About the Organisation
The Mandela Rhodes Foundation is one of Nelson Mandela’s three official legacy organisations, founded in 2003 in partnership with the Rhodes Trust.
Our purpose is to build exceptional leadership capacity in Africa. We find, fund, and empower young Africans who aspire to use their talents to serve their societies and our continent. We do this by providing a postgraduate scholarship for young leaders to study in South Africa and participate in a residential Leadership Development Programme. Our programmes are built on Nelson Mandela’s belief that leadership begins with inner transformation, and our founding principles of reconciliation, education, entrepreneurship, and leadership. Over the past 22 years the MRF has awarded 730+ Mandela Rhodes Scholarships to young leaders from 37 African countries.
About the Job
The External Relations Manager’s (ERM) role is to deliver on the Foundation’s communications and alumni relations objectives. This role oversees the External Relations Officer (ERO) and reports to the External Relations Director (ERD), who is accountable for developing and overseeing the implementation of the communications and alumni relations strategy, adjusting it each year to ensure alignment with the organisation’s strategic goals as set by the CEO, and available capacity.
The ERM is accountable for ensuring the MRF brand remains contextually relevant and that its means of communication serve the purposes of relating to our own community effectively, enhancing the reputation and the impact of the MRF in broader society through thought leadership, and attracting top quality candidates for the Scholarship.
Critical to the External Relations Manager role is exceptional administrative capability. This includes but isn’t limited to the ability to manage projects end to end, with meticulous attention to detail, managing timelines and keeping the team on track. Additionally, the role requires strong written and oral communication skills and the ability to create key partnerships across the African continent.
Key Responsibilities
A: PAN AFRICAN OUTREACH (PAO)
Support the ERD with the Pan-African Pan African Outreach strategy by managing the implementation of the communications and marketing aspects of the plan
Seek advantageous relationships that can advance the PAO and work with the ERD in establishing and maintaining these relationships.
B: GENERAL COMMUNICATIONS AND BRAND BUILDING
Support the ERD with the implementation of the MRF’s communications strategy
Support the CEO’s office with social media requests (e.g. marketing alumni events, opportunities, calls for involvement, covering CEO’s engagements)
Manage the MRF’s website, working with external supplier, to keep it updated, and review and improve it periodically, with the support of the ERO.
With the support and oversight of the ERD, manage the production of the annual yearbook, co-ordinating the internal team and external suppliers
C: MANAGE ALUMNI RELATIONS AND ENGAGEMENT
Support ERD by co-developing, coordinating and managing the implementation of the alumni relations strategy.
Continuously source MRF alumni’s achievements and successes to amplify.
Liaise with and provide support, input, and where necessary leadership to the Alumni Committee, towards establishing regional structures for alumni relations
Initiate and market alumni social events: regional alumni gatherings, ad-hoc virtual social touchpoints for alumni not in regional hubs, and alumni reunions for significant class milestones (e.g. 5, 10, 20 years)
D: DRIVE DELIVERY OF CORE ALUMNI DEVELOPMENT OFFERINGS
Co-ordinate the internal team and manage external suppliers to organise and market the regional alumni gatherings and events, with the support from ERO and oversight from the ERD, and the help of the operations team:
Conceptualise and manage delivery of the Shaun Johnson Memorial Scholarships (SJMS), an exclusive opportunity to MRF alumni for PhD study in the UK.
Conceptualise and manage delivery of the Äänit Prize, a funding vehicle for social impact initiatives for Mandela Rhodes and Rhodes Scholarship alumni.
E: THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
Support the ERD with the implementation of the refreshed thought leadership strategy. This is likely to include:
Liaising with alumni to commission thought leadership content
Capitalising on panel discussions, guest speakers, and any opportunities to generate thought leadership content for the MRF’s channels (written and video)
Organising events / webinars to advance MRF thought leadership and build the brand;
Managing the podcast production pipeline with external suppliers, with oversight from the ERD. This includes sourcing interviewees, drafting scripts, managing the production, implementation and promotional timelines.
F: RESEARCH AND PROJECTS
Support the MRF with the implementation of identified projects that are key to advancing the work of the foundation, as and when required.
Requirements
Undergraduate degree required (the fields of journalism, media, marketing and communications, and design are preferable, but other disciplinary backgrounds will be considered), Honours degree an advantage but not a requirement.
Experience: 5 – 7 years of experience in social media management / digital marketing / content creation (photography, videography, and writing).
The candidate will need to be willing to relocate to Cape Town, and travel on occasion for work.
Non-South Africans in possession of the relevant working documents are encouraged to apply.
Experience of living or working in other African countries is advantageous.
Administrative skills: A large component of this role is managing the timelines for the outputs listed above, which is central to the success of the department.
Meticulous attention to detail and planning capability. While the role is creative in nature, there is also a highly administrative component that is key to the success of the department.
Creative skills: this role includes content creation, and the candidate must be able to cover the basics (shooting photographs, creating simple designs for invitations or quote cards, shooting mobile video for social), and then brief and manage external suppliers (photography, videography, design) when professional-level creative work is required
Confident using social media and digital publishing tools (Tweetdeck, Canva or similar, Meta publishing tools and paid interfaces across all social media platforms)
To apply
To apply, email your application by Sunday 12th October 2025 to melissa@actionappointments.co.za
