Junior Facility Associate at Food For Education

About the role

• Food for Education (F4E) feeds over 600,000 children across Kenya every school day, and we are scaling to one million meals a day. This growth depends on strong, reliable infrastructure—and people who take ownership of keeping it running.As a Junior Facility Associate, you are responsible for coordinating maintenance, repairs, and small-scale facility projects across assigned kitchens and infrastructure. You are not the technician doing the repairs—you are the person ensuring the right work happens, at the right time, by the right people, to the right standard.This is a field-based role. You will spend 70% time on-site—inspecting facilities, coordinating vendors, supporting minor projects, and ensuring issues are resolved quickly and effectively.You bring structure, follow-through, and clear communication. You don’t just report problems—you help drive solutions.

Your Mandate
Facility Maintenance & Coordination

• Own coordination of day-to-day maintenance and repair activities across assigned sites.
• Ensure all issues are logged, tracked, and resolved—nothing is left unreported or unattended.
• Conduct structured site inspections to assess facility condition, safety, and operational readiness.
• Coordinate vendors and contractors to deliver timely, high-quality repairs aligned with F4E standards.

Vendor & Quotation Management

• Assign repair works to pre-approved vendors, ensuring adherence to cost, quality, and turnaround expectations.
• Drive fast quotation turnaround:
  • ≤48 hours for routine and urgent works
  • Defined timelines for CAPEX works
• Track vendor performance and escalate delays, quality issues, or cost concerns.
• Maintain organized records of quotations, works completed, and vendor history.

Project Coordination Support

• Support small-scale expansions, upgrades, and pilots through site data collection and coordination.
• Track timelines, flag risks early, and ensure projects stay on schedule.
• Document progress through photos, reports, and structured checklists.
• Support procurement coordination for materials, equipment, and services.

Stakeholder Management

• Act as the primary coordination point between school & kitchen teams, contractors, and internal stakeholders.
• Communicate clearly on timelines, disruptions, and progress updates.
• Build strong working relationships with kitchen teams and school leadership.
• Ensure smooth execution of works with minimal disruption to operations.

Risk Identification & Escalation

• Identify and escalate safety, structural, or operational risks immediately.
• Ensure adherence to F4E safety protocols and regulatory standards.
• Maintain a basic risk and issue log for assigned sites and activities.
• Distinguish between issues that can be resolved locally and those requiring escalation.

Data, Reporting & Continuous Improvement

• Maintain accurate records of maintenance activities, costs, and timelines.
• Track recurring issues and support root cause identification.
• Contribute to improving maintenance processes, vendor performance, and cost efficiency.
• Participate in team reviews and share field insights and recommendations.

Who You Are

• You have a background in construction, facilities management, engineering, or a related field.
• You are comfortable working in the field and managing multiple sites.
• You are highly organized and able to track multiple tasks, vendors, and timelines simultaneously.
• You communicate clearly and confidently with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• You take ownership—you don’t wait to be told to follow up or escalate.
• You are practical and solution-oriented, especially in fast-moving environments.

Core Competencies: Technical

• Facility Maintenance Coordination
• Vendor & Contractor Management
• Basic Construction & Repair Knowledge
• Project Coordination & Scheduling
• Budget Tracking & Cost Awareness
• Risk Identification & Safety Compliance
• Data Collection & Reporting
• Procurement Coordination

Behavioral

• Ownership & Accountability
• Communication & Stakeholder Management
• Problem Solving & Resourcefulness
• Attention to Detail
• Planning & Organization
• Adaptability in Field Environments