One Acre Fund

About One Acre Fund

Founded in 2006, One Acre Fund supplies 1 million smallholder farmers with the agricultural services they need to make their farms vastly more productive. Our 8,000+ team is drawn from diverse backgrounds and professions. With operations across six core countries in Africa, we make farmers more prosperous by providing quality farm supplies on credit, delivered within walking distance of farmers’ homes, and agricultural training to improve harvests. On average, the farmers we serve harvest 50 percent more food after working with One Acre Fund. 

Established in Burundi in 2012, we are a growing organization with over 1000 employees nationwide. As of 2022, we serve over 200,000 homes in 6 provinces; Muramvya, Gitega, Kayanza, Mwaro, Ngozi, and Muyinga. To learn more about our work, look at our Burundi program blog.

About the Role

The Scale Innovations Program Associate will design, launch, and measure the success of a portfolio of new programs and services aimed at increasing the effectiveness of our program and impact to our farmers. He/She will launch innovative new programs and verify that they deliver benefits to our farmers. The Scale Innovations Program Associate contributes to the market access strategy and explores new ways to integrate market access into our work. The Associate will also focus on improving our training offerings and better integrating behavior change improvements into our work. This role is onsite in Muramvya, Burundi.

Responsibilities

• Implement a strategy for cooperatives, marketing and training adoption
• Define and implement a long-term vision to support cooperatives and provide market access to over 200,000 farmer members
• Set annual goals to ensure that the department delivers high-impact (farmer profit), value-added results.
• Work with the Field Operations Department's agricultural training team and the Monitoring & Evaluation team to create a vision for improved training and adoption of beneficial practices by farmers.
• Meet with government partners to approve and support trials.
• Design trials for new products and services and determine the resources required.
• Lead research into new service areas, focusing on potential impact, feasibility and scalability 
• develop strategic plans for the long-term implementation of a new product or service
• Develop clear, detailed work plans for new and ongoing trials. 
• Make data-driven decisions about which trials to pursue and develop.
• Design the data collection methodology for each trial
• Determine the personnel required to implement each trial
• Calculate budget requirements for test implementation, defend these requirements if necessary, and ensure that test-related expenditure remains within budget.
• Oversee the implementation of new large-scale processes in the field.
• Define and track key performance indicators to monitor test progress and staff performance.
• Plan all activities in advance and delegate as needed
• Prioritize resources between trials to ensure the success of the highest priority tests.
• Delegate trial activities to the field team by means of checklists and training.
• Identify difficulties and resolve them as soon as they arise, in collaboration with the team.
• Data analysis, impact modeling and reporting to support decision-making
• Design databases to monitor test results
• Review and interpret past data and integrate it into current decision-making processes
• Use Excel (can perform complex functions) , Stata or R to analyze test results and write reports containing recommendations for next steps.
• Create impact models for each trial intervention
• Team management
• Carry out weekly checks with staff, helping them to prioritize and plan tasks.
• Develop professional development plans for staff and support their growth.
• Monitor staff performance to identify potential difficulties
• Preparing pay slips
• You will report to the Impact Division Manager

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

Across all roles, these are the general qualifications we look for. For this role specifically, we are looking for professionals with at least two years' professional experience and a clear interest in our mission. Candidates who meet the following criteria are encouraged to apply:

• Hold a university degree at Licence/Baccalauréat level. Master's level is a plus. A degree in one of the following subjects is preferable: international development, agriculture, environmental sciences, public administration, business administration.
• Proficiency in standard Excel, Word, PowerPoint
• Knowledge of qualitative and quantitative research and data collection techniques
• Leadership experience, both on and off the job.
• Willingness to commit to living in a rural environment - this is a long-term career opportunity.
• At least 2 years' work experience in one of the countries where our program is present (preferred).
• Language skills - English (required), French (required), Kirundi (preferred)
• Qualities required
• At least two years' work experience in fields such as international development, project management, agriculture, consulting, environmental sciences, public administration or business administration. Examples include experience in a demanding job, or successful entrepreneurial experience, e.g. starting field work in a developing country, leading a conference, starting a business, solid achievements within a volunteer organization (VSO, Peace Corps, JICA).
• Experience initiating and managing trials (in fields such as formal consultancy, agriculture, public administration, environmental sciences), including data management
• Result oriented
• Communicate expectations and decisions
• Think critically to generate solutions
• Manage the work and development of others
• Draw up a clear plan for a complex project 
• Organized and highly attentive to detail
• A passion for serving Burundi's farmers

Preferred Start Date

As soon as possible

Job Location

Muramvya, Burundi (On-site)

Benefits

Health insurance, housing, and comprehensive benefits

Eligibility

One Acre Fund can support a work permit for this role. However, nationals of (or those with an extensive professional background and work history in) our countries of operation are preferred.

Application Deadline

12 May 2024

One Acre Fund never asks candidates to pay any money or pay for tests at any stage of the interview process. Official One Acre Fund emails will always arrive from an @oneacrefund.org address. Please report any suspicious communication here (globalhotline@oneacrefund.org), but do not send applications or application materials to this email address.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI), and anti-racism are deeply connected to our organization’s mission and purpose. One Acre Fund aspires to build a culture where all staff feel consistently valued, represented, and connected – so that our team can thrive as professionals, and achieve exceptional impact for the farmers we serve.

We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender, gender identity or expression. We are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace.