Head of Communications

Who We Are! 

🌍 Africa has the world’s youngest and fastest-growing population. By 2035, the continent is poised to contribute more young people to the global workforce each year than the rest of the world combined. 

At Educate! we're obsessed with impact. We leverage iterative learning to build highly scalable youth employment solutions aimed at unlocking the potential of the world’s youngest continent. 

Educate! prepares youth in Africa to learn, earn and thrive in today’s economy by: 

1. Introducing an employment-focused school subject into secondary and 
2. Delivering livelihood boot camps for out-of-school youth, with a focus on marginalized rural girls and young women.

To date, more than 500,000 youth have been meaningfully impacted across Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, and Tanzania, and along the way, Educate! has become the largest youth employment and skills provider in East Africa.

Educate! is a team of over 300 largely African staff and 300 volunteer youth mentors. We prioritize building an engaging, fulfilling and growth oriented work environment. 50% of our top 30 leaders have been with us for over 5 years, 10+ alumni have started their own organizations, and 6 current or former team members were Acumen Fund East Africa fellows. 

We have been backed by top foundations such as Imaginable Futures, Livelihood Impact Fund,  Jack Dorsey’s #startsmall, CIFF and Echidna Giving. Educate! won a 2018 Klaus J. Jacobs Prize and a 2015 WISE Award, and has been highlighted by the World Bank’s S4YE's Impact Portfolio, an Al Jazeera documentary, BBC, The Brookings Institution as one of 14 case studies on scaling education, and the Gates Foundation as a Goalkeepers Accelerator. In 2022, we received a catalytic investment from philanthropist Mackenzie Scott to scale our systems change work.

Educate!'s long-term vision is to design solutions that measurably impact millions of youth across Africa each year.

Good to note: To Our Awesome Applicants! 🚀💫

We know that incredible candidates sometimes hesitate to apply if they don’t meet every requirement. If this role excites you, we encourage you to apply! 

We’re looking for passionate individuals who believe in our mission and can bring unique perspectives to our team—not just those who check every box. We value diversity and strongly encourage women and individuals from all backgrounds to apply.

Position Overview 

We are looking for a dynamic communications leader who is equal parts strategist, operator, and editor-in-chief — someone who can advance a high-performing communications function while keeping the team's energy focused on the work that drives the greatest revenue and impact across channels.

You will lead communications strategy, team development and operational systems, ensuring everything produced aligns with the funders, networks, and media that matter most. You’ll immerse yourself in Educate!’s model and evidence base, translating complexity into narratives that are credible, compelling, and fundable.

This role will report directly to Educate!’s Global Director of Development. While fundraising is at the heart, you'll also hold ownership of brand, messaging, and internal communications — and play a role in defining how we streamline and scope important work over time.

You’ll act as an “editor-and-chief” - working with the team to surface youth stories, data highlights, and insights worth telling; building and owning relationships with media and thought leadership networks; and creating content aligned with how evidence-driven funders think. 

You are a clear, incisive communicator with a track record of end-to-end ownership across media channels, content, and thought leadership. You hold the editorial bar, coach the team to meet it, and build the infrastructure to enable it; supporting a lean team punch above its weight. 

This role offers the chance to shape not only Educate!'s voice, but the wider conversation itself — ensuring that the experiences of African youth, and the evidence behind what drives livelihoods outcomes, influence the decisions of funders, policymakers, and sector leaders worldwide.

What You’ll Do🌟 

Lead and develop the communications function

• Manage and develop the full communications function and serve as an exceptional manager to a team of 3-4 people, setting priorities, coaching team members and maintaining a high editorial standard. 
• Build and manage external agency and freelancer relationships with clear briefs and performance expectations.
• Build the systems, workflows, and operational rhythms that keep the function running — building infrastructure that lets a lean team produce consistently excellent work.
• Define the communications function’s role and priorities within a fast-growing organisation. 

Drive the communications strategy - and drive revenue

• Develop and lead an integrated communications strategy aligned to Educate!’s fundraising priorities across four priority revenue segments. 
• Prioritise high-leverage communications activities that strengthen funder engagement and organisational positioning.
• Partner with the CEO and Global Director of Development to identify the two or three highest-leverage positioning plays for the next 12–18 months — and drive their execution.
• Establish and track metrics tied to revenue and influence outcomes.

