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 towards a zero-carbon future, not just to make a living? Ampersand is your answer.

About Ampersand

Ampersand is a pioneer provider of electric motorcycles and charging infrastructure (battery swap stations), especially for motorcycle taxi 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 fuel alone in East Africa. Ampersand has developed an electric solution that is more powerful, fun to drive, and more cost-effective than the incumbent. Ampersand drivers routinely earn 25-30% more income by going electric.

The company started in Kigali, Rwanda and expanded into Nairobi, Kenya in 2023. Today it has ~1,300 e-motorcycles on the road and 30 battery swap stations. Ampersand is leading the market in quality, affordable tech, customer traction, and operational systems. The Ampersand team consists of 240+ 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 is a company that 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 hard-working individuals in East Africa.

About the role

Ampersand manages a fleet of batteries that our moto drivers change at one of our many Swap Stations. These batteries are used by more than 500 vehicles across multiple countries, which make 5 million km every month and swapped thousands of times a day. We are on our way to release more than 2000 batteries and vehicles in the next year.

All this data is collected and utilized by the infrastructure and tools that our software team develops in house. We would like to rethink how we approach collecting and making use of this vast amount of data to make us ready for scaling further.

This would be a role in the Software Engineering team of the Engineering organization. Your objectives will include the following:

• Set up and improve Ampersand’s data infrastructure and pipelines, improve data quality and efficiency
• Introduce data engineering concepts/tools and establish the culture in software engineering team
• Help to shape Ampersand’s digital products through data driven decision making
• Shape the data backend of Ampersand to allow for business intelligence to be easily extracted.
• Harness machine learning as a way of optimizing Ampersands charging and battery infrastructure.
• Mentor team members on how to use data engineering tools and integrate them in our daily work
• Lead and review devops of the digital portfolio (Android app and AmperOps platform)
• Ensure synergy between hardware and software by communicating and influencing decisions with other engineering team

• You love to see your impact on the product as quick as possible
• You love complicated systems where optimization is key
• You are not afraid of infrastructure projects and like playing with hardware
• You like working in a fast-moving agile environment
• You are motivated by personal growth and seeing your teammates grow and develop
• You are looking for an entrepreneurial company that values innovation and strong execution
• You value diversity and community in the workplace

Minimum requirements

• Minimum of 6 years of prior experience in Software Development
• At least 2-3 years of experience in Data Engineering
• Degree in computer science/electrical engineering is a bonus, but experience is also valued
• Technical abilities with Linux, Bash, VM’s, Docker, Networks, Distributed systems
• Writing code in Python/Go/Java/JS when needed to assist in components of the process
• Experience in cloud systems (we use Azure)
• Hands-on experience with commonly used Data Engineering tools (Apache Airflow, Tableau, Looker, Kafka.)
• Familiarity with Scrum and Agile
• A strong work ethic, and the ability to manage shifting priorities and unforeseen challenges
• Strong communication skills with a supportive and nurturing disposition
• (Bonus) Experience in a start-up environment

Timing

ASAP

Compensation:

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

Job location

This role will be based in Kigali, Rwanda.