Position: Field Associate Manager – Zambia

Engagement: 1 year with possibility of extension

Start Date: As soon as possible

About Pula:

At Pula, we are radically restructuring agricultural insurance, using technology to insure the previously unbanked, uninsured, untapped market of 1.5 billion smallholders worldwide. Insurance is complex, agriculture is hard, dealing with small holder farmers is impossible. We do all three.

We work in over 17 countries across Africa and Asia, and by 2021, we have facilitated crop insurance cover to over 5.3 million farmers across Kenya, India, Rwanda, Uganda, Nigeria, Mali, Senegal, Zambia, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Tanzania, and Malawi. Since raising our Series A our operations have expanded globally including now Asia and Latin America.

Pula is a fast-paced space, constantly adapting to new opportunities and challenges and we are made up of a high-performance, multi-cultural team. We expect our team to value performance, results and professionalism.

At Pula, we:

• Obsessed with results: We are responsible for our future and therefore we get things done!
• Connect the Dots: We continuously identify different customer needs & business problems and build solutions that deliver value.
• Have a Can do Attitude! We dare to do things differently to make things work.
• We have each others’ back: We look out for each other & we share high quality, timely feedback that makes us better.

Who you are:

• You understand that we are helping to protect the food security of nations.
• You have an intuitive understanding of rural life drawn from personal or professional experience
• You want to make a difference.
• You have a pro-active, problem-solver’s mindset
• You are not afraid to roll up your sleeves to get things done.
• You are an effective communicator

What you will be doing:

We go to the remotest of areas to measure yields as farmers harvest. From North Nigeria, South Zambia, Northern Kenya; name it. We are there. We do not believe in hiding behind a desk to come up with fuzzy claim reports from blackboxes that do not reflect the outcome on the ground. We want our payouts to reflect the farmers’ outcomes. We deeply care about that.

The Field Associate Manager at Pula has an essential role of leading the teams that interact with farmers and partners on the ground. You will be responsible for collecting the most complete and accurate data possible on farmers and their harvests which will stand up to the most intense scrutiny. This entails recruiting and training effective teams and contractors as well as engaging clients, government officials, and other stakeholders with clear, timely communication to ensure smooth operations. All of this must be executed with the utmost efficiency to minimize the cost of insuring smallholder farmers, thus ensuring the greatest number of farmers can be covered.

1. Client-Specific Deliverables

• Establish and maintain interpersonal relationships with key partners and stakeholders across the private and public sector to ensure smooth running of project operations.
• Oversee national wide sensitization campaigns while engaging with internal and external stakeholders including government, insurance companies and other public and private sector partners.
• Coordinate with the commercial and actuarial teams to provide monthly progress reports for all field operations activities
• Coordinate and deliver high level trainings and workshops to Pula’s partners and clients across different industries
• Provide strategic guidance to the field operations team

2. Execution of data collection:

• Recruit enumerators and staff who meet or exceed assessment criteria and show year-on-year improvement
• Monitor data collection closely and action any flags
• Ensure that any data collection issues, unusual events or significant farm losses are meticulously, indisputably documented.
• Ensure timely execution of data collection such that all harvests are captured and data collection is complete within given timeframes.
• Ensure meticulous completion – leave no farm behind.

3. Oversee the systems and processes that drive our Customer Support systems while leading the call center operations

• Validate farmer lists
• Execute surveys to monitor crop progress, including forecasted harvest times and crop development report surveys
• Ensure field work is closely followed by quality assurance and verification to spot deficiencies in real time for immediate correction.

4. Evaluate efficiency of service delivery and operations using spending data, while actioning strategic initiatives to keep costs low for field operations and call center teams

• Detailed assessment of real costs by location and responsibility
• Apply ingenuity to find savings wherever possible
• Request disbursements of field expenses in a timely manner with sufficient advance to ensure no delays are incurred.
• Ensure all expenses are reconciled within policy deadlines.
• Monitor budget vs spend closely

5. Strategic Development and learning

• Organize post-project team workshops to evaluate key learnings and improvements in the design, tools, and execution of the project
• Translate learnings into action with updated work plan templates, tools etc, coordinating with global colleagues to ensure these are adopted widely.
• Coordinating with the innovations and expansion teammates on launching new initiatives and pilots

6. Other operational work

• Design data collection tools and any other operational related tools where necessary
• Write content for any stakeholders as asked (internal, clients, etc)
• Other assignments as tasked

The Field Associate Manager will report to the Director of Field Operations, while also working closely with other departments to coordinate execution throughout the client journey.

The right applicant would have the following skillset:

• 5 years + experience working in agriculture/ social enterprises. Experience leading field operations or Monitoring and Evaluation department is an added advantage
• Experience working at national level in a fast moving environment/ start up
• Deep commitment to the “art of management” and nuances of modern management practice
• Ability to work independently – highly self-motivated
• Creative problem-solving skills
• Highly collaborative, with an outgoing personality and clear and consistent communication
• Detail-oriented, meticulous, and attentive to accuracy
• Ability to grasp complex analytical concepts quickly and thoroughly
• Prioritize and manage multiple projects simultaneously, ensuring timely delivery

To learn more about Pula:

• TED Talk: Crop Insurance, an Idea Worth Seeding
• https://www.ted.com/talks/rose_goslinga_crop_insurance_an_idea_worth_seeding?langu age=en
• New York Times: He Grew up on a Farm. Now, He Helps Protect Them
• https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/03/business/microinsurance-africa-thomas-njeru.html
• The Economist: The Poor, Who Most Need Insurance, Are Least Likely to Have It
• https://www.economist.com/international/2019/08/22/the-poor-who-most-need-insurance- are-least-likely-to-have-it

PULA is an equal opportunities employer, we actively encourage applications from all sections of the community. Women and people with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply.

NOTE: Jobseekers are strongly advised to not indulge in any monetary engagement with any source in the name of guaranteed interviews or placements with employees.