Head of Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship (Fixed Term) at University of Cambridge

**About the Division/School:**

The Mastercard Foundation Climate Resilience and Sustainability Collaborative Program aims to tackle the climate crisis in Africa by promoting relevant academic work, curriculum development, research, innovation, and entrepreneurship in collaboration with African partners. Africa is the continent most impacted by climate change and has the highest rate of youth unemployment. The program is dedicated to supporting the next generation of African leaders who will tackle the climate crisis by fostering the continent’s green economy and creating jobs. Central to this mission is the promotion of African climate innovation and entrepreneurship talent, ventures, and ecosystems. The Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship (SI&E) branch of the program is established through a partnership between the University of Cambridge and three African institutions, which serve as anchor partners to further expand collaboration and impact.

**About the Role:**

The Head of Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship will spearhead the strategic growth, ensure long-term impact, and oversee the execution of the Program’s SI&E branch from 2025 to 2030. This role requires close collaboration with the Collaborative anchor partners in Africa (including the SI&E Lead counterpart role-holders), other strategic African partner organizations to advance SI&E, the University of Cambridge SI&E community, an African-based SI&E advisory group, the Program’s Management Board at Cambridge, and the Mastercard Foundation. Building and maintaining these partnerships is crucial for the success of the program.

Key responsibilities include:

– Leading and developing the climate SI&E program using insights from the 2024/2025 scoping and planning phase, alongside ongoing intelligence about key African climate priorities and opportunities.
– Driving the execution of the climate SI&E program.
– Supporting up to 200 social ventures across the African continent.
– Ensuring the long-term impact of the SI&E program.

**Benefits of Working at Cambridge:**

– Competitive salary with automatic service-related pay progression and annual cost of living adjustments.
– Generous annual leave of 41 days (including bank holidays).
– Comprehensive family-friendly policies, such as generous maternity, adoption, and shared parental leave entitlements, workplace nurseries, and childcare salary exchange schemes.
– A robust auto-enrolment pension scheme with a generous employer contribution.
– Support for relocation/accommodation provision.

The University of Cambridge is dedicated to helping staff thrive both professionally and personally. We strive for a healthy work/life balance, blending the positives of our distinctive in-person environment with the flexibility of hybrid working arrangements. The degree of remote work for this role can be discussed with the recruiting manager.

**Fixed-term:** The funds for this post are available until 31 July 2030 initially.

**Closing Date:** Sunday, 19 January 2025
**Interview Date:** Week commencing 3 February 2025

For informal inquiries about the role, please contact Robert Foster-Jones, Programme Administrator, Mastercard Foundation Collaborative, at rjf58@cam.ac.uk. Please quote reference XN44406 in your application and any correspondence related to this vacancy.

The University actively promotes equality, diversity, and inclusion, encouraging applications from all sections of society. We also have a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK