Job description

M-KOPA Labs, the Research & Development arm within M-KOPA, is looking for someone with a passion for motorbikes and an aspiration to listen to the Voice of the Customer to bring the best PAYG e-Bike to market. 

This is an exciting time to join Labs: with recent success developing solar technologies that deliver positive impact for low-income communities across Africa, we are expanding our R&D pipeline significantly. The role will support Labs to further its knowledge of the impact and customer need for more Pay-As-You-Go (PAYG) connected products and services. 

Labs has turned its attention to PAYG Mobility, particularly focused on electric bikes, which can transform the mobility sector across Africa.

The Mobility Mechanic and Fleet Officer will be based in Nairobi and work closely with the Mobility team, based in Kenya and the UK. In this position, you will take a leading role to manage and maintain Labs’ growing fleet of petrol and electric motorbikes and advocate for the e-bike customer to feed into the e-bike design process.

This role is central to advancing M-KOPA’s commitment to capturing the customer voice to design best-in-class products and services that create a meaningful, lasting impact on the lives of customers.   

SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES  

• Manage the fleet of e-bikes purchased across a number of providers
• Manage the fleet of petrol test and serviceable bikes that are back on our campus
• Act as a lead mechanic, repairing and servicing bikes when needed to ensure they are in working shape
• Monitor and track bike spares and supplies
• Actively get involved in the motorbike design and testing process, guided test riders on proper use and specification of e-bikes
• Practically help with the set-up at the start of a customer test trial and serve as a point of contact to test riders for maintenance needs
• Manage the stock of motorbike spare parts, accessories, tools, customer test preparation materials
• Speak with test customers, boda associations, and boda stage heads, before and after test drives to understand their riding experience and where they encountered technical troubles, and how M-KOPA can work together more closely with them
• Support the conversion of petrol bikes to e-bikes, when needed
• Understand all the mechanics of repairing e-bikes and the charging and discharging of the battery
• Explore how e-bikes can be tampered with by customers to support the proper build of the e-bike

KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS 

The successful applicant will have experience with:

• building and maintaining motorbikes, being especially skilled in motorbike electronic components,
• any experience with electric vehicle components, including lithium-ion batteries and motors is an added benefit
• managing fleet and spare-part inventory using basic computer spreadsheets
• engaging customers to act as a Mobility Voice of the customer champion, and
• developing a maintenance and repair schedule to ensure the e-bike fleet is in excellent condition before customer tests.  

We are looking for candidates who exhibit:

• Extensive knowledge of all aspects of bike maintenance and repair
• Knowledge of batteries a plus
• Ability to effectively communicate with customers, management, and other staff members
• Able to work independently and on own initiative