Evidence Action scales proven interventions that improve the lives of millions. We only implement cost-effective programs whose efficacy is backed by substantial rigorous evidence. We identify innovative, appropriate financing mechanisms and build best-practice operational models. We voraciously self-evaluate, learn, and improve our models for scaling effect...

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Manager, AI Adoption and Innovation

Job Type

Contract , Full Time , Hybrid

Qualification

BA/BSc/HND

Experience

5 years

Location

Nairobi

Job Field

Data, Business Analysis and AI , ICT / Computer

Key responsibilities

AI Strategy and Leadership (20%)

• Develop and own the Africa region AI adoption roadmap, translating global AI strategy into contextually relevant plans across diverse country environments.
• In collaboration with technical partners, pressure-test AI/ML ideas and proposals, balancing technical feasibility with organizational ambition and operational constraints.
• Provide strategic counsel to regional and country leadership on AI adoption progress, risks, opportunities, and return on investment.
• Contribute to global AI strategy discussions and serve as the Africa voice in cross-regional AI communities of practice alongside sharing knowledge and coordinating enterprise-wide progress with peers in India and the US.
• Ensure AI initiatives are governed responsibly, with attention to data privacy, ethical AI frameworks, and compliance with relevant regulations across country contexts.

Use Case Identification and Prototype Development (30%)

• Drive discovery and prioritization of high-impact AI use cases that address real workflow challenges across programs, MLE, finance, operations, and P&C functions.
• Coordinate the design of AI solutions in partnership with departmental teams/ functional experts, defining clear scope, success metrics, and realistic timelines for proof-of-concepts and minimum viable products. Coordinate prototyping efforts rather than building solutions independently. Ensure that functional teams remain owners of use cases while you provide structure, coordination, and support.
• Manage the full pilot lifecycle from ideation and testing through evaluation and scaling decisions, ensuring rigorous documentation and learning capture.
• Facilitate cross-team learning from pilot successes and failures, creating feedback loops that accelerate organizational learning and position solutions for broader adoption.
• Maintain awareness of the AI tool landscape and translate emerging developments into accessible, actionable insights for non-technical audiences.

End-to-End Delivery and Partner Management (20%)

• Oversee the delivery of AI projects end-to-end, coordinating the transition of validated prototypes into scalable solutions by working with internal technical teams and external partners
• Manage external technical partners and vendors, including selection, contracting, performance oversight, and risk mitigation, ensuring timely delivery to quality standards.

Change Management and Capability Building (20%)

• Design and execute a region-wide AI adoption strategy that drives sustained behavior change across diverse country contexts and functions.
• Build and steward a network of AI champions across countries and functions to amplify adoption efforts and sustain momentum.
• Design and facilitate engaging learning events, including workshops, show-and-tell sessions, and peer learning forums that encourage experimentation and knowledge sharing.
• Embed AI learning into onboarding and ongoing professional development for Africa region staff, curating and developing practical materials including guides, prompt libraries, and use case repositories.
• Develop communication campaigns that demonstrate AI value propositions, address adoption barriers, and build staff confidence in using AI tools effectively.
• Collaborate with IT teams on license optimization, monitoring usage patterns across the region and making evidence-based recommendations for reallocation.
• Build internal capability by enabling operations and program teams to sustain and scale AI products post-launch, reducing dependency on external support over time.

This is a core pillar of success for the role.

Monitoring, Evaluation, and Reporting (10%)

• Establish and maintain dashboards tracking license utilization, user engagement, pilot outcomes, and impact metrics against strategic OKRs.
• Conduct regular pulse checks and surveys to assess user satisfaction, adoption barriers, and workflow impact across the region.
• Provide monthly progress reports to regional leadership, highlighting trends, surfacing risks, and recommending interventions.
• Analyse usage data to identify patterns, bottlenecks, and opportunities for targeted support. This will inform prioritization and resource allocation decisions.

