Card Processor Strategic Relationship Manager, Senior Vice President (Hybrid)

Citi is seeking a strategic relationship manager to serve as the enterprise relationship owner for one of the company's most critical payment processing partnerships. This role is accountable for shaping long-term strategy, governing executive engagement, and delivering measurable commercial and operational outcomes at the intersection of Payments, Technology, Product, and Finance.

About the role

This high-visibility position drives the full lifecycle of the partnership — from contract performance and billing governance to roadmap influence and capability adoption. It is designed for a payments leader who can operate at the executive level while managing the operational depth needed to protect and grow one of Citi's most strategically important processing relationships.

Responsibilities

• Act as Citi's senior relationship lead for its primary payment processor, owning executive engagement, partnership governance, and the delivery of a multi-year strategic roadmap aligned to Citi's payment modernization goals.
• Develop and execute a long-term partnership strategy that identifies opportunities to improve customer experience, reduce costs, and unlock new revenue through expanded processor capabilities.
• Establish and lead structured governance forums — including executive business reviews, steering committees, and quarterly strategic planning sessions — to maintain alignment and accountability across both organizations.
• Own end-to-end contract governance, conducting rigorous billing structure reviews to validate accuracy, identify commercial improvement opportunities, and ensure full adherence to contractual and financial commitments.
• Collaborate with Procurement and Legal to lead commercial negotiations, contract renewals, and strategic sourcing initiatives, delivering outcomes that protect Citi's financial and operational interests.
• Partner with Product and Technology teams to prioritize new platform capabilities and influence the processor's product roadmap in support of Citi's strategic objectives.
• Lead governance over platform availability, processing performance, and incident management in partnership with Technology, escalating and resolving complex operational challenges with urgency and transparency.
• Apply sound commercial and risk judgment to all partnership decisions, ensuring compliance with applicable policies, contractual obligations, and regulatory requirements.

Requirements

• 10 or more years of experience in payments, banking, financial technology, or strategic partnership management, with demonstrated accountability for large-scale processor or technology relationships.
• Hands-on knowledge of card issuing, payment processing, and digital payment ecosystems, including credit card authorization, clearing, and settlement workflows.
• Track record of negotiating and managing complex commercial agreements with major payment processors or strategic technology partners.
• Experience governing digital wallet programs and tokenization at scale within a card issuing or payment processing environment.
• Executive-level communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to represent an organization credibly in senior forums and external industry settings.
• Strong analytical and financial planning capabilities, applied to commercial performance reviews, billing validation, and strategic decision-making.
• Experience leading or overseeing large-scale technology implementations or payment processor migrations, with the ability to manage complexity, deadlines, and shifting priorities.

Qualifications

• Direct experience working with Fiserv, FIS, or comparable enterprise-scale payment processing platforms.
• Familiarity with next-generation card issuing and processing platforms such as Zeta, Pismo, or Marqeta.
• Master's degree in Business, Finance, or a related field.

Benefits

• A hybrid working model with 3 days in the office and 2 days working remotely, supporting a sustainable balance between collaboration and focused work.
• Strategic ownership of a high-profile enterprise partnership with direct exposure to executive leadership and cross-functional decision-making at a global scale.
• The opportunity to shape Citi's payment modernization agenda by influencing processor roadmaps and accelerating the adoption of next-generation payment capabilities.
• Access to learning and development programs that support career growth across the payments and financial technology landscape.
• Competitive financial wellbeing support, including compensation structures and benefits designed to reflect the seniority and impact of the role.
• A performance-driven environment where your commercial outcomes, relationship results, and strategic contributions are recognized and rewarded.
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage.
• 401(k) retirement plan.
• Life, accident, and disability insurance.
• Wellness programs.
• Paid time off packages, including planned time off (vacation), unplanned time off (sick leave), and paid holidays.

Pay

Full-time salary range: $163,600.00 - $245,400.00. In addition to salary, Citi’s offerings may also include, for eligible employees, discretionary and formulaic incentive and retention awards.

Schedule

Full time, hybrid (3 days in the office, 2 days remote).

Primary location: New York, New York, United States.