Area Manager, Nigeria at Bridge International Academies

About the role

Area Managers lead the continued growth of a group of Bridge International Academies within a specific geographic area. They work hands-on with Academy Managers to provide the leadership, mentorship, and individualised support needed to ensure that each of their academies delivers on the Bridge experience and continues to reach more pupils, receive timely payments from parents, meet operational requirements, and deliver instructional excellence at scale. In order to achieve this, Area Managers are based in the field, spending their days traveling from academy to academy. This also allows them to engage with teachers, parents, pupils, and local government and community leaders and stay tuned to the unique needs of each community. Area Managers are authoritative but inspirational, and exhibit excellent problem solving skills with the ability to multi-task and prioritize effectively. Ideally they have been an Academy Manager before, or done similar work running a customer-facing business that was results driven and sought to create social change.

What you will do

• Academy oversight – supervise and mentor Academy Managers to ensure that financial, operational, and instructional goals are met, and any/all academy issues are resolved in a timely manner; helps recruit staff as needed
• Government and public relations – develop and maintain strong relationships with local government and community leaders to advocate for higher-quality education and promote Bridge
• Customer relations – support the customer outreach and customer relations work of Academy Managers; engage with customers personally to stay tuned to the unique needs of each community; ensure that the academy delivers on the safe, conducive, and smart environment that parents expect
• Financial sustainability – ensure that all academies in your geographic area are growing and able pay all staff salaries and vendors on time by ensuring all pupils fees are paid on time and academy spending is on budget; conduct audits on spending and processes as needed
• Travel – commute between all of the academies in your area on a daily basis using public transport; depending on your area, you may be required to spend a significant amount of time away from home to meet the needs of academies

What you should have

•  Proven leadership experience managing a large-scale community organisation or business including a large sense of personal responsibility, a dynamic ability to manage and motivate field-based staff, and the ability to be stern when needed; Experience as an Academy Manager highly preferred
•  Prior success driving growth at a data-driven, customer-facing organisation
•  Proven resilience handing the realities of on-the-ground operational challenges and ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment with multiple demands
• Strong familiarity of the communities Bridge International Academies are in; you have lived or worked in low-income communities for several years and are accustomed to how communities work
• Past experience and passion for education, social equality, community development, or community organising; experience working with local governments preferred
• Clear communication skills with impeccable written and spoken English and multiple local language skills (3+ languages preferred)
•  A desire to grow personally and professionally, including the ability to quickly learn and follow the policies of a multinational organisation; internal promotions are encouraged
•  6 years work experience, Degree holders preferred
•  Geographic flexibility, willing to move with the requirements of the organisation