Sr. Manager, Strategy & Operations, Commercial & Money Movement Solutions, Visa Canada

Commercial and Money Movement Solutions (CMS) represents a key strategic growth area for Visa globally as we expand beyond consumer payments into business payments and broader money movement flows among individuals, businesses and governments. As part of our suite of solutions, including Visa Commercial Solutions, Visa Direct, Visa B2B Connect and Visa Cross-Border Solutions, Visa offers payment services that help clients, including issuers, fintechs, acquirers, processors, merchants and service providers, facilitate payment and money movement between accounts, cards and digital wallets in Canada and around the world. 

The Senior Manager, Strategy & Operations will support the VP, Head of Commercial & Money Movement Solutions (CMS) for Visa Canada and the CMS Canada leadership team in driving growth planning, strategic initiatives, performance management and business operations for this high-growth business in Canada. This role will help translate CMS priorities into clear plans, operating rhythms, reporting, insights and execution support across the Canadian business. 

Operating in a matrixed environment, this role will work closely with teams across Visa Canada and North America, including Visa Commercial Solutions, Visa Money Movement Solutions, Real-Time Payments, Open Banking, sales, product, client consulting, marketing, corporate communications, legal, finance, risk and other functional partners. Strong organizational skills, analytical capability and interpersonal effectiveness are critical, as this role helps coordinate cross-functional activities and support alignment against CMS Canada's business objectives. 

The ideal candidate will be able to quickly build subject matter depth across a range of payments, commercial and money movement topics, synthesize qualitative and quantitative information, and translate analysis into practical insights and recommendations for leadership. The role requires strong analytical and critical thinking skills, comfort working through ambiguity, and the ability to manage multiple workstreams while maintaining attention to detail and execution discipline. 

Best-suited candidates will be clear communicators, highly collaborative, self-motivated, analytical and comfortable working with stakeholders from a diversity of backgrounds. The Senior Manager will be expected to support strategy development, operating cadence, executive reporting, business planning and priority initiatives that help CMS Canada continue to grow and operate effectively. 

Essential Functions 

Financial Management & Scorecard Reporting 

• Support CMS Canada management reporting including scorecards, dashboards, financial reporting, business performance updates and strategic initiative tracking. 

• Track budgets, contractual commitments and key business metrics in partnership with Finance and business owners, identifying risks, gaps and areas requiring leadership attention. 

• Maintain reporting discipline and data quality by coordinating inputs, validating information and ensuring timely updates through appropriate tools and processes, including Dynamics where applicable. 

Sales Enablement & Operations 

• Support core sales operations activities including client engagement survey reporting, action planning, client event coordination and management of priority sponsorship assets for client engagement. 

• Partner with sales and product teams to organize client-facing priorities, track follow-ups, prepare materials and help ensure key initiatives move from planning to execution. 

• Help improve operating processes by identifying friction points, documenting requirements and recommending practical ways to improve speed, visibility and accountability. 

Annual Planning Process 

• Support annual business planning for CMS Canada including planning calendars, inputs, goal setting, objective tracking, scorecard development and coordination of annual account sales plans. 

• Prepare analysis and materials to support leadership discussions on priorities, resources, performance expectations and growth opportunities. 

• Coordinate planning inputs across functions and help ensure alignment with Canada market priorities and North America CMS planning requirements. 

Strategic Initiatives & PMO Support 

• Lead or support workstreams for CMS Canada strategic initiatives including project plans, milestones, risks, dependencies, business cases, analysis and action plans. 

• Act as PMO support for priority initiatives by tracking progress, coordinating stakeholders, surfacing issues and ensuring follow-through against agreed actions. 

• Develop fact-based analysis and recommendations to support strategic and financial soundness, including quantitative analysis, market context and stakeholder input. 

Strategic Alignment with Functional Partners 

• Collaborate with Marketing, Communications, Government Relations and other functional teams to support external presence strategy across CMS business lines, including industry events, speaking opportunities, client forums and market-facing materials. 

• Facilitate alignment with internal strategy and operations partners including Canada market teams and North America functional groups across Visa Commercial Solutions, Visa Direct, Consumer Payments and related teams. 

• Support operating rhythms and governance that help CMS Canada leadership make timely decisions, manage priorities and maintain cross-functional accountability. 

Insights & Thought Leadership Development 

• Generate data-driven insights by analyzing Visa data, market reports, benchmarks and internal performance information to identify opportunities, risks and trends. 

• Monitor payments industry developments and competitor strategies and develop executive summaries or strategic responses that inform CMS Canada priorities. 

• Support quarterly strategy, planning and operations reviews by developing clear, concise and leadership-ready analysis, narratives and presentation materials. 

CMS Canada Narrative & Executive Materials 

• Support development of internal and external leadership materials including senior executive briefings, Visa Canada Advisory Board content, client quarterly business reviews, industry forum presentations and strategic updates. 

• Translate complex topics into clear business narratives that connect CMS Canada strategy, performance, market context and client priorities. 

• Maintain a consistent CMS Canada narrative across planning, reporting, leadership forums and priority communications. 

Team Culture & Operational Effectiveness 

• Support CMS Canada team culture and engagement activities including team-wide communications, operating meetings, engagement initiatives, recruiting process support and priority event coordination. 

• Track progress against key operational initiatives and help ensure actions, owners and timelines are clear across the CMS Canada team. 

• Provide ad hoc strategic and operational support to the Head of CMS Canada and leadership team to enable effective management of the business. 

• 9+ years of relevant work experience with a Bachelor’s Degree, or 7+ years of relevant work experience with an Advanced Degree (e.g., Masters, MBA, JD, MD), or 3+ years of work experience with a PhD. 

• Experience in strategy, business operations, sales operations, business planning, performance management, management consulting, payments, financial services, fintech, banking or related technology sectors. 

• Strong analytical skill set with the ability to frame business opportunities and risks in commercial, operational and financial terms. 

• Excellent project management skills, including the ability to manage multiple workstreams, stakeholders, dependencies and deadlines simultaneously. 

• Demonstrated ability to synthesize qualitative and quantitative information, develop actionable insights and prepare clear recommendations for leadership. 

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to produce executive-ready presentations, dashboards, briefing materials and business narratives. 

• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build trust, collaborate effectively and influence across a matrixed organization without direct authority. 

• Experience with management reporting, scorecards, dashboards, financial tracking, business reviews, strategic planning or operating cadence management preferred. 

• Knowledge of payments, commercial payments, money movement, Visa Direct, Visa Commercial Solutions, real-time payments, open banking, card-based payments or related ecosystems is an asset. 

• Technology and data savvy, with comfort using data insights, financial models, operational reporting or CRM / sales tools to support business growth and decision-making. 

• Creative self-starter with a bias toward action, strong attention to detail and the ability to move work forward in a fast-paced environment. 

• Curiosity and willingness to learn, with high integrity, sound judgment and strong business ethics. 

• Team-oriented, collaborative, diplomatic and flexible, with the ability to work effectively with stakeholders from diverse backgrounds and functions. 

• MBA or relevant graduate degree preferred.