[Hiring] Head of Self-Employment @Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator

Role Description

Join Harambee as our Head of Self-Employment! Are you passionate about creating sustainable pathways to income and opportunity for young people? Do you thrive in complex environments, bringing people together around a shared vision and turning ambitious ideas into practical action? If so, Harambee could be the place for you.

The Head of Self-Employment leads Harambee's self-employment strategy and delivery, driving the organisation's contribution to creating sustainable self-employment pathways for young people. This role is responsible for defining Harambee's position within the self-employment ecosystem, aligning internal teams around a shared strategy, and ensuring the successful delivery of organisational self-employment targets.

The role also contributes to broader systems change efforts by supporting the implementation of the national self-employment strategy being developed in partnership with the Presidential Youth Employment Initiative (PYEI) and the Centre for Exponential Change.

Your Key Responsibilities

• Lead the development and execution of Harambee's self-employment strategy
• Define priority opportunities, delivery targets, and partnership approaches across the ecosystem
• Drive delivery of organisational self-employment outcomes through interventions, pilots, and implementation initiatives
• Provide strategic oversight of supply-side strategies that strengthen pathways into self-employment for young people
• Build and manage relationships with government, funders, implementation partners, and ecosystem stakeholders
• Lead Harambee's contribution to ecosystem-wide collaboration and collective impact initiatives
• Drive innovation, learning, and continuous improvement within the self-employment portfolio
• Support the transition from national self-employment blueprint design into implementation
• Coordinate action across working groups, partners, and ecosystem stakeholders
• Communicate progress, lessons, opportunities, and priorities across strategic forums and stakeholder platforms

How You'll Work

• Translate strategic ambition into practical delivery and measurable impact
• Build alignment across executive, strategic, and operational teams
• Bring together diverse stakeholders around shared goals and implementation plans
• Mobilise resources and facilitate collective problem-solving across the ecosystem
• Develop and sustain strategic partnerships that strengthen self-employment pathways
• Influence without direct authority and enable collaboration across multiple sectors
• Balance long-term systems change goals with immediate delivery priorities
• Foster learning, accountability, and shared ownership among partners
• Use evidence, insight, and stakeholder engagement to guide decision-making
• Keep young people and their lived experiences at the centre of the work

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required (postgraduate qualification advantageous)
• Qualification in Economics, Development Studies, Political Science, Public Policy, Law, Entrepreneurship, or a related field
• Minimum 10 years of relevant experience
• Significant experience in senior leadership, strategy development, and team management
• Demonstrated experience formulating and implementing strategy
• Strong stakeholder engagement, relationship-building, and communication skills
• Proven ability to coordinate and influence multiple stakeholders across complex environments

Nice To Haves

• Experience in one or more of the following areas would be highly advantageous:
• Youth livelihoods and economic inclusion
• Entrepreneurship and self-employment ecosystems
• Systems change initiatives
• Collective impact programmes
• Ecosystem building and partnership development
• Government partnerships and public-private collaboration
• Multi-stakeholder programme leadership
• National-scale implementation initiatives

Who You Are

• You're a systems thinker who can comfortably operate at both strategic and operational levels.
• You understand that creating sustainable impact requires bringing together diverse stakeholders, aligning interests, and building momentum around a shared ambition.
• You’re passionate about Harambee's mission and expanding access to economic opportunity for young people.
• You build trust quickly and lead through influence and collaboration rather than hierarchy.
• You are comfortable navigating ambiguity and complexity while maintaining a strong focus on delivery.
• You can translate ambitious ideas into practical action and measurable outcomes.
• You enjoy working across organisational and sector boundaries to create collective impact.
• You balance strategic thinking with strong execution and accountability.
• You remain grounded in the lived experiences and needs of young people.
• You are energised by solving complex challenges that require partnership, innovation, and systems-level thinking.

Why Join Us

• At Harambee, your work matters — not just to the organisation, but to the lives of the young people we serve.
• Real Impact: Help shape the future of self-employment pathways and economic opportunity for young people across South Africa.
• Systems Change: Work at the intersection of strategy, partnership, innovation, and implementation to create lasting change.
• Collaboration: Partner with government, funders, private sector leaders, and ecosystem actors to solve complex challenges.
• Purpose: Be part of a mission-led organisation creating meaningful, long-term change in South Africa.
• Growth: Take on a highly visible leadership role with the opportunity to influence organisational and national priorities.
• Inclusive Environment: We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace where everyone feels valued and able to contribute.
• Accessibility: We strongly encourage applications from people living with disabilities and are committed to providing an accessible and supportive recruitment process.

Closing Date: 21 July 2026