Original listing text, shown exactly as published by the company.
In this role, you'll be responsible for
Strategic Security & Risk Translation
- Translate Wave's risk appetite and tolerance into clear, actionable security frameworks, standards, and operating models across all markets.
- Ensure that each of our operating markets has a clear Crisis Management plan that makes sense in the local context - along with the training, comms, and tooling needed to action these plans if and when necessary.
Crisis Management & Incident Response
- Together with your team, serve as Wave's primary crisis response leader for security incidents across all markets, providing 24/7 on-call support and rapid decision-making during emergencies.
- Lead response to critical incidents including terrorist activity, armed conflict, civil unrest, kidnapping threats, violent crime, and natural disasters.
- Establish and maintain crisis response protocols, evacuation procedures, and emergency communication systems across all operating countries.
- Build and maintain business continuity plans that ensure Wave can continue operating safely during periods of instability.
Security Leadership & Team Development
- Lead, mentor, and develop security managers and security staff in each of Wave's operating markets.
- Build strong, trust-based relationships with country leadership, local teams, and partners—positioning security as a collaborative and enabling function, not a barrier.
- Foster a security-conscious culture across Wave where security, integrity, and customer trust are embedded in everyday operations.
Operational Security Implementation
- Together with your team, ensure physical security measures are in place for offices, cash operations, and service points (CCTV, access control, secure storage).
- Ensure that we have global standards for secure cash handling, movement, and storage practices. Insist on consistent and audited security protocols for staff travel, field deployments, and high-risk activities. Together with our engineering Security team, develop tools and systems for tracking security incidents, analyzing patterns, and measuring effectiveness.
- Collaborate with our Engineering Security team to develop tools and systems
- Serve as Wave’s primary point of contact with any security consultants.
Key details
Location
- This role is remote/flexible across Wave's operating markets.
- You must be willing and able to travel extensively (30-50% travel) to markets across West and Central Africa.
- This is a permanent position.
- Our salaries are competitive and are calculated using a transparent formula. For this role, depending on your level and location, we offer a salary up to $190,900, plus a generous equity package.
- We offer generous health insurance for yourself and your dependents.
- We support working parents - we offer 26 weeks of parental leave for mothers and 4 weeks for fathers, in addition to subsidized child care when they return to work.
Requirements
- Experience: 8-12+ years in security, risk, or resilience leadership, with at least 5 years directly managing security operations across multiple high risk countries or regions.
- Experience in mobile money, fintech, international development, telecommunications, or financial services across Africa strongly preferred.
- Excellent written and verbal communications.
- High-Risk Context: Extensive experience operating in high-risk, volatile environments (conflict zones, post-conflict regions, areas with terrorism, organized crime, or civil unrest).
- Leadership: Proven track record leading, mentoring, and developing distributed security teams across geographically dispersed locations and diverse cultural contexts. Must be pragmatic, hands-on, and excellent at building trust.
- Crisis Management: Demonstrated experience leading crisis response efforts, including evacuations, hostage situations, armed conflict, or major security incidents.
- Regional Expertise: Strong knowledge of security landscapes across West and Central Africa, including local networks and relationships with authorities, regulators, and partners.
Languages: Fluent in English, French fluency preferred
