Country Director - South Africa

Job Title: Country Director - South Africa

Location: South Africa

Salary: Competitive (dependant on experience)

Basis: Permanent. Full-time, part-time or flexible

Eligibility: You must be eligible to work in South Africa

The role

We are looking for an experienced Country Director to lead our work in South Africa. Reporting to the Chief Growth Officer, you will be responsible for delivering the Foundation's strategy in South Africa, ensuring our programmes reach the educators and young people who stand to benefit most.

You will have a strong track record of leading educational programmes in South Africa and will be responsible for establishing and scaling our operations in the country. You will lead a growing and high-performing team and will have what it takes to build trust locally, navigate complex relationships, and deliver lasting impact. You will bring established relationships with key stakeholders in the education ecosystem including provincial and national government.

We work hard to make sure that the Foundation is a place where everyone is supported to do the best work of their careers. We have a flexible and collaborative approach to all aspects of our work. If you're the right person for the job, we’ll make it work for you, and you can be confident that you’ll be joining an exceptional team of people who care about our mission and each other.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement strategies to increase the reach and impact of the Foundation's products in South Africa.
• Develop and manage strategic relationships with mission-aligned partners including national and provincial governments. 
• Lead engagement with senior education stakeholders in South Africa, ensuring the Foundation understands and is influencing the policy environment and is proactively engaging with relevant networks and organisations. 
• Ensure that all programmes and partnerships have clear monitoring and evaluation plans. Use data and feedback to ensure quality and identify areas for improvement.
• Work collaboratively with colleagues across the Foundation to develop and improve products for South African educators and young people, and share learnings. 
• Build, lead, and manage a highly skilled team, providing them with the clarity and support to enable them to do great work.
• Ensure that all programmes and partnerships implement our commitments to accessibility, inclusion, and safeguarding, prioritising impact for underserved and educationally disadvantaged young people and communities.
• Manage the South Africa budget and report on progress to key funders, working in collaboration with the Chief Growth Officer. 
• As a member of the Leadership team, contribute to the strategic direction, culture, and values of the organisation.
• Represent the Raspberry Pi Foundation externally. 
• If required, coordinate the establishment of Raspberry Pi Foundation operations in South Africa including entity, finance and governance set up, working in close collaboration with colleagues in the UK. 

Experience and personal attributes

We recognise that everyone has the potential for growth. We welcome applications from candidates who can demonstrate that they have some, but not necessarily all, of the experience and personal attributes listed here. 

• A strong track record of leading educational programmes at scale within South Africa.
• Experience developing and managing high-value strategic partnerships with governments, NGOs, and other mission-aligned organisations.
• Existing relationships with national senior government officials, provincial education officials, and education stakeholders in South Africa. 
• An experienced senior manager and leader with a proven ability to build diverse teams and support them to do great work. Ideally, you will have experience managing remote and geographically dispersed teams.
• A track record of delivering impactful learning experiences, products, and programs, ideally focused on young people, alongside a strong understanding of how to measure learner success, demonstrate program impact and use data to improve what we do. 
• An entrepreneurial approach and experience taking a programme or organisation from testing to scale through government partnerships.
• A proven ability to leverage thought leadership, advocacy, and policy influence to drive systemic change.
• A deep and demonstrable commitment to diversity and inclusion, and experience translating that commitment into programme design, delivery, and evaluation.
• Strong communication and stakeholder engagement skills, with the credibility and presence to represent the Foundation at senior levels externally.
• A genuine commitment to the Foundation's mission to enable all young people to realise their full potential through the power of computing and AI.

About us

The Raspberry Pi Foundation is an independent charity with a global mission to enable all young people to realise their full potential through the power of computing and digital technologies. 

We empower schools to teach computer science and AI literacy through free curricula, classroom resources, purpose built software tools, and professional development for teachers. We inspire young people to become tech creators through the world's largest networks of coding clubs. We undertake original research that informs our work and which we use to advance the field of computer science education more broadly.

All of our resources and learning experiences are available for anyone to use at no cost. We are particularly focused on creating opportunities for young people who experience educational disadvantage and those who come from backgrounds traditionally underrepresented in technology industries. 

Over the past decade, we have supported hundreds of thousands of educators and tens of millions of students. We have teams in six countries (India, Ireland, Kenya, South Africa, the UK and US) and partnerships with mission-aligned non-profit organisations in over 60 countries. 

We are at the forefront of the global educational movement to expand access to computer science education and AI literacy. You can learn more about our work in our latest Annual Report.

Benefits

This is an independent contractor role meaning that, like all independent contractor roles in South Africa, there are no benefits attached to this role. 

Timetable for applications

Closing date: 28 September 2026, 9.00am SAST

Phone screen: Week commencing 5 October 2026

First interview: Week commencing 12 October 2026

Second interview: Week commencing 19 October 2026

Our recruitment process

All of our workplaces are inclusive spaces where we want people to feel respected, valued, and able to do their best work. We are committed to building teams that bring together people with a broad range of backgrounds, skills, and perspectives. That starts with our recruitment process. 

Here's what you can expect: 

• As part of your application, you will be asked to respond to a small number of questions that we will use to screen your eligibility for the role. You will also be asked to provide your cv.
• Eligible applications will be reviewed by our recruitment team and the hiring manager. We review all applications for authenticity. While we embrace the use of AI tools to assist you, all content must genuinely represent your own work, and have been reviewed and personalised by you. 
• A small number of candidates will be invited to a phone call with the hiring manager. The purpose of this call is to check our understanding of your application and to answer any questions you have. 
• We normally have two interviews, which may take place in-person. Interviews will be with the hiring manager and at least one other colleague. 
• You will usually be asked to undertake a work-based assessment in advance of your interviews. This will be an opportunity for you to show how you would perform some part of the role. You will be given advance notice and clear instructions. 
• If you have any questions about or feel that you need any adjustments to the recruitment process, including adjustments for neurodiversity, please contact our People and Culture team at recruitment@raspberrypi.org.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and we expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Everyone appointed to a role at the Foundation will be required to undergo a background check to confirm that you are a suitable person to work with children. Further background checks will be made at regular intervals thereafter.