FA
Farm Africa
Business Manager at Farm Africa
KenyaFull TimeMid-Senior Level
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Farm Africa
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PURPOSE OF THE ROLE
KEY TASKS AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Centralized Cross-Project BDS Support
Serve as the primary, organizational-wide focal point providing technical expertise on business development across the entire Farm Africa Kenya project portfolio.
Develop and drive implementation of Farm Africa Agribusiness strategy.
Actively collaborate with external implementing partners and internal Farm Africa Project Managers to troubleshoot, refine, and advance their specific BDS project components.
Ensure organization-wide consistency and quality control by overseeing all decentralized BDS activities, making sure they align with international best practices and institutional frameworks.
Coordinate internal resource sharing, ensuring that competent technical staff and short-term consultants are efficiently sourced and deployed to support BDS components across various active assignments.
Project Design & Resource Mobilization
Lead the technical conceptualization and design of Business Development Services (BDS) interventions for all new grants, active projects, and upcoming consultancies.
Actively contribute to resource mobilization and proposal writing to ensure relevant Farm Africa pipeline submissions feature strong, competitive, and actionable enterprise engagement opportunities.
Explore blended finance opportunities and ensure integration within programmes to enhance financial leveraging.
Curriculum Development & Institutional Capacity Building
Design, standardize, and maintain a centralized repository of viable BDS models, training curriculum's, tools, and templates for use across all applicable Farm Africa interventions.
Provide continuous coaching, mentorship, and capacity-building support to implementing partners and project teams on enterprise development and market access.
Support project-level Business Support Advisors in diagnosing technical, managerial, governance, and financial capacity gaps within targeted small and medium enterprises.
Catalyst & Catalytic Fund Management
Facilitate, direct, and oversee the implementation of centralized and project-specific Catalytic Funds (including revolving funds and challenge funds).
Develop financial disbursement systems, selection criteria, due diligence policies, and risk-mitigation reporting processes to optimize fund deployment for SME/MSME growth.
SME/MSME Support & Business Performance Monitoring
Support project teams in supervising enterprise establishment, growth strategies, and market integrations for targeted MSMEs and SMEs.
Oversee periodic organizational "health checks", diagnostic reviews, and annual Organizational Capacity Assessment Tools (OCAT) across portfolio enterprises to systematically evaluate growth and correct underperformance.
Develop, review Enterprise Capacity Assessment Tools (ECAT) and take lead in conducting enterprise and market assessments to identify gaps, emerging trends and opportunities.
Data Collection, Monitoring & Learning
Design and deploy standardized data collection tools to identify operational delivery gaps and harmonize information gathering across all active project sites.
Partner with the Head of MEL to finalize business performance indicators, compile comprehensive quarterly reports featuring data visualizations (graphs/charts), and extract cross-project evidence-based learning.
Networking, Representation & Compliance
Line Management & team management
Provide leadership, mentorship and inspiration to BDS teams. Build a values-based working environment and support project staff skills development.
Set objectives for BDS teams, hold in-person supervision sessions to discuss progress against their personal development objectives and work targets and carry out in-person annual appraisals in line with Farm Africa policies and procedures.
Actively recognise and encourage strong performance from team members, deal with any poor performance effectively and promptly in line with Farm Africa policies and procedures,
Actively seek feedback on own performance and effectiveness from BDS team members, project staff and country and project teams.
Reporting and Compliance Requirements
Directly engage in report writing as well as provide support in reviewing project reports.
Develop and manage annual, quarterly and monthly work plans and its associated budgets, in compliance with both donor and Farm Africa's requirements.
Ensure adherence to Farm Africa's management processes and tools, including the quarterly reviews of the Project Management Tool and the bi-annual Project Performance Reviews.
Review monthly Budget Monitoring Reports and provide sound explanation on variances; develop plans to address potential significant variances and report on implementation progress.
Develop, coordinate review of, and submit high quality donor narrative and financial reports on time. PERSON SPECIFICATION
Education, qualifications & other knowledge
Degree level in relevant subject (executive business management, finance, agricultural economics, agribusiness etc.)
Masters or other post-graduate qualification in relevant subject (executive business management, finance, agricultural economics, MBA etc.) is desirable
Extensive knowledge of the agribusiness sector in East Africa
Excellent knowledge of East African trade and export regulations
Detailed knowledge of global best practice and new developments in agricultural market engagement is desirable
Experience
Develop, coordinate review of, and submit high quality donor narrative and financial reports on time.
A minimum of 5 years relevant experience working with agribusinesses in agricultural value chains in East Africa.
Demonstrated experience in commercial subsidy and/or fund management is desirable
Existing networks with private sector BDS providers and other key stakeholders in East Africa (including the finance sector, incubators, accelerators etc.) and clear strategies for network development and expansion
Experience in promoting best practices in value chain development that in particular reaches women, youth and poorer farmers is desirable
Demonstrated experience of business analytics and subsequent structuring and implementation of capacity development plans for SMEs
Demonstrated success in implementing commercial focused programmes aimed at increasing competitiveness and inclusiveness of agricultural value chains
Demonstrated experience structuring and conducting agricultural market & value chain analysis in East Africa
Experience with financial, operational, and management analysis of applicant enterprises, as well as due diligence procedures
Experience and networks with early-stage investment and a clear understanding of what is required to get agricultural enterprises ‘investment ready'
Expertise and experience in research to practice – identifying best practice and adapting that to programmes on the ground.
Demonstrated experience in economic models and macro-economic trend analysis of agricultural value chains
Demonstrated experience in project planning, management and implementation, including budget and work plan management
M4P commercial programming experience is desirable
Demonstrated experience in capacity building of organisations and individuals
Should demonstrate strong ability to Monitor and analyze complex business performance data, delivering comprehensive reports that drove strategic decision-making and operational efficiency.
Skills & abilities
Develop, coordinate review of, and submit high-quality donor narrative and financial reports on time.
Demonstrated creativity, willingness to innovate, think systemically and design catalytic activities to drive progressive SMEs engagement with BDS service providers
Ability to organise and prioritise work-plans and performance expectations in the face of changing demands from competing clients
Ability to leverage advanced business performance analytical skills to monitor critical metrics and build robust reporting frameworks for executive leadership.
Strong influencing and interpersonal skills, able to persuade others to support own goals
Coaching and mentorship skills
Excellent presentation & communication skills - able to design and deliver training and communications confidently and effectively
Team player, able to maintain strong and supportive working relationships across functions and with culturally diverse teams
Ability and willingness to travel frequently for business within East Africa