Our Client is a 45,520-acre wildlife conservancy located in Laikipia that integrates conservation, regenerative land management, livestock production, and tourism in order to have a meaningful and positive impact in its wider community. By collaborating with neighboring private and community conservancies, and broader stakeholders in Laikipia, we seek to create and sustain a biodiverse and connected conservation landscape that benefits both people and nature

The Conservancy is owned by a Kenyan Charitable Trust governed by a Board of Trustees that is responsible for the vision and goals of the conservancy, and oversees management activities. The Board is composed of industry leaders who bring diverse strategic, financial, and management skillsets. It is currently home to a few private house sites and also provides some sections of the Conservancy as training grounds for BATUK over several months in the year. The Conservancy has ongoing plans to develop and implement strategic tourism options to consciously integrate and complement the various activities and programs that will drive the Conservancy’s vision and mission.

The Conservancy is in the process of concluding the development of its 2025 – 2029 strategic plan and seeks to recruit top leaders driven by the right ethic. These leaders will have an incisive and broad understanding of modern day conservancy management. These leaders will have strong business and functional acumen, with the ability to forge forward the strategic plan to deliver a shared, successful and sustainable future for the Conservancy, its community and other stakeholders. To this end, we seek to recruit for the Conservancy a Chief Operations Officer aligned to its security intentions and vision, and as guided by the new strategic plan.

JOB SUMMARY

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The Chief Operations Officer (COO) is a critical member of the senior leadership team at the Conservancy. S/he will be responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations and implementing the strategic plans set by the CEO and the Board of Trustees. The COO’s role encompasses a wide range of responsibilities, including security management, fleet and logistics management, workshop management, and infrastructure development and maintenance. S/he will lead and oversee development of and provide leadership in the implementation of strategies to support security, logistics, maintenance and infrastructure development at the Conservancy.

The COO will lead a team of heads of departments(HODs) ensuring accountability, performance and delivery, while supporting financial prudence and operational efficiency in delivery of the strategic objectives. S/he will be a visionary thought leader with strong business acumen as well as entrepreneurial skills, and a good understanding of conservation management.

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

Operations Strategy & Goals

• Be part of the leadership team that reviews, develops and implements Conservancy strategies and plans
• Define and establish clear operational strategies and goals at the department level that align with the Conservancy’s mission and strategic plan
• Ensure cascade to all teams and understanding of all strategies developed by all team members within the function
• Drive development of departmental objectives and individual objectives aligned to the strategic objectives of the operations function
• Focus on maintaining infrastructure, ensuring safety for both wildlife and visitors, and supporting conservation efforts
• Oversee development of comprehensive operational plans across all areas of oversight

Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

• Champion the creation, implementation and enforcement of standard operating procedures (SOPs)
• Work with department heads to develop SOPs that cover all aspects of maintenance, infrastructure development, fleet and logistics as well security

Resource Allocation and Budget Management

• Lead the operations budget management process to ensure that sufficient funds are allocated to fulfill departmental activities
• Together with department heads, evaluate costs associated with both operational and staffing needs while seeking opportunities for cost savings through partnerships or grants.

Team Leadership and Capacity Building

• Focus on recruiting developing rewarding and retaining qualified team leaders and hold the team leads accountable for investing in skilled team members.
• Oversee and champion ongoing training and development opportunities to refresh and build capacity within the teams led
• Drive full understanding of scope of responsibilities across each department by team members, and hold the heads of departments accountable for capacity building their teams on conservancy work and activities.
• Develop succession plans to drive continuity across each department for both critical roles and for all leadership roles.

Collaboration with Other Departments

• Monitor cross functional collaboration across departments to enhance effectiveness
• Make available opportunities time and resources to facilitate communication between maintenance teams and other departments such as security, community relations, and conservation programs to ensure that all aspects of the Conservancy’s mission are integrated into daily operations.

Performance Management

• Together with the Human Resource department, establishing performance metrics to assess the effectiveness of the operations teams and function continuously
• Regularly reviewing these metrics to identify areas for improvement and ensures accountability among team members

 Stakeholders Engagement

• Through the departmental heads, identify and plan initiatives and strategies to engage with stakeholders – including local communities, government agencies, law enforcers, and other relevant conservation partners
• Represent the Conservancy at meetings with these groups to advocate for conservation security, financial and other support, while fostering relationships that can lead to collaborative projects.

Compliance

• Lead development of a risk register to monitor risks and put in place through the departmental heads mitigation measures that drive sustainability of the conservancy
• Monitor and champion compliance with legal, regulatory environmental regulations and standards
• Hold departmental heads accountable to ensuring that all security, fleet. Logistics, maintenance, workshop and Conservancy infrastructure development activities adhere to relevant laws governing land use and wildlife protection to avoid legal issues that could arise from non-compliance.

Reporting

• Provide regular consolidated reports to the CEO and to all relevant parties periodically and as required – weekly, monthly, quarterly, annually.
• Conduct frequent environmental research and insights through the relevant teams within the Conservancy to understand the dynamism and changes occurring in the operating environment and the impact these changes would have on your functional areas and act accordingly
• Provide relevant external statutory report as and when required to all relevant bodies

Deputize the CEO

• Support the CEO as deputy as and when called upon
• Represent the CEO in selected functions
• Sit in organization bodies and Associations as will be determined by the CEO and the Board.

Perform any other duties as and when called upon to by the CEO and the Board.

EDUCATION SKILS KNOWLEDGE & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

• A Bachelor’s Degree in Social Sciences, Biology, Natural Resources, Environment, Ecology or any other related discipline from a recognized institution of higher learning
• Relevant post-graduate education preferably in a business administration related course
• Professional certification in wildlife and or conservancy management
• At least fifteen (15) years’ experience in strategic conservation planning and programme design, M&E, audits and evaluations
• At least 10 years’ professional experience participating in environment, development, conservation or sustainability work at a strategic level
• Experience in non-profit or environment focused organizations
• Have solid networks within the conservation space as well as a proven track record of managing both internal and external stakeholders including handling local community engagements
• Experience securing funding for projects and conservation activities with a strong commercial acumen
• Success working with a Board of Directors with the ability to cultivate existing board member relationships
• High level strategic thinking and planning. Ability to envision and convey the organization’s strategic future to the staff, board, volunteers, donors, governments and other partners. Ability to effectively communicate the organization’s mission to donors, volunteers and the overall community
• Track record of effectively leading and regionally and/or nationally scaling a performance- and outcomes-based organization and staff
• Ability to point to specific examples of having developed and operationalized strategies that have taken an organization to the next stage of growth
• Unwavering commitment to quality programmes and data-driven programme evaluation
• Excellence in organization management with the ability to coach staff, manage, and develop high-performance teams, set and achieve strategic objectives, and manage a budget
• Strong public relations, and fundraising experience with the ability to engage a wide range of stakeholders and cultures with excellent donor relations skills and understanding of the funding community
• Solid organizational abilities, including planning, delegating, program development and task facilitation
• Strong financial management skills, including budget preparation, analysis, decision making and reporting
• Strong strategy formulation and implementation skills. Strong ability to drive innovation, optimize technology and contribute to sustainability
• Sector (conservation) guru and opinion leader with very high accountability and policymaking responsibility
• Responds flexibly to changing situations by managing the organization and people aspects of change to drive performance and the ability to drive strong Operational Excellence.