Head of Deployments, Africa

About the role

Zipline is expanding rapidly across Africa and needs a senior leader to own the end‑to‑end launch of new distribution sites. As Head of Deployments, Africa you will be responsible for turning signed contracts into fully operational, certified sites in Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire and Rwanda.

Key responsibilities

• Lead parallel launch programmes across multiple countries, managing land acquisition, permits, construction, power, hiring, training and commissioning.
• Own and continuously improve the deployment playbook, standard bill of materials and acceptance gates.
• Run the first Precision Delivery launch in Kigali with clear go/no‑go criteria.
• Build and manage a flexible team of core programme managers and in‑country launch pods.
• Partner with country directors, governments, regulators, contractors and internal functions to clear all path‑to‑launch obstacles.

Required profile

• 12–15+ years delivering multi‑site infrastructure or network build programmes (e.g., telecom, renewable energy, logistics hubs).
• Hands‑on experience in Africa covering land, permits, customs, power, contractors and government interfaces, especially West Africa.
• Proven track record of running parallel builds against contractual deadlines and creating repeatable deployment playbooks.
• Senior leadership ability to set strategy, lead leaders and also work on‑site to resolve issues.
• Strong programme and project management instincts with excellent stakeholder and negotiation skills.