Overall Responsibilities

• Working with Tanzania SLT to develop long-term strategies for the achievement of the company’s vision.
• Create clear strategic plans across the organization to oversee long, medium and short-term goals (OPSP 3yr, 1yr, Quarterly goals), of which are visible to, known and understood by all staff.
• Oversee daily operations across all campuses, including facilities management, procurement, inventory control, and vendor relations.
• Implement systems and processes to enhance operational efficiency and streamline workflows, with a strong emphasis on execution and quality monitoring.
• Lead, coach, develop, and retain a high-performance SLT with high level of satisfaction & self-direction
• Build and oversee a Company-wide talent growth strategy to ensure a highly results-oriented culture, including coverage of gaps, career planning for star performers, developing rising leaders and ensuring training and coaching programs are in place. Including the full Talent Academy for teacher talent pipeline.
• Support a company-wide culture of PD with staff-wide PD plans lived, resourced and reviewed regularly
• Develop and maintain relationships with key stakeholders, including government agencies, partners, and suppliers, to ensure smooth operations and compliance.
• Led and mentored department heads to optimize team performance and achieve organizational objectives, with a focus on driving high fidelity of reporting.
• Collaborate with the finance department to develop and manage budgets, forecasts, and financial plans, ensuring accuracy and transparency in reporting.
• Monitor and analyse operational performance metrics to identify areas for improvement and implement corrective actions as needed.
• Ensure compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, including health and safety standards, labor laws, and licensing regulations.
• Conduct regular audits and assessments to evaluate operational effectiveness and identify opportunities for optimization, with a focus on quality monitoring.
• Provide regular reports and updates to the Managing Director and senior management team on operational performance, challenges, and opportunities.

Operations Responsibilities (30% of time)

• Manage Operations department and Team: creating department systems, structures, goals and accountability metrics.
• Completing monthly inventory checklists of academic supplies, technology, kitchen supplies, farm equipment and supplies.
• Oversee systems structures and management for the transport, catering, farm, facilities, security, procurement, cleaning and gardening team.
• Optimize and automate company-level KPI dashboard, ensuring the integrity of & real-time tracking of data.
• Oversee the collection, analysis, and reporting of data school and company-wide, year-round (as MEL plan)
• Lead the review & refresh of the overall MEL framework, plans, and tools that will be used to measure the impact of the school's programs and initiatives on students, teachers, parents and other stakeholders
• Work with the SLT and school leadership team to integrate MEL into team and department DNA and their decision-making processes, using data to inform decisions and drive continuous improvement
• Work with teams to identify and prioritize data needs, and develop processes for collecting, storing, and accessing data from a variety of sources, including students, teachers, parents and partners
• Establish data governance policies train teams on data analysis and visualization and provide support and resources for data-driven decision-making, including training and coaching.

Marketing, Enrolment and Brand Responsibilities (25% of time)

• Manage Marketing, Enrolment and Brand Department and Team: creating department systems, structures, goals and accountability metrics.
• Oversee the creation of a brand strategy that reflects the Company mission, values, & educational philosophy
• Oversee a mature marketing department with well-structured and synchronized sales & PR strategies, systems and data tools/usage.
• Direct marketing, events and publications to secure brand affinity of Silverleaf as a household name throughout Arusha, strong brand recognition throughout Northern Zone and brand presence Nationally.
• Monitor the market to ensure the company's brand is consistently represented positively and consistently, in addition to analysing market trends and consumer behaviours to refine clear target audiences.
• Ensure marketing collateral, such as brochures, newsletters, website, SEO, social media content and advertising campaigns are all updated, user tested and aligned with the brand strategy & guidelines
• Coordinate, organize, and attend events and community activities to promote SLA Brand and/or increase enrolment.
• Support Marketing team(s) to identify and pursue new business opportunities, such as partnerships with local organizations or trialling new customer acquisition tactics, in pursuit of their sales targets.
• Directly drive BD for National level partnerships, develop, negotiate, sign and manage such ‘deals’
• Monitor real-time enrolment trends, capture sales and marketing data and provide regular reports
• Promote SLA within the wider African & Global education space as a pioneer in Tanzania, including attending Regional & Global conferences, creating thought leadership publications & engaging in forums.

