Payment Consultant

POSITION OVERVIEW

Incedo is hiring a Payment Consultant to be deployed on a strategic Bank Clients Treasury Management engagement. This role demands a seasoned treasury payments professional who brings hands-on experience from top-tier U.S. banking institutions ) with a comprehensive, end-to-end understanding of Banking treasury payment ecosystems — from payment initiation, file formatting, and transmission through clearing, settlement, reconciliation, exception handling, fraud controls, sanctions screening, and regulatory reporting.

The consultant will serve as a subject matter expert on Banking Client’s payment operations, advising on the digital payment transformation, optimization of cash conversion cycles, working capital management. The consultant will collaborate with Bank’s Product Teams, Technology, and Incedo’s delivery organization to deliver tailored treasury solutions that drive client satisfaction and operational excellence.

MANDATORY EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENT

The candidate must have worked in Treasury Services / Treasury Management as Payment consutant at one or more top U.S. banks

The candidate must demonstrate an end-to-end understanding of treasury payments , encompassing payment initiation, file formatting and transmission, clearing and settlement across all major rails (ACH, Fedwire, CHIPS, SWIFT, RTP®, FedNow®), reconciliation, exception and investigation handling, fraud controls, sanctions screening, and regulatory compliance.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Functional Analysis & Domain Expertise

• Serve as the primary treasury payments subject matter expert (SME) on the Bank client engagement, providing deep functional analysis of payment products, workflows, and operational processes across all payment rails.

• Conduct comprehensive end-to-end analysis of bank client's treasury payment lifecycle and Payment modernization initiatives — covering payment initiation (via Online Banking platform for corporate clients, API, file upload, SWIFT, and ERP channels), message formatting ( ISO 20022, EDI, Rail specific formats like NACHA), clearing and settlement (ACH/Fedwire/CHIPS/RTP/FedNow), reconciliation, exception handling, and regulatory reporting.

• Perform detailed functional assessments of clients’, payables and receivables workflows, and payment infrastructure to identify optimization and modernization opportunities.

• Maintain expert-level domain knowledge of treasury management products including liquidity management, cash concentration and disbursement, controlled disbursement, lockbox services, ACH Positive Pay, and fraud mitigation tools.

• Develop and present tailored payment solution proposals to Bank’s corporate and institutional clients, encompassing ACH (same-day and standard), domestic and international wire transfers, Real-Time Payments (RTP®), FedNow®, card-based disbursements, integrated payables, and integrated receivables

• Analyse payment processing metrics, SLA adherence, transaction success rates, and failure/return patterns to generate actionable insights and business intelligence for Banks’s Treasury Management leadership.

• Advise on emerging payment trends including embedded finance, open banking APIs, digital wallets, and the convergence of real-time payment networks.

2. System Integration & Solution Design

• Collaborate with technical teams to ensure accurate mapping of business rules, data flows, and system interfaces. Validate end-to-end solution design across upstream and downstream systems.

• Partner with Bank’s Technology and Implementation teams to architect end-to-end payment integration solutions, ensuring seamless connectivity between Online Banking Platform for corporate clients, core banking systems, ERP platforms (SAP, Oracle NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics 365, Workday), and external payment networks.

• Contribute to the design and implementation of payment processing solutions, including configuring payment flow orchestrations, building connectors to internal and external systems, and defining message mapping rules for ISO 20022, SWIFT MT/MX, and NACHA formats.

• Design multi-channel payment solutions leveraging ACH origination and receipt, domestic and international wire transfers (Fedwire, CHIPS, SWIFT), RTP®, FedNow®, commercial card programs, and Bank’s Intelligent Routing capabilities for optimal payment rail selection.

• Support API-based payment integration projects, including Connect ERP integrations, open banking API initiatives, Host-to-Host connectivity, SFTP file-based channels, and SWIFT FileAct implementations.

• Define and validate file format specifications (NACHA, ISO 20022 XML, EDI 820/823) for client onboarding, ensuring accuracy of field mapping, validation rules, and error handling logic.

• Collaborate on IPF micro-services architecture to support horizontal scaling, real-time processing latency requirements, and 24/7 availability standards for instant payment processing.

• Experience in Modern Payment architecture. Example - the cloud-native, ISO 20022-native payments orchestration platform used across treasury infrastructure. Leverage Modern Payment Architecture to configure, analyse, and optimize payment orchestration flows, message routing, enrichment, validation, and exception handling logic.

3. Stakeholder & Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Serve as the primary liaison between Bank Client’s internal stakeholders (Payment Operations, Product Management, Fraud Prevention, Client Care, Technology, Compliance, and Sales) and Incedo’s delivery organization. Act as the primary functional point of contact during project delivery, UAT, and production rollout.

• Work closely with product managers, business leaders, IT teams, operations, compliance, and external vendors to align solutions with business goals.

• Collaborate closely with Treasury Management Team to understand client pain points, identify cross-sell and upsell opportunities, and deliver tailored payment advisory to corporate treasurers and senior financial decision-makers.

• Partner with Product Management team to communicate client feedback, market intelligence, and competitive insights, influencing the treasury product roadmap and supporting development of next-generation payment solutions.

• Contribute treasury payment domain expertise to new business pitches, RFP/RFI responses, competitive proposals, and pricing strategies for Banks’s prospective and existing client base.

• Develop and deliver client-facing presentations, industry whitepapers, training sessions, and educational webinars on treasury payment best practices, regulatory changes, ISO 20022 readiness, and technology innovations.

