Near East Foundation
Job Announcement
Title: Business Development Coordinator
Reports to: Business Development Manager
Location: Washington, D.C. (preferred)
Travel: Yes, 10 % of time
The Near East Foundation (NEF) is seeking candidates for the position of Business Development Coordinator to be based in its Washington D.C., Syracuse or London headquarters. NEF is a non-profit international development organization that has supported livelihoods recovery and community-based economic development in the Middle East, Africa, and Caucasus since 1915. NEF draws on local teams, experience, and partnerships in these regions to create community-led solutions to reduce poverty, create economic opportunity, increase resilience, and empower conflict and crisis-affected groups to improve their future outlook and wellbeing. Working through a network of country offices and local partners, NEF has operations in ten countries: Armenia, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, Mali, Morocco, Palestine, Sudan, South Sudan, and Syria. HQ offices are based in Syracuse, NY, Washington, DC, London, UK, and Brussels, Belgium. Our programs are organized around three pillars: Inclusive Economic Development, Climate-resilient Development, and Stabilization and Peacebuilding.
POSITION DESCRIPTION
The Business Development Coordinator is housed within NEF’s Program Team. The Coordinator plays a key role supporting the program team to develop high-quality and responsive funding proposals and in maintaining proposal systems. The Program Team leads efforts to design programs that are innovative and impactful; develop funding proposals to mobilize donor resources for programs; form strategic partnerships; offer technical support for team members and partners in critical practice areas; support strategic planning; and represent NEF to the public, donors, and partners.
GENERAL RESPONSIBILITIES
The Business Development Coordinator will facilitate the proposal development process in support of the Business Development Manager, technical experts, and other team members. The Business Development Coordinator is responsible for (a) coordinating proposal development efforts; (b) ensuring proposal compliance and coordinating internal and external reviews; (c) ensuring completeness and timeliness of all proposal components, supporting the drafting and formatting of proposal sections and attachments as required; (d) supporting coordination of consortia and partners; (e) monitoring donor procurement platforms (e.g., USAID business forecasts, EU procurement portal), and (f) maintaining and updating business development databases, tools and partnership platforms.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Proposal Development (80%):
- Engage with lead writers and country teams to plan proposal processes and deadlines. Contribute to research, drafting and formatting proposal sections and supporting documents as required;
- Provide editing, writing, work plan coordination, assessment, and research and/or other support to proposals led by other team members as necessary. Facilitate the compilation of full narrative and cost applications;
- Support the identification, engagement and coordination of technical grant writers or consultants for select NEF proposals, with day-to-day responsibility for developing and processing work orders, invoices and payments as necessary;
- Review proposals and supporting documentation and annexes for accuracy and compliance with donor regulations. Ensure accountability to NEF and donor requirements as outlined in relevant calls for proposals, donor rules andregulation;
- Support adherence to international standards for relief and development in all program designs and proposals;
- Ensure all planning documents and proposal packages are filed and accessible to relevant program and country teams;
- Coordinate with Program Unit staff and country teams to ensure smooth transition from proposal to project implementation;
- Provide additional proposal development support in collaboration with NEF’s Business Development Manager and Program Unit as directed. This may include in-country support whenever necessary;
- Schedule and coordinate regular Business Development meetings, with guidance from Business Development Manager.
Strategic Planning and Pipeline Support (approximately 20%):
- Support with the maintenance of institutional donor mapping matrix, and support the general coordination and identification of new opportunities, in line with organizational and country program strategies;
- Support with short-term assignments related to development / implementation of program development administrative tools, including data transfer and Salesforce set-up;
- Maintain and update registration/organizational information on partnership systems and platforms;
- Collaborate with other teams for process/systems improvements;
- Collaborate with other NEF teams for process/systems improvements;
- Perform other duties as assigned in support of NEF’s mission and Program Team objectives, as requested by the Business Development Manager.
QUALIFICATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS
The successