Do you want to do work that matters? Do you want to help improve the lives of some of the most hardworking people in Africa, while also reducing carbon emissions? Do you want to use your skills to advance Africa and the Global South towards a zero-carbon future, not just to make a living? Ampersand is your answer.

About Ampersand

Ampersand is Africa’s emobility pioneer. Ampersand provides electric motorcycles and charging infrastructure (battery swap stations), uniquely tailored to serve half of Africa’s road fleet: Commercial motorcycle taxi and delivery drivers. Moto taxis are a primary means of public transport in African cities, and it is estimated that these drivers spend >$6Bn p.a. on gasoline in East Africa alone. Ampersand has developed an electric solution that is more powerful, fun to drive, and cost-effective than the incumbent. Ampersand drivers routinely earn over 45% more income by going electric.

The company started in Kigali, Rwanda, and expanded into Nairobi, Kenya in 2022. Today it has around 5,000 e-motorcycles on the road and 58 battery swap stations across the two countries. Ampersand is leading the market in quality, affordable tech, customer traction, and operational systems. The Ampersand team consists of 500+ staff drawn from diverse backgrounds and is working hard to see all 5 million taxi motorbikes in East Africa become electric by 2030. Ampersand is rapidly scaling its operations and is looking for innovative professionals who are passionate about clean energy and environmental impact to lead and contribute to our rapid growth.

Ampersand values innovation, creativity, and continuous improvement. It seeks people who are proactive problem solvers to drive results. Ampersand promotes leadership within the organization and is a place where you can grow your career as you work with some of the brightest and most hard-working individuals in East Africa.

Our Values

• Customer-centric Everyday: We prioritize our customers daily, tailoring solutions to exceed expectations.
• Challenge The Status Quo Through Innovation: Our dedicated teams constantly challenge the status quo, driving innovation to enhance customer experiences and deliver solutions that go beyond expectations
• Love Solving Problems Together: Internal collaboration is our approach; we thrive on solving challenges alongside our customers.
• Stay Agile: We stay agile to swiftly meet dynamic customer needs and adapt to a changing landscape.
• Driven By People And Planet: Beyond business, we're committed to people and the planet, ensuring a positive impact.

About the role

Reports to: CTO

The Senior Engineering Manager is a seasoned engineer turned leader who remains hands-on and connected to the codebase but is primarily focused on serving and empowering their teams. You will leverage your technical expertise and leadership skills to mentor engineers, foster collaboration with product teams, and drive the delivery of high-quality digital products. Your servant leadership style will cultivate a culture of continuous learning, innovation, and technical excellence.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and grow a diverse engineering team, fostering a culture of continuous learning, innovation, and high performance.
• Stay engaged with the codebase and technical challenges, providing guidance and support without becoming detached from the realities of engineering.
• Collaborate closely with product managers, designers, and other stakeholders to translate customer needs into scalable, secure, and high-quality technical solutions.
• Participate in product planning, requirement gathering, and roadmap discussions to ensure alignment between engineering efforts and business priorities.
• Promote best practices in software development, testing, security, observability, and deployment.
• Act as a servant leader by removing obstacles, fostering collaboration, and encouraging innovation within and across teams.
• Proactively troubleshoot, debug, and resolve system issues to maintain operational excellence.
• Partner with cross-functional teams—including hardware, design, and product—to prototype, design, and develop new features.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science or a related technical discipline.
• 5+ years of hands-on engineering experience with proficiency in languages such as Python, Go, C/C++, Java, C#, or JavaScript.
• Proven experience leading and developing engineering teams, with a passion for mentorship and career growth.
• Demonstrated ability to balance hands-on technical involvement with leadership responsibilities.
• Experience collaborating closely with product teams to deliver impactful features and solutions.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to manage complex projects involving multiple stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in full-stack development, particularly with Python and JavaScript.
• Prior servant leadership experience fostering technical talent and team cohesion.
• Strong understanding of software architecture, DevOps practices, and modern development methodologies.
• Ability to balance technical excellence with customer and business focus.

Timing

ASAP

Compensation

A competitive compensation package commensurate with local market rates and experience including health insurance.

Job location

This role will be based either in Kigali, Rwanda