Skip to main content

Cloning Myself - A job for kenyans

Calling on all Kenyans who might want to become my clone. I've recently embarked on a campaign to re-brand and consolidate all my companies under Genius Centre. If you think you might be up to the challenge of being the new manager, please do apply. The vacancy can be seen below. And please please please, do not apply other than through the provided email address and do not apply on a date later than 15th April 2009.

GENIUS CENTRE – CENTRE MANAGER
Genius Centre (“the Centre”) is the home for entrepreneurs in Kenya, where innovative ideas are born, nurtured and developed to be profitable, high growth, and sustainable businesses. Set up by entrepreneurs, this centre has over five years been the base of pioneering and innovative companies that have redefined the business landscape in Kenya. SoftLaw, LawsofKenya.com, Genius Forex, BetOnStocks and FormAKenyanCompany.com among many others have their beginnings at Genius Centre. At the Centre we have provided a wide range of business support services to over 500 businesses: including electronic legal libraries, e-learning, serviced offices, forex trading training, business registration services and many more. Our efforts have been recognized by international bodies: such as the World Bank and IFC; international and local media: including BBC and Nation Media Group; our government and foreign governments.

The Centre is continuously innovating and reinventing itself. Our goal is to strengthen our base and export the concept of Genius Centre locally and abroad. To meet this goal we are looking for a Centre Manager who will take on this challenge. If you believe you meet the strict criteria of this vacancy advertisement please send an application letter and your resume to geniuscentrejob@yahoo.com with the subject heading “GENIUS CENTRE MANAGER”

Genius Centre is an equal opportunity employer.

Title of Role: Centre Manager

Purpose and Scope: The centre manager is responsible for managing the operations and business of the Centre including its subsidiary companies (SoftLaw, Genius Forex etc.) on a day-to-day basis. The Centre Manager will be well versed in business management, information systems management, and cost and financial accounting.

Outputs Expected From the Centre Manager
1. Business operation management, plans and reports
2. Information systems support and reports
3. Financial statements, plans and reports
4. Internal and external communications
5. Efficient utilisation of assets and resources

Skills Required

1. Business Management and Financial Expertise: a degree or diploma from a reputable university in business management; and knowledge of cost and financial accounting is required.
2. Marketing, Public Relations and Sales: the candidate must have at least one year experience and demonstrate ability to market and sell unconventional products.
3. Information Systems Management: at least one year hands-on experience managing a Microsoft Windows XP network with at least twenty network points is required. The candidate must have working knowledge of Microsoft Office computer applications, internet browsers and other common software. Although the candidate is not required to have technical training in network administration; he or she must demonstrate innate understanding of information systems and posses natural troubleshooting skills.
4. Communication Skills: the centre manager must have excellent written and spoken English. He or she must have experience in the preparation of business communication material and should be able to originate and express ideas in a clear and concise manner.
5. Other skills that are not mandatory but will be an advantage are:
a. Strong web programming, graphic design and software engineering skills
b. Demonstrable skills in website SEO and internet marketing.
c. Procurement skills

Personality Attributes
The Centre Manager must posses all the personality attributes below if they are to succeed in their mandate:
1. An IQ of 125 or higher;
2. Very hardworking. The Centre manager should be ready to work in the evenings, weekends, Sundays and public holidays to get the job done;
3. A creative and inquisitive mind and a strong desire to increase their knowledge;
4. An in-depth understanding and very high interest in entrepreneurship and technology;
5. Widely read in diverse and current topics and a habitual reader;
6. Extremely ambitious;
7. Socially active and friendly.
8. Tactful and persuasive;
9. Strong ethics;
10. Well groomed and very well organized;
11. 27 years old or younger;
12. Excellent sense of humour;
13. Physically fit and actively plays one sport.

Remuneration
The successful candidate will be offered a competitive compensation package.

