Partnerships

Lead Corporate Partnerships strategy

• Support the office and senior management to seek and promote new partnerships and resource mobilization opportunities, working with UNICEF colleagues globally and within the region to identify partnership and resource mobilization needs and broker resource mobilization agreements to meet those needs.
• Develop beneficial, strong relationships directly with key decision makers at prospective businesses, national Committees and multilateral bilateral donors engaging externally and internally at senior levels and credibly representing UNICEF in negotiations on high value partnerships.
• Supports, encourages and guides a team of private sector partnerships, resource mobilization, donor reporting specialists to lead them to achieve their individual targets.
• Identify, develop and take to market, cases for partnership investment in Cote D’Ivoire
• Develops together with the team different business cases for partnerships according to financial and non-financial needs in Cote D’Ivoire. Test and modify the business case according to market feedback and develop the right proposition for business and foundations.

Actively contributing to Global Best Practices

• Continually gathers and disseminates best practice learnings and experiences on the development of Corporate Partnerships and actively participate in global or regional meetings, skills trainings and capacity building discussions. Contributes to the implementation of best practices in WCARO.
• Receives and screens inquiries from potential collaborators and facilitates communication with appropriate UNICEF staff. Scans and scouts external environment within designated partnership area for opportunities and risks and shares information in a timely fashion with relevant UNICEF staff.
• Develops and maintains deep knowledge and familiarity with current and prospective partners and relevant stakeholders, contributing to a database of key contacts and to UNICEF’s base of knowledge on partnership and resource mobilization.
• Expands UNICEF’s network of key interlocutors to build stronger relationships between UNICEF and governments, other key-decision makers, regional development institutions, foundations, civil society organizations, international financial institutions and/or other relevant constituencies.

Develops and implements annual partnership engagement and resource mobilization plans.

• Acts as a focal point for identification and pursuit of opportunities for outreach, engagement, policy influence and collaboration, including on how to anticipate and respond to partners’ concerns and priorities, ensure that UNICEF’s interests, perspectives, and knowledge are taken into account in relevant policy and institutional processes, and ensure that they are fully aware of UNICEF’s perspectives, policies, priorities and capabilities. Contribute to the development and management of initiatives for high-level outreach, including for UNICEF’s Senior Management.
• Contributes to the development of new partnership and resource mobilization practices and approaches by formulating recommendations for action based on on-going monitoring, analyzing current trends within designated partners and formulating recommendations for strategy approaches and message development.
• Contributes to strategies for engagement and the development of communications and advocacy products to enhance UNICEF’s visibility and influence with existing and prospective partners and key stakeholders by providing analysis of the current environment and trends and formulating recommendations for strategy approaches and message development. Works closely with UNICEF’s CDi section chiefs and Dep Rep Programme to ensure that policy advocacy and outreach is strongly grounded in the experience and insights of the programmes that UNICEF’s supports. Contributes written inputs for communications instruments that best inform and influence decision makers.
• Performs other related duties as assigned by the supervisor to ensure the success of the team, including guiding, training, and coaching short-term staff, including interns and consultants, as needed.

Resource Mobilization

1. Support the Country Office in implementing the resource mobilization strategy and action plan.

• Monitor, update and provide follow-up support for the implementation of the RM Strategy
• Coordinate regular meetings of the RM Task Force, ensuring follow-up of assigned tasks and integration of any new donor information into the donor database
• Produce donor proposals, concept notes, briefs/info sheets, presentations and other fundraising materials as needed to support the fundraising activities of senior staff
• Plan and attend virtual and face-to-face meetings with current and potential donors including fundraising missions and/or events in which the Representative participates.

2. Cultivate and retain donors through maintenance and implementation of efficient and transparent contribution management systems.

Donor retention and diversification

• Identify and cultivate potential donors;
• Develop and maintain professional relationships with both current and prospective donors;
• Develop strategies to encourage new or increased contributions;
• Develop and adapt innovative approaches for fundraising through the analysis of trends.

Donor reporting

• Monitor reporting deadlines and ensure timely and high-quality reports against donor agreements.
• Develop an overview of donor reporting requirements and collaborate with M&E officer to streamline reporting processes Spearhead the quarterly donor briefs, in coordination with the RM Task Force, to highlight key issues of relevance to the sector (These are to be issue briefs, not to be confused with the programme updates.)

Contribution management

• Track donor conditions regularly monitor implementation/expenditure levels against expiry dates.
• Update the RM Task Force of expiring funds or other issues related to contributions.
• Work with budget officer to link funding to the CO’s activities, outputs and outcomes Report funding gaps, funds in the pipeline, and issues needing follow-up to the RM Task Force.

3. Knowledge management

• Maintain and further develop the knowledge management systems to build an institutional memory and maximize efficiencies. This includes: the document database (reports, proposals, briefs, correspondence, Agreements etc); the online donor database of information; the RM Strategy Action plan; and other systems that may be developed.

Requirements: 

Minimum requirements:

[Include the vacancy requirements aligned to the category and level of the position. You can see examples in the branded VA example.]

• Education: An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in Social Sciences, International Relations, Government, Public Policy, Social Policy, Social Development and other relevant disciplines. Specialized training in Resource Mobilization will be considered an asset.
• Work Experience:

1. Eight years of relevant professional work experience, in a resource mobilization capacity or private sector fundraising.
2. Experience in international donor relations is required;
3. Previous experience of fundraising for global partnerships or non-for-profit organizations in the areas of systems and policy change is an asset;
4. Proven ability to develop effective long-term strategic fundraising plans and relationships;
5. Previous networks/connections within the Resource Mobilization field will be considered a strong asset;
6. Strong project management skills with proven ability to appropriately allocate time and resources, as well as foresee risks and allow for contingencies when planning;
7. Proven ability to implement clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies, identify priority activities, adjust priorities as needed to meet organizational goals;
8. Demonstrated ability to identify and seize new fundraising opportunities, formulating new fundraising strategies and models;
9. Demonstrated ability to adjust to unexpected challenges and proposing countermeasures accordingly;

• Language Requirements: Fluency in French and English is required

SKILLS

• The ability to allocate appropriate time and resources for successful achievement of goals and foresee risks and allow for contingencies when planning.
• Ability to implement clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies, identify priority activities and assignments, adjust priorities as required.
• Diplomatic communication and negotiation skills to establish and maintain trusted partnerships for achievement of objectives and to develop close and effective working relationships with diverse stakeholders.
• Authoritative knowledge of development issues, strategies, as well as programming policies and procedures in international development cooperation.
• Authoritative knowledge of practices in partnership development and resource mobilization.
• Demonstrated ability to formulate new approaches in respect of resources management and outreach- related activities.
• Skill in the identification of new opportunities or requirements to meet challenges in the field and propose changes.
• Excellent communications skills, verbal and written.
• In-depth familiarity with political and governmental processes
• Ability to conduct sound policy analysis