IT Operations and Tech Innovation Lead

About One Acre Fund

Founded in 2006, One Acre Fund equips 5.5 million smallholder farmers to make their farms more productive. Across nine countries that together are home to two-thirds of Africa's farmers, we provide high-quality farm supplies, tree seedlings, accessible credit, modern agronomic training, and a wide range of other agricultural services. On average, this model enables any farmer to increase their income and assets on supported land by more than 35 percent, while permanently improving their resilience. This is all made possible by our team of 9,000+ full-time staff, drawn from diverse backgrounds and professions. To learn more, please see our Why Work Here blog post.

The Nigeria program, established in 2018, is headquartered in Minna, Niger state. We're currently serving over 100,000 unique farmers across the state via our inputs on credit 'Core' program, inputs on cash 'Retail' program, and have a free tree seedling distribution 'Agroforestry' program. To learn more about our work, look at our Nigeria program blog.

About the Role

The IT Operations & Tech Innovation Lead will drive our technology roadmap, oversee daily IT operations, and spearhead transformative digital initiatives. In this pivotal leadership role, you will balance operational excellence with forward-thinking tech innovation. You will oversee core IT infrastructure, optimize service delivery, streamline operations through data analytics and process automation, manage digital product rollouts (such as digital payments), and lead high-performing tech teams.

Responsibilities

IT Strategy Management and Execution

• Formulate and execute a holistic, forward-looking IT strategy aligned with long-term business goals and growth targets.
• Serve as the primary advisor on emerging technologies, digital trends, and strategic tech investments.
• Keep the pace of tech innovation ahead of business scale and needs

Digital Transformation & Innovation

• Identify and implement modern digital tools to optimize business workflows and enhance user and customer experiences.
• Ensure availability and stability of client-facing applications required to drive all the Country Programs’ phases or cycles (e.g enrollment, input delivery, repayment, field execution etc)
• Drive digital payment integrations, financial technology solutions, and seamless transaction workflows across all existing and future platforms.

Product Management

• Direct the end-to-end product lifecycle for internal digital products, core business platforms, and customer-facing applications.
• Manage business and technical requirements gathering, prioritize feature backlogs, and collaborate with all technical stakeholders to deploy scalable features.
• Continuously iterate and optimize product features based on user feedback, usage analytics, and market trends.

IT Operations & Infrastructure Management

• Direct and optimize IT help desk operations to ensure high reliability, fast issue resolution, and exceptional user satisfaction.
• Oversee the lifecycle management of hardware, software, and enterprise licenses, ensuring cost efficiency and compliance.
• Develop, implement, and enforce robust IT security, compliance, data privacy, and disaster recovery policies.
• Infrastructure & Internet Services: Maintain reliable, high-availability network infrastructure, cloud services, cyber defenses, and ISP services

Project & Program Management

• Lead end-to-end delivery of complex cross-functional tech initiatives on schedule and within budget.
• Define project scope, resource allocation, risk mitigation strategies, and success metrics using Agile/Scrum or Hybrid frameworks.
• Maintain clear reporting and communication channels across technical teams, external vendors, and executive leadership.

Team and People Management

• Push for professional growth of direct reports and within their teams.
• Cultivate a culture of continuous learning, cross-functional collaboration, security awareness, and innovation.
• Identify and resolve interpersonal issues among the teams.
• Assign clear responsibilities and regularly communicate expectations to team members
• Promote team sustainability, address conflicts, and cultivate a harmonious and cooperative team environment.
• Allocate tasks and responsibilities among team members to meet objectives within specified timelines.
• Foster individual and professional advancement through performance evaluations, career guidance, hiring the best, and human resources assistance.

Career Growth and Development

We have a strong culture of constant learning and we invest in developing our people. You’ll have weekly check-ins with your manager, access to mentorship and training programs, and regular feedback on your performance. We hold career reviews every six months, and set aside time to discuss your aspirations and career goals. You’ll have the opportunity to shape a growing organization and build a rewarding long-term career.

Qualifications

Across all roles, these are the general qualifications we look for. For this role specifically, you will have:

• Bachelor's Degree in IT or related field
• 3-5+ years of experience to drive digital transformation, optimize tech infrastructure, eliminate legacy drag, and pilot modern innovations to power organization growth and scale
• Strong leadership skills to effectively lead and motivate a team
• IT, digital transformation and project management skills and experience
• Hands-on experience with process automation platforms, API integrations, and Business Intelligence tools 
• Familiarity with modern product management workflows, Agile methodologies, and software development lifecycles (SDLC) 
• Organizational skills to efficiently plan, prioritize and delegate tasks
• Quick problem-solving abilities to anticipate, identify and resolve issues
• High attention to detail to accurately plan
• Excellent communication skills to effectively interact with colleagues and senior leadership
• Efficient time management capabilities to ensure timely execution of tasks and projects
• Flexibility to adapt to evolving business needs and requirements
• Commercial awareness to identify cost-saving opportunities
• Proven experience in process improvement

Preferred Start Date

As soon as possible

Job Location

Minna, Nigeria or Lafia, Nigeria

Benefits

Health insurance, housing, and comprehensive benefits

Eligibility

This role is only open to citizens or permanent residents of Nigeria, Malawi, Rwanda, Kenya, Burundi, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Zambia and Uganda.

Application Deadline

9 February 2027. Please note that we hire on a rolling basis which means that applications are reviewed and processed on a continuous basis until a hire is made.

One Acre Fund never asks candidates to pay any money or pay for tests at any stage of the interview process. Official One Acre Fund emails will always arrive from an @oneacrefund.org address. Please report any suspicious communication here ([email protected]), but do not send applications or application materials to this email address.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI), and anti-racism are deeply connected to our organization’s mission and purpose. One Acre Fund aspires to build a culture where all staff feel consistently valued, represented, and connected – so that our team can thrive as professionals, and achieve exceptional impact for the farmers we serve.

We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender, gender identity or expression. We are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace.