Senior Specialist: SME Finance (Small Medium Enterprises)

Empowering Africa’s tomorrow, together…one story at a time.

Job Summary

SME Finance supports decision-making within the SME portfolio through the provision of relevant, high quality financial information and insight at a segment and portfolio level. The SME Finance team is focused on delivering a clear, commercially grounded view of performance, rooted in historical trends and forward looking ambitions for small and medium enterprises across sectors and geographies.
The strategic value of robust financial analysis in the SME context is critical. By providing transparency on portfolio health, risk adjusted returns, growth drivers, and structural challenges, SME Finance enables the SME ExCo and senior Business Banking leadership to identify areas of strength, pressure points, and scalable growth opportunities. This analysis goes beyond core financial metrics, incorporating market dynamics, client behaviour, competitive positioning, and product economics to deliver a holistic view of the SME business.
A key component of the role is the use of management information, trend analysis, and data led insight to support forward looking decision making across SME sub segments (e.g. micro and medium), priority sectors (e.g. agriculture, manufacturing, trade, professional services), and integrated distribution channels (relationship banking, digital, ecosystem partnerships, and self service). This includes close collaboration with data, analytics, and MI teams to enhance data quality, improve reporting consistency, and translate complex data into actionable commercial insight.
This role is a specialist position within the SME Finance team of the broader Business Banking Finance Team. This individual is responsible for:
End to end financial planning for SME Banking, including the preparation and review of forecasts and short and medium term budgets that feed into the Integrated Plan, as well as plan restatements and rebasing where required
Preparation of management and Exco level financial reporting, including insightful commentary for use by SME ExCo and BB ExCo
Commercial and strategic analysis of portfolio performance, revenues, costs, margins, credit dynamics, pricing, and returns across SME segments, products, and channels
Competitor and market analysis, including trends in SME lending, transactional banking, digital propositions, and emerging fintech/business banking models
Ad hoc financial analysis and research, often supporting ExCo discussions, strategic initiatives, new product propositions, or portfolio optimisation decisions

Job Description

Accountability: Manage and execute the following deliverables to Exco and other members of senior management in collaboration with teammates, with the support of business unit financial decision support teams, risk colleagues and treasury colleagues:

• Project management and analysis of key planning deliverables throughout the year: revised annual forecasts (RAF), outlooks, short-term and medium-term plans (STP and MTP), stress testing and integrated plan outputs

• Monthly and quarterly key financial reports on financial performance

• Competitor analysis

• Research projects - gathering financial data and creating insightful, decision useful analysis and thought pieces

• Other ad hoc projects and presentations

• Financial scenario analysis and stress testing

• Consolidating financial information for senior management

• Attend meetings to assist executives to understand and complete their tasks to achieve team goals

Accountability: RAF and STP review packs

• Assess the attainability and reasonability of the various budgets and forecasts put forward by comparing them to market expectations, past performance and management expectations. Reliance is not simply placed on the numbers themselves but utilisation of various key metrics (return on regulatory capital, return on equity, cost-to-income, JAWS, etc.) is essential. 

• Compile review packs for submission to Exco and any other relevant committee. The pack together with commentary is necessary to provide a sounds basis on which the budget is approved.

• Interact with other departments such as Treasury, Risk and Group Tax may be necessary to provide comfort and assurance that the more technical aspects of submissions (e.g. funding plan impacts, risk-weighted assets and leverage) have been scrutinized and appear reasonable given the Groups economic outlook.

• undefined

  Accountability: Ad-hoc requirements/submissions

  Execute ad-hoc queries that are dependent on external and internal requirements and vary considerably throughout the year.

  Attend various committee meetings in which one will use their understanding of e.g. margins, impairment trends or economic understanding to provide a valuable contribution. In some instances, the contribution will be on a discussion basis and in others a submission to the committee is required.

  Provide other departments (Productivity Office, Office of the CE’s, Treasury, etc.) with a range of information (analysis, forecasts and actual financial data etc) to perform their respective tasks. The information supplied may need to be package in a different format to make it relevant for their respective needs. An understanding of the roll-up structures within the Absa business and good financial understanding is vital in this instance to avoid misrepresenting information.

  undefined

  Accountability: Interim and year-end reporting (twice a year)

  Compile competitor analysis which compares the SME’s performance to peers.

  undefined

  Accountability: Cluster Relationship Manager (CRM) roles

  undefined

  Perform all other duties as reasonably assigned

• Peer responsibility: Coach, inspire, engage, mentor and develop finance and business savvy leaders.

• Play to our A-Game culture of inclusivity, diversity, entrepreneurship, and ownership.

• Network with finance colleagues across BB Finance and create awareness of challenges, opportunities and issues and encourage collaboration

• Focus on finance skills evolution and remaining relevant.

• Maintaining and strengthening relationships with key stakeholders across the organisation, e.g. BB and BU Financial Resource Management, BB and BU Risk, Group Treasury Finance, Finance Business Partners and Financial Decision Support Heads.

Qualifications and experience:

• B Com degree with Honours

• CA SA / CIMA (5-8 years post qualifying)

• Non-CA SA / CIMA (7-10 years’ experience in Financial Services organisation)

• Able to work effectively across a multi-service Financial Services organisation

• Experience working closely with data, MI, and analytics teams is essential. Exposure to MI tools, data modelling, dashboards, or basic coding (e.g. SQL, Python, or similar) is an advantage.

• Previous exposure to financial management reporting in a financial services organisation

Knowledge and skills:

• Financial Accounting

• Data & Management Information (MI) - Experience in handling big data and landing process efficiency projects

• Knowledge of dashboards and PowerBI

• Report writing

• Analytical skills

• Self-driven and good interpersonal skills

• Attention to detail

• Deadline driven

• Advanced Excel and PowerPoint skills

• Knowledge of financial markets

• Knowledge of economics

Competencies:

• Deciding and initiating action

• Learning and researching

• Entrepreneurial and commercial thinking

• Relating and networking

• Adapting and responding to change

• Persuading and influencing

• Creating and innovating

Education

Postgraduate Degrees and Professional Qualifications: Financial Sciences (Required)

Absa Bank Limited is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. In compliance with the Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998, preference will be given to suitable candidates from designated groups whose appointments will contribute towards achievement of equitable demographic representation of our workforce profile and add to the diversity of the Bank.

Absa Bank Limited reserves the right not to make an appointment to the post as advertised