Senior Lead - Africa Athlete Manager

Location: Nairobi or Zurich, with travel required

Department: Global Athlete Strategy & Partnership
Reports to: Head of Athlete Management

In Summary:

This role plays a pivotal role in shaping On’s athlete strategy across Africa, one of the most important regions in global distance running. As Senior Lead - Africa Athlete Manager, you oversee On’s athlete partnerships in the region from the athlete’s perspective, ensuring that our athletes receive world-class support while building strong, long-term relationships with them and their representatives.

You own the management of our Kenya Training Camp, ensuring it operates as a world-class environment for athlete development while fostering strong relationships with athletes, coaches, and the broader local running ecosystem. You are responsible for identifying and recruiting emerging talent, leading athlete negotiations, and partnering with athletes throughout their journey with On.

You act as a key connection point between athletes and internal cross-functional teams including product development (Footwear, Apparel, Accessories), Marketing (Storytelling, Social, Events), Product Verticals, PR, and regional teams. Your goal is to help our athletes succeed at the highest level of competition while creating compelling athlete and product stories that strengthen On’s presence in global running.

Your Mission

• Athlete Relationship Management: Build and maintain strong, trusted relationships with On’s athletes across Africa as well as their coaches and athlete representatives. Act as the primary point of contact for athlete needs, ensuring they are supported across all aspects of their careers. Manage athlete communications, career development conversations, and partnership support while maintaining a strong network that enables identification of new talent for the brand.
• Collaboration with Global Athlete Strategy & Partnership Team: Oversee the management and strategic development of On’s Kenya Training Camp, ensuring it provides a world-class training environment for elite athletes. Maintain strong relationships with local coaches, training groups, and community stakeholders while ensuring smooth operations and a high-performance culture. Use the camp as a central hub for athlete support, collaboration, and talent development.
• Execution of Athlete-Driven Programs: Lead the management and development of On’s athlete partnerships across Africa, including key markets such as Kenya and Ethiopia, while exploring opportunities in emerging running markets. Build and manage a portfolio of elite athletes while ensuring alignment with On’s global athlete strategy.
• Talent Identification & Recruitment: Leverage a strong regional network to identify and recruit high-potential athletes across Africa. Lead negotiations and manage the process of onboarding athletes into On’s athlete roster. Develop long-term pipelines for emerging talent and future elite athletes.
• Risk Awareness & Athlete Integrity: Operate with strong judgment in a complex and evolving environment by proactively identifying and mitigating risks related to anti-doping, athlete safety, regulatory compliance, and reputation management. Ensure athlete partnerships align with On’s integrity standards and support athletes in maintaining the highest levels of professional conduct.
• Strategic Project Development: Contribute to the development of new projects and initiatives designed to strengthen On’s presence within elite distance running in Africa. Use athlete insights and performance data to generate innovative ideas that elevate both athlete success and brand impact.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Collaborate closely with On’s marketing, product, sales, PR, and regional teams on site (e.g. Director of Africa, Head of Africa) to ensure athlete partnerships align with broader brand objectives. Foster internal alignment to ensure athlete needs are met and athlete-driven initiatives are executed successfully.
• Performance Tracking & Reporting: Monitor and report on athlete performances across major global competitions, tracking metrics such as podium finishes, top placements, and engagement impact. Provide regular updates on athlete performance, partnership impact, and key regional insights.

Your Story: 

• Strong Network in African Distance Running: Established relationships within the African elite running ecosystem, including athletes, coaches, agents, and training groups. Deep understanding of the competitive landscape in key markets such as Kenya and Ethiopia.
• Proven Athlete Management Skills: Experience working directly with elite athletes and supporting their professional development. Ability to manage athlete relationships with professionalism, trust, and efficiency.
• Strong Judgment & Risk Awareness: Ability to make sound decisions in complex environments while mitigating risks related to doping, athlete safety, compliance, and reputational considerations. High integrity and a strong commitment to protecting both athletes and the brand.
• Strategic & Operational Mindset: Ability to balance strategic thinking with operational execution, particularly in managing athlete programs and training environments.
• Collaboration Across Teams: Strong interpersonal and communication skills to collaborate effectively with global marketing, product, PR, and regional teams. Ability to align athlete priorities with broader brand strategies.
• Passion for Distance Running: Deep passion for global distance running and athlete performance. Strong understanding of the culture and dynamics of elite training environments.
• Project Management: Strong organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple projects, timelines, and stakeholder expectations simultaneously.
• Travel Flexibility: Willingness to travel frequently across Africa and globally to support athletes, competitions, and training environments (approximately 15–20 trips annually).

