CRS Background Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. We welcome as a part of our staff and as partners people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need.
Country Background
CRS has been supporting program activities in Niger since 1991. Currently, CRS Niger has over 300 national staff and 8 international staff, with an annual budget over $20 million. CRS/Niger implements multiple projects in the strategic program areas, including: the USAID/Food for Peace-funded Programme d’Appui a la Securite Alimentaire des Menages (PASAM-TAI), the DFID-funded BRACED funding for Scaling-Up Resilience for 1 Million Households in the Niger River Basin (SUR1M), the Global Fund nationwide malaria project, humanitarian assistance in Diffa with multiple donors, and smaller privately-funded projects. Niger is currently a priority country of the agency selected for strategic initiatives to achieve greater growth and program impact. CRS Niger has sub-offices in Maradi and Diffa, and satellites in Mayahi, Matameye, Tillaberi, and Tera.
Job Summary:
As Business Development (BD) Specialist II you will lead the production of high quality applications for funding in support of CRS’ engagement with institutional donors and initiatives involved in international development to serve the poor and vulnerable. Your knowledge and skills will allow you to provide specialized assistance in all dimensions of the BD cycle to cross-disciplines and cross-functional teams.
Job Responsibilities:
- Maintain CRS Niger’s competitive positioning for and pursuit of institutional donor resources, with an emphasis on competitive funding mechanisms
- Oversee CRS Niger’s growth agenda including developing growth strategies for new programs and/or donors, as well as leading the country program’s opportunity pipeline tracking and analysis, including portfolio trends, proposal submissions and performance, and growth projections.
- Provide BD expertise in positioning, capture planning and proposal preparation for specific opportunities with institutional donors (government and inter-governmental award issuing organizations, as well as foundations, corporations and other awarding non-governmental organizations).
- Coordinate proposal development processes to ensure timely submission of high quality proposals that are responsive to donor requirements, applicable regulations, and CRS’ technical and cost standards. Lead and support proposal budget processes and propose recommendations to develop a competitive proposal.
- Serve as proposal coordinator or other lead role in proposal team, and participate in bid analysis and proposal review panels. Serve as a lead or support writer on proposals, as needed, contributing both technical and non-technical content and integrating inputs from staff and partners into a responsive, coherent proposal with a compelling vision and clear win themes.
- Train and mentor staff, as needed, to improve their skills in proposal development, representation to donor and partner organizations, intelligence-gathering, and marketing within their country program or portfolio.
- Support and guide identification of partners and negotiation of CRS’ role on proposal consortia, ensuring a competitive position for CRS that adheres to the agency’s partnership principles and strategic directions. Research, track and analyze new opportunities and CRS’ competitive position within the marketplace.
- Support senior management to cultivate and strengthen institutional relationships with institutional donors, partner organizations and other stakeholders.
- Work with appropriate staff to maintain data on past performance and corporate capacity, in order to provide timely information for proposal submissions.
- Conceptualize and oversee the production of appropriate marketing materials for the CRS portfolio in collaboration with programming and administrative staff.
- Work with relevant staff to leverage CRS’ programmatic and operational results for enhanced visibility, positioning, and direct fundraising purposes, including maintaining data on past performance and agency capacity, publications and dissemination, and donor visits.
Background, Experience & Requirements:
Education and Experience
- Bachelor’s degree in international development, international relations, or related field. Master’s degree preferred.
- Fluency in French
- Minimum five years of international development experience, with at least three years experience in a developing country.
- Demonstrated experience utilizing diverse, proactive strategies to competitively position his/her organization for new funding and productive institutional relationships.
- Exceptional writer with expert command of English grammar.
- Demonstrated experience leading and producing competitive proposals in programming contexts similar to CRS.
- Experience in communication and developing marketing materials
- Comprehensive familiarity with a broad range of institutional donor technical and cost requirements.
- Experience with both RFP and RFA funding mechanisms highly desirable, preferably within USAID.
- Familiarity with relevant institutional donor regulations, policies, procedures and priorities.
- Demonstrated experience managing teams and processes, leading teams to produce deliverables under tight deadlines and at exceptional quality.
- Knowledge of CRS programs, justice agenda and Catholic Social Teaching principles a plus.
- Experience using MS Windows and MS Office packages (Excel, Word, PowerPoint), Web Conferencing Applications, information management systems.
Personal Skills
- Strong strategic, analytical, systems thinking, and problem-solving skills, with capacity to see the big picture.
- Strong relations management abilities. Ability to relate to people at all levels internally and externally, and in multi-cultural settings. Strategic in how you approach each relationship.
- Excellent negotiation skills.
- Strong communications and presentation skills.
- Proactive, resourceful, solutions-oriented and results-oriented.
Required Foreign Language: French
Travel Required: 15-20% travel, both in-country and internationally
Key Working Relationships:
Supervisory: Fellow, Communications Officer
Internal: Country Representative, Niger Program Managers, Regional BD Manager, DRDPQ, RIO, IDEA, HQ Marketing and Communications staff
External : CADEV (Caritas Niger), USAID, UN agencies
Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff):
These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.
- Trusting Relationships
- Professional Growth
- Partnership
- Accountability
Disclaimer: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skill, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.
CRS’ talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.
Equal Opportunity Employer
Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. We welcome as a part of our staff and as partners people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need.
More Information
- Job City Niamey