Chief Academics and Innovation Officer

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in Ghana, +3 more countries.

📋 Description

• Take ownership of Rising's partnerships and develop a cohesive portfolio of high-quality offerings.

• Establish standards and guidelines for contextual adaptation.

• Lead evidence-driven product research and development with a structured and transparent decision-making framework.

• Collaborate closely with implementation teams to prioritize impact, scalability, and affordability.

• Determine which initiatives are ready for scaling, which remain experimental, and which should be discontinued.

• Assess and incorporate AI and emerging third-party solutions that enhance quality, affordability, and human capability.

• Provide teachers, school leaders, and system leaders with digitally enabled tools.

• Supervise the creation and implementation of a cost-effective impact measurement framework.

• Ensure that evidence guides decisions made by senior leaders, country teams, and program managers.

• Develop capabilities to co-design and test third-party solutions alongside governments.

• Foster research collaborations centered on government-led reforms.

• Recruit, mentor, and lead an integrated team across academics, digital technology and innovation, data, and impact.

• Create interconnected, collaborative, and complementary systems and workflows.

• Enhance strategic decision-making through evidence-based insights.

• Identify new opportunities and represent Rising as a thought leader in external engagements.

• Report directly to the CEO of Rising.

⛳️ Requirements

• Over 10 years of experience in education, edtech, or product leadership, including extensive senior leadership roles.

• Proven history of designing, developing, and scaling products or programs that have demonstrably improved outcomes, preferably in Africa.

• Experience in leading multi-disciplinary teams.

• Direct involvement with or within government systems.

• Experience collaborating with global funders, ideally in an African context.

• Strong foundation in learning science.

• Capability to make decisions based on research and data.

• Ability to evaluate AI and digital tools and assess their potential value.

• Demonstrated success in C-suite or senior leadership positions in Africa.

• Experience leading large, multi-disciplinary teams that encompass academics, product development, and data analysis.

• Experience in hiring, terminating, and developing personnel.

• Understanding of school system changes and the ability to design mechanisms that promote such changes.

• Experience in delivering large-scale, complex, multi-year projects and programs on schedule and within budget.

• Proficiency in technology and experience utilizing iterative design and testing methodologies.

• Familiarity with AI and technological developments, digital products, data systems, and AI applications.

• Awareness of global literature and its limitations.

• Ability to make evidence-based decisions regarding scaling, integration, and discontinuation of projects.

• Proficient in communicating decisions clearly to teams and partners.

• Ability to engage credibly with ministers, funders, and researchers.

• Responsible for budgeting within an organization or large business unit.

• An advanced degree in education, economics, product design, learning sciences, or a related field is preferred (optional).

🏝️ Benefits

• Competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package.

• Standardized global pay scale.

• Ongoing development and growth opportunities.

• Continuous dialogue with managers, teams, and the organization to support career advancement.

• Opportunity to make a meaningful contribution to proven student learning improvements.

• An inclusive work environment free from discrimination and harassment.

• Child safeguarding culture and protective measures.

• Reference checks and a safeguarding-focused interview process.