Stanford University Business Coach - South Asia, West Africa, or East Africa (Stipend, Insurance, & Travel Covered)

Become a Volunteer Business Coach in East or West Africa and work with CEOs/founders of high-potential businesses: serve as their sounding board, mentor, consultant, role model, cheerleader, implementor, and/or strategist on their growth journey and mission to change lives.

The Details

Stanford Seed volunteer business coaches spend 12 months in either South Asia, East Africa, or West Africa, immersing themselves in the local business ecosystem and working side by side with the CEOs/founders of high-potential businesses who have completed the Stanford Seed Transformation Program and are on a path to rapid growth.

Working in close partnership with these dynamic leaders, Seed coaches work side by side with entrepreneurs to help them implement their companies’ transformation plans: detailed action plans for transforming companies into industry leaders and job creators. All aspects of management — leadership, product design, finance, marketing, supply chain, and more — factor into these plans.

Why Volunteer with Stanford Seed?

The Stanford Institute for Innovation in Developing Economies, Stanford Seed, was founded in 2011 to bridge a critical gap in global efforts to address poverty around the world. Our unique approach focuses on private sector job creation by transforming local and regional businesses with exceptional growth and impact potential. Jobs and job creation are of critical importance to poverty reduction--jobs promote economic mobility as well as social cohesion and provide solid foundations for improving social and political stability.

Eligibility

Minimum qualifications include:

• At least 15 years of professional business experience, including several years of hands-on management in senior-level positions
• Demonstrated success in managing companies or significant operational divisions that had aggressive goals
• A successful track record of conceiving and executing strategies to grow businesses rapidly or to create new products and services that underlie new businesses
• A high level of adaptability, team orientation, collaborative focus, and a demonstration of having thrived in new contexts
• Passion for and commitment to Seed’s mission
• Fluency in English: for Seed West Africa, conversational proficiency in French is desired but not required
• Applicants do not have to be affiliated with Stanford or have an MBA in order to apply. Experience working or living in an emerging market is highly valued, but not required.

Duration

Helping companies achieve transformation takes hard work and a sustained commitment. Coach responsibilities include living in the region and working intensely with eight to ten companies during the year-long service. Travel is also an integral part of the Seed coach position. Expect to spend 25% to 50% of your time visiting company sites and/or offices.

Term

January 2025- December 2025

Application Deadline

April 1st, 2024

Locations

Based out of Accra, Ghana; Nairobi, Kenya; or Chennai, India

Learn More & Apply

https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/seed/get-involved/coach