Head of Strategic Finance, Africa

About Zipline Zipline is the world’s largest and most experienced drone delivery service. We are on a mission to serve all humans equally by ensuring access to food, medicine and essential goods anytime, anywhere. We design, build, and operate the world’s largest autonomous logistics system, delivering critical supplies quickly and reliably. Today, Zipline operates on four continents, makes a delivery somewhere in the world every 30 seconds, and has completed millions of deliveries to date, including blood, vaccines, medical supplies, food, and retail products.  Our customers include the world’s largest and most prominent healthcare systems, governments, retailers, restaurants and global businesses who rely on us to save lives, reduce emissions, increase economic opportunity, and provide delivery from point A to point B as fast as possible. The drone is only 15% of what we’ve built to enable seamless, reliable, global operations. Our system strengthens supply chains, reduces congestion, and gives people time back. With more than 140 million commercial autonomous miles safely flown, Zipline is redefining access to healthcare, consumer products, and food across the globe. We operate at a global scale and are looking for practical problem solvers who thrive on real-world challenges and rapid growth. Our team is motivated by building systems that have a direct, meaningful impact on people’s lives and by scaling the future of logistics. We are seeking people who sculpt from first principles, enjoy facing adversity, and can do the impossible at record breaking speeds. About the Role As Head of Strategic Finance, Africa, you will be a senior leader on Zipline’s Strategic Finance team and a core member of Zipline’s Africa Leadership Team. You will have end-to-end responsibility for financial strategy, planning, and performance management for Zipline’s Africa business, while playing a critical role in shaping Zipline’s global, consolidated financial strategy. Reporting to the Global Head of Strategic Finance, this role sits at the intersection of enterprise-wide decision-making and regional execution. Strategic Finance at Zipline owns the company’s consolidated business model, long-range planning, capital allocation, and global financial strategy – this role is a key leader within that function. You will ensure Africa strategy, investments, and performance are tightly integrated into Zipline’s overall business plan. As a member of the Africa Leadership Team, you will serve as a trusted financial partner to regional leadership, supporting operational execution, growth initiatives, and partnerships across multiple African markets. This role also carries responsibility for building a small, high-impact team. Your team will provide direct, embedded partnership to leaders across Africa’s Go-to-Market, Engineering, Operations, and G&A functions. Driving financial literacy across the organization so teams understand unit economics, tradeoffs, and long-term implications of their decisions is critical to Zipline Africa’s success. This is an in-person role based in South San Francisco, CA , where Zipline’s Strategic Finance team and many of our go-to-market, operations, and engineering partners are located. The role includes periodic travel to Africa to work closely with in-country operators and to engage with key government, donor, and commercial partners. What You’ll Do Global & Regional Financial Strategy Own financial strategy, planning, and performance management for Zipline’s Africa business as part of the company’s global consolidated business, reporting into the Global Head of Strategic Finance. Act as a strategic advisor to Zipline’s Africa leadership on investment decisions, growth strategy, unit economics, and long-term sustainability. Contribute directly to Zipline’s enterprise-level strategy, long-range planning, and capital allocation decisions. Develop and maintain long-term financial models to evaluate market strategies, expansion plans, and new business initiatives. Planning, Forecasting & Performance Lead budgeting, forecasting, and performance analysis for Africa operations within Zipline’s global planning framework. Identify opportunities to improve efficiency, profitability, and capital effectiveness while maintaining operational excellence. Translate complex operational and commercial dynamics into clear, actionable financial insights for executive and regional leadership. Operational Finance & Business Partnering Serve as a financial thought partner to Africa operations leadership, helping teams navigate financial complexity while driving sustainable growth. Partner closely with Go-to-Market, Engineering, Operations, Supply Chain, Deployment, and G&A teams to support cost-effective execution and strong unit economics. Work with government, donor, and commercial partners to structure financially viable contracts and long-term partnerships. Team Leadership & Strategic Enablement Build a small, high-caliber team to manage Zipline’s Africa business model. Provide direct, embedded partnership to GTM, Engineering, Ops, and G&A teams to guide strategic choices and investment decisions. Drive financial literacy across the organization, ensuring leaders and teams understand unit economics, tradeoffs, and long-term financial implications. Establish finance as an enabling function that helps teams move faster and make better decisions while balancing growth and sustainability. Set a high bar for analytical rigor, clarity of communication, and business judgment across the Strategic Finance team. Accounting, Compliance & Controls Partner with regional finance and accounting teams to ensure accurate financial reporting, efficient close processes, and strong internal controls. Work with US-based finance leadership to standardize financial practices across global operations. Support audits and regulatory engagements; coordinate w