Job Description
- About TechnoServe
TechnoServe works with enterprising people in the developing world to build competitive farms, businesses and industries. Founded in 1968, we are a nonprofit organization that develops business solutions to poverty by linking people to information, capital and markets. Our work is rooted in the idea that given the opportunity, hardworking men and women in even the poorest places can generate income, jobs and wealth for their families and communities. In East Africa, we operate in Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. Across the region, we implement a range of large-scale market systems interventions, agribusiness interventions and entrepreneurship/economic empowerment projects. With more than 50 years of proven results, we believe in the power of private enterprise to transform lives.
- About the Program
LIWAY is a five-year, Making Markets Work for the Poor (M4P) program implemented by a consortium of partners: SNV Netherlands Development Organization (SNV), Mercy Corps (MC), TechnoServe (TNS) and Save the Children International, with financial support from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida). The overall objective of the program is to contribute to sustainable poverty reduction and social stability in Addis Ababa. The specific objective is to improve the livelihoods of 200,000 poor people, of which at least 50% are women and 75% youth, by increasing their income and access to economic opportunities. The program is achieving this through activating, catalyzing and promoting market-based solutions to address systemic constraints that undermine the potential of selected sub-sectors in creating jobs and increasing income for women, youth and the poor in Addis Ababa.
The program began with an Inception Phase, July 2017 – May 2018. During this Inception Phase, intensive research and analysis, including extensive stakeholder consultations informed the design of an opening portfolio of interventions focused on four “markets”: micro enterprise, skills development, labor and growth sector. The implementation phase began in June 2018 and TechnoServe is currently implementing interventions in the Growth Sector, including initiatives to improve manufacturing production efficiency, substituting paper imports and improving HR practices at Growth Sector manufacturing firms.
III.Position Description
The Senior Program Coordinator will plan and coordinate the day-to-day operations of TechnoServe’s LIWAY program, while closely coordinating with the LIWAY Chief of Party and the other LIWAY consortium partners and developing a positive working relationship with the overall LIWAY team.
An intellectually curious but practical analytical thinker with strong interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence, s/he will lead TechnoServe’s research into prioritized market systems and also develop and coordinate important day-to-day relationships with public, and especially private sector counterparts engaging, supporting and employing women and youth in Addis Ababa. The Senior Program Coordinator will give special attention to cultivating strong communication, collaboration and supporting the TechnoServe LIWAY team to do their best work.
IV.Duties and Responsibilities
The duties and responsibilities of this role fall are structured into the following four categories.
(1) Lead implementation of select LIWAY interventions and support team’s overall interventions
- Directly design and lead some interventions, with input from team using the M4P approach; including market research, analysis and design, assessing and identifying partners, negotiating/establishing partnerships, recruiting consultants and managing engagements, plan for monitoring and results measurement (MRM)
- Support TNS LIWAY team members to design and lead interventions on their own using the M4P approach, as described above
- Ensure all interventions are maximizing impact for LIWAY’s target group: poor women and youth living in Addis Ababa; in particular; advance gender equality within team and with partners
- Work with Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) colleagues to develop and maintain results chains for each intervention as well as update theory of change and indicators within the context of overall LIWAY MRM structure; Support developing and regularly updating of intervention strategies; logical framework, results chains.