Requirements

Essential

• Bachelor’s degree in Technology, Computer Science, Engineering, Business, Social Sciences, or a related field.
• At least 5 years of professional experience in technology, consulting, product development, international development, or related fields.
• Demonstrated experience driving adoption of new tools, systems, or ways of working in complex, multi-stakeholder environments.
• Proven ability to lead projects end-to-end, managing multiple workstreams simultaneously from conception through to delivery and evaluation.
• Proven ability to influence without formal authority and build collaborative relationships across organizational levels and geographies.
• Strong change management and stakeholder engagement skills, with demonstrated experience driving behaviour change initiatives in complex organizational environments.
• Be a quick learner about a range of domains and ability to understand what constitutes a string AI solution for each of the areas we work in.
• Working knowledge of AI tools (e.g., Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Notebook LLM) with ability to identify practical applications and articulate their value to non-technical audiences. Comfort working with technical departments to translate user needs into implementable solutions.
• Proven ability to bridge technical and non-technical teams, translating complex technical concepts into accessible language and organizational requirements into technical specifications.
• Demonstrated curiosity about AI/ML developments, with ability to assess emerging tools and techniques for organizational fit without requiring deep technical implementation skills.
• Excellent facilitation, presentation, and communication skills, with proven ability to make technical concepts accessible and engaging for non-technical audiences.
• Analytical mindset with comfort using data to track progress, identify patterns, and inform decisions.
• Demonstrated experience leading cross-functional change initiatives, influencing diverse stakeholders, and driving adoption in complex organizational environments.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English.
• Legal authorization to work in Kenya or Nigeria without sponsorship.

Desirable

• Working knowledge of multiple AI domains beyond LLMs, such as automation tools, computer vision, NLP/text processing, predictive analytics, or geospatial analysis.
• Experience managing internal technical teams, including gathering scoping requirements, coordinating design and delivery, and ensuring outputs meet user needs.
• Background in change management, learning and development, or organizational transformation.
• Familiarity with ethical AI frameworks, data privacy regulations, and government compliance considerations in African contexts.
• Experience working in international development or non-profit sector, particularly in multi-country African contexts.
• Deeply committed to using technology for social good, with ambition about AI’s potential balanced by practical, grounded expectations.
• Ability to work within and embody Evidence Action core values - evidence first, iterate again, challenging convention, economise without compromise, passion throughout.

Position location

This role will be based in Nairobi, Kenya or Abuja, Nigeria, with travel within the Africa region expected up to 15%.

Hybrid working arrangements apply.

This is a 1-year fixed-term contract, renewable subject to performance review and organizational need.

Shortlisting will be done on a rolling basis. Role will close by 2nd June 2026.

