Job Description
About the role
As the AECF grows its programs and portfolio, we are seeking an Advisory Manager to drive the growth and scaling of our portfolio companies, bringing onboard global understanding of the triggers of growth for small and growing businesses, pathways to success, building systems, and processes to enhance competitiveness, sustainability and ensuring the resilience of their operations and revenues.
The Advisory Manager will report to the Head of Investments and Advisory Services and drive our support to portfolio companies and unlock the institution’s capacity to deliver towards becoming a learning and the go-to institution for SGB development in Africa.
The role will have access to a wide range of resources and a team (in-house and consultants) that will look to you for leadership, coaching, mentoring, training, and support for career development.
The role will be based in Nairobi with occasional travel in the region.
Key Responsibilities
Advisory and Technical Assistance (TA) to Portfolio Companies
- Provide strategic leadership for AECF’s technical advisory services – both structure and model.
- Oversee needs assessment of AECF and non-AECF portfolio companies, map out their development needs across the various stages of growth, and position AECF technical advisory services to address their growth and scaling challenges.
- Design and implement technical assistance initiatives to address the development needs of companies to foster innovation and product development, increase access to new or improved inputs, identify market opportunities, improve market linkages, and access capital.
- Develop tools, processes, and systems for efficient and effective service delivery, including curriculum or training content for self-paced courses and workshops.
- Manage the digital learning and exchange platform; structure and create content, coordinate activities and training, and drive platform engagement.
- Ensure resources available are deployed to address the most pressing needs that will best unlock the growth potential of companies through a balanced approach of in-house and outsourced capacity.
- Coordinate technical assistance service delivery for AECF and non-AECF portfolio companies, build a system to track requests for technical assistance, deployment of services, adoption and implementation of acquired skills and tools, effectiveness, and impact of the service and manage a healthy database of technical assistance experts/consultants aligned to the needs of companies.
- Design, fundraise for, and lead the implementation of the AECF Technical Assistance Facility for companies outside of the AECF portfolio and further develop a healthy pipeline of the non-AECF portfolio in agribusiness, renewable energy, and climate adaptation and mitigation to benefit from the said Facility.
- Facilitate training or technical assistance intervention in critical areas of business growth, including financial management, business strategy, marketing, and sales, to reduce the risk profile of companies and increase both social and financial returns.
- Continuously innovate and improve the service offering of AECF’s advisory to bring scale, efficiency and effectiveness.
Continuous insights generation and learning
- Design and implement a capacity strengthening framework that assures AECF’s professional approach towards building the required technical skills for effective knowledge transfer to SGBs and SGB support organizations in the ecosystem.
- Work with the knowledge and insights team to generate and package insights from AECF’s advisory work and approach.
- Lead the creation and oversight of active networks of organizations that are looking to build the capacity of Africa-led institutions to better deliver their mandate, including international organizations, industry partners, and academic institutions.
Required qualifications, experience, and attributes
- 8+ years of relevant experience in enterprise development, technical assistance, management consulting, or private sector development.
- Master’s degree in economics, finance, business administration, and related fields
- Demonstrated technical knowledge of SME development as evidenced by successful work delivery of technical assistance and advisory services to a range of agribusiness and renewable energy companies in sub-Saharan Africa
- Demonstrated technical knowledge for institutional capacity development as an in-house or external resource.
- Evidence of technical assistance delivery and design of creative solutions for growth and financing constraints for SMEs.
- Sound analytical, organizational, project management, and negotiation skills and the ability to conduct training and workshops/seminars
- Visionary leader with excellent interpersonal skills to build an efficient delivery, impeccable integrity, and good judgment.
- Strong written and interpersonal communication skills in English (French will be an added advantage) and an ability to interact with a broad spectrum of stakeholders.
About the Organization
The AECF is a leading development finance organization that supports businesses to innovate, create jobs, and leverage investments to build resilience and sustainable incomes for rural and marginalized communities in Africa. AECF’s s goal is to bridge the investment gap between early-stage enterprise and business maturity for entrepreneurs serving the poorest communities. Through various financing instruments, we provide patient capital to new and innovative business models in the agribusiness and renewable energy sectors across Sub-Saharan Africa. To supplement finance, we also offer advisory services, investment support, and knowledge and insights.
AECF has successfully implemented programs across 26 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, supporting over 375 enterprises that have together created 26,000 jobs and impacted more than 28 million lives.
AECF is headquartered in Kenya, with offices in Côte d’Ivoire and Tanzania.
