A
Chief of Staff & Strategy
AGRA
Nairobi, KE
Full-time
Posted 20 hours ago
Job Description
SRI Executive Search has been contracted by AGRA to assist with the search for an exceptional candidate to fill the position of Chief of Staff and Strategy.
About AGRA
AGRA is an African-led institution that works to transform agri-food systems across the continent. For twenty years, AGRA has been working in partnership with people across the continent to build a more prosperous future for smallholders. Grounded in country priorities, AGRA partners with governments, the private sector, research institutions and development actors to identify and unlock systemic constraints that limit smallholder farmer productivity, market access and resilience. Through catalytic investment, technical insight and convening power, AGRA supports inclusive, sustainable transformation that strengthens food security and long-term economic growth.
Our AGRA@20 activities this year are not just a celebration of what has been achieved together. This is our moment to call for consolidation and acceleration. Our moment to commit to connecting the dots that now exist to ensure that in the next 20 years, Africa’s agri-food systems are investable, scalable and full of opportunity for the people that matter most.
Role Summary
The Chief of Staff & Strategy is a senior strategic partner to the AGRA President and executive team, responsible for driving enterprise-wide transformation, organizational alignment, and strategic execution. This role acts as a force multiplier for leadership—supporting the President, overseeing the Office of the President and the Strategy, ensuring priorities are executed effectively, cross-functional initiatives advance seamlessly, and the organization stays focused on its long-term mission.
Leading the Transformation Office, this role orchestrates strategic planning, stewards AGRA’s strategic architecture, and designs and tracks high-impact strategic and transformation programs. It enhances executive decision-making and serves as a critical connector across teams—providing clarity, structure, and momentum to accelerate performance and change. The ideal candidate is a strategic thinker, exceptional communicator, and proven transformation leader who turns complex challenges into actionable roadmaps.
Key Measures of Performance
The performance of this role holder will be assessed based on the achievements made on:
• Strategy & Transformation Delivery
• Strategic Planning, Architecture & Governance
• Organizational Alignment & Execution
• Executive Decision Support & Strategic Products
• President’s Office & Stakeholder Confidence
Major Duties and Responsibilities
Purpose – Advance
• Direct the operations of the President’s Office and maintain a close interface with the Executive Committee to proactively surface and address key institutional issues.
• Lead the corporate strategy and business planning cycles, ensuring clear institutional priorities, explicit trade-offs, and aligned unit business plans with defined targets and resource implications.
• Steward AGRA’s strategic architecture and portfolio by maintaining a coherent corporate, regional, and country strategy framework that guides focus-country and thematic choices and aligns with the institution’s mission.
• Lead the annual and multi-year strategic planning processes, ensuring goals, KPIs, and organizational priorities are clearly defined, cascaded, and integrated into transformation and business plans.
• Shape high-level strategic recommendations for the President and Board by synthesizing internal insights, evaluations, and external intelligence into robust options and scenarios for major organizational decisions.
• Champion organizational learning in strategy by embedding reflection, evidence, and lessons from implementation and evaluations into strategic reviews, portfolio adjustments, and future designs.
• Own key strategic governance forums by designing and running core strategy, portfolio, and transformation review mechanisms that clarify decision rights, ensure follow-through, and align with broader governance structures.
• Establish and lead the Transformation Office to ensure disciplined execution of strategic initiatives, overseeing the design, rollout, and monitoring of transformation programs (e.g., digital, operating model, culture, cost optimization, sustainability).
• Serve as project lead or Executive Sponsor on cross-institutional initiatives and taskforces prioritized by the President, ensuring effective cross-functional coordination and delivery.
• Lead organizational change initiatives, including major transformation projects, restructures, culture initiatives, and innovation efforts that advance AGRA’s strategic direction.
• Develop data analysis and executive-level reports and briefs (including financial, risk, programmatic, and country insights) for decision-making by the President, Board, and Executive Committee, managing highly privileged and confidential information.
• Drive the formulation, communication, and rigorous implementation of the President’s priorities within the organization and with external partners, ensuring alignment and clarity of expectations.
• Serve as a thought partner to the President and executive team on strategic choices, organizational challenges, and long-term direction, including the use and commissioning of independent and program evaluations to inform strategy.
• Work with the President to manage critical grantee, partner, and Board relationships, and represent AGRA at selected meetings, events, and forums to build strategic partnerships and advance institutional priorities.
Engagement – Position
• Serve as the President’s representative and proxy on internal committees, leadership forums, and select external engagements, advancing institutional priorities and positions.
• Manage the flow of internal and external communication from the President’s Office, ensuring consistent, timely, and responsive messaging and supporting the President in internal communication and change management.
• Drive the effectiveness of Executive Committee, Management Team, and all-staff meetings by setting agendas, coordinating preparation, summarizing discussions, and tracking follow-up actions.
• Monitor and coordinate cross-cutting assignments and projects involving multiple senior executives and teams, ensuring alignment, clear ownership, and effective use of organizational resources.
