Head of Collections & Recovery

• Develop and execute a robust collections and recovery strategy that supports portfolio quality and business growth.
• Reduce portfolio-at-risk (PAR) and non-performing loan (NPL) levels through proactive, data-driven collection strategies.
• Strengthen early-stage collections and maximise cure rates while limiting migration of accounts into higher delinquency buckets.
• Drive recovery of non-performing and written-off accounts through settlements, collateral realisation, repossession and legal recovery.
• Establish strong controls, governance and reporting standards across the collections and recovery function.
• Ensure compliance with applicable regulatory, consumer protection, data protection and debt-collection requirements.
• Build and lead a high-performing, ethical collections and recovery team, including effective management of outsourced agencies and service providers.
• Provide accurate portfolio analytics, recovery reporting and provisioning inputs to support management decision-making.

Strategy & Governance

• Develop and implement collections and recovery strategies, policies and procedures aligned with applicable regulatory requirements and the organisation's strategic objectives.
• Establish risk-based collection segmentation, contact strategies and treatment paths across products and delinquency buckets.
• Monitor portfolio quality and recovery performance and provide regular reports to senior management and relevant governance committees.
• Strengthen controls and governance frameworks to ensure the collections function is effective, auditable and sustainable.

Collections Operations

• Lead early-arrears collections through calls, SMS, field visits, digital reminders and other appropriate collection channels.
• Develop strategies to maximise cure rates and minimise roll-forward into later delinquency buckets.
• Oversee restructuring, rescheduling and settlement arrangements for viable customers in financial distress, within approved policies and delegated authority.
• Manage the performance of external debt-collection agencies, auctioneers and repossession agents, including onboarding, service-level agreements, performance monitoring and conduct management.

Recovery & Legal

• Drive recovery of non-performing and written-off accounts through negotiated settlements, collateral realisation and litigation.
• Oversee repossession and disposal processes to maximise recovery value while ensuring compliance with applicable laws and fair-treatment standards.
• Manage external legal counsel and monitor the legal recovery pipeline, associated costs and turnaround times.
• Ensure effective tracking and follow-up of recovery cases through to resolution.

Compliance & Customer Treatment

• Ensure all collection and recovery activities comply with applicable data protection, consumer protection and debt-collection requirements.
• Promote ethical and professional collection practices, with zero tolerance for harassment, unlawful practices or conduct that may expose the organisation to regulatory or reputational risk.
• Maintain complete and auditable records of collection and recovery activities.
• Ensure customer complaints relating to collections and recovery are appropriately investigated and resolved within agreed timelines.

Analytics & Reporting

• Develop and maintain collections dashboards and portfolio analytics to support decision-making.
• Analyse roll rates, vintage performance, delinquency trends and portfolio segmentation to identify emerging risks and opportunities.
• Provide accurate and timely portfolio reports and inputs required for provisioning and financial reporting.
• Use data and performance trends to continuously improve collection strategies and resource allocation.

People Leadership

• Lead, coach and develop a high-performing collections and recovery team.
• Set clear individual and team targets, performance measures and scorecards.
• Build a culture of accountability, ethical conduct, performance and continuous improvement.
• Effectively manage both internal teams and outsourced recovery partners.

Key Performance Indicators

Performance in the role will be assessed against agreed annual targets, including:

• Portfolio at Risk (PAR 30): 5% of gross loan book.
• NPL Ratio: 8% in Year 1, with a longer-term target of 5%.
• Collection Efficiency: 97% of amounts contractually due.
• Early-Bucket Cure Rate: 60%.
• Roll-Forward Rate: 25% from the 31–60 to 61–90 day bucket.
• Written-Off Portfolio Recoveries: 20% annually.
• Repossession Cycle: 90 days from default trigger to disposal/settlement.
• Cost of Collections: 3% of amounts collected.
• Compliance & Conduct: Zero regulatory/conduct breaches and timely resolution of customer complaints.
• Reporting & Provisioning: 100% accuracy and timeliness, with zero material audit findings.

Academic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Commerce, Economics, Law or a related field .
• A Master's degree will be an added advantage.
• Professional qualification such as CPA (K), ACCA, CCP or another relevant credit-management qualification is preferred.

• At least 10 years' experience in credit, collections and recovery within banking, microfinance or a related financial services environment.
• At least 5 years' experience at senior management level .
• Demonstrable experience in reducing PAR and NPL ratios and improving portfolio quality.
• Strong experience managing collections, recoveries, repossession, legal recovery and external recovery agencies .
• Strong understanding of credit risk, collections strategy, portfolio segmentation, roll rates and vintage analysis .
• Good knowledge of IFRS 9 and provisioning requirements .
• Strong understanding of applicable regulatory, consumer protection, data protection and debt-recovery requirements .
• Experience in secured lending and recovery involving chattels, motor vehicles, land or other collateral will be an advantage.
• Strong reporting and analytical capabilities, with the ability to translate portfolio data into actionable collection strategies.
• Proven experience managing large, performance-driven collections teams and outsourced service providers.