Job Description: Chief Operating Officer

Company: Reports to: Supervises: Location: Compensation:

EarthEnable, Incorporated Chief Executive Officer All Operations Managers and Marketing Managers Kigali, Rwanda Negotiable

About EarthEnable EarthEnable is a new and quickly growing social enterprise that launched in Rwanda last year. We sell healthy and affordable floors to the 80% of Rwandans who can only afford to have a dirt floor in their home. Replacing a dirt floor with a concrete floor has been shown to have significant health benefits (reducing diarrhea by 50% and parasitic infections by 80%) but concrete is unaffordable to most Rwandans. EarthEnable installs earthen floors that are 70% cheaper than concrete, and with 90% less embodied energy. EarthEnable’s floors are composed of natural materials (gravel, clay, sand, and fiber) and are sealed with a proprietary drying oil developed by Stanford Ph.D. Rick Zuzow that forms a plastic-like seal on the floor, which makes it water-proof, hard, smooth, easy to clean, and polished. They are already prevalent in modern homes in the United States, and we have developed a business model that trains and hires underemployed masons to install our floors. In our first 7 months of operations, we have installed 40,000 square feet of flooring and employed 45 Rwandese staff. We are ready to scale to the next level, and need an experienced COO to help lead the organization to the next stage. The Role We are looking for a dynamic and visionary COO who is excited to build a fast-growing and high-impact organization alongside a passionate team. The COO would at once oversee EarthEnable’s operations, develop our systems to scale, manage financial performance, and be a strategic thought partner to the CEO and Board. We are looking for a leader and manager who can take us to the next level and beyond. Strategic Planning and Execution     

Co-lead EarthEnable in Rwanda, and then likely another East African country as we scale Work with CEO to develop scale strategy and to set operational targets, and then manage execution of strategy Work with Marketing Managers to develop and execute marketing strategy Refine and adapt business model to fit the Rwandese context based on field learnings Support CEO in developing and nurturing partnerships

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Continuously assess and refine incentive systems

Operational Systems and Efficiency Improvements 

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Design, develop, and implement systems to scale (construction planning, inventory management, supply chain management, quality control management, customer relations management, financial management, etc.) Manage field operations and all operations managers and marketing managers, providing mentoring, capacity building, and training as needed Manage research and development agenda to continuously improve floor quality Identify and implement process efficiency improvements

Financial Oversight  

Manage all operational unit P+Ls, while understanding and managing differences in performance between operational units Work with CEO to oversee organizational budgeting and audit

Qualifications                

5 years of work experience, including at least 2 years of experience managing teams Experience with fast-growing social ventures is a plus Desire to live and work in Africa for the medium-to-long term (3+ years) Excellent analytical skills, including Excel modelling Excellent people management skills Strong understanding of accounting, budget management, and financial management Thrives in a bootstrapped culture Flexible and adaptable to changing environments Ability to work on a variety of tasks at the same time Hard working and gritty to push through challenges Maturity and poise under stress Passionate about international development and social enterprise Experience living and working in a developing country Some engineering background (civil or structural) preferred, but not required Entrepreneurial attitude, creative problem solver, patient team-player with a sense of humor Graduate degree (MBA, MPA/ID, MPA, etc.) a plus, but not required

To apply, please send a resume and cover letter to [email protected]