West Africa Fellows Program Senior Associate at Acumen

Details

• Acumen is looking for an enthusiastic and self-motivated community manager passionate about leadership development in Africa. The individual is a self-starter and detail oriented to provide support for running our West Africa Fellows Program. This program, which is in its first year, is finding and developing the next generation of West African social change leaders.

About The West Africa Fellows Program

• The Acumen West Africa Fellows Program is a one- year, fully-funded leadership development program that gives up to 20 individuals from across West Africa the training they need to accelerate their social impact and leadership potential.
• Our Fellows Programs provide emerging leaders the opportunity to connect and collaborate with likeminded individuals, participate in world-class training seminars, and develop new skills to accelerate their own growth and the trajectory of their work and the work of their organizations. The program brings together the best of global and local trainers, who, together with our Fellows Managers, guide and support Fellows through the fellowship year.
• The West Africa Fellows Program is one of six regional Fellows Programs offered by Acumen. These programs, together with our +Acumen online platform, represent Acumen’s global suite of leadership development offerings.

Position Description

• The West Africa Fellows Program Senior Associate’s primary responsibility will be to support, and in some cases manage, various operational and strategic aspects of the West Africa Fellows Program.
• S/he will work closely with the Associate Director of Leadership, West Africa to deliver all parts of the program, including program administration, logistics, recruitment and selection, outreach and communications, and business development.
• S/he will also provide support to the global Leadership Team and +Acumen. In addition, the Senior Associate will work on community building and supporting the Beyond Year 1 programming.

Specific Responsibilities Will Include, But Are Not Limited To

• Successful candidates must demonstrate a long-term commitment to the development of West Africa, as well as a deep commitment to Acumen’s mission of solving the toughest problems of poverty, and a passion for leadership development.

Program Administration:

• + Support in the design and execution of training seminars and community events - Liaising with Fellows and trainers between seminars; preparing all training materials; monitoring the budget and program expenses; processing all Fellows-related payments; in some cases, co-facilitating training activities.

Recruitment & Selection:

• Own the execution of a 4-stage selection process from start to finish – Manage the WizeHive applicant tracking system, serving as primary point of contact for 500-1000 applicants
• Train and manage external evaluators reviewing applications
• Conduct application reviews
• Support the implementation of the Selection Conference event
• Manage final selection, reference checks and offer letter process
• Track recruitment metrics.

Marketing & Communication:

• Manage the outreach/communications strategy for the West Africa Fellows Program locally – Manage the Fellows listserv, sending out regular emails to the local Fellows community
• update collateral documents and the website
• track Fellow’s achievements and collaborations
• leverage social media to engage our community (i.e. Fellows Facebook group, Acumen’s blog, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.)
• draft announcements and press releases;

Business Development:

• Support the engagement of partners/prospects locally – Manage the grant reporting calendar
• draft reports for funders
• write quarterly partner updates
• create presentations for pitches to prospective funders,

Community Management:

• Connecting and supporting – Support in development of a robust and active Fellows community, connecting Fellows to new individuals, networks, or opportunities that contribute to their leadership development and/or their social impact
• build and maintain relationships with external parties that can add value and support to the work of the Fellows
• Community Programming Execution – Support the design and execution of community projects that bridge Acumen’s work investing in leaders and companies

Qualifications

• Candidates interested in the West Africa Fellows Program Senior Associate position should have a deep motivation to contributing to Acumen’s mission of solving the toughest problems of poverty, and a passion for leadership development and education.

Your Background Probably Looks Something Like This:

• At least 4-6 years’ work experience in a related field (preferably in education, training, fellowships and/or leadership development)
• Prior work experience in a fast-paced environment, with a demonstrated ability to work quickly and efficiently against tight deadlines
• Exceptionally organized, great at multitasking and balance many moving pieces at once, and particularly strong at project management and prioritization
• Familiarity and exposure to the field of social enterprise and poverty alleviation preferred
• Proficiency in writing skills and in the Microsoft Office suite of programs (i.e. MS Word and Excel) as well as web-based software platforms
• An undergraduate/Bachelor’s degree in a related field (for example: education, psychology, leadership, etc.) is a plus

Additional Qualifications Include:

• Self-awareness, strong communication/interpersonal skills, and empathy
• Commitment to and enthusiasm for the organization’s mission to change the way the world tackles poverty, and respect for our core values: generosity, accountability, humility, audacity, listening, leadership, integrity and respect
• Alignment with Acumen’s core values: leadership/listening, generosity/accountability, audacity/humility, and respect/integrity
• Ability to thrive when there is ambiguity, remain cool-headed when there are curve balls, and withstand the tests of a rapidly changing environment with resilience and resolve

Compensation
Compensation is competitive and commensurate with experience.