• Coordinate with Incedo’s onshore and offshore delivery teams to ensure alignment on project deliverables, timelines, quality standards, and knowledge transfer protocols.

• Mentor Incedo team members, Treasury Management Associates, and Development Program participants, fostering a culture of continuous learning, knowledge sharing, and professional excellence within the engagement.

• Support Agile delivery by contributing to backlog refinement, sprint planning, and functional reviews.

4. Innovation & Continuous Improvement

• Drive continuous improvement initiatives within Bank’s treasury payment operations by identifying bottlenecks, inefficiencies, and automation opportunities across the end-to-end payment lifecycle.

• Develop business cases and ROI analyses for proposed payment platform enhancements, automation projects, and technology investments, presenting recommendations to Bank and Incedo leadership.

• Evaluate and recommend emerging payment technologies and industry innovations, including real-time payment analytics, AI/ML-based fraud detection for treasury operations.

• Understanding and optimization of the Modern Payment platform, proposing enhancements to orchestration flows, configurable rules, and the micro-services component library to improve processing speed, reduce error rates, and lower total cost of ownership.

• Establish and maintain payment operations playbooks, standard operating procedures (SOPs), and knowledge base documentation to ensure operational consistency, scalability, and onboarding efficiency for new team members.

5. Troubleshooting & Support

• Provide expert-level troubleshooting and resolution support for complex payment processing issues, including failed or Rejected transactions, file format errors, connectivity failures, reconciliation discrepancies, and payment routing exceptions across ACH, Fedwire, CHIPS, SWIFT, RTP, and FedNow rails.

• Investigate and resolve payment exceptions within the payments platform, diagnosing orchestration flow failures, message validation errors, connector timeouts, and sanctions screening holds by analyzing transaction logs, audit trails, and system event data.

• Support complex payment investigations involving return/recall processing (NACHA returns, Fedwire drawdown requests, SWIFT MT investigation messages, ISO 20022 return requests), sanctions screening inquiries, and AML/KYC-related payment escalations.

• Act as the escalation point for Payment Operations on high-priority, time-sensitive payment issues affecting corporate and institutional clients.

• Conduct root cause analysis (RCA) on recurring payment failures and operational incidents, documenting findings and implementing corrective/preventive actions to eliminate systemic issues.

• Monitor payment processing health dashboards, SLA metrics, and real-time transaction alerts to proactively identify anomalies, volume spikes, or degradation patterns before they impact client service levels.

• Support internal and external audit processes by maintaining comprehensive documentation of payment investigations, incident resolutions, and remediation actions in compliance with Bank’s operational risk framework.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS & EXPEREINCE

• Master’s degree (MBA or MS in Finance) from a recognized institution.

• 10 -15+ years of progressive experience in Treasury Management, Payment Services, or Cash Management. Experience as a Payment Consultant, Business Analyst, or Domain Consultant within financial services.

• Must have prior experience at one or more top-tier U.S. banks (JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citibank, Wells Fargo, U.S. Bank or equivalent).

• Strong understanding of treasury management products including liquidity management, Controlled disbursement, lockbox, integrated receivables, Positive Pay, and fraud mitigation tools.

• Proven client-facing consultative skills with ability to translate complex payment technology into business-relevant recommendations and treasury executives.

• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills with ability to manage multiple workstreams in a fast-paced consulting environment.

• Prior payments consulting, solution architecture, or pre-sales experience within banking, fintech, or IT services organizations.

COMPETENCIES & DOMAIN KNOWLEDGE

Domain Area

Expected Proficiency

Payment Rails

ACH (Same-Day/Standard), Fedwire, CHIPS, SWIFT, RTP®, FedNow®, Card Networks, WIRE, CAN WIRE.

Payment Platforms

Modern Payment Architecture, Payment Hubs, Online Banking Platform for corporate clients

Messaging Standards

ISO 20022 (pacs, pain, camt), SWIFT MT/MX, CBPR+, NACHA, EDI

Treasury Products

Cash Mgmt., Liquidity, Lockbox, Positive Pay, Integrated Receivables

Connectivity & Integration

SFTP, SWIFT, APIs, Host-to-Host, ERP Integration,

Regulatory Framework

NACHA Rules BSA/AML, OFAC or equivalent

Risk & Fraud

Payment Fraud Mitigation, Sanctions Screening, AML Controls

International Payments

Cross-Border Wires, FX, Correspondent Banking, SEPA, SWIFT gpi, RTGS

Digital & Emerging

Open Banking, APIs, Embedded Payments, ISO 20022 Migration, AI/ML Fraud

KEY BEHAVIORAL COMPETENCIES

• Adaptability & Innovation — Proactive approach to adopting new technologies, regulatory changes, and evolving payment market dynamics.

• Strategic Thinking — Align payment solutions to broader business objectives, working capital optimization, and digital transformation strategies.

• Analytical Rigor — Data-driven decision-making with experience in payment analytics, benchmarking, performance reporting, and root cause analysis.

• Communication & Influence — Exceptional presentation and stakeholder management skills; articulate complex payment concepts to technical and non-technical audiences.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration — Proven ability to work across Incedo delivery teams and Bank’s internal units including Sales, Product, Operations, Technology, Compliance, and Risk.

• Mentorship & Leadership — Commitment to developing team capabilities, knowledge sharing, and professional growth across engagement teams.