- Ensure each intervention focuses on advancing gender equity, according to the LIWAY Gender Strategy and Action Plan and maximizes impact on LIWAY’s target group
- Develop and maintain robust and creative intervention pipeline for TNS LIWAY sectors, aligned with strategy and theory of change: together with team, conduct ongoing sector research and analysis—including desktop research and interviews— using the M4P approach and within the LIWAY framework to identify new, impactful intervention opportunities
(2) Support and manage/coordinate TNS LIWAY team
- Support Senior Program Officers (~3) to do their best work: take time to understand individual strengths and development areas as well as communication preferences and work styles
- Manage and motivate team: including administrative time reporting/vacation scheduling/approval; and performance: help each team member to establish annual goals, support goal review/tracking and evaluate performance on an annual basis
- Working together with team members, develop and update quarterly TNS LIWAY team work plan
- Promote a “learning mindset”, professional growth and culture of collaboration
- Support recruitment and selection of additional team members as required and working with the Deputy Country Director
- Ensure TNS LIWAY team is well integrated into both the broader LIWAY team and TechnoServe’s team
(3) Manage consortium and external relationships with key stakeholders
- Proactively manage relationship with GOE counterparts, including Ministries; providing updates through meetings and reports, as per signed MOU
- Prepare for and participate in regular LIWAY team meetings, trainings and strategy sessions
- Work closely with technical consultants supporting LIWAY implementation
- Work with LIWAY consortium partners in earnest partnership
- Together with other TNS LIWAY staff, represent TNS’s LIWAY work externally, including different events, meetings, guests and media (media will be supported by TNS colleagues); make an effort to identify opportunities to delegate such opportunities to other team members
(4) Learning and reporting
- Learn from the TNS LIWAY team’s existing knowledge and experiences
- Develop and deepen theoretical and practical understanding of the Marking Markets Work for the Poor (M4P) methodology; actively participate in TechnoServe’s global market systems practice group and field questions about LIWAY from colleagues
- Find opportunities to sharing transferable insights and learning with broader TNS Ethiopia team
- In collaboration with the team, prepare quarterly technical reports for SNV, according to their template and agreed upon reporting structure; prepare and/or review other reports and documents as requested by LIWAY COP
- Support preparation of internal and external reports and other documents, as required
- Prepare weekly reports (Ppt) to support weekly meetings, quarterly TNS internal reports and annual corporate measurement reports; prepare other reports as requested by DCD
Job Requirements
- Required Qualifications and Capabilities
- A true passion for and commitment to economic empowerment of women and youth as well as a deep belief in the power of private enterprise to transform lives
- Bachelor’s degree in business, economics or other relevance discipline with 7-10 years of work experience
- At least four (4) years of professional team management experience – ideally a blend of private sector and development
- Ability to be a team player while leading their team
- Innovative mindset; creative thinker
- Experience working in Addis Ababa/Ethiopia and knowledge of the city/country
- Knowledge of and familiarity with private sector companies, entrepreneurship, labor market
- Experience analyzing sectors, in terms of economic opportunities and constraints and leading teams in this process; familiarity with a business plan
- Excellent problem solving and analytical skills; a self-starter
- Strong emotional intelligence, interpersonal/people management and organizational skills
- Excellent oral and written communication skills a must, including report writing and presentations
- Ability to deliver highly polished, well-structured professional reports and presentations
- Willingness and ability to travel, when necessary
- Strong skills in business software (Word, Excel, PowerPoint etc.)
- Fluency in written and spoken English and Amharic
Attributes:
- Strong and very detailed oriented when planning and preparing documents
- Problem solver, structured thinker with high attention to detail and high quality standards
- Strong interpersonal and cross-cultural skills; effective negotiation skills
- Flexibility and ability to adjust to rapidly changing circumstances; learning mindset
- Committed to quality and achieving impact; motivated; high level of integrity and honesty
- Preferred Qualifications and Capabilities
- A Master’s degree in business, economics or other relevant discipline with 5-7 years work experience
- Knowledge of Human Centered Design
- Knowledge of and experience working with Ethiopia’s manufacturing sector
- Experience working with women and youth employment and entrepreneurship
- Experience with Human Resources planning and management
- Experience working closely with partner organization, especially in an international development program context
- Knowledge of market systems facilitation or Making Markets Work for the Poor (M4P) methodology
- Experience in system transformation initiatives and/or systemic approaches to market development
How to Apply
- Application Instruction
Qualified and interested applicants should Click here to apply for this positionand submit a cover letter and resume as a single document (either Word or PDF) by October 1st, 2019. Applications will be reviewed and considered as received/on a rolling basis. Please identify the position for which you are applying in the subject line. Only applicants meeting minimum qualifications will be contacted. Please note that we are not accepting CVs that are not sent through the indicated link.
TechnoServe is an equal opportunity employer. Women are highly encouraged to apply.
TechnoServe has the right to cancel this advertisement.
More Information
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