Senior Manager, Business Performance & Analysis

The Senior Manager, Business Performance & Analysis will lead the analysis, interpretation, and management of institutional performance information to support evidence-based decision-making across the African Leadership University (ALU).

The role translates complex business, financial, operational, academic, and student data into clear insights, identifies performance trends and gaps, assesses their underlying drivers, and provides actionable recommendations to improve institutional outcomes. The role also strengthens ALU’s performance management and business intelligence capabilities, ensuring leadership has timely, reliable, and forward-looking information to guide strategic and operational decisions.

Role Responsibilities

Institutional Performance Management

• Lead the development, implementation, and continuous improvement of ALU’s institutional performance framework, including KPIs, targets, scorecards, and performance measures.
• Monitor performance against strategic and operational objectives, identify material variances, emerging risks, and areas of underperformance, and recommend appropriate interventions.
• Lead periodic performance reviews and provide analysis that enables leadership to understand not only what is happening but why it is happening and what action is required.
• Analyze performance across key institutional areas including enrolment, recruitment, retention, student progression, programme performance, revenue, costs, resource utilisation, and other strategic priorities.
• Establish appropriate performance benchmarks and support leadership in setting meaningful, measurable, and outcome-focused objectives and targets.

Business and Strategic Analysis

• Identify trends, patterns, performance drivers, and root causes across multiple sources of institutional data.
• Develop business cases, investment analyses, and decision papers, including assessment of financial, operational, and strategic implications.
• Undertake scenario analysis and modelling to assess the potential impact of strategic and operational decisions.
• Conduct complex business and institutional analysis to support strategic planning, operational decisions, and strategic initiatives and prioritization.
• Provide objective analysis and constructive challenge where data, assumptions, or proposed interventions require further scrutiny.
• Conduct internal and external benchmarking to assess institutional performance against relevant peer institutions, competitors, sector standards, and market trends.
• Translate analytical findings into clear recommendations, implications, and actions for senior leadership.

Performance Intelligence and Reporting

• Lead the development of high-quality management information, executive performance reports, dashboards, and analytical products for senior leadership and governance forums.
• Establish standards for performance reporting, data interpretation, and analytical storytelling.
• Ensure management reports focus on material performance issues, drivers, trends, and decisions rather than simply presenting data.
• Develop forward-looking analysis and forecasts to support proactive management of institutional performance.
• Work with data and technology teams to improve access to, integration of, and confidence in institutional data.
• Ensure the accuracy, consistency, and appropriate interpretation of performance information used for management decision-making.

Analytics Capability and Continuous Improvement

• Develop clear standards for analytical quality, delivery, and stakeholder service.
• Coach team members in analytical thinking, problem-solving, business partnering, and effective communication of insights.
• Develop and continuously improve analytical methodologies, tools, and processes.
• Identify opportunities to automate, simplify, and improve performance reporting and analysis.
• Promote a culture of evidence-based decision-making and stronger use of data across ALU.
• Partner with other functions to develop integrated views of institutional performance.

Executive Stakeholder Engagement

• Establish and maintain data supply arrangements with the functions that own the underlying data: agreed definitions, cut dates, quality standards, and named counterparts.
• Resolve definitional inconsistency across campuses, programs, and systems so that the institution reports a single number for each institutional metric.
• Build effective working relationships with senior leaders, Deans, Directors, and functional teams across ALU.
• Present complex analysis clearly to non-technical audiences and translate findings into practical business implications.
• Facilitate performance discussions and support leaders in identifying appropriate responses to performance gaps.
• Influence decisions through evidence, insight, and constructive challenge, including where findings may challenge established assumptions or practices.
• Provide analytical support to strategic, executive, and governance forums as required.
• Maintain a strong understanding of ALU’s operating environment, priorities, and strategic objectives to ensure analysis remains relevant to institutional needs.