Head of Information Technology & Digital Transformation

About the role

The Head of Information Technology & Digital Transformation will lead Standard Life’s IT strategy and drive the digital transformation of its financial‑services platform. Reporting to senior management, you will oversee the implementation of new technology solutions, improve operational efficiency and ensure robust cybersecurity and governance across the organisation.

Key responsibilities

• Develop and execute the overall IT and digital transformation strategy.
• Lead testing, implementation and optimisation of the new financial‑services platform.
• Identify and digitise manual processes across Credit, Operations, Finance, HR, Audit and other functions.
• Drive digital lending, customer onboarding, verification and system‑integration initiatives.
• Build management dashboards and business‑intelligence tools for real‑time decision‑making.
• Strengthen cybersecurity, data protection, access controls, backup and disaster‑recovery capabilities.
• Manage IT infrastructure, systems, vendors, integrations and technology projects.
• Establish IT governance, policies, controls and documentation.
• Evaluate opportunities involving AI, automation and emerging technologies.
• Present technology and transformation proposals to senior leadership.

Required profile

• Degree in Computer Science, IT, Information Systems, Engineering or related discipline.
• 7–12+ years of relevant IT experience with demonstrated leadership responsibility.
• Professional certifications such as CISA, CISM, CISSP, ITIL, COBIT, PMP or cloud certifications are advantageous.
• Strong experience in financial services, micro‑finance, fintech, banking or lending.
• Proven track record of delivering significant technology projects.

Required skills

• Cybersecurity and data protection.
• Cloud technologies and infrastructure.
• APIs, system integrations and database management.
• Business continuity and disaster‑recovery planning.
• IT governance and policy development.
• Core banking and lending platform expertise.
• Artificial intelligence, automation and emerging technology evaluation.