Senior Facilities & Compliance Officer

Overview

Pharo Foundation (“the Foundation”) is a pioneering, mission-driven organisation working to build a vibrant, productive, and self-reliant Africa. Founded and fully funded by Pharo Management, an emerging markets hedge fund. The Foundation represents a new model of philanthropic capitalism: a private endowment using its own capital to design, fund, and operate development programmes with private-sector discipline and long-term commitment. 

Over the next decade, the Foundation’s ambition is to deliver lasting impact across three interdependent missions:

1.      Empowering the next generation through affordable, high-quality education.

2.      Solving water scarcity by building and operating sustainable water infrastructure.

3.      Driving economic productivity by unlocking jobs, investment, and innovation through both non-profit and for-profit ventures. 

The Foundation operates in Ethiopia, Somaliland, Kenya, and Rwanda, employing more than 750 people. It combines a not-for-profit engine: Pharo Development, with a for-profit engine, Pharo Ventures, which builds and operates sustainable businesses to create jobs and advance economic self-reliance.

Opportunity:

We are seeking a proactive Senior Facilities & Compliance Officer to ensure safe, efficient, and compliant operations across our offices, Pharo Secondary, Primary and KG schools, and business units. The role oversees facilities management, health and safety compliance, and preventive maintenance, supporting operational excellence.

The ideal candidate brings experience in facilities and compliance management, strong reporting and documentation skills, attention to detail, and the ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a people-focused environment.

Key Relationships

Position Title: Senior Facilities & Compliance Officer

Department: Operations Excellence

Location: Hargeisa, Somaliland

Reports To: Operations Excellence Manager

Direct Reports: Security Team, Maintenance Team, Facility Officer

Key Role and Responsibilities:

• Oversee the daily management and maintenance of country office, kitchens, and shared spaces.

• Oversee the maintenance of other operations across other Pharo facilities and sites, ensuring a safe, functional, and compliant environment.

• Supervise Security and Maintenance staff to ensure smooth and efficient office operations.

• Conduct safety audits to identify hazards, operational risks, and baseline conditions at all facilities.

• Respond to safety-related issues, including facility repair needs, and support preventive maintenance scheduling to minimize Health and Safety (HS) risks.

• Identify, analyze, and evaluate facilities hazards, then recommend and implement HS and security risk reduction and injury prevention measures.

• Collaborate with management, schools and mission heads to develop, update, and enforce HS Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), policies, and safeguarding plans.

• Coordinate with cross-functional teams to implement HS initiatives and scale.

• Ensure alignment of Facility & Health & Safety policies with local/national laws and aim for international standards where appropriate.

• Coordinate and deliver training programs on policies in Facility Management and HS to ensure staff understanding and compliance.

• Promote and reinforce a culture of health and safety, accountability, and continuous improvement through communication campaigns, signage, and staff engagement.

• Monitor ongoing compliance with health, safety, and environmental regulations; maintain documentation, checklists, and training records.

• Prepare safety reports and audit summaries and ensure timely submission of required internal reports.

• Coordinate emergency preparedness and response efforts, including organizing fire drills, forming first-aid teams, and updating evacuation plans.

• Support and document incident and injury reporting, investigations, and resolution follow-ups to ensure lessons learned are applied across sites.

• Track and report HS performance indicators; measure progress against defined targets and ensure corrective actions address non-compliance.

• Serve as co-chair or active member of the Health & Safety Committee and contribute to organisational safety planning and review processes.

• Support management on safety risks and improvement areas, providing solutions and updates to drive strategic decisions and workplace well-being.

• Complete other tasks as required

Qualifications/Key Skills:

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field and a minimum of 3-5 years of experience and knowledge in facility management, health and safety, compliance requirements and best practices

• Strong report writing, documentation, and policy/procedures writing skills

• Skilled in completing detailed internal audits and supporting compliance reviews

• Effective presentation and training skills, including the ability to chair meetings and present to management

• Motivated self-starter with a strong work ethic; proactive, problem-solving, follow-through, and team-oriented

• Highly organized with the ability to manage multiple tasks and deadlines

• Excellent communication skills (written and verbal)

• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite (especially Word and Excel) and reporting tools

Application procedure

·        We will review completed applications on a rolling basis. If we identify an outstanding candidate early in the process, we reserve the right to appoint before the deadline. For this reason, we encourage interested candidates to apply as early as possible. Due to the high volume of applications, we regret that we will only contact shortlisted candidates.

·        You are required to attach a detailed CV and cover letter and qualifications.

·        The application deadline is February 5, 2025.

To apply, please visit the Careers page on the Pharo Foundation website and submit your application https://www.pharofoundation.org/index.php/current-opportunities