Farmer Behavior & Extension Design Lead – Malawi

About the role

The Agronomy & Extension Lead will own the implementation of Malawi’s extension strategy, using Human‑Centred Design and Social Behaviour Change approaches to turn agronomic recommendations into simple, practical support for farmers. The role strengthens extension delivery, training and communication content, and continuously improves approaches using farmer feedback and impact data. The lead will collaborate closely with Field Operations and Innovations to translate validated research into scalable farmer‑facing solutions.

Key responsibilities

• Co‑design and maintain a multi‑year agronomy and extension strategy aligned with impact priorities and farmer needs.
• Integrate extension priorities into Field Operations calendars, training cascades, tools and performance routines.
• Build technical capacity of Field Managers and Officers through training‑of‑trainers, coaching and practical support.
• Develop, test and refine agronomic recommendations using farmer feedback, impact data and Human‑Centred Design.
• Design and pilot farmer‑centered extension and behaviour‑change interventions across group training, demonstrations, coaching and digital channels.
• Monitor adoption and impact, analyse results by farmer groups and delivery channels, and lead seasonal learning reviews.

Required profile

• Bachelor’s degree in Agronomy, Crop Science, Agricultural Extension, Sociology, Anthropology, Design or a related field.
• At least 5 years of professional experience in agricultural extension, Human‑Centred Design, social behaviour change campaigns or rural marketing.
• Proven experience developing, testing or scaling agronomic recommendations or rural extension interventions.
• Strong analytical skills with ability to use qualitative and quantitative evidence for decision‑making.
• Willingness to relocate to Malawi and commit to at least two years on‑site.

Required skills

• Advanced Excel
• R (or Stata) for data analysis

What we offer

• Health insurance
• Housing
• Comprehensive benefits package