Senior Social Entrepreneur & Project Development Lead – Africa

BrighterMonday Consulting

Product & Project Management

3 days ago

Easy apply

New

Kampala

Full Time

NGO, NPO & Charity

Confidential

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Job summary

Suyana Foundation is looking for an experienced and entrepreneurial Senior Social Entrepreneur & Project Development Lead to identify, develop and test innovative social enterprise and income-generating pilot projects across its African programmes.We are looking for a builder – someone pragmatic, entrepreneurial and hands- on who enjoys turning ide

Min Qualification:

Bachelors

Experience Level

Senior level

Experience Length

7 years

Language Requirement

English

Working Hours:

Full Time - 8 to 5

Applicant Location

Uganda

Job descriptions & requirements

LocationBased in one of Suyana’s countries of operation, with regular travel across Suyana's countries of operation: Switzerland, Spain, Uganda, and Rwanda.

The candidate should be eligible to work in those countries and hold the appropriate work permits.

Reports toCEO

About Suyana Foundation

Suyana Foundation is a Swiss non-profit organization dedicated to empowering individuals, families and communities to lead dignified and self-sustaining lives. For more than 20 years, Suyana has worked through locally led and holistic

development approaches focused on health, education, sustainable livelihoods and WASH, creating long-term impact through strong community engagement, local ownership and strategic partnerships.

Building on its extensive experience in South America, Suyana is currently developing and expanding its activities in Africa, including Rwanda and Uganda.

Position Summary

Suyana Foundation is looking for an experienced and entrepreneurial Senior Social Entrepreneur & Project Development Lead to identify, develop and test innovative social enterprise and income-generating pilot projects across its African programmes. We are looking for a builder – someone pragmatic, entrepreneurial and hands- on who enjoys turning ideas into something that works in practice.

The successful candidate will identify economic and social opportunities within communities, assess their potential, develop viable business and operating models and work directly in the field to turn promising ideas into practical pilot initiatives. This is not primarily a desk-based strategy or conventional programme-management role. The role involves going into the field, understanding local realities, speaking with communities and potential customers, analysing markets, identifying opportunities, testing assumptions, and developing solutions in practice.

The role requires someone who combines strong social-development understanding with an entrepreneurial and commercial mindset and who is comfortable moving from an initial idea to a functioning pilot.

We aim to develop social-enterprise models that create measurable social and economic impact and build sustainable livelihood and income opportunities for local communities.

Key Responsibilities

• Social Enterprise & Pilot Project Development

• Proactively identify opportunities for social enterprises, community businesses, income-generating initiatives and market-based solutions within Suyana's African programmes.
• Work directly with communities, entrepreneurs, cooperatives, businesses and local partners to identify real economic opportunities and unmet market needs.
• Transform promising ideas into concrete and testable pilot projects.
• Develop practical business and operating models, including products or services, target customers, pricing, costs, revenue streams, partnerships and implementation requirements.
• Assess whether proposed initiatives have the potential to create both meaningful social impact and economic value.
• Design small-scale pilots that allow Suyana to test concepts before committing significant resources.
• Take an active, hands-on role in getting pilots started and resolving practical challenges during their initial development.
• Continuously adapt pilot models based on market feedback, field experience, and results.
• Assess successful pilots and develop recommendations for their continuation, replication or scale-up.

• Field-Based Opportunity & Market Assessment

• Spend significant time on the ground, understanding communities, local economies and market realities first-hand.
• Identify existing skills, resources, products, services and economic activities that could be strengthened or developed into sustainable enterprises.
• Conduct practical market assessments to understand demand, competition, pricing, customers, supply chains and potential market access.
• Engage directly with potential customers, suppliers, local businesses and other market actors.
• Test assumptions in practice rather than relying solely on theoretical assessments.
• Identify why an initiative may or may not work and adapt the approach accordingly.

• Business Model & Financial Viability