Business Development Manager

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Date: 31-Aug-2020

Location: Yaounde, CE, CM

Company: Plan International

Plan International is an independent non-profit development and humanitarian organization that advances children’s rights and equality for girls. 

We believe in the power and potential of every child. However, these are often suppressed by poverty, violence, exclusion and discrimination. In addition, it is girls who are most affected. 

Working together with children, young people, our supporters and partners, we strive for a just world, tackling the root causes of the challenges facing girls and all vulnerable children. 

We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood. Moreover, we enable children to prepare for – and respond to – crises and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge.

We have been building powerful partnerships for children for over 75 years, and are now active in more than 70 countries.

ROLE PROFILE

role PURPOSE

The Business Development Manager (BDM) is the lead of the Business Development Unit that includes Fund Raising & Grants Management, Compliance& Cost Recovery, Donor Engagement and Negotiations, Institutional Partnership. The BD Unit is responsible for identifying funding opportunities in line with Plan International priorities in Cameroon, leading the production of quality & successful grant proposals in coordination with program technical colleagues, and supporting grant holders during implementation on donor contract compliance.

S/He also supports the program area team to ensure timely and effective utilization of the Plan’s resources for the benefit of targeted beneficiaries in the area and is responsible for timely and quality financial and narrative grant reporting to donors.

S/He will act as Plan International interface with donors and key stakeholders especially when resources are involved and excel our visibility.

Dimensions of the Role

The BDM will report to the Head of Programs and is a member of the Country Leadership Team. S/he directly supervises 04 staff in the Unit: Grant Specialist, 02 Compliance Officers & 02 Grants Coordinators.

The Business Development Manager leads Plan’s efforts to achieve the country fundraising targets (Annual projected income and expenditure) and supports the Country Office to develop strong relationships with National Organisations (NOs) and donors. S/He is responsible for initiating and implementing innovative fund-raising strategies that would bring new/diversified donors and contribute to maintaining a strong & sustainable portfolio of more than 15 million euros annually, of which approximately 80% should be as a result of the BDM efforts to obtain grants.

Accountabilities

Fund Raising & Resource Mobilization

• Design & implement a sound Resource Mobilization Strategy that includes diversified sources of funding and influence new donors towards our purpose and ambition.
• Identify grant opportunities and develop high-quality proposals in close coordination with Strategic Program Units and Program Implementation Areas that reflect our program approach and areas of distinctiveness.
• Ensure all project designs address Plan International’s commitment to gender transformative programming.
• Ensure that a healthy pipeline is in place using robust donor opportunity tracking tools
• Further, where donor requirements allow, ensure that key cross-cutting issues such as advocacy and influencing, child protection, gender, and DRM are an integral part of programs developed.
• Produce and regularly update a comprehensive mapping of all donor opportunities (by sector and geography);
  • Researching where potential opportunities for grants funding can be found;
  • Packaging grant proposals to suit the requirements of different donors, including working with the Communications team to develop separate marketing collaterally aimed at different audiences (NOs, Institutional donors, Corporates, etc.);

Grants Management

• Ensure grants documentation (FADS, SPAD, Agreements, proposals, work plans, MoU, approved budget templates…etc.) are correctly filed according to Plan’s and donors requirements
• Manage grant modules in Plan corporate system and met required standards in SAP, ERP & YODA.
• Ensure quality and timeliness of grants reporting to all external donors and National Organisations.
• Monitor, analyze and consolidate relevant grant information and disseminate where relevant within Plan International teams.
• Oversee reporting schedules and ensure project reports are submitted to relevant donors in a timely manner and with quality.

Compliance & Cost Recovery

• Ensure that all categories of costs are considered at the conceptualization and submission stage of grant preparation.
• Implement costs-drivers procedures and ensure consistency in project costing;
• Ensure projects are fully costed, and successful negotiation is done with donors.
• BD and staff involved in grant management master donors rules and conditions and comply with requirements.

NO and Donor Engagement

• Building successful, proactive relationships which align donors priorities with program needs;
• Work with appropriate corporates to align their sustainable strategies with Plan International CMR to identify win-win positions.
• Act as Plan International CMR representative on grant matters, representing the interests of Plan Cameroon to National Organisations, donors, and other stakeholders.
• Develop, manage, and maintain strategic partnerships with local actors, including bilateral, multilateral, corporate donors, and external networks. Manage the link between Program  implementation Areas, donors, and external networks.
• Develop and maintain a strong and professional image of Plan International among relevant donors.

