LAB LEAD

Location: Dar es Salaam, Tanzania / Lagos, Nigeria
Employment Type: Full Time
Workplace Type: Onsite

Company Overview

Jaza is building solar-powered energy hubs to power Sub-Saharan Africa. The company operates 900+ sites across Tanzania and Nigeria, with a goal of scaling to 3,200+ sites by the end of 2026.

Through its network of community-run hubs, Jaza empowers local women (known as Jaza Stars) to operate services that improve energy access and drive economic growth.

More information: www.jazaenergy.com

Position Overview

Jaza Lab is the company’s innovation arm focused on doubling revenue per site through new products, services, and customer segments.

The Lab Lead will build and lead Jaza Lab from the ground up, running fast commercial experiments to identify scalable revenue opportunities. This is a hands-on, field-driven role focused on execution, not research.

You will own:

Experiment design and execution
P&L and financial outcomes
Scaling successful initiatives into core operations

Key Responsibilities

1. Experiment Leadership (50%)

Design and execute quarterly experiments
Develop experiment frameworks (hypothesis, testing, measurement, kill/scale decisions)
Drive customer acquisition for pilot programs
Close commercial deals and collect field data
Make data-driven kill/scale decisions within 8–12 week cycles
Transition successful experiments to operations for scaling

2. Team Building (30%)

Build the Jaza Lab team (Analyst/PM, Engineer, Field Coordinators in Tanzania and Nigeria)
Establish operating rhythm (weekly sprints, reviews, learning sessions)
Manage Lab budget and allocate resources across experiments

3. Partnerships & Strategy (20%)

Lead partnership structuring, negotiations, and success metrics
Identify new opportunities (fintech, hardware, distribution, etc.)
Report weekly to CEO on progress, insights, and decisions
Contribute to company-wide strategy and expansion planning

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

3–5 experiments launched per quarter
Experiment cycle time under 12 weeks
Revenue impact from scaled experiments
Customer acquisition for pilot programs
Achievement of partnership milestones
Timely team build-out
Clear kill/scale decisions backed by data

Key Working Relationships

Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Chief Operating Officer (COO)
Managing Directors (Tanzania & Nigeria)
Lab Team (Analyst/PM, Engineer, Field Coordinators)
External partners

Why This Role

This is a zero-to-one leadership role where you will define what Jaza Lab becomes. Your work will directly influence company strategy, revenue growth, and expansion to 10,000+ sites.

It is ideal for someone who thrives in fast execution environments and is motivated by solving large-scale energy access challenges across Africa.

Must-Have Skills

Entrepreneurial mindset
A/B testing and experiment design
Financial modeling
P&L management

Qualifications

Professional Experience

5+ years in commercial, business development, or operations roles
At least 2 years in a startup or high-growth environment
Proven experience launching new products or revenue streams from scratch
Experience with P&L or business unit ownership
Experience in East or West African markets (preferred)

Technical Skills

Experiment design and A/B testing
Financial modeling and unit economics
CRM and pipeline management tools
Data analysis (spreadsheets, dashboards, basic SQL)
Strong presentation and communication skills

Personal Attributes

Strong entrepreneurial drive and ownership mindset
Ability to work in uncertainty and fast-changing environments
Strong decision-making under limited data
Excellent communication and stakeholder management
High adaptability and resilience
Strong customer understanding and empathy

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering, or related field
MBA or advanced degree (advantageous but not required)
Startup/founder experience highly valued

Industry Knowledge (Advantageous)

Off-grid energy or solar sector experience
Last-mile distribution in African markets
B2B sales cycles and SME customer behavior
Fintech, credit, or partnership-based business models
Unit economics and profitability analysis

Leadership Expectations

Strong bias for action and learning through execution
Ability to structure work in ambiguous environments
Comfortable making decisions with imperfect data
Capable of building and leading small high-performing teams

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To apply for this job please visit hris.peoplehum.com.

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