Job Opportunities at Komaza

About this Role

This core purpose of this role is to build Komaza’s financial model to serve three vital functions: (i) informing company strategy; (ii) supporting our 2018 equity financing; and (iii) guiding design of a financing innovation to securitize our forestry assets. We spent last year building a financial model to raise a significant Series A; we need an Excel wizard to continue refining this model for more demanding applications. This project demands more than snazzy formulas - we need a business-savvy critical thinker to also research the core input assumptions. While you will be directly responsible for all heavy lifting on the execution of this project, we’re fundamentally looking for an experienced thought partner to “own” this project and lead the R&D process to develop a knock-your-socks-off economic model with sound assumptions to inform high-level strategy & financing decisions.

What you will do

• Develop and refine the mechanics of our model, comprising all steps of our vertically-integrated business. Build functionalities for sensitivity & scenario analysis, outputting long-term financial statement forecasts. Develop modules to analyze financing strategies, specifically to design our innovative forestry financing mechanism.
• Interview & collaborate with internal teammates to model our operations, both at current scale, and forecasting future economics with expansion and program model innovations.
• Identify knowledge gaps around sensitive drivers for further business/industry research.
• Research key input drivers (e.g. CAPEX/OPEX & productivity rates of several wood processing options). Much of this data is hard to find, so you’ll need to get creative and roll up your sleeves to get it -- scour the internet; identify & interview other companies and experts; engage external consultants as needed; etc.
• Write crisp-yet-comprehensive memos justifying key input assumptions, elaborating on likely up/downside scenarios, and implications to inform company growth strategy.
• Produce the full suite of investor materials to understand and interpret our model.

What you have

• Bachelor’s in a relevant field, plus MBA or equivalent experience from a top firm.
• 4-6 years of work experience in private equity, corporate finance, or investment banking.
• Superb analytical, quantitative, and conceptual skills, with experience applying those towards understanding business models and appropriate financing strategies.
• Significant experience with complex financial modeling and analysis.
• Significant experience conducting industry/business research, with a focus on complex supply chains, manufacturing, and other physical operations.
• Excellent organizational, critical thinking, attention to detail, and communication skills.
• Experience liaising with external advisors & competitors to glean key insights & data.
• Ability to present complex information in an insightful and structured manner. Experience developing well structured, crisp-yet-comprehensive slide decks & memos.

You’re also

• Self-directed, intellectually curious, and comfortable working through ambiguity by creating logical frameworks and taking educated guesses to fill in the gaps.
• Laser-focused on delivering successful outcomes, and sufficiently flexible, scrappy, and driven to do whatever necessary to get the job done.
• Highly collaborative & skilled at soliciting efficient input from teammates and stakeholders.
• Passionate about Komaza’s mission and vision -- to lift rural farmers out of poverty by rapid scaling of our disruptive micro-forestry business model.

What we offer

This role offers competitive salary and benefits relative to other fast-growth startups in East Africa (enough to live well, save, and splurge)... but you’ll get paid far less than you could earn working for a big bank or consulting firm. On the plus side: this role is based in stunningly beautiful Kilifi, Kenya; you’ll be working with a team of highly-motivated and fun people; and you’ll be making a unique and high-impact contribution to the world by developing the critical financial models to raise tens of millions of dollars to plant many millions of trees with smallholder farmers. We seek candidates who can make a commitment for at least 1 year to see this specific project through to completion, with a strong preference for candidates keen for 2+ years of exciting high-impact work, with the potential for further career growth at Komaza.

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About this Role

We aim to securitize our long-term smallholder farmer forestry assets, getting them off our balance sheet (e.g. into an SPV) to drastically reduce Komaza’s working capital needs. Several big funders are eager to pour serious capital into various layers of this instrument to enable more tree planting. We need to develop this innovation over the next 18 months to be investment ready. As the Structured Finance Senior Associate, you will play a critical role in coordinating and delivering this disruptive innovation. While you will be directly responsible for all heavy lifting on the execution of this project, we’re fundamentally looking for an experienced thought partner to “own” this project and lead the R&D process to bring our high-impact tree-planting financial innovation to the world.

What you will do

• Work with Komaza Leadership & external stakeholders to develop early-stage scoping, market assessment, opportunity analysis, and project planning.
• Develop & manage a living slide deck prospectus as our primary knowledge management platform to communicate key learnings & questions to stakeholders.
• Coordinate efficient engagement with a small “Brain Trust” of external stakeholders to get monthly feedback on instrument & implementation design via 1:1 & conference calls.
• Research precedents and regulatory considerations (via literature & calls) to solve specific strategic questions and challenges.
• Support our Quantitative Associate (TBH) in continued development of our business’ economic model, conducting industry research to define our model’s core input drivers.
• Support Komaza’s Finance & Business Intelligence departments to develop internal of data processes to align with this new financing mechanism.
• Support outreach, networking, and business development for this financing mechanism.
• Own all project management, including planning, budgeting and stakeholder coordination.

What you have

• Bachelor’s in a relevant field, plus MBA or equivalent experience from a top firm.
• 4-7 years of professional experience in investment banking, corporate finance, or financial consulting; experience with securitization, CDOs, ABS, etc. is a strong plus.
• Familiarity with global financial markets and common development finance mechanisms (e.g. risk guarantees, concessional lending, blended finance, etc.)
• Experience with multi-stakeholder facilitation, including leading workshops, working groups, and relationship management.
• Excellent organizational, critical thinking, attention to detail, and communication skills.
• Ability to present complex information in an insightful and structured manner. Experience developing well structured, crisp-yet-comprehensive slide decks & memos.
• Excellent analytical, quantitative, and conceptual skills, with experience applying those towards understanding business models and appropriate financing strategies.

You’re also

• Self-directed, intellectually curious, and comfortable working through ambiguity by creating logical frameworks and taking educated guesses to fill in the gaps.
• Laser-focused on delivering successful outcomes, and sufficiently flexible, scrappy, and driven to do whatever necessary to get the job done.
• Highly collaborative & skilled at soliciting efficient input from teammates and stakeholders.
• Professional & experienced working with senior officials in public & private sectors.
• Passionate to apply innovative financing to develop inclusive markets for the rural poor.
• Passionate about Komaza’s mission and vision -- to lift rural farmers out of poverty by rapid scaling of our disruptive micro-forestry business model.

What we offer

This role offers competitive salary and benefits relative to other fast-growth startups in East Africa (enough to live well, save, and splurge)... but you’ll get paid far less than you could earn working for a big bank or consulting firm. On the plus side: this role is based in stunningly beautiful Kilifi, Kenya; you’ll be working with a team of highly-motivated and fun people; and you’ll be making a unique and high-impact contribution to the world by developing the mechanism to finance the planting of billions of trees in Africa. We seek candidates who can make a commitment for 2+ years to see this project through from start to finish; once this project is complete, there will be many opportunities for further career growth at Komaza.