• Develop and own the Africa region AI adoption roadmap, translating global AI strategy into contextually relevant plans across diverse country environments.
• In collaboration with technical partners, pressure-test AI/ML ideas and proposals, balancing technical feasibility with organizational ambition and operational constraints.
• Provide strategic counsel to regional and country leadership on AI adoption progress, risks, opportunities, and return on investment.
• Contribute to global AI strategy discussions and serve as the Africa voice in cross-regional AI communities of practice alongside sharing knowledge and coordinating enterprise-wide progress with peers in India and the US.
• Ensure AI initiatives are governed responsibly, with attention to data privacy, ethical AI frameworks, and compliance with relevant regulations across country contexts.
• Drive discovery and prioritization of high-impact AI use cases that address real workflow challenges across programs, MLE, finance, operations, and P&C functions.
• Coordinate the design of AI solutions in partnership with departmental teams/ functional experts, defining clear scope, success metrics, and realistic timelines for proof-of-concepts and minimum viable products. Coordinate prototyping efforts rather than building solutions independently. Ensure that functional teams remain owners of use cases while you provide structure, coordination, and support.
• Manage the full pilot lifecycle from ideation and testing through evaluation and scaling decisions, ensuring rigorous documentation and learning capture.
• Facilitate cross-team learning from pilot successes and failures, creating feedback loops that accelerate organizational learning and position solutions for broader adoption.
• Maintain awareness of the AI tool landscape and translate emerging developments into accessible, actionable insights for non-technical audiences.
• Oversee the delivery of AI projects end-to-end, coordinating the transition of validated prototypes into scalable solutions by working with internal technical teams and external partners
• Manage external technical partners and vendors, including selection, contracting, performance oversight, and risk mitigation, ensuring timely delivery to quality standards.
• Design and execute a region-wide AI adoption strategy that drives sustained behavior change across diverse country contexts and functions.
• Build and steward a network of AI champions across countries and functions to amplify adoption efforts and sustain momentum.
• Design and facilitate engaging learning events, including workshops, show-and-tell sessions, and peer learning forums that encourage experimentation and knowledge sharing.
• Embed AI learning into onboarding and ongoing professional development for Africa region staff, curating and developing practical materials including guides, prompt libraries, and use case repositories.
• Develop communication campaigns that demonstrate AI value propositions, address adoption barriers, and build staff confidence in using AI tools effectively.
• Collaborate with IT teams on license optimization, monitoring usage patterns across the region and making evidence-based recommendations for reallocation.
• Build internal capability by enabling operations and program teams to sustain and scale AI products post-launch, reducing dependency on external support over time.
• Establish and maintain dashboards tracking license utilization, user engagement, pilot outcomes, and impact metrics against strategic OKRs.
• Conduct regular pulse checks and surveys to assess user satisfaction, adoption barriers, and workflow impact across the region.
• Provide monthly progress reports to regional leadership, highlighting trends, surfacing risks, and recommending interventions.
• Analyse usage data to identify patterns, bottlenecks, and opportunities for targeted support. This will inform prioritization and resource allocation decisions.

• Demonstrated experience driving adoption of new tools, systems, or ways of working in complex, multi-stakeholder environments.
• Proven ability to lead projects end-to-end, managing multiple workstreams simultaneously from conception through to delivery and evaluation.
• Proven ability to influence without formal authority and build collaborative relationships across organizational levels and geographies.
• Strong change management and stakeholder engagement skills, with demonstrated experience driving behaviour change initiatives in complex organizational environments.
• Be a quick learner about a range of domains and ability to understand what constitutes a string AI solution for each of the areas we work in.
• Working knowledge of AI tools (e.g., Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Notebook LLM) with ability to identify practical applications and articulate their value to non-technical audiences. Comfort working with technical departments to translate user needs into implementable solutions.
• Proven ability to bridge technical and non-technical teams, translating complex technical concepts into accessible language and organizational requirements into technical specifications.
• Demonstrated curiosity about AI/ML developments, with ability to assess emerging tools and techniques for organizational fit without requiring deep technical implementation skills.
• Excellent facilitation, presentation, and communication skills, with proven ability to make technical concepts accessible and engaging for non-technical audiences.
• Analytical mindset with comfort using data to track progress, identify patterns, and inform decisions.
• Demonstrated experience leading cross-functional change initiatives, influencing diverse stakeholders, and driving adoption in complex organizational environments.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English.
• Working knowledge of multiple AI domains beyond LLMs, such as automation tools, computer vision, NLP/text processing, predictive analytics, or geospatial analysis.
• Experience managing internal technical teams, including gathering scoping requirements, coordinating design and delivery, and ensuring outputs meet user needs.
• Background in change management, learning and development, or organizational transformation.
• Familiarity with ethical AI frameworks, data privacy regulations, and government compliance considerations in African contexts.
• Experience working in international development or non-profit sector, particularly in multi-country African contexts.
• Ability to work within and embody Evidence Action core values - evidence first, iterate again, challenging convention, economise without compromise, passion throughout.

• Bachelor’s degree in Technology, Computer Science, Engineering, Business, Social Sciences, or a related field.