ABOUT US

Since 2020, Pliant has been on a mission to rethink credit cards and empower companies to grow by providing a smart way to pay that scale with their business. With our app and API-based solutions, Pliant allows companies to issue physical and virtual credit cards, automate payment processes, track spending, and seamlessly integrate these data into their finance stack.

Pliant is growing quickly. With our expansion into 30 international markets, we believe that people, passion, and diversity are the key ingredients to our future success. Our growing team of 200+ Plianteers come from 35 nationalities and work remotely or in a hybrid environment from our headquarters in the heart of Berlin. And we’re looking for more talented and committed people to join us on our journey!

Want to learn more ? Who are Pliant

We are currently looking for a Head of Payment Operations (m/f/d) to join our team. This role can be based either in our London or Berlin locations, and requires 15%-30% regular travel to the core operational hubs.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

Set the vision & strategy

• Define and own the global payments‑operations strategy that supports the company’s growth, revenue and customer‑experience goals.
• Translate strategic objectives into an annual operating plan with clear OKRs, budgets and head‑count needs.
• Continuously assess the external payments landscape (schemes, processors, PSPs, regulations) to identify opportunities, efficiencies and risks.
  

Drive operational excellence at scale

• Build & evolve a resilient PayOps operating model covering card issuing, processing, alternative payment methods and treasury flows.
• Maintain KPI tracking for cost‑of‑payments, success rates, dispute ratios and operational SLAs; drive root‑cause analysis and long‑term fixes.
• Sponsor automation & tooling initiatives (incl. data pipelines, alerting and reconciliation) in partnership with Payments Program Management, Product & Engineering.

Lead & develop a high‑performing team

• Manage, mentor and inspire a multi‑disciplinary, geographically distributed Payments Operations organisation (managers, analysts and specialists).
• Create a culture of continuous improvement through structured quality programmes, career frameworks and proactive training paths.
• Scale the function in line with transaction volume while maintaining best‑in‑class service levels.

Own risk, compliance & scheme relationships

• Serve as the executive point of contact for card schemes, processors and banking partners; negotiate commercials and influence roadmaps.
• Oversee regulatory reporting, scheme audits and licence obligations, ensuring controls are documented, tested and continuously improved.
• Collaborate with Risk, Compliance and Legal to anticipate regulatory change and embed new requirements with minimal friction.

Partner cross‑functionally

• Act as the voice of Payments Operations in product discovery, pricing and go‑to‑market conversations.
• Work closely with Finance on forecasting, treasury optimisation and month‑end reconciliations.
• Represent PayOps in incident management, post‑mortems and board‑level updates.

WHAT YOU’LL BRING

• 8‑10 years’ progressive experience in payments, card issuing/acquiring or fintech, including 3+ years leading managers and larger teams.
• Deep technical and commercial understanding of global card schemes (Visa, Mastercard), payment processors, tokenisation, 3D Secure and alternative payment methods.
• Proven track record of designing strategies that reduced cost‑of‑payments and improved authorisation rates at scale.
• Hands‑on expertise in data‑driven decision‑making; advanced SQL or Python a strong plus.
• Strong stakeholder‑management skills with experience influencing C‑level execs and external partners.
• Comfort working across time zones and in a fast‑moving, high‑ambiguity environment.
  Excellent written & verbal English; additional European languages are advantageous.
  

Nice to have

• Experience setting up issuing programmes or BIN sponsorships in multiple regions
• Familiarity with open‑banking, real‑time payments and instant payout networks.
• Background in change‑management or process‑improvement frameworks (e.g., Lean Six Sigma).
  

WHAT WE OFFER

• The opportunity to work in a growing team with big responsibilities that thrives on a strong exchange of knowledge and excellence
• Attractive remuneration
• Your choice of preferred OS, Windows or Mac
• Flat hierarchy and transparent communication in a relaxed, professional atmosphere
• Opportunity to develop your talent in a dynamic team with ambitious goals
• Flexibility and possibility to work remotely
• Company card with a monthly allowance for lunches, coffee, etc. with co-workers