Comments

Anonymous said…
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said…
I'm not going to be applying myself, but I felt that I simply had to leave a comment, seeing as the job description and candidate requirements touch on two issues that I have blogged about in the past:
1) Restrictive Job Requirements
2) Corporate Authoritarianism

Seeing your post in my RSS feed definitely raised some hackles, but that's just my personal philosophy one what businesses should go for in their recruitment and staff retention strategies. Still, good luck in finding someone who is the right fit for your company.
Anonymous said…
Those are 2 or 3 jobs rolled into 1.
Split them up, and you will find your people, and they will be able to take your company to the next level. I suggest reading E-Myth revisited.

Also, curious, would you hire anyone with disabilities (e.g. blind).
Harry Karanja said…
@Inari

Thanks for your comments, and the links to your blog posts which I read with interest.

I admit that the requirements are restrictive and this is intentional. From past experience I have discovered I get better results when my vacancy ads are more specific. However that said, I would be very impressed and ready to hire anyone who does not necessarily fit my profile but has the galls to apply and take on the challenge.
Harry Karanja said…
@Anon 12:01

You're probably right, this is more than one job. I do need someone who is multi-talented and able to wrap their minds around the diverse businesses I run, without fearing the challenge of doing things outside their area of expertise.

As mentioned in the vacancy ad, I am an equal opportunities employer and I would not discriminate against anyone with disability (blind or otherwise) provided they are qualified for the position.
Unknown said…
I understand why you are asking for this. Very high standards, the same that you have demonstrated throughout you life. Harry you do not just inspire your generation but even generations that are older than you. By the way, how can one learn about your life, may be a book. Could inspire even more
Anonymous said…
Harry, PR is a communication skill while marketing and sales are more business oriented skills. They do not qualify to be in the same category. One is communication while the other is business skills. Just mentioning having a communication skill is enough.
Next time you have a job advert, let us know and we will share it among our subscribers.

www.careerpointkenya.blogspot.com

Popular posts from this blog

Differences between a Business Name (Sole-Proprietorship / Partnership) and a Limited Liability Company

While consulting for our online company registration service, Incorporator I find myself answering the question "What is the difference between a sole-proprietorship and a company?" Anybody who is considering starting a business must consider what type of business structure is needed for his or her particular situation. In Kenya there are three types of structures that one can use to start their business. 1. An LLC, or Limited Liability Company 2. A sole proprietorship 3. A Partnership A Sole-proprietorship and a Partnership are registered through the same manner (Form BN/2) with the exception that a partnership has more than one owner and although not necessary, entrepreneurs are advised to register a partnership deed as well. In this article all references to sole-proprietorship also include partnership. Understanding the advantages and disadvantages of each structure is important when deciding which one you want to use for your company. ...

Cyber Cafe with an EDGE

Followed up from Laying the Groundwork for a rural cyber I've finally got around to writing this. Thanks for you all who patiently waited. Although I approached the project as an "internet consultant", I soon realised I would need to implement the whole spectrum of tasks required to get the cyber running. I spent almost a week laying the structured cabling, installing the software, and configuring the network. Most of the work I was doing for the first time (e.g. drilling holes in concrete to fix the trunking screws) and most of it was hard, but all of it was enjoyable. I needed to prove the project was implementable with minimal human resources (if it was going to work elsewhere). With an eye on both troubleshooting by the owner and future projects I prepared detailed How To manuals for most of the tasks. So the day finally arrived, November 17th I connected all the PCs to the internet. The results were incredible, the speeds were nearly as good as my 256K broadband conn...

Selling stuff online to Kenyans

You might not know this but my love of entrepreneurship is fuelled majorly by my love of computer programming. My first exposure to computers was in 1988 when I played shuffleboard on an Atari. Having been raised in the boondocks I was utterly spellbound with the concept of a video game. In 'shags' we hardly ever got toys from the shops; instead we would create our own toys using locally available material. For toy cars we twisted and shaped wire coat hangers and cut out rubber tires from old (and sometimes mom's new) bathroom slippers. For planes, we stuck a stalk of grass through a dried maize leaf and made our 'propellers' rotate by holding them out in front and running into the wind (incidentally this was my all-time favourite). For marbles we hunted for used and discarded bottle-tops (beer bottle-tops were coveted). In fact we had so many toys that our game time never felt inadequate. That was until I discovered video games. Hard as I thought I didn't see...