Programme Manager (Startup Support)

  • Full-time

Company Description

Co-creation Hub is Africa’s leading technology innovation ecosystem builder on a mission to accelerate the application of science, technology and social capital for economic prosperity across Africa.

Our mandate is to build a formidable innovation ecosystem with a deeply rooted network, cultivating strategic partnerships and practical industry know-how that can support entrepreneurs and innovators in building thoughtful, relevant and scalable solutions. From our locations in Lagos, Abuja, Ijebu Ode (in Nigeria), Nairobi (Kenya) and Kigali (Rwanda), we have built a vibrant community of over 81,000 people and counting and have supported to a portfolio of over 120 early-stage ventures including Lifebank, Ushahidi, Riby, BudgIT, Stutern, Kopo Kopo, Sendy, mFarm, Wecyclers and many more.

Job Description

We are looking to recruit a detail-oriented and results-driven Programme Manager to join our Startup support Unit. In this role, you will play a key part in providing proactive support to innovators building solutions to address key challenges in our society. The Accelerator Program Manager will help develop and oversee a rigorous startup selection process, program curriculum, program delivery, identify required technical assistance, event planning and execution, and related program services. The person in this role will communicate day-to-day with cohort companies during the program, and proactively seek out commercial, funding, and other opportunities for participants during and after the program.

Duties and Responsibilities

 

  • Programme Management & Design 
    • Design, plan and execute startup support programmes and projects including scouting and selection of strong cohort members, managing pre-accelerator and accelerator bootcamps.
    • Design project and activity work plans for incubation/accelerator programmes, and follow through on implementations of the work plans. 
    • Ensure well-targeted implementation of communication and outreach activities.
  • Startup Portfolio Support 
    • Design systems and processes to support and signpost startups, founders and business owners to relevant startup programmes, support and resources across CcHUB and iHUB units. 
    • Prepare business case and initial risk analysis of startups seeking to join the CcHub portfolio.
    • Manage communication between startups and the unit as well as provide monthly progress reports on startups to key officers for prompt decision-making.
    • Work with other units within CcHUB to provide adequate support to ventures in the portfolio and any other assigned sectoral focus.
    • Work day-to-day with high growth entrepreneurs across the continent to build global sustainable businesses.
  • Partnership Engagement 
    • Actively support in identifying academics, researchers, professionals and experts who could join the CcHUB expert network to provide mentoring and advisory support to startups in assigned portfolios and across projects/programmes. 
    • Liaise with external parties to conduct market research, perform targeted data analysis, synthesize market insights, and publish thought leadership pieces.
  • Reporting 
    • Provide progress reports on programmes to key stakeholders including project sponsors, government officials for prompt decision-making.
    • Support the start-up team in developing performance metrics for programmes and monitoring them.
    • Measure, and track progress with respect to the programmes’s Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and fulfilling reporting requirements of funding agencies and stakeholders.
    • Measure, track, report and optimise the outcomes and progression of startup programmes. 
    • Support and provide guidance to the Communications team to disseminate engaging and impactful content highlighting CcHUB startup programmes and beneficiary success stories (e.g. programme highlights, interviews, community member spotlights,  thought leadership content, etc.)
  • New Opportunities 
    • Lead and or actively support with the preparation and development of concept notes and proposal write-ups.
    • Monitor and highlight new partnership opportunities in line with CcHub’s  strategic focus.
    • Design and develop CcHub owned startup programmes and projects. 

Qualifications

  • An educational background in Technology, Engineering, and/or Business-related fields.
  • Minimum of 5+ years experience in programme/project management in the startup space, enterprise development or consulting experience.
  • Project Management Professional (PMP) certification is a plus.
  • Passionate about technology, startups, innovation, with an understanding of the technology ecosystem
  • Entrepreneurial experience or experience working in a startup environment with demonstrated understanding of the technology and startup support ecosystem.
  • Excellent Written and Oral Communication Skills in English
  • Organised, resourceful, able to take initiative and make sound decisions
  • Proven ability to work creatively and analytically solve problems 
  • Ability to work well in a team and can individually prioritize multiple tasks while maintaining accuracy and attention to detail
  • Proficient knowledge of Microsoft and Google suites