Purpose
The Governance Manager is responsible for establishing and orchestrating the company's execution governance framework to ensure that strategic intent is translated into structured planning, consistent execution, and measurable outcomes. This role provides active oversight of enterprise initiatives, maintains the technical integrity of governance and management systems, and enables a consistent business rhythm across the organization.
The Governance Manager is expected to engage proactively and confidently with leadership—surfacing execution risks early, asking challenging questions, and facilitating timely course correction to ensure organizational commitments progress as intended. Operating with delegated authority from the ExCom, the Manager establishes execution standards, requires rigorous planning artifacts, and convenes performance reviews to ensure visibility and accountability. While accountability for delivery remains with the business groups, this role owns the integrity of the governance system, ensuring all commitments are actively managed, aligned with corporate objectives, and compliant with global certification standards.
Key Responsibilities
- Governance Framework & Business Rhythm — Design, maintain, and refine the enterprise execution governance framework, establishing standards for business planning, execution artefacts, review cadence, and performance visibility.
- ISMS & Audit Leadership — Lead the internal and external audit calendar with a strong emphasis on Information Security Management Systems (ISO 27001), facilitating the full audit lifecycle and driving the timely closure of corrective actions.
- Policy & Compliance Stewardship — Own the lifecycle of corporate governance policies and harmonize the Integrated Management System to sustain compliance across global standards (ISO 27001, 9001, 14001, 45001, 22301) and ITSM frameworks.
- Enterprise Risk & Resilience — Maintain the enterprise risk register, facilitate periodic risk assessments, and oversee the testing and review of Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery arrangements.
- Executive Insight & Reporting — Define governance and execution KPIs, develop executive dashboards, and translate complex operational and risk data into concise, decision-ready insights for leadership.
- Team Leadership — Lead and develop direct reports, managing priorities, providing technical mentorship, and ensuring the consistent, high-quality delivery of group outputs.
Qualifications
Minimum Education
- Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, IT, Engineering, or a related field
- Preferred certifications:
- Certified Lead Auditor or Internal Audit for relevant ISO standards
- PMP or equivalent project/program management certification
Minimum Experience / Training
- Minimum of 8–10 years of experience in Governance, Risk, Compliance (GRC), Program Management, or Operational Excellence
- Proven experience operating in a high-visibility role with regular exposure to executive leadership
- Demonstrated track record of designing and implementing structured operational cadences, business planning cycles, or enterprise-wide governance frameworks
- Expertise in technical writing, policy architecture, and managing Integrated Management Systems (IMS)
Competency
- Operates with the highest ethical standards; demonstrates absolute discretion and confidentiality when handling privileged organizational intelligence, including sensitive strategic data, audit findings, and confidential personnel information
- Ability to engage confidently with ExCom and senior leadership, asking challenging questions to ensure the integrity of planning and execution
- Ability to exercise delegated authority professionally, influencing cross-functional teams and group heads without direct line authority
- Ability to see through data and status reports to identify hidden execution risks, systemic trends, and strategic misalignments
- Ability to distill complex operational, risk, and compliance data into concise, high-impact executive summaries and decision-ready insights
- Ability to maintain objectivity and professional composure when delivering difficult feedback or elevating material risks to leadership
- Knowledge of ITIL or ITSM frameworks