• Maintain a high-level awareness of organizational activities, removing barriers to inter- and intra-departmental collaboration, building connections across workstreams, and fostering a collegial culture aligned with AGRA’s values.
• Work with the Board Secretary to ensure that Board products are of high quality, and provide strategic support and counsel to the President across meetings, trips, strategy and grant reviews, working groups, and key correspondence.
Delivery – Corporate Planning
• Provide strategic direction to AGRA’s communications team on high level press releases, statements, and briefings, ensuring the President is well prepared for key donor and external engagements.
• Oversee AGRA’s adaptive strategy processes, including the continuous updating of corporate and country strategies and business plans, and the review and finalization of annual institutional goals with the Executive Committee and Management Team.
• Lead the design and quality assurance of executive-level presentations and materials for Board meetings, key donor discussions, and enterprise-wide conversations, translating strategic objectives into clear, actionable narratives.
• Support the development and use of models, tools, analytical frameworks, and governance structures (including KPIs, dashboards, and reporting mechanisms) that enable rigorous strategy implementation and tracking of transformation progress.
• Monitor progress on strategic and transformation initiatives, conducting analysis, research, and scenario planning to identify risks, gaps, and opportunities, and recommending actions to keep the organization on track while ensuring accountability across teams.
Profile
Education
MBA or advanced degree in business, public policy, organizational leadership, or related field.
Certification
Any additional professional qualification in that enhances proficiency in analytical research, communication, leadership, and strategic planning or execution.
Relevant Experience
• 12+ years of progressive experience in strategy, operations, management consulting, or executive leadership roles.
• At least 7 years of experience in a senior leadership role.
• Proven success in managing strategic planning and complex cross-functional initiatives.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and structured thinking skills.
• Exceptional communication skills—written, verbal, and interpersonal.
• Demonstrated ability to influence without authority and manage sensitive information with discretion.
• Experience working with senior leaders, boards, and executive teams in fast-paced environments.
• Background in Agrifood systems transformation.
• Experience leading organizational effectiveness, OKR/goal-setting, or change management processes.
Terms of Appointment
2-year contract renewable based on funding availability.
Role Location
Based in Nairobi, Kenya with frequent travel at international level, approximately 25% per month/year.
How to Apply
To apply for this position, please ensure you click Apply and complete the Application Form by 03 August 2026 (23:59 hrs, GMT +3). It is essential that you submit your CV in English, specifically in Microsoft Word format (.doc/.docx), not exceeding 10MB.
Applications in other languages or formats will not be considered.
Rest assured, all information will be handled with the utmost confidentiality.
About AGRA
AGRA is an African-led institution that works to transform agri-food systems across the continent. For twenty years, AGRA has been working in partnership with people across the continent to build a more prosperous future for smallholders. Grounded in country priorities, AGRA partners with governments, the private sector, research institutions and development actors to identify and unlock systemic constraints that limit smallholder farmer productivity, market access and resilience. Through catalytic investment, technical insight and convening power, AGRA supports inclusive, sustainable transformation that strengthens food security and long-term economic growth.
Our AGRA@20 activities this year are not just a celebration of what has been achieved together. This is our moment to call for consolidation and acceleration. Our moment to commit to connecting the dots that now exist to ensure that in the next 20 years, Africa’s agri-food systems are investable, scalable and full of opportunity for the people that matter most.
Role Summary
The Chief of Staff & Strategy is a senior strategic partner to the AGRA President and executive team, responsible for driving enterprise-wide transformation, organizational alignment, and strategic execution. This role acts as a force multiplier for leadership—supporting the President, overseeing the Office of the President and the Strategy, ensuring priorities are executed effectively, cross-functional initiatives advance seamlessly, and the organization stays focused on its long-term mission.
Leading the Transformation Office, this role orchestrates strategic planning, stewards AGRA’s strategic architecture, and designs and tracks high-impact strategic and transformation programs. It enhances executive decision-making and serves as a critical connector across teams—providing clarity, structure, and momentum to accelerate performance and change. The ideal candidate is a strategic thinker, exceptional communicator, and proven transformation leader who turns complex challenges into actionable roadmaps.
Key Measures of Performance
The performance of this role holder will be assessed based on the achievements made on:
• Strategy & Transformation Delivery
• Strategic Planning, Architecture & Governance
• Organizational Alignment & Execution
• Executive Decision Support & Strategic Products
• President’s Office & Stakeholder Confidence
Major Duties and Responsibilities
Purpose – Advance
• Direct the operations of the President’s Office and maintain a close interface with the Executive Committee to proactively surface and address key institutional issues.
• Lead the corporate strategy and business planning cycles, ensuring clear institutional priorities, explicit trade-offs, and aligned unit business plans with defined targets and resource implications.
• Steward AGRA’s strategic architecture and portfolio by maintaining a coherent corporate, regional, and country strategy framework that guides focus-country and thematic choices and aligns with the institution’s mission.