Lead editorial, media and storytelling 

• Set and manage a dynamic team against a high editorial bar: every piece should teach a sophisticated reader something, or make them think. 
• Develop a content roadmap that spans blog, press, social, email, web, donor materials, and print - with clear strategy around personalisation and segmentation for different funder audiences.
• Build and manage relationships with journalists and media outlets to secure top-tier coverage that reaches priority funder audiences.
• Lead communications campaigns around key moments: new research launches, major funding announcements, or strategic positioning moves.
• Partner with the CEO and senior leaders on external visibility strategy, including media appearances, speaking engagements, and strategic thought leadership.
• Translate evidence, research, and youth experiences into compelling narratives and funder-facing communications.
• Lead the team in building scalable content generation and distribution systems, including AI-enabled and digital approaches.
• Oversee brand voice, messaging consistency, and communications risk management.

Who You Are 🦸‍♀️🦸‍♂️

We are looking for someone who combines strategic judgement with exceptional storytelling instincts -  and who is motivated by communications that drive tangible organisational growth.

You may come from journalism, communications, content strategy, or fundraising communications within an ambitious NGO, mission-driven media organisation, or high-performing consultancy. Whatever your background, you have experience owning communications end-to-end, strong editorial judgement, and a high bar for quality.

• 5+ years of experience in communications, content strategy, journalism and/or media, or a closely related field, including experience leading high performing teams.
• Exceptional writing and editorial judgement across formats, with the ability to translate complex ideas, research, and data into compelling communications.
• Demonstrated ability to translate research, data, or complex ideas into accessible, credible communications for influential non-technical audiences.
• Experience building relationships with journalists, external partners, and senior stakeholders.
• Experience leading communications initiatives end-to-end, including audience strategy, messaging, content development, channel selection, and execution.
• Strong strategic judgement and prioritisation skills, with experience operating effectively in lean, fast-paced environments.
• Commitment to international development and to advancing approaches grounded in evidence, learning, and measurable impact.
• Familiarity with  evidence-driven philanthropy and social impact ecosystems.
• Experience building or scaling a communications function in growing organisations.
• Experience working closely with a fundraising or revenue team — understanding what audiences need and translating that into communications that target action
• Experience driving  executive visibility, thought leadership, or strategic external engagement.
• Background in international development, education, livelihoods, or adjacent sectors
• Fits our Five Culture Tenets (see What is Educate! About? below); Learn more by looking at Educate!’s culture deck here 

What We Offer 

• A vibrant, mission-driven environment with a supportive and fun team. 
• Competitive salary based on experience.
• Learning & growth opportunities  

Application Process: Rolling basis, interviews happening soon!

Terms 

• This is a full-time position. A minimum two-year commitment is requested to best meet potential professional growth at Educate! and team needs.
• This role is preferably based in East Africa but we are open to remote work with significant travel. We are a globally distributed team and support flexible, high-trust working arrangements across time zones.

Our Culture & Tenets(Values) 🌱

We’re ambitious. Are you? Educate! is growing fast, so new opportunities are opening up and expanding all the time. We’re inspired by people with drive, and we love to help them reach their full potential. We expect everyone at Educate! to contribute above and beyond their job description, grow their skills, and advance their careers, and we are committed to supporting our staff members on that journey of their careers, and we are committed to supporting our staff members on that journey. 

1. We put Youth First, Impact-Obsessed - We are purpose-driven, focused on impact, and prioritize what truly matters. We listen to youth, design our efforts around their needs, and ensure every dollar creates transformative experiences they value.
2. We Exceed Expectations - We take pride in going above and beyond to achieve the best results—proactively identifying problems and seeking solutions without waiting or stopping at what's requested.
3. We Are Always Learning - We are committed to seeking and applying new knowledge and ideas. We stay open-minded and continuously try new things, experiment, grow, and improve. We invest in learning for ourselves and our teams.
4. We are One Team, Many Views - We value all individuals, believe diverse ideas and open dialogue drive excellence, foster a supportive and respectful environment where everyone can freely express themselves. We work as one team and prioritize the organization's mission over personal or team interests.
5. We have the Startup Mindset - We innovate relentlessly to grow our impact, we never think “we have arrived” or “we’re done.”We constantly challenge the status quo, embrace change, and move quickly toward our vision. Unafraid of failure, we question anything that hinders progress.

Every person at Educate! — from interns to the executive director — is evaluated by how they live up to these five cultural tenets. They are at the core of how we achieve our mission and why we work as well as we do.  Educate is committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all who interact in our community. In creating this environment, we encourage people from a variety of cultures, backgrounds and life experiences to join our diverse team. 

We’re committed to ensuring all candidates are screened for child and youth safety. As part of the process, you’ll need to provide a Certificate of Good Conduct. Educate! reserves the right to withdraw employment offers if any risks to youth are identified.