Job Description

Role Summary:

The Visa Consulting Director will be responsible for the growth of the Acquiring Advisory practice across CEMEA. This includes the overall strategy and successful delivery of offerings within this practice under the EMF umbrella, ensuring that it continues to grow across the region. This will require a depth of expertise in the Acquiring business, a solid understanding of the implications of the changing environment for payment service providers and the ability to design modules and set plays that will increase Visa's reputation as the leading advisor in this field. The Director will work in close cooperation with Visa's global consulting practices and with Value-Added Services, notably Visa Acceptance Solutions, and will lead a growing portfolio of Acquiring trainings, bringing a strong management consulting background and setting the standard for AI-enabled advisory delivery across the practice. Success will be measured on Visa's ability to provide proof points of growth in clients' businesses and being able to evidence the fact that we have supported our clients to define and implement strategies that will prepare them for future success.

Principal Responsibilities/Key Result Areas:

• Own and drive the Acquiring Advisory practice forward as its senior subject matter expert.
• Use this in-depth expertise to review, expand and grow the areas where Visa can support acquirers, processors and PayFacs to optimize and expand their business in a balanced manner that delivers clear results.
• Use Visa and external data to analyze client needs across the region's markets to identify opportunities for Acquiring Advisory consulting assignments with Visa's clients.
• In coordination with regional VCA teams, Country Managers, Products and Account Executives, ensure we operate as One Visa.
• Work in close partnership with Value-Added Services (VAS), and in particular Visa Acceptance Solutions, to shape joint propositions, embed acceptance solutions in consulting recommendations and generate pipeline for VAS products.
• Support the development of Acquiring Advisory project pitches and secure new consulting assignments with clients, as well as relevant re-engagement opportunities via a consultative sales approach in assigned markets under the guidance of the Hub lead and regional consulting leads.
• Deliver consulting projects. Resolve complex strategic problems. Synthesize and manage complex project structures when required. Manage, facilitate and implement consulting services and meet the client's business targets (assignment objectives, project scope, budget, paperwork, external consultants' supervision and project delivery). Ensure a seamless consulting experience for the client including all required areas/departments.
• Work on client site and/or virtually to design and project manage the implementation of recommendations as required.
• Ability and desire to mentor colleagues at all levels of the organization who are working to develop Acquiring expertise.
• Design, update and deliver the portfolio of Acquiring trainings for clients and internal Visa audiences, from executive briefings to in-depth technical and commercial programs, as an increasingly important part of the practice.
• Champion the use of AI across the Acquiring Advisory practice: embed AI tools into research, analysis, benchmarking and deliverable production, and ensure the team's AI fluency keeps pace with the fastest-moving tools available to consultants.
• Work closely with the global Acquiring practice and other global practices: share experience and project learnings in both directions, contribute to the set-up of standardized offerings, and leverage new global consulting solutions that will grow the practice.
• Take ownership of codifying best practices into reusable assets and of the ongoing build and maintenance of leading practices, new trends, business models and case studies to ensure that relevant information is always accessible and up to date.

Desired Candidate Profile

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent. Master's degree preferred.
• At least 10 years of overall experience, of which more than 5 years as a consultant in a top-tier management consulting firm with strong expertise in Banking and specifically in Acquiring this consulting background is a core requirement of the role.
• Deep, first-hand expertise across all aspects of a payments acquiring business, including merchant solutions, processing, value proposition design, product development and launch.
• Experience gained within payment acquirers, processors, payment facilitators or card schemes is a strong plus. A combination of regional and global experience strongly desired.
• Strong facilitation and training delivery skills.
• Advanced consulting, client engagement, client contact and presentation skills. Credibility with clients and working teams and diplomatic skills to extract desired outcomes. Comfortable interacting with and presenting to senior management of clients and Visa.
• Full AI fluency and a genuine passion for AI: deep knowledge of GenAI and agentic AI concepts, capabilities and limitations, daily hands-on use of the leading AI tools, and the credibility to set and raise the AI standard for the team's research, analysis and deliverable production.
• Highly analytical with advanced PowerPoint and Excel skills.
• Superior project management skills. Fluent communicator.
• Must have financial acumen and commercial awareness skills.
• Results-driven, flexible and both internally and externally customer focused.
• Able to travel frequently and work on client site and in a multicultural environment across CEMEA.
• Self-motivated and able to use own initiative with limited direction.
• Strong teamwork and collaboration skills with the ability to work effectively with interdisciplinary groups.
• Russian language is plus.