Purpose of the Role

The MD/CEO is the Primary Strategist and Visionary Leader of the Bulk Food Company. Reporting directly to the Board of Directors, the MD/CEO is accountable for the company's overall Profit & Loss, corporate governance, and strategic positioning as Africa's most trusted food trade orchestrator.

This role is about building the ecosystem that makes agricultural trade bankable, transparent, and resilient — managing the macroeconomic and policy environment, securing large-scale institutional funding, and driving the company's Digital Transformation mandate at the highest level.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Vision & Sovereign Impact

• Define and champion the long-term corporate vision to advance Food Security and Export Revenues across Nigeria and the African continent.

• Align the company's orchestration model with national agricultural policies, positioning Bulk Foods as a key strategic partner to Federal and State governments.

• Drive expansion into new regional markets across Africa, unlocking foreign exchange earnings through structured export agreements.

• Set and communicate a clear strategic roadmap approved by the Board, translating vision into measurable operational milestones.

Governance & Stakeholder Engagement

• Serve as the primary liaison with governments, DFIs, commercial banks, bilateral agencies, and international trade partners.

• Ensure transparent governance, regulatory compliance, and full accountability to the Board of Directors.

• Represent Bulk Foods at national and global forums on food security, agribusiness, structured trade, and digital agriculture.

• Build and maintain strategic relationships with institutional buyers, commodity exchanges, and export regulators.

Financial Stewardship

• Oversee all corporate financial performance, ensuring profitability, margin protection, and sustainable growth.

• Secure funding through innovative financing mechanisms, PPPs, blended finance structures, and international DFI investment.

• Drive revenue growth through structured trade agreements, digital platform monetisation, and value-added services.

• Manage risk across trade operations, currency exposure, and counterparty credit risk.

Operational Oversight

• Provide strategic direction to the COO and senior leadership team, ensuring operational excellence across aggregation, logistics, warehousing, cold chain, and export operations.

• Monitor KPIs across trade throughput, digital adoption, food security impact, and export competitiveness.

• Champion digital transformation — ensuring the proprietary platform becomes the backbone of trade orchestration across the ecosystem.

• Embed a culture of continuous improvement, data-driven decision-making, and operational efficiency.

People & Culture

• Build and inspire a high-performing executive team, fostering a culture of accountability, innovation, and resilience.

• Promote diversity, inclusion, and professional development at all levels of the organisation.

• Balance institutional depth with startup agility to remain competitive in rapidly evolving markets.

• Lead succession planning for all critical senior roles.

Qualifications & Certifications

Advanced degree (MBA, MSc or M.Eng) in Business Administration, Agriculture, Economics, Supply Chain Management or a related field

A first degree (B.Sc / HND) in Agriculture, Business, Economics, Engineering or a closely related discipline — minimum Second Class Upper

Additional qualifications in Trade Finance, Agricultural Policy or Digital Transformation are a strong advantage

Fellow or Member — Institute of Directors (IoD) — mandatory for board-level engagement

Fellow or Member — Chartered Institute of Supply Chain Management (CISCM) or equivalent

CFA, ACA, ACCA or equivalent financial qualification (strong advantage)

Agribusiness / Food Systems certification from international institutions (e.g. IFAD, FAO, WFP programmes) — added advantage

Experience Required

• Minimum 25–30 years of progressive senior leadership experience in agribusiness, supply chain, trade finance, food systems, or closely related industries.

• Demonstrable P&L ownership at enterprise level — ideally across multiple business units or geographies.

• Proven track record in leading large-scale agricultural programmes, structured trade operations, and Public-Private Partnership (PPP) models.

• Strong financial acumen with direct experience in fundraising, DFI investment structuring, blended finance, and corporate governance.

• Expertise in digital transformation, technology commercialisation, and data-driven business ecosystems — with experience managing a proprietary technology platform preferred.

• Exceptional negotiation, contract structuring, and multi-stakeholder management skills at board and government level.

• Demonstrated experience within SME and startup environments — having actively driven innovation, operational transformation, and business growth in growth-stage businesses.

• Ability to perform effectively under sustained pressure in fast-changing environments where structures are evolving, and execution speed is critical.

Managing Director / Chief Executive Officer