Payment Operations Project Manager

The team you’ll be joining

Our Payment Operations & Change team plays a key role in EML’s transformation journey—modernising processes, driving automation, and creating a best-in-class operation. The team manages projects and operational initiatives while overseeing critical relationships with payment networks, card schemes (Visa, Mastercard), acquirers, processors, card bureaus, and associated service providers across Australia and globally.

We work closely with teams across the business, including our Scheme Management function, to deliver operational excellence and drive cost efficiency. Our collaborative approach ensures we are ready to meet evolving customer and regulatory needs in Australia and globally.

The Role

We are looking for a hands-on Project Manager who thrives on delivery and takes pride in seeing initiatives through to completion. This role is critical to EML’s global Operations team, delivering card scheme and tokenisation projects, payment operations transformation and cross-functional initiatives.

You will have subject matter knowledge of the Payments industry, be detail-oriented and have a track record of delivery. Success in this role means combining structured project management—clear planning, risk management, governance, and clear accountability—with the agility to roll up your sleeves and drive actions forward.

You will be a safe pair of hands in the Payment Operations team, supporting both large and small initiatives. From individual client delivery projects, and associated reporting, to improving our card scheme project delivery for efficiency and scale.

This role demands exceptional communication and stakeholder management skills. You will providing clarity and confidence through concise, accurate reporting and updates

What you’ll do

• Manage a portfolio of complex initiatives that span one or multiple lines of business, with a focus on payments and card projects.

• Own full project lifecycle delivery – from initiation through to deployment and BAU handover – for one or more initiatives simultaneously.

• Lead delivery of card scheme mandate changes (Visa and Mastercard) and BIN/program implementations, partnering with internal and external stakeholders.

• Drive delivery of compliance-related initiatives (e.g., data integrity program, regulatory requirements) to ensure obligations are met on time.

• Report on project success criteria results, metrics, testing, and deployment management activities

• Provide a delivery focus within the Payment Operations team, coordinating and driving completion of process improvements and transformation initiatives

• Work creatively and analytically in a problem-solving environment demonstrating teamwork, innovation, and excellence

• Prepare appropriate trackers or detailed project plans covering all phases of your projects

• Procure and manage adequate resources to achieve project objectives in planned timeframes

• Manage the day-to-day project activities and resources, and provide status reporting regarding project milestones, deliverables, dependencies, risks, and issues

• Understand interdependencies between technology, operations, compliance, and business needs

• Manage ongoing quality control and participate in quality issue resolution

• Delegate tasks and responsibilities to appropriate personnel, and effectively communicate with senior stakeholders, team members, clients, and other stakeholders

• Continue professional development to keep abreast of emerging technologies, methods, and best practices in payments and project delivery

What you’ll bring

• Bachelor's Degree in appropriate field of study or equivalent work experience

• 3+ years of project management experience within the Payments industry, including tracking and planning projects

• Experience delivering projects in payments, card issuing or financial services (e.g. scheme mandate rollouts, BIN/Program implementations, compliance remediation) is highly regarded

• Familiarity with the Australian payments landscape – AP+, AusPaynet, AUSTRAC, ePayment Code, RBA frameworks – advantageous

• Intermediate level of proficiency with MS Project, Excel, Visio, PowerPoint, and SharePoint, with experience presenting to stakeholders and/or Senior Leadership

• Interpersonal skills to influence and spur change, facilitate, and enhance performance within a cross- functional environment

• Demonstrate decisiveness in resolving business problems, making decisions, and identifying priorities

• Experience negotiating vendor contracts

• Experience drafting and submitting budget proposals and recommending subsequent budget changes where necessary

• Experience in successfully leading projects and programs on time and on schedule and within budget parameters

• Experience leading, motivating, and managing various project and program team sizes, including internal and external resources, while holding team accountable for performance

• Experience influencing and gaining buy-in from executives, sponsors, team members, stakeholders, and peers

Behavioural & Communication:

• Bias for Action: You unblock, decide, and deliver.

• Governance Balance: Apply minimum effective process for speed and control.

• Excellent Communication & Stakeholder Management: Ability to engage at all levels, summarise complex information clearly, and influence decisions effectively.

• Decisiveness: Demonstrate sound judgement in resolving business problems, making decisions, and identifying priorities.