Business Development Manager

at  Save the Children

SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

• A relevant academic qualification: a bachelor’s degree in International Development, Business studies, Social Science etc. is essential. A post graduate qualification in a relevant field is desired
• Minimum 5 years overall experience, with 3 years in writing and/or developing NGO grant proposals in response to solicitations from donors
• Experience in negotiating business and management arrangements for bids with partner organisations.
• Experience leading or taking part in proposal development for GIZ/KfW, EU, ECHO, USAID, FCDO, other bilateral, foundations and/or corporations.
• Excellent writing skills and a talent for writing concisely and conceptualizing ideas for graphics that convey key information
• Experience at an INGO and knowledge of some technical areas such as humanitarian assistance, health, nutrition, protection, education, livelihoods or water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH)
• Experience in budget building and ensuring compliance with an organisation’s internal finance policies and client requirements.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively and effectively with large teams and to communicate clearly
• Exceptional conceptual, analytical, writing, and editing skills, including knack for synthesizing large amounts of information into persuasive, clear language and graphics.Ability to consistently meet multiple deadlines.

ROLE PURPOSE:

Save The Children International (SCI) is looking to add a dynamic, organized Business Development Manager who is passionate about being a part of a global team of individuals committed to improving the lives of children in Nigeria. The Business Development Manager works as part of the Program Development and Quality team to assist in Fundraising and proposal development, including coordinating proposal development processes and contributing to proposal writing.

SCOPE OF ROLE:

Reports to: Head of Business Development
Staff directly reporting to this post: N/A

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Support the Head of Business Development 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).
• Thoroughly review solicitations/calls for funding and summarize key details for relevant individuals.
• Coordinate proposal development processes to ensure timely submission of high-quality proposals that are responsive to donor requirements, applicable regulations, and SCI’s technical and cost standards. Lead and support proposal budget processes and propose recommendations to develop a competitive proposal.
• Ensure effective Go/No-Go decision-making processes are followed through the Bid Development cycle. Make recommendations to approvers, based on a thorough assessment of opportunities against key criteria (financial considerations, strategic fit etc)
• Develop relationships with international and country based potential consortium partners (e.g. consultancies) and meet with all these to establish synergy and opportunities to work together, securing input from technical leadership in the organisation
• On successful bids, lead and coordinate a contract mobilisation process and meeting/s with relevant staff (regional office or regional portfolio teams, technical advisors and country teams)
• Coordinate the overall development process for assigned proposals, including setting timelines for the proposal team, providing relevant templates and guidance, communicating donor requirements, and ensuring collaboration with all relevant units within the Save the Children Nigeria office
• Collate and integrate inputs from technical experts and staff into a narrative that clearly conveys proposal win themes, and importantly, is compliant with all donor instructions and requirements
• Help the proposal team to identify and address any gaps in the program design or other pieces of the proposal
• Serve as a lead or support writer on proposals, contributing both technical and non-technical content
• Collaborate with the proposal team to incorporate the suggestions of proposal reviewers
• Format and edit proposals and ensure a high-quality final product
• Gather intelligence, identify, and filter opportunities to meet the country office funding requirements and the timely production of sound and competitive proposals
• Train and mentor staff, as needed, to improve their skills in proposal development, representation to donor and partner organizations, intelligence-gathering, and marketing within the country program or portfolio
• Work with teams to complete the proposal risk assessments and share with the member.

SAFEGUARDING RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Ensure all safeguarding risk mitigation action/activities have been resourced within the project budget.
• At proposal stage, ensure all project budgets include consideration and allocation for contextualized safeguarding risks and activities.

SECONDARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Research and secure new funding streams
• Support the development and implementation of the country funding strategy
• Respond effectively to information requests from donors or member country fundraising teams, maintaining a clear record of reasons for proceeding with or rejecting opportunitiesProvide support to the Country Strategic Planning process, as required.

ACCOUNTABILITY:

• Holds self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values
• Holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities - giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved

ADDITIONAL JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties within reasonableness of their level of skills and experience.