• Lead the annual and multi-year strategic planning processes, ensuring goals, KPIs, and organizational priorities are clearly defined, cascaded, and integrated into transformation and business plans.
• Shape high-level strategic recommendations for the President and Board by synthesizing internal insights, evaluations, and external intelligence into robust options and scenarios for major organizational decisions.
• Champion organizational learning in strategy by embedding reflection, evidence, and lessons from implementation and evaluations into strategic reviews, portfolio adjustments, and future designs.
• Own key strategic governance forums by designing and running core strategy, portfolio, and transformation review mechanisms that clarify decision rights, ensure follow-through, and align with broader governance structures.
• Establish and lead the Transformation Office to ensure disciplined execution of strategic initiatives, overseeing the design, rollout, and monitoring of transformation programs (e.g., digital, operating model, culture, cost optimization, sustainability).
• Serve as project lead or Executive Sponsor on cross-institutional initiatives and taskforces prioritized by the President, ensuring effective cross-functional coordination and delivery.
• Lead organizational change initiatives, including major transformation projects, restructures, culture initiatives, and innovation efforts that advance AGRA’s strategic direction.
• Develop data analysis and executive-level reports and briefs (including financial, risk, programmatic, and country insights) for decision-making by the President, Board, and Executive Committee, managing highly privileged and confidential information.
• Drive the formulation, communication, and rigorous implementation of the President’s priorities within the organization and with external partners, ensuring alignment and clarity of expectations.
• Serve as a thought partner to the President and executive team on strategic choices, organizational challenges, and long-term direction, including the use and commissioning of independent and program evaluations to inform strategy.
• Work with the President to manage critical grantee, partner, and Board relationships, and represent AGRA at selected meetings, events, and forums to build strategic partnerships and advance institutional priorities.
Engagement – Position
• Serve as the President’s representative and proxy on internal committees, leadership forums, and select external engagements, advancing institutional priorities and positions.
• Manage the flow of internal and external communication from the President’s Office, ensuring consistent, timely, and responsive messaging and supporting the President in internal communication and change management.
• Drive the effectiveness of Executive Committee, Management Team, and all-staff meetings by setting agendas, coordinating preparation, summarizing discussions, and tracking follow-up actions.
• Monitor and coordinate cross-cutting assignments and projects involving multiple senior executives and teams, ensuring alignment, clear ownership, and effective use of organizational resources.
• Maintain a high-level awareness of organizational activities, removing barriers to inter- and intra-departmental collaboration, building connections across workstreams, and fostering a collegial culture aligned with AGRA’s values.
• Work with the Board Secretary to ensure that Board products are of high quality, and provide strategic support and counsel to the President across meetings, trips, strategy and grant reviews, working groups, and key correspondence.
Delivery – Corporate Planning
• Provide strategic direction to AGRA’s communications team on high level press releases, statements, and briefings, ensuring the President is well prepared for key donor and external engagements.
• Oversee AGRA’s adaptive strategy processes, including the continuous updating of corporate and country strategies and business plans, and the review and finalization of annual institutional goals with the Executive Committee and Management Team.
• Lead the design and quality assurance of executive-level presentations and materials for Board meetings, key donor discussions, and enterprise-wide conversations, translating strategic objectives into clear, actionable narratives.
• Support the development and use of models, tools, analytical frameworks, and governance structures (including KPIs, dashboards, and reporting mechanisms) that enable rigorous strategy implementation and tracking of transformation progress.
• Monitor progress on strategic and transformation initiatives, conducting analysis, research, and scenario planning to identify risks, gaps, and opportunities, and recommending actions to keep the organization on track while ensuring accountability across teams.
Profile
Education
MBA or advanced degree in business, public policy, organizational leadership, or related field.
Certification
Any additional professional qualification in that enhances proficiency in analytical research, communication, leadership, and strategic planning or execution.
Relevant Experience
• 12+ years of progressive experience in strategy, operations, management consulting, or executive leadership roles.
• At least 7 years of experience in a senior leadership role.
• Proven success in managing strategic planning and complex cross-functional initiatives.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and structured thinking skills.
• Exceptional communication skills—written, verbal, and interpersonal.
• Demonstrated ability to influence without authority and manage sensitive information with discretion.
• Experience working with senior leaders, boards, and executive teams in fast-paced environments.
• Background in Agrifood systems transformation.
• Experience leading organizational effectiveness, OKR/goal-setting, or change management processes.
Terms of Appointment
2-year contract renewable based on funding availability.
Role Location
Based in Nairobi, Kenya with frequent travel at international level, approximately 25% per month/year.
How to Apply
To apply for this position, please ensure you click Apply and complete the Application Form by 03 August 2026 (23:59 hrs, GMT +3). It is essential that you submit your CV in English, specifically in Microsoft Word format (.doc/.docx), not exceeding 10MB.
Applications in other languages or formats will not be considered.
Rest assured, all information will be handled with the utmost confidentiality.
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