A Bit About The Role
The Director of Strategic Initiatives is a complex and multifaceted role that leads the office of the Chief Executive of business. He/she will have authority over a wide range of strategic and operational initiatives that are critical to organization’s success. The Director will build processes and dashboards that allow the CEO and the management team to make informed decisions regarding the business’s strategic priorities and relationships with external stakeholders. He/she will play a critical role in streamlining information flows to the Chief Executive’s office thereby enabling the CEO to focus on key decisions while ensuring the many of organization’s important, but day-to-day activities and decisions are executed in a timely manner. He/she will also play an integral role in the business’s cohesion and culture by planning team retreats and maintaining standards for onboarding new hires. The Director of Strategic Initiatives will also oversee the Chief Executive Officer’s other staff including but not limited to the Strategic Initiatives Analyst and the business’s Operations Manager.
Requirements
Your mission:
Strategic Advising and Support to the Chief Executive
Serve as thought partner and sounding board to the CEO
Prepare agendas and provide a summary of discussions and action items resulting from each meeting to attendees, with appropriate follow-up; Occasionally attend such meetings in lieu of the CEO
Maintain bird’s eye view across the various teams and connect the dots to influence outcomes
Collaborate with the CEO and Deputy CEOs to identify and prioritize business strategies
Develop and update dashboards to monitor business activities
Communication and Information Sharing
Manage the bi-directional flow of communication in and out of the CEO’s office to ensure consistent and responsive message delivery to key internal and external stakeholders, including other executives, staff, donors, and government officials
Communicate frequently with the executive team to ensure that critical questions and issues are proactively addressed
Develop and maintain clear and efficient methods of information sharing with key consultants and partners including the business’s fiscal sponsor
Work with Communications and Knowledge Management Lead to help prepare press releases and provide high-quality inputs to media organizations
Management and Culture
Own the onboarding process and standards for new hires
Leading the development of team retreats, gatherings
Spearhead annual strategic planning in consultation
Manage and provide guidance to the business’s Operations Manager and the Strategic Initiatives Analyst
Build and maintain mutually supportive culture within all tiers of the business
A Bit About You
Skills and experience
A Master’s Degree in Public Administration/Policy, or any other related discipline. A higher post graduate qualification or an additional professional diploma in the above areas will be preferred
At minimum 10yrs of experience in strategy and operations with at least 2 years working closely with a senior management or a chief executive
Excellent analytical capabilities (particularly economic/quantitative analysis), written and oral communication
Experience working with government and non-governmental stakeholders in the digital financial services space; Experience working in payments is highly desirable
Experience managing staff preferably in a startup environment
Proven experience in research, stakeholder management or partnership portfolio management
Good understanding of digital financial services in Africa, including awareness of key actors in the ecosystem and their roles
Good computer skills (Microsoft Office Suite) – strong planning, organizational and reporting skills
Full professional proficiency in English and another language, preferably French or Arabic
Personal attributes
Sound commitment and a passion to further financial inclusion on the African continent
Excellent interpersonal and problem-solving skills, representation, negotiation, and diplomacy skills
Exceptional communication skills, both oral and written, including multi-party communication
Versatility and adaptability to the workload of multiple projects and clients
High accuracy and attention to detail
Strong analytical skills
Independent and the ability to apply sound judgement to decisions
Sound time management skills and the ability to prioritize
Agile with the ability to deal with structured change
Comfortable in a multicultural environment and able to manage pressure well
Apply via :
talentinthecloud.zohorecruit.com
