innovation at Life Head Office, reporting to the Funder Relations and Health Policy Executive. The successful candidate will manage product and innovation at Life Healthcare and its subsidiary companies in South Africa.

Key responsibilities

• Drive the execution of the Product and Innovation strategy and oversee the performance and governance of the product portfolio.
• Lead the end-to-end product lifecycle, from opportunity identification and concept development through to commercialisation, scaling, performance monitoring, optimisation and retirement.
• Accelerate the development, implementation and commercialisation of innovative healthcare solutions and drive the development and market adoption of innovative clinical, operational and reimbursement products.
• Maintain and govern the product and innovation pipeline, prioritising initiatives by strategic value, market demand, financial returns, operational feasibility and clinical impact.
• Oversee the financial and operational performance of the product portfolio and guide Business Operations on interventions to optimise product value, address performance gaps, mitigate risks and improve commercial outcomes.
• Partner with funders, clinicians, healthcare professionals, technology providers, academic institutions and industry stakeholders to co-create products and solutions.
• Identify and adopt emerging healthcare trends, digital health technologies, AI applications and alternative reimbursement mechanisms, and foster a culture of innovation across the organisation.

Required profile

• At least an undergraduate degree in the relevant field; a post-graduate degree is advantageous.
• 7-9 years in technology, innovation, customer experience or product management.
• 5 years of leadership responsibilities, including interfacing with executive leadership.
• Understanding of leading product development methodologies such as Agile, Scrum, Design Thinking and Rapid Prototyping.

Required skills

• Excellent communication and people management skills.
• Strong analytical, strategic and coordinating skills.
• Strong verbal and written communication, presentation and leadership skills.
• Strong understanding of market trends in relevant business and technology.

Candidates should send their resume/CV.