The Opportunity

ROLE PURPOSE: 

The Program Development Specialist will work with the Deputy and the Head of Programme Development to proactively seek out and disseminate information on new funding opportunities; cultivate excellent relationships with donor agencies, partners and SC Members. He/She will facilitate program development for the Ethiopia Country Office through identification of opportunities for funding, donor research and relations, drafting proposals and supporting project design, and ensuring proposals are compliant with internal and donor standards. The position will also support research and documentation of lessons learnt and ensures utilisation of evidence in the design process; and builds other teams’ capacity to develop high quality proposals.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

Donor research and relationship building

·       Support sector and field teams to design cost effective, innovative and high quality programs to serve children in Ethiopia in development and emergency contexts

·       Conduct donor landscape analysis and draft summaries 

·       Assist in seeking and tracking donor intelligence on prospective new opportunities or partnerships; particularly for long-term funding opportunities 

·       Closely coordinate with the Deputy Director of Program Development to cultivate relationships with potential partners for strategic funding opportunities

 Program development

·       Draft and/or solicit proposal and concepts that are aligned with Save the Children’s response strategy and donor priorities by identifying and clarifying opportunities and needs; studying calls for proposals, and sharing information with relevant sector teams

·       Lead the development and coordination of high quality concept notes and proposals by identifying key stakeholders in proposal development process and facilitating cross-department contribution. This also include coordination between program operations and technical advisors to ensure proposals are both technically sound as well as realistically implementable

·       Communicate with relevant SC Member contacts to review and approve concept notes and proposals

·       Track and ensure the incorporation reviewers feedback into concept notes and proposal documents, and ensure alignment to other active Save the Children led awards/projects or proposals

·       Conduct detailed quality review of proposals for technical and operational soundness and compliance with donor and agency requirements

·       Participate in needs assessments as necessary for proposal/concept note development and ensure findings are documented with a specific analysis on children

·       Work closely with Budget Development team to ensure the alignment of the budget, implementation plan, budget narrative and technical narrative sections of all proposals

·       Assist in regular communication and training on program design processes and requirements 

Documentation and learning

·       Support the development of capacity statements on SC’s experience in specific sectors and sub-sectors to support positioning for future funding

·       Capture and document learning from ongoing projects to be applied to project design

·       Ensure that all documents are properly filed within the award management system and country office shared drives. Secure all needed approvals prior to submission. This include ensuring documents are posted on AMS as applicable, maintaining proposal libraries, documenting lessons learned, etc.

·       Maintain up-to-date knowledge of relevant government, member and donor guidelines and ensure their compliance in proposal development

In order to be successful you will bring/have:

 QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• Minimum BA Degree in international development, international relations, social science, business, or a related field.
• Minimum 5 years related experience in an NGO or similar environment, preferably including experience-developing programs for children.
• Demonstrated experience working across the full project management cycle.
• Practical proposal writing management experience for donors such as OFDA, UNOCHA, UNHCR, BPRM, GAC, EU/ECHO, SIDA etc. Experience working on large proposals in a consortium is a plus.
• Excellent writing skills
• Proven ability to track, manage and represent large and diverse funding portfolios
• Excellent analytical, organization, communication and management skills. Must have attention to detail and ability to multi-task
• Experience in one of the Save the Children priority sectors: Heath, HIV/AIDS, Nutrition, Education, WASH, FS/L, Child Protection, Child Rights Governance, in development and/or emergencies
• Highly self-motivated and energetic, with a go getter attitude and the resourcefulness to solve problems effectively
• Ability to provide support and training to staff and partners on donor requirements
• Knowledge on project design methods and tools (including assessments, logical frameworks, and work planning) and strong appreciation for innovation and partnership as part of project development
• Good analytical skills with ability to positively influence cross departmental and cross sector working, and ability to work both independently and as well as a team player
• Strong results orientation, with ability to meet deadlines and produce high-quality products
• Positive attitude and willingness to learn and work in a context of people with various ethnic and religious backgrounds
• Ability and willingness to change work practices and hours, and work with proposal development teams to meet deadlines
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to express ideas and concepts clearly and persuasively with internal and external stakeholders
• Commitment to and understanding of Save the Children’s aims, values and principles including rights-based approaches

We offer a competitive package in the context of the sector.  Please add further detail here as required.  For example: This role is offered on the basis of national terms and conditions only.

The Organisation

We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realise the right of children and to ensure their voices are heard. 

We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:

• No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday
• All children learn from a quality basic education and that,
• Violence against children is no longer tolerated

We know that great people make a great organization, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children.  We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive environment where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued.