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  • Posted: May 16, 2017
    Deadline: Not specified
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    Komaza works to unlock the potential of small-scale farmers to solve Africa's wood supply crisis. Collectively, small farmers possess limitless land and labor resources to plant billions of trees. Komaza provides farmers with support across the forestry value chain, from seedlings to sawmills. With a dramatically lower-cost and more-scalable forestry model, ...
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    Director of Wood Processing R&D

    About this Role

    The primary focus of this department for the next 12-18 months will be evaluating several different wood processing/product opportunities to inform our longer-term strategy. R&D will focus both on common solutions (e.g. CCA treatment; veneer & plywood; small sawmills) and innovative “moon shot” opportunities (e.g. low-cost beds, prefab building materials, etc.). In the near-term, this role primarily boils down to designing and delivering on an iterative lean startup methodology to test hypotheses about different potential products, required processing technologies, and market demand. Your core feedstock are small-diameter trees (3-6” diameter) from early-stage “thinning” operations -- profitable utilization of small, young trees is Africa’s primary forestry challenge, and we seek to lead the industry with innovative solutions. You’ll need to source insights and inspiration from Google, third-party experts, and site-visits to other wood processing operations in Kenya, Africa, and potentially globally. The fundamental goal is to identify which wood products and processing technologies Komaza should focus on for the next 5-7 years. Once a compelling case has been made, the focus of this role will shift into scaling up and optimizing processing operations to maximize quality while minimizing production costs.

    What you will do

    • Develop & maintain a strategic framework for continuous feasibility assessment of different wood products, market demand, and processing techn throughout the product development lifecycle.
    • Identify key knowledge gaps, risks, and questions for each product line; then design and implement scrappy, fast methods for answering those unknowns.
    • Develop and manage relationships with external advisors, competitors and stakeholders to gain strategic, operational and technological insights.
    • Develop and manage a simple knowledge management platform to capture and organize insights, new questions, and next steps for each active product line.
    • Develop “minimum viable products” of several different products and production lines to test product viability, processing options, and market demand.
    • Develop high-level financial models to forecast unit economics and profit margins.
    • Design & implement quick market tests to assess consumer preferences & market size.
    • Research diverse wood processing methods & technologies to produce target products, including site visits to existing operations in Africa and beyond to gain deep insights.
    • Conduct comprehensive feasibility assessments and develop detailed business & implementation plans to scale up the most promising wood processing opportunities.
    • Hire, train and manage a growing team of Wood Processing R&D staff to do all of this.

    What you have

    • Bachelor’s in mechanical engineering, product design, manufacturing, wood technology, or similar. MBA or Design/Engineering Master's (or equivalent work) is strongly preferred.
    • 6-10 years of work experience in a relevant field (e.g. mechanical engineering, product design), with 2-4 years experience leading a small team.
    • Entrepreneurial (or similar) experience of navigating rapid learning through an ambiguous opportunity/risk landscape to identify and develop promising business opportunities.
    • Exposure to manufacturing and markets in the developing world, with MacGyver-like ingenuity to develop scrappy solutions to build minimum viable products, and an intuitive HCD perspective to understand local consumer preferences.
    • Ability to retain big-picture strategic awareness while diving deep into details, in order to focus on key factors, rather than getting lost in the weeds.
    • Sufficient quant skills to assess high-level economic attractiveness of different options.
    • Experience working with wood is a big plus. But as we need to test diverse opportunities, we’re not looking for a deep “expert” in a single field; nor are we looking for a “jack of all trades, master of none.” We’re seeking a “master” of the lean product/business development methodology, who ideally is a weekend woodworker hobbyist.

    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 design/manufacturing 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 make a unique and high-impact contribution to the world by developing Komaza’s innovative wood processing solutions to maximize farmer income and company revenue, essential to ensure rapid scaling for years to come. We seek candidates who can make a commitment for at least 2 years, with a strong preference for candidates seeking longer-term career opportunities.

    Method of Application

    Interested and qualified? Go to Komaza Kenya on jobs.jobvite.com to apply

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