Recruitment Lead

About Onja

Onja is a social enterprise training underprivileged youth into world-class software developers.

We find the brightest students in Madagascar who can’t afford to continue their education and train them in English language and software development. After just two-and-a-half years they are ready to work as remote front-end software developers in international tech teams. 

Once in a job, our developers earn a good salary that helps them support their families and pay forward the opportunity to a new wave of students. They unlock exciting careers that fulfil their potential, and accelerate the development of their nation (see ‘How Onja Works’ below). 

Our first cohort, ‘Wave 1’, consists of nineteen talented and committed graduates who are now working remotely for our partner companies in Europe and the US. With this immensely successful first cohort, and a proven social model, our goal is now to scale our impact: we aim to take on 360 new students over the next four years. 

Our fast-growing team is very united, committed to the mission, and hardworking, but we also maintain a relaxed and peaceful atmosphere that you’ll find everywhere in Madagascar. 

Onja is in Toamasina, a lively city with beautiful beaches, nice restaurants, and plenty to do and see. Toamasina is Madagascar’s second-largest city (population 300,000) yet is surrounded by plenty of natural beauty and even has a national park nearby.

About the role

At Onja, we believe in the potential people have regardless of their background. We upskill underprivileged youth to work as software developers and allow Malagasy youth to accelerate Madagascar's development.
After the success of the first cohort of nineteen students (19), we are now looking forward to recruiting ninety students (90) every year for the next four years. Your mission as our Recruitment lead will be to plan and implement the selection for Onja’s next wave of students and to enroll the underprivileged youths that meet Onja criteria in order to fulfil Onja's mission. It is also important to make sure that the students recruitment process (from start to finish) is done properly in the most efficient, timely and cost-effective way. 

We believe in hiring based on skills, attitude and cultural fit rather than specific qualifications.

Your responsibilities will include: 

• Working closely with our Recruitment Manager to find new approaches and strategies, big and small, to improve Onja's recruitment process and developing methods to test the effectiveness of these ideas.
• Co-leading or leading the recruitment team, a team of at least four people. 
• Preparing and organising each stage of the recruitment process. 
• Collaborating with stakeholders or their assistants (DREN, CISCO, School Headmasters) in reaching potential students and providing support during our recruitment sessions.
• Leading and organising logistically challenging recruitment tours in different districts.
• Administering the recruitment exam sessions and leading the camp activities & selection.
• Organising a secure way for exams to be marked (if required).
• Developing and improving the content of the process, and tools for recruitment, including interviews, exams and camp.
• Supporting the National Alliances Lead in getting the BACC and BEPC results from the Malagasy government.
• Ensuring the efficiency of data collection and data management

Candidates can anticipate that reference checks will be conducted as part of our thorough evaluation process. 

Why work with us?

• Do impactful work:  Working with Onja gives you the ability to make a real tangible difference with your work, and have a deep sense of purpose in your everyday.  Our mission is to nurture talented, underprivileged youth to lead impactful careers in tech, unlock opportunities for others and accelerate Madagascar's development.
• Grow your skills fast: As a young fast-growing startup we are all in “over our heads” and this is a great place to grow.  You will be challenged but you’ll also be part of a very supportive team and caring environment. Our social model is innovative with exciting potential to scale, so there is a great opportunity for you to grow your career along with us.
• Work with very talented individuals who are very socially inclined:  At Onja you’ll join a community of talented and passionate people from around Madagascar and the world. 

How Onja works:

Onja is a social enterprise with a sustainable model:  

• Search for brilliant minds who would otherwise be limited to low-paid, unfulfilling careers. 
• Students receive two years of English and software development instruction. Meet a developer here: https://onja.org/blog 
• Graduates earn (and continue learning) at our outsourcing enterprise. 
• All profits are used to train the next wave of students and the cycle begins again. 

We want our hiring process to be fair and inclusive, so please do let us know if there are any reasonable adjustments we can make. For example, if you are neurodivergent, we can accommodate and discuss modifications to our hiring process with you.