AVP, Innovation & Research (IR), Innovation Group

About the role

The Innovation Group is UOB's centralised innovation, data and science function, supporting the Group's units and their business and analytical needs. The Innovation Research team explores emerging developments and future possibilities for banking through strategic foresight, applied research and ecosystem collaboration. This role suits someone who connects research with business relevance, helps shape research priorities, builds rapid prototypes and turns findings into actionable recommendations.

Key responsibilities

• Shape research priorities and programmes, define objectives, methods, milestones and outcomes, and develop research proposals aligned with UOB's longer-term interests.
• Conduct strategic foresight and research, monitoring emerging developments and synthesising evidence into perspectives on opportunities, risks and capability needs.
• Build rapid prototypes and proofs of concept using models, APIs, data and development tools, run experiments and recommend whether to advance, refine or discontinue initiatives.
• Develop collaborations with universities, research institutes, industry partners and public agencies, and identify opportunities for research funding and consortium participation.
• Translate research into practical outcomes, document evidence and adoption requirements, and support the transfer of validated capabilities to business or implementation teams.
• Build thought leadership through research briefs, papers, presentations and contributions to forums.

Required profile

• Degree in computer science, engineering, data science or a related discipline; candidates from other disciplines with demonstrated technical and research capabilities will also be considered.
• At least five years of relevant experience in applied research, technical innovation, prototyping or research translation.
• Experience advancing research or innovation initiatives from exploration through experimentation and validation, independently and with multi-disciplinary teams.
• Strong writing, presentation and stakeholder engagement skills, able to communicate with specialist and senior management audiences.
• Experience in banking or financial services, research partnerships, or Singapore's research, innovation and enterprise ecosystem is an advantage.

Required skills

• Hands-on proficiency in Python or another programming language, with experience building functional prototypes using AI models, APIs and development frameworks.
• Ability to frame research questions, design experiments, critically assess evidence and evaluate prototype performance.
• Understanding of emerging capabilities and ability to connect technical findings with business implications.