People, Culture & Staff Capacity Development

• Develop the necessary strategies and take the appropriate measures ensuring that staff is motivated and enabled to contribute to the overall goal of the organization through possessing the right attitudes and the adequate levels of skills& knowledge.
• Establish a culture of accountability, responsibility, and mutual respect according to our values and behaviours.
• Create a conducive working environment in which people are motivated, respected, valued, and managed well to realize their potential and development.
• Provide necessary training and development opportunities to Area staff that will result in professional growth and equips them with knowledge and skills to enable them to improve program quality.
• Identify and coach competent staff for grants acquisition and implementation, including coaching and mentoring.
• Work with the programs department and programming units to support their capacity to ensure projects are implemented according to donor standards and regulations as well as Plan policies
• Lead a high performing grants team in CMR and ensure all departments have the necessary knowledge and skills to acquire and implement increased sustainable grant funding.
• Ensuring successful on-going donor relationship management and ‘ownership’ of relations with donor representatives locally;
• To ensure implementation of the responsibilities aligned with the Plan International Disaster Response in Cameroon as appropriate, including resource mobilization.
• Promote and abide by internal policies and procedures including but not limited to:  Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy; Code of Conduct; mandatory reporting responsibilities at partners and donors’level.

• Ensures that Plan International’s global policies for Child Protection (CPP) and Gender Equality and Inclusion (GEI) are fully embedded in accordance with the principles and requirements of the policy including relevant Implementation Standards and Guidelines as applicable to their area of responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to, ensuring staff and associates are aware of and understand their responsibilities under these policies and Plan International’s Code of Conduct (CoC), their relevance to their area of work, and that concerns are reported and managed in accordance with the appropriate procedures.

Key relationships

Internal:

Excellent working relationships will need to be built with the Head of Program, Head of Operations, Leads of Section and PIA Managers, National Organisation counterparts, and Country Management Teams, and with Regional Grant’s staff as appropriate.

Regularly inform and advise the country’s grants and management teams of strategic funding information and trends to ensure Plan has the necessary information to secure funding.

External:

Current large donors include Global Fund, Global Affairs Canada, EC, UNHCR and the governments of Germany, BMZ, AFD-France, and SIDA.

Technical expertise, skills and knowledge

Knowledge and skills:

• Proven capacity a result of study, training and practical experience on grants acquisition;
• Strong knowledge of the various donors’ strategic interests, priorities, and requirements;
• Strong at performing donor scoping and donor relations
• Excellent English & French oral and written communication skills
• Proven strategic relationship management skills, including negotiation skills
• Marketing for Development skills
• Coaching, mentoring, training and facilitation skills
• High level of computer proficiency.

Behaviours

• Ability to maintain a strategic vision and link with everyday work
• Clear and effective communication that builds relationships to influence others
• Proactive demonstrates a record of creativity and entrepreneurship
• Accountability and responsibility for own performance
• Promotes teamwork and cooperation
• Confident in taking the initiative and exploring new opportunities

 Qualifications and Experience

• Higher University Degree (Minimum Master level) in a relevant field (Economics, International Relations
• At least 5 years of professional experience in a similar position, of which at least 3 should have been spent in a managerial role in the development sector in an International NGO or other grant funded organisation.  
• Experience in humanitarian programming is highly desirable.
• Demonstrated track record of writing project proposals for EC/EU, ECHO, USAID, Global Fund, DFID…etc and obtaining grant funding for development and humanitarian response projects from institutional donors.
• Demonstrated success in directly managing the implementation and reporting requirements of grant-funded projects and programs of the above funders.
• Experience in coaching, training, and facilitation of staff from diverse cultural, linguistic and professional backgrounds
• Experience of working with children and young people, and managing child and youth rights projects is an advantage

Plan International’s Values in Practice

We are open and accountable

• Promotes a culture of openness and transparency, including with sponsors and donors.
• Holds self and others accountable to achieve the highest standards of integrity.
• Consistent and fair in the treatment of people.
• Open about mistakes and keen to learn from them.
• Accountable for ensuring we are a safe organisation for all children, girls & young people

We strive for lasting impact

• Articulates a clear purpose for staff and sets high expectations.
• Creates a climate of continuous improvement, open to challenge and new ideas.
• Focuses resources to drive change and maximise long-term impact, responsive to changed priorities or crises.
• Evidence-based and evaluates effectiveness.

We work well together

• Seeks constructive outcomes, listens to others, willing to compromise when appropriate.
• Builds constructive relationships across Plan International to support our shared goals.
• Develops trusting and ‘win-win’ relationships with funders, partners and communities.
• Engages and works well with others outside the organization to build a better world for girls and all children.

We are inclusive and empowering

• Seeks constructive outcomes, listens to others, willing to compromise when appropriate.
• Builds constructive relationships across Plan International to support our shared goals.
• Develops trusting and ‘win-win’ relationships with funders, partners and communities.
• Engages and works well with others outside the organization to build a better world for girls and all children.

Physical Environment

The incumbent will be based at the Country Office, Yaounde.  Field travel will is required to the Program and Influencing Areas up to 25% of the time.

Level of contact with children

Mid contact:     Occasional interaction with children

NEXT STEP: 

To apply for this job, kindly click on « Apply ». Your application should include:

• A cover letter
• A comprehensive CV including details of two referees, one of whom should be your current of most recent supervisor
   
  Location: Yaounde – CAMEROON

• Closing date: September 21st, 2020
• Females candidates are highly encouraged to apply

Plan International Cameroon operates in an equal opportunity environment and actively encourages diversity.  Only applications received in French or English, will be considered and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Plan international has a child protection and gender equality policies that are integral part of the recruitment process.