One Acre Fund Ethiopia is growing quickly, and we plan to at least quadruple our farmer impact in the next five years though our two current programs, one focused on tree seedling production and dissemination to small-scale farmers and the other on improving community-based production of teff seed. Impact Ventures Specialists and Associates play a major role in driving the growth of our programs and ensuring that this growth is stable and systematic – while also adding major innovations and improvements to our program quality. Both the Specialist and Associate position offer a strong career opportunity: the ability to learn from a successful field operation, contribute to aggressive growth, and to make improvements to our program.
Impact Ventures Specialists and Associates start as generalists, with responsibility for discrete projects related to the design and execution of our programs. These projects increase in scope and complexity as they develop skills and leadership competencies. Over time, they can continue to rise as a general leader, possibly growing to manage an entire field program.
On a day-to-day basis, the Impact Ventures Specialist and Associate roles involve a mix of activities:
We are currently seeking to hire an Impact Ventures Specialist or Associate to lead 1-3 of the following projects, depending on experience level, skill set, and fit:
This position could be hired at two different levels depending on experience, plus interview and assignment performance during the selection process:
The Impact Ventures Specialist will likely start by leading 1-2 projects only from the above list of project areas, and they may or may not have direct management responsibilities for 1-3 other staff members. They will be expected to initiate process improvements and set medium--term goals for their work, but will do so with moderate support from their manager. They will be expected to create quality deliverables with a high level of independence, on moderate revisions needed from their manager. The ideal candidate should have 3+ years of strong work experience, a proven ability to learn and grow quickly, and computer skills (intermediate Excel, typing speed, internet research skills) that require little additional development to do the job well.
The Impact Ventures Associate will likely start by leading 2-3 projects from the above list of project areas and will have direct management responsibilities for at least two staff members, who may also be team managers. They will be expected to operate with more independence in terms of medium -term goal setting for the work and in converting the organization’s vision to a set strategy and tactics. They will initiate process improvements and represent the projects to One Acre Fund global with minimal manager support. They will be expected to create very high quality deliverables that need very minimalrevision from their manager. The ideal candidate should have 5+ years of work experience that prove them to be a skilled generalist with strong analytical and teaming abilities. Experience related to one or more of the project areas listed above is an asset. They must show evidence of project management experience including team leadership as well as development and implementation of project goals. They should have very strong computer skills (fast typing speed, intermediate Excel) that require no additional development to do the job well.
Although our Ethiopia programs are still relatively small, One Acre Fund has deep operational experience running rural field programs at a scale of 1,000+ full-time staff per country. Impact Ventures Specialists and Associates benefit from this past experience, quickly building their skill-set through immersion in our operating environment. At the same time, the main role of Impact Ventures Specialist and Associates is to accelerate growth and to constantly stretch and improve our operations. This presents an excellent career opportunity to both learn from One Acre Fund’s accumulated experience and constantly improve and enable 40%+ program growth per year.
Career Growth and Development
We have a strong culture of constant learning and we invest in developing our people. You’ll have weekly check-ins with your manager, access to mentorship and training programs, and regular feedback on your performance. We hold career reviews every six months and set aside time to discuss your aspirations and career goals. You’ll have the opportunity to shape a growing organization and build a rewarding long-term career.
Qualifications
We are seeking one exceptional Ethiopian professional(s) with 3+ years (Specialist role) or 5+ years (Associate role) of work experience and ideally a demonstrated passion for our mission. Candidates who fit the following criteria are strongly encouraged to apply:
Preferred Start Date
Flexible; June 1 preferred
Benefits
Health insurance, housing and other quality of life benefits