HR Responsibilities (20% of time)

• Manage HR department and Team: creating department systems, structures, goals and accountability metrics.
• Recruitment and Hiring: Coordinate the recruitment process, including drafting job descriptions, advertising, shortlisting candidates, and conducting interviews. Oversee onboarding and orientation processes for new hires.
• Compliance and Policies: Ensure compliance with relevant employment laws and regulations.
• Develop and update HR policies and procedures in line with best practices and legal requirements.
• Performance Appraisals: Develop, implement, and manage an effective performance appraisal system. Guide managers and employees on performance evaluation processes. In partnership with the SLT ensure that every staff member has an individual growth and development plan that their managers are using to coach and measure progress consistently.
• HR Metrics and Analytics: Establish and track key HR performance indicators (KPIs) such as turnover rate, employee satisfaction index, training hours per employee, compliance with HR policies, and time-to-fill vacancies.

Finance Responsibilities (20% of time)

• Manage Finance Department and Team: creating department systems, structures, goals and accountability metrics.
• Ensuring a 10-year Strategic Financial model in place (company & school level) that shows a clear pathway to profitability & analysis and finalizes school-level unit economics.
• Offer comprehensive financial and administrative support to the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and Central Team to guide strategic decision-making and execution.
• Driving regular financial planning of the company and school(s) through reliable budget management, financial analysis, and forecast reporting.
• Ensuring all Finance policies and SOPs are in place.
• Ensure a positive expense Budget variance maintained below 5%.
• Ensure the Fee Collection Policy is strictly adhered to (targeted default of below 5%).
• Ensure Financial Reports are shared on the 5th of each month (P&L, Budget variance, CF, and finance deck).
• Translate Annual and quarterly work plans into budgets for the Managing Director, CEO (and Board) approval.
• Review, optimize, and oversee financial planning, budgeting, spending, reconciliation and reporting
• Directly authorize budget disbursements with strict adherence to finance policy, including payroll
• Strictly manage cash to budget with a below 5% expense budget variance at all times and maintain a profit analysis by each product (Tuition, Transport, Boarding, Uniform)
• Ensure timely submission of accurate and quality monthly financial reports to the Board and management.
• Responsible for fiscal integrity & management that generally anticipates operating within the approved budget, ensures maximum resource utilization, strict adherence to the expense policy and controls, and maintenance of the organization in a positive financial position, namely fee collection status
• Review and refine financial systems, and processes and ultimately sign off on a comprehensive Finance Policy
• Ensure that core finance processes (e.g. accounts payable and receivable) run efficiently, accurate financial records, and foster strong vendor and client relationships.
• Support to quarterly and annual audits, ensuring adherence to financial standards and regulatory compliance for transparent and reliable reporting.

Legal, Compliance and Risk Management Responsibilities (5% of time)

• Manage Compliance department and Team: creating department systems, structures, goals and accountability metrics.
• Ensure compliance with all government regulations and laws, including taxation and company policies
• Develop and maintain a regularly updated risk matrix/register that maps out all our potential risk areas, their likeness and severity of impact to the company and plot how each can be managed/mitigated
• Oversee any legal proceedings including labour/litigation and ensure timely reporting of the proceedings.
• Establish and ensure consistent implementation of HR committee(s) to manage HR proceedings.

Skills and Attributes

• Preferred experience as a Director of Operations with high measurable results.
• Proven experience in operational management, preferably in the education sector, with a strong focus on execution and quality monitoring.
• Excellent strategic planning and problem-solving abilities, with a keen eye for detail and quality assurance.
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build strong relationships and collaborate effectively with diverse stakeholders.
• Sound financial acumen and budget management skills, with a focus on accuracy and transparency in reporting.