The International Potato Center (CIP) is looking for one (1) Resource Mobilization Officer/Manager with excellent organizational skills, who’ll support the implementation of an institutional resource mobilization strategy, identifying funding opportunities, and supporting Principal Investigators (PIs) in drafting quality concept note and proposals. The selected candidate will closely work with CIP’s scientists and Resource Mobilization staff in all stages of CN/proposal development, including planning, drafting, editing, endorsement, and submission) of major grant applications (high- dollar and/or to high-potential prospects) to support proposal management and development for fundraising.

Proposal development (70%)

• Provides strategic and procedural guidance on key funding opportunities to PIs and their collaborators, ensuring alignment with organizational goals and compliance with internal protocols.
• Assists PIs and their teams in making informed go/no-go decisions regarding funding opportunities, utilizing available intelligence and opportunity analysis.
• Acts as the process manager for proposal preparation and leads management of proposal preparation for a range of funders, mainly focused on India and Asia, but also across all areas of CIP operations, ensuring that proposals are submitted on time, on budget and at highest-level of quality. This includes
  o   Assessing requirements as determined by the funder and the funding request
  o   Providing technical input and support to the preparation of proposals, in liaison with other staff as relevant
  o   Developing workplans together with PI to ensure sufficient time for preparations of highest quality that meet deadlines
  o   Compile/and enhance supporting documents for proposals ensuring they comply with requirements (CVs, due diligence assessments, support letters, institutional documents)
  o   Ensuring alignment between activities and costing
  o   Ensures coordination with all relevant stakeholders during proposal preparation
• Supports general proposal development activities, including providing background research into funders and their priority areas Coordinate technical review and approval before submission to funders.

Knowledge Management (10%)

• Systematizes learnings from successful and unsuccessful proposals, in consultation with relevant teams, to improve future proposal preparation and success rates.
• Provide support to the development and dissemination of good practices and lessons learned; ensure incorporation into program planning
• Lead in compiling and managing an online repository of good practices, lessons learned and other resources on proposal development
• Contribute to capacity building efforts, as necessary

Opportunity sourcing (10%)

• Continuous identification of calls for proposals and processing of funding opportunities
• First selection of opportunities using pre-defined selection criteria in line with organization guidelines and scope of work
• Ensure that opportunities meet the needs and interests of CIP and its scientists before these are published internally

Information management (10%)

• Provide support in managing outreach activities and other promotional events to engage bilateral and multilateral institutions/ funders, private sector, and civil society to expand and/or sustain interest and resources for CIP’s programs
• Analyzing and interpreting the donor and partner environment relevant to climate change, food systems and biodiversity, and identifying opportunities for CIP’s assistance and intervention
• Contributing to the effective implementation of CIP’s strategy and CIP’s Resource Mobilization Strategy by identifying opportunities for CIP’s strategic engagement with donors and partners
• Developing outreach efforts to the donors and partners
• Shares knowledge, insights, and priorities to reinforce the connection between resource mobilization and external communications, supporting efforts closely on such related fields as communication, funder outreach and advocacy.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, Financial Management, Operations or related field.
• Relevant experience of at least 5 years in resource mobilization and research proposal development, particularly in agriculture, environment, rural development, and/or natural or social sciences.
• In-depth knowledge of proposal development: Experience in managing large, complex, technical proposals (u2265US$2 million) in collaboration with multi-disciplinary teams in international settings.
• Experience in preparing analyses, guidance, or educational materials to support proposal development.
• Ability to work effectively in multi-cultural and interdisciplinary environments.
• In-depth knowledge of India and Asia with regard to funding and partner landscape
• Proficient in MS Office, especially in MS Word, PowerPoint, MS excel
• Advanced written and oral communication skills in English and Hindi
  Desirable:
• Knowledge of French or Spanish would be an advantage
• International experience would be an advantage
• Desired knowledge of CGIAR