About African Leadership Academy African Leadership Academy (ALA) seeks to transform Africa by identifying, developing, and connecting a new generation of young leaders who will lead the continent towards lasting peace and shared prosperity for all. Since our inception in 2008, we have worked to lay the foundations of this audacious mission by identifying and developing a group of exceptional young leaders who will work together to shape Africa's future. The flagship secondary education offering has expanded to early career and youth entrepreneurship programs like the Anzisha Prize and Africa Career Networks.
About Alumni Engagement: From 2010 to date, ALA has provided several services to alumni from career coaching to psychosocial support to regional reunions and events. In 2023, there was an extensive process of reimagining what a partnership between ALA and alumni could be. We are now in the "do phase" of this initiative with many projects in the pipeline designed to build affinity and community amongst alumni and toward a collective vision for Africa.
ALA has close to 1400 alumni in over 70 countries. They are either on gap years after leaving ALA, studying for undergraduate or graduate programs, working, or running their own ventures. An annual calendar of events and communications is supplemented with coaching and mental health services appropriate to the age and life stage of our alumni community members. Younger alumni are mapped to a member of the Alumni Engagement team as their primary point of contact. An alumni association and governance structure is emerging and needs enabling support to thrive.
Position Overview: The Director of Alumni Engagement is responsible for the health of the relationship between ALA and its alumni – as a collective and as individuals. To do so effectively, they need to be deeply attuned to the needs, attitudes, frustrations, and aspirations of alumni and able to distil these into insights that direct responsive program design and execution.
The ideal candidate can break down complex problems into component parts, define project outcomes, and delegate tasks effectively. They must build strong team rhythms – particularly with regard to communication – and actively build relationships that will attract the time, treasure, and talent from alumni and other supporters in a volunteer capacity. Additionally, they will also be a strong coach, engaging alumni directly.
Key Responsibilities: Strategic Planning & ManagementResearch alumni engagement programs and effective networks to understand drivers of success, key challenges, and best practices.Lead the annual review, work planning, and budget process for Alumni Engagement.Produce quarterly memos and other reports as required by Exco.Liaise with the Institutional Learning team to track alumni's career and life progress, as well as your team's activities against ALA's program impact model.Stakeholders & GovernanceOversee the review and support of the establishment of an Alumni Association.Serve as liaison between the Association and ALA.Cultivate and manage relationships with key stakeholders who can support alumni engagement activities, including the ALA and ALF boards.Ensure ALA's safeguarding and child protection policies are applied to Alumni Engagement activities.Community BuildingSupervise the planning and execution of flagship events such as major alumni reunions/Indabas.Support teams in the Programs Division with their events as needed to ensure alumni participation.Work with the Development team to identify and invite alumni to both internal and external events.Oversee the development of the alumni web/app portal, its rollout, and maintenance thereafter.Alumni Pledge & GivingOwn the design and execution of a strategy to drive alumni signatures to the ALA Pledge.Collaborate with the Director of Development to develop and execute strategic plans to increase alumni engagement and participation in giving initiatives.Cultivate and steward relationships with alumni to foster a culture of philanthropy and loyalty towards ALA.Implement targeted communication strategies to effectively convey the impact of alumni giving and inspire greater involvement.Alumni CoachingManage team to ensure check-in regularly with all alumni- with emphasis on those on gap years or university.Lead the process to identify alumni "of concern" and work closely with them and any relevant persons to provide extra support.Team ManagementCoach the Senior Associate and Associate within the team.Conduct regular check-ins with the team.Perform mid- and end-of-year reviews for the Associates.Reporting and Database ManagementRigorously update all information in Salesforce.Run annual deep data cleanup to ensure ALA Alumni Data is kept up to date.Abide by ALA Data Privacy Policy in handling alumni data.Other Responsibilities:Support the Senior Associate and Associate in the execution of other flagship programs such as Sankofa that facilitate alumni return to ALA and Daraja (with the aim of preparing students to be successful alumni).Participate in African Leadership Academy Two-Year Program activities and engage students to the degree you are able and by agreement with your direct manager.Participate in various "all hands on deck" activities on the Alumni Engagement calendar as they arise, such as event logistics, webinars, and surveys.Ideal Candidate Profile & Qualifications: Bachelor's degree in a relevant field with at least 7-10 years of work experience, including managerial experience.Experience designing and leading programs, with a track record of leading engagement events and campaigns.Results-oriented with a keen focus on understanding and measuring success.A self-starter who takes initiative and is able to work independently yet keep key stakeholders informed.A natural coach and facilitator who enjoys convening people and communities to create moments of meaning.Excellent communication and interpersonal abilities.Strong attention to detail and analytical skills will be advantageous for drawing insights from alumni and campaign data.Has passion for Africa, the potential of its youth, and commitment to the vision of ALA.Lifelong learner: delights in learning and seeks to grow.Reporting: This role reports to the Chief Programs Officer.
Start Date: 1 October 2024
Location: This role is based at ALA's campus in Johannesburg, South Africa. This is not a remote role. ALA will provide visa and relocation support for global candidates to South Africa.
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