Key Success Metrics:

• Athlete Performance: Tangible improvements in On athlete performances at major global competitions, including podium finishes and top placements at key international road and track events.
• Athlete Engagement & Retention High levels of athlete satisfaction with partnership support and strong retention of top athletes within On’s roster. Positive feedback from athletes and representatives regarding the level of support, trust, and professionalism within the partnership.
• Talent Identification: Successful recruitment of emerging athletes from key African running markets who develop into world-class performers representing On.
• Training Camp Impact: Successful management and development of the Kenya Training Camp, reflected in strong athlete participation, positive athlete feedback, and performance outcomes linked to the training environment.
• Athlete Integrity & Risk Management: Effective identification and mitigation of risks related to anti-doping, athlete safety, and partnership integrity, ensuring that athlete relationships consistently align with On’s ethical standards and compliance requirements while protecting both athletes and the brand.

About The Team:

About On:

On is a leading performance running brand known for its innovative approach to running shoes, apparel, and gear. We are dedicated to creating the best running experience for athletes of all levels, from beginners to elite competitors. Join us and become part of a dynamic team working at the intersection of sport, performance, and innovation.

This role presents a unique opportunity to contribute to On’s growth in the distance running space, playing a key part in the development of global athlete strategies and driving forward-thinking initiatives that elevate both athletes and the brand. If you're passionate about Africa and Distance Running and want to help shape the future of On in this exciting sport, we encourage you to apply.

Are you passionate about turning ideas into compelling visuals that tell a story and inspire action?

ALX Kenya is looking for a talented and fast-moving Graphic Designer to join our marketing team and support creative production.

This role will be responsible for designing high-quality marketing assets used across digital campaigns, social media, program launches, and events. The designer will work closely with the marketing team to translate campaign ideas into compelling visuals that attract and engage prospective learners.

Because our campaigns run across multiple programs and platforms, this role requires someone who can produce a high volume of creative assets quickly while maintaining strong design quality and brand consistency. Experience with video editing is strongly preferred, particularly for editing short-form video content.

This is an exciting opportunity to help shape the visual storytelling of a fast-growing education brand empowering young people across Africa. Experience working with youth-focused, education, technology, or digital brands is a strong advantage.

About ALX Africa

ALX Africa, a non-profit organisation under the ALX Foundation, is dedicated to unlocking the potential of Africa's digital future. Formerly part of Sand Tech Holdings, we've embarked on an independent journey to provide world-class tech skills training and career acceleration programmes. Our mission is to bridge the digital divide, upskill and re-skill talent, and create a generation of innovative leaders. By 2030, we aim to empower 2 million Africans to secure sustainable tech careers.

With hubs in 8 cities across Africa and counting, we provide safe access to quality learning and a dedicated network of expert instructors. Our innovative programmes equip learners with the practical skills and knowledge needed to succeed in today's rapidly evolving tech industry. Through a combination of rigorous coursework, industry partnerships, and hands-on projects, we prepare our students for in-demand roles in software engineering, data science, and cybersecurity.

We achieve this by:

• Providing young professionals with access to the most in-demand tech skills that will power the future.
• Empowering the next generation of technology innovators, entrepreneurs, and business leaders through challenging, real-world coursework.
• Building a lifelong, impactful community of tech professionals that support them at all stages of their career journey. 

Our impact thus far:

• 347k+ graduates since 2020
• 257k youth in work
• 31k youth starting own ventures
• 60k youth in jobs created by entrepreneurs

 Visit our website www.alxafrica.com to learn more about our digital revolution.

Role Summary

ALX Kenya is seeking a highly creative, agile, and execution-oriented Graphic Designer to support the production of compelling visual assets.

This role is ideal for a designer who can translate campaign strategy into high-quality creative output that strengthens brand visibility, drives audience engagement, and supports learner acquisition. The successful candidate will play a key role in designing marketing assets used across digital campaigns, social media, programme launches, and events, while ensuring consistency with ALX’s brand identity across markets.

This role requires someone who thrives in a fast-paced environment, can manage high-volume creative production, and is able to deliver quickly without compromising quality. Basic video editing capability is strongly preferred, particularly for short-form digital content tailored to youth audiences and performance-driven channels.

This is an exciting opportunity for a designer who wants to shape the visual storytelling of a fast-growing education brand that is empowering the next generation of African talent.

Specific Responsibilities

Creative Asset Production and Design Execution

• Lead the design and production of high-quality visual assets across key marketing channels, including digital campaigns, social media, programme launches, and events.
• Create static ad creatives in multiple formats and dimensions to support a wide range of programme marketing needs and platform requirements.
• Develop multiple creative variations to support A/B testing, campaign optimization, and audience segmentation strategies.
• Translate campaign briefs and marketing concepts into compelling visual storytelling that drives attention, engagement, and action.
• Ensure all creative output is aligned with ALX Africa’s brand standards, visual identity, and messaging consistency.
• Support additional design needs across the business, including event collateral, promotional materials, learner-facing assets, and broader brand marketing initiatives.
• Deliver work at speed and scale while maintaining a strong eye for detail, design quality, and accuracy.

Brand Stewardship and Creative Consistency

• Uphold and strengthen the visual expression of the ALX brand across all marketing touchpoints.
• Ensure consistency in typography, layout, imagery, and overall design language across campaigns and channels.
• Collaborate closely with internal stakeholders to ensure creative output reflects campaign objectives, audience needs, and brand positioning.
• Contribute to the evolution of creative templates, design systems, and asset libraries that improve efficiency and consistency over time.

Video Editing and Motion Content Support

• Edit short-form video content to support learner acquisition, brand storytelling, and campaign performance across digital platforms.
• Produce light video edits for testimonials, promotional content, social media clips, and event highlights.
• Add simple motion graphics, text overlays, transitions, and basic animations where needed to enhance engagement.
• Prepare video assets in platform-appropriate formats for channels such as Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, and other digital distribution platforms.
• Work with the marketing team to ensure video content is aligned with campaign messaging, audience behavior, and creative direction.

Cross-Functional Creative Collaboration

• Partner closely with the marketing team to bring campaign ideas to life through compelling and conversion-oriented visuals.
• Collaborate with internal teams across programmes to understand creative needs, timelines, and audience requirements.
• Contribute to fast-turnaround campaign cycles by responding quickly to business priorities and evolving marketing needs.
• Support a culture of creativity, responsiveness, and continuous improvement within the broader growth and brand function

Skill Requirements - Essential

• 3 to 5 years of professional experience in graphic design, ideally within marketing, digital media, brand, or agency environments.
• Strong portfolio demonstrating high-quality design work across digital campaigns, ad creatives, and brand marketing materials.
• Proven experience designing for paid digital campaigns and working across multiple asset sizes, formats, and audience use cases.
• Demonstrated ability to operate effectively in high-volume creative production environments with fast turnaround expectations.
• Strong visual storytelling capability, with the ability to turn strategic messaging into engaging, audience-relevant creative.
• High proficiency in industry-standard design tools, including Adobe Creative Suite, particularly Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.
• Familiarity with Figma and Canva is advantageous.
• Experience editing short-form digital video content for marketing or social media use.
• Working knowledge of tools such as Adobe Premiere Pro, CapCut, or similar video editing platforms.
• Ability to add light motion design elements and prepare video content for different platforms and viewing behaviors.
• Candidates must be based in Nairobi or willing to relocate to Nairobi.
• This is an in-person role and the successful candidate will be expected to work onsite as part of the Nairobi team.
• Legal authorisation to work in Kenya.

Person Specification/Attributes

• Courage: Willingness to speak up, challenge the status quo, and embrace new challenges.
• Humility: Openness to learning, seeking help when needed, and a focus on serving others.
• Adventure: A passion for setting ambitious goals, tackling difficult tasks, and finding joy in the journey.
• Initiative: Proactive problem-solving, a sense of ownership, and a willingness to go above and beyond.
• Resilience: The ability to bounce back from setbacks, persevere through challenges, and emerge stronger.

Portfolio Requirement

Applicants must submit a portfolio of previous work, including examples of:

• Digital ad creatives
• Campaign visuals
• Brand marketing work

Employment Type

This role is a full-time position.

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