Coffee Lab Specialist

About TechnoServe:

At TechnoServe, we believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to build a better life. For over 50 years, we have given smallholder farmers and entrepreneurs the skills, connections, and confidence to lift themselves out of poverty. We leverage the power of markets and the private sector to create sustainable economic growth to benefit people and the planet. Our unique mix of business solutions, deep knowledge of local contexts, and data-driven insights is helping to fight poverty across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

TechnoServe staff are local – 95% are from the countries in which they work. We put a high premium on collaboration and entrepreneurship. We hold ourselves and each other to the highest standards of integrity and transparency. And we focus on delivering lasting impact for our mission.

About the Coffee Practice:

TechnoServe has a comprehensive approach to building a sustainable coffee industry that can lift millions of farming families out of poverty. Our approach addresses four key areas:

• Better Farming: Increasing the use of best farming and regenerative practices by providing farmers with field-based agronomy and business training using local trainers
• Better Processing: Improving the quality of farmers’ coffee at the processing level by supporting the establishment and management of processing businesses
• Better Supply Chains: Developing lasting market linkages and advancing sector growth by engaging with industry players to share learnings and align priorities
• Better Environmental & Social Standards: Pioneering simple, cost-effective solutions for an environmentally sustainable and financially transparent coffee sector

The Ethiopia coffee portfolio consists of multiple coffee projects in Ethiopia’s Oromia, Sidama, and Southern Ethiopia regions. The Senior Program Analyst will collaborate with the Ethiopia Portfolio Manager, Chief of Party (USDA Regrow Yirga project), and Program Managers in the implementation and administration of coffee projects in Oromia, Sidama, and Southern Ethiopia regions.

Regrow Yirga

Regrow Yirga is a five-year, $15M+ project funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, JDE, and Peet’s Coffee. The program will help farmers boost productivity and expand trade and has a focus on improving farmers' capacity to renew their trees. Specifically, the Regrow Yirga program seeks to: train more than 42,000 farmers in good agricultural practices, provide quality advisory support to over 45 coffee processing stations, and improve the enabling environment by strengthening private and public coffee service providers in Ethiopia. Lastly, the project will launch an innovative Farmer Stumping Fund which will facilitate direct incentive (tools or cash) transfers to farmers to encourage tree renewal which has the potential to be scaled up to over 1 million coffee farmers nationwide.

Nespresso AAA Program

Nespresso AAA Program is a five-year, $5M project operating in West Guji, East Guji, and West Arsi zones of the Oromia region, Gedeo zone of SNNPR, and Sidama region funded by Nestle Nespresso. The Nespresso AAA program seeks to train over 8,800 coffee farming households in good regenerative agricultural practices, provide quality advisory support to 110 existing and 154 new coffee processing stations, and improve the enabling environment through Sourcing (Quality & Quantity) and sustainability (Social & Environmental).

JCP

JCP is a five year, $4M project in Jimma funded by HereweGrow. The program will help farmers boost productivity and raise the income potential for at least 21,000 farmers through a customized application of TechnoServe’s Coffee Farm College (CFC) model including stumping incentives to rejuvenate old trees, training on honey production to help farmers weather temporary post-stumping declines in coffee income, and a pilot for an on-farm approach to the CFC. JCP will also provide Business and sustainability training to at least 14 coffee washing stations (CWS) in the same kebeles as participating farmers, which will result in higher quality washed coffee, better managed businesses, stronger market linkages, and ultimately higher incomes for coffee farmers.

Climate Resilience through Empowering Women (CREW)

CREW is an $11.5M five-year project implemented by TechnoServe with funding from Global Affairs Canada (GAC) and Nespresso. CREW aims to strengthen the climate resilience of coffee-growing communities in Southern Ethiopia while promoting the economic empowerment of marginalized women. The project is expected to catalyze changes at the farm/household, wet mill, and wider industry levels to adapt to a changing climate, with a particular focus on women, who despite playing a critical role in coffee production and processing, are economically marginalized and routinely excluded from positions of leadership, influence, and decision-making.

Job Summary

The Coffee Lab Specialist will oversee all activities in the coffee lab, ensuring quality control, technical support, and training for coffee washing stations working with the program. The role involves collaborating with Business Advisors and cross-functional teams to improve coffee quality, providing feedback to clients, and managing lab operations. The ideal candidate must have extensive experience in coffee cupping, roasting, green coffee analysis, and team management.

Key Responsibilities

Coffee Quality & Lab Management

• Conduct regular cupping sessions, green coffee analysis, and roasting
• Prepare and submit detailed quality reports with corrective action plans
• Maintain and calibrate lab equipment (grinders, roasters, moisture analyzers, etc.)
• Ensure the lab complies with industry standards (e.g., SCA, CQI)

Client & Stakeholder Collaboration

• Work closely with Business Advisors to provide feedback to the coffee washing stations
• Develop and implement quality improvement plans for clients
• Organize and conduct pre- and post-harvest training sessions for farmers and processors

Data & Reporting

• Maintain the Data of the cupping lab, regularly send out weekly reports to PM
• Manage quality data using Excel, Google Sheets, and other tools
• Generate reports on coffee quality trends, lab activities, and training outcomes

Team Leadership

• Supervise and train 2-5 lab technicians
• Schedule and oversee daily lab operations

Continuous Improvement

• Stay updated on industry trends, new processing methods, and quality standards
• Conduct reflection sessions with clients to assess progress and challenges

Qualifications & Requirements

• Bachelor's Degree in business, economics, BSc or a related field with 5 years of professional experience, or Master's Degree with 3 years of professional experience
• Proven analytical and financial modeling skills
• Strong command of MS PowerPoint and Excel
• Direct experience in the coffee cupping sector, ideally in the international context

Required Languages: Excellent oral, written, and interpersonal skills, including fluency in [Enter language] and English languages.

Travel: Travel up to 10%

Preferred Qualifications

• Professional experience at a top-tier management consulting firm
• Professional work experience in a developing country

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Outstanding written and oral communication skills and a demonstrated track record of producing high-quality, well-written deliverables
• A demonstrated ability to effectively multi-task and manage projects, including work plans, deliverables, timelines, and budgets
• A demonstrated ability to coordinate and communicate effectively and diplomatically with a range of external and internal colleagues, including donors, partners, and senior and junior team members across diverse cultures
• An ability to value and respect the voices of staff at all levels, external stakeholders, and the men and women we work with

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Coffee Technology, Food Science, Agriculture, or related field

Certification

Valid and updated CQI Q-Grader certification (mandatory)

Experience

• Minimum 5 years in coffee cupping and quality evaluation with a Q-Grader capacity
• At least 3 years managing a coffee lab and leading a team
• Hands-on experience with roasting, green coffee analysis, and sensory evaluation

Technical Skills

• Proficiency in Excel, Google Sheets, MS Word, and basic data management tools
• Familiarity with coffee lab equipment (roasters, moisture meters, color analyzers, etc.)

Soft Skills

• Strong communication and training skills
• Problem-solving and analytical thinking
• Ability to work with cross-functional teams

Preferred Attributes

• Experience working with smallholder coffee farmers or cooperatives
• Knowledge of Ethiopian coffee varieties and processing methods
• Fluency in English, written and spoken

Skills Required:

• Agricultural / Studies
• Economics / Statistics
• Sales / Marketing / Business / Management