Venture Garden Nigeria (VGN) is a fast growing Software company with a vision to build an enduring organization with an ecosystem of value creators- while delivering high impact technology solutions for emerging markets through a culture of entrepreneurship and innovation. At VGN we wage war against the average, go beyond the ordinary to explore limitless opportunities; breaking the norms and aggressively pursuing success through- Relentless Hard-work, Pursuit of excellence, calculated risk taking and a hunger for knowledge and we have a lot of fun at it!

The Product and Platform Manager – Engineering will act as the Enterprise Architect (EA) to balance technological opportunities with business requirements and maintains a holistic view of the VGG’s platform strategy, implementation, processes, information, and Information Systems/Information Technology (IS/IT) assets. The role will deliver the technology that will take VGG to achieve its platform Holdco status across its data analytics and payment platform. The EA is responsible for driving reuse and sharing of technology and best practices to maximize value delivered to the business. Extensive experience in cloud platforms such as AWS, Axure or other cloud providers is important for this role.

Principal responsibilities and accountabilities

• Leads identification and analysis of key industry and technology trends to assess potential effect on the enterprise and facilitate their testing with the Innovation team and the Product Managers.
• Promotes the use of a shared infrastructure and application roadmap to reduce costs and improve how information flows circulates and explains roadmaps to align partners and IS/IT priorities.
• Supports the design of the criteria for supplier evaluation, comparison, and selection, and collaborates with sourcing for assessing vendor viability and risk in relation to target Enterprise Architecture.
• Partners with business and technology subject-matter experts to ensure that the translation of business requirements into technological solutions taking into account the current and target Enterprise Architecture for optimal results for both business and IS/IT.
• Manages and facilitates an agile review mechanism to evaluate product group proposals for architectural fit
• Analyzes the technology industry and market trends to determine their potential impact on the Enterprise Architecture and leads the discussions relative to future technology (hardware, software, cloud) choices and architecture direction
• Monitors key business performance indicators to ensure IS/IT product groups are aligned to business and IS/IT objectives
• Supports the design and modeling of tactical architectures for the delivery, development, and support of special projects such as mergers, acquisitions or divestitures.

Essential Competencies

• Frontend software development skills (React/Vue/Angular/Android/IOS/PWAs)
• Understands how to build for mobile.
• Backend Software Development skills (Java (Spring), ASP.NET, NodeJS, MongoDB/Postgres/MySQL, Oracle).
• Solid Software development fundamentals (TDD, BDD, Agile/Scrum/Kanban, Data structures & Algorithms).
• Infrastructure Knowledge
• AWS, Azure & other cloud providers
• Experience conducting proof of technology pilots and in-depth analysis of emerging technology.
• Standardized middleware options
• Communications protocols
• Platform infrastructure solutions, including both enterprise and open source technology
• Business models
• Cost-benefit analysis
• Budgeting and risk management

Added Advantage

• Know your way around the financial projections
• Words like EBITDA, REVENUE, AMORTIZATION & BUSINESS MODELS don’t sound foreign to you
• Strong understanding of the trends and movements in the Nigerian tech eco-systems
• Project Management experience is a plus

Working conditions
Flexibility is important. 
Equal opportunity
The role is open to anyone who meets the above criteria regardless of race or nationality
Remuneration:
Competitive based on experience