Product and Innovation Manager - Sub Saharan Africa at Education Development Trust - CfBT

About the role

Job type: Fixed term 12-month contract

• Excellent benefits including annual leave, medical insurances, flexible working options and great professional development opportunities.

Education Development Trust is seeking a Product and Innovation Manager to join our ambitious Research and Development (R&D) team. EdDev Trust is an international not-for-profit with a 40-year track record in the provision of influential consultancy, research and large-scale programmes which transform school systems worldwide.

We are in an exciting period of growth and the R&D team is central to EdDev Trust’s new corporate strategy 2021-24. The team leads the development of high impact education solutions and products which tackle the diverse challenge faced by the policymakers and practitioners in the education systems we serve. We are recruiting for a highly organised, action-orientated and creative Product and Innovation Manager, who will play a critical part in this strategy by developing and managing a portfolio of new products and innovations, by tackling some of the most difficult education challenges across the SSA region. You will work collaboratively across the organisation, acting as a product owner, leading the identification, design and testing of new initiatives as well as scaling them for new countries and clients.

Based in our Nairobi offices, you will work within our R&D team, in close collaboration with Business Development and our delivery team in Sub Saharan Africa where you will conduct market analyses and draw on market trends combined with global evidence to identify new opportunities and solutions. You will develop business cases and conduct formative research leading to the design and development of new programmes which are both commercially viable and deliver educational impact.

We welcome applications from candidates with experience and skills as follows:

• Experience living and working in a SSA country coupled with a deep understanding and knowledge of educational systems and policy issues in the region.
• Professional expertise in education product development, solution design techniques, business model design, or similar, along with knowledge of innovation and / or design processes and product life cycle frameworks.
• Knowledge of how to use quantitative and qualitative research methods to inform product design and development.
• Strong organisational and project management skills, with the ability to draw up project plans and tracking and reporting against project goals, identifying and escalating risks.
• Excellent stakeholder engagement skills and the ability to work with a wide variety of colleagues and clients.