Higher Education Development Lead (evolving into Founding Business School Campus Director)

Higher Education Development Lead (Founding Business School Campus Director)

Join KLU Kühne Logistics University as the leader of new higher education expansion into Southern Africa. The role will drive market assessment, partner engagement, and local operations for a KLU branch campus in Johannesburg.

About KLU

Founded in 2010 and AACSB‑accredited, KLU is a private, research‑based business school that specialises in logistics and supply chain management. KLU operates a campus in Hamburg, Germany, and an Asian campus in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and plans further expansion into Africa and the Americas.

About the Role

The position reports to KLU's President and works closely with the Executive Board and the International Development Team at Hamburg headquarters to lay the foundation for a new campus in South Africa. The role may evolve into KLU's first South Africa Campus Director.

Key Responsibilities

• Drive feasibility studies and market assessment for a KLU–South Africa joint degree program in logistics and supply chain management.
• Collaborate with a designated South African partner university to align regulatory, academic, and operational frameworks between German and South African higher education systems.
• Design curriculum and develop a roadmap for accreditation, licensing, and implementation processes between KLU and the partner university.
• Build stakeholder relations and brand awareness within Southern African higher education through outreach, academic events, short courses, and collaborative marketing activities.
• Establish and nurture partnerships with universities, business schools, government agencies, industry associations, corporates, and NGOs to create a dynamic ecosystem at the intersection of academia, industry, and policy.
• Recruit, onboard, and manage a small local administrative team and foster effective collaboration with academic and administrative units at both KLU headquarters and the local partner university.
• Develop and manage project budgets and multi‑year financial planning; prepare regular financial reports and analyses to ensure transparency and accountability.
• Define organisational structures, reporting lines, and governance models in close collaboration with KLU headquarters to ensure efficient and compliant local operations.
• Oversee and manage infrastructure planning for KLU activities in Southern Africa, including site selection for offices and campus facilities, procurement of equipment and services, and potential renovation needs.
• Design and implement a strategic roadmap for the development of KLU's operations in Southern Africa, covering academic program portfolio, research collaborations, executive education initiatives, and outreach activities.
• Oversee the legal setup of a KLU subsidiary company in South Africa and ensure compliance with South African corporate, labour, and tax regulations.

Required Qualifications

• 10+ years of work experience and a master's degree in business administration, management, logistics & supply chain management, finance, analytics, accounting, law, higher education studies, or a related field.
• Strong experience and passion for higher education in South Africa, including experience in establishing joint degree programmes, programme registration and accreditation.
• Operations mindset: proactive, pragmatic, and comfortable navigating ambiguity.
• Excellent people and intercultural communication skills; persuasive and skilled at navigating diverse international stakeholders.
• Strong project and process management skills; proven experience in project management and start‑up environments is a plus.
• Excellent written and spoken English; a valid South African work permit.

What We Offer

• Flexible work culture with a mix of on‑site work at a newly established office, travel and remote options.
• Professional development with continuous learning opportunities.
• International environment with a diverse, multicultural team.

Diversity & Inclusion

We welcome applications from all backgrounds regardless of gender, nationality, ethnicity, religion, disability, age, sexual orientation and identity. We are an equal opportunity employer.

Contact & Application

Submit your cover letter, CV, references, annual gross salary expectations and earliest start date to or click the “Apply” button. For questions, contact Ina Litterst, Head of International Development at . Applications are open until November 15 . Shortlisted candidates will be invited to a first round of online interviews in November and December 2025, followed by a second round of in‑person interviews in Johannesburg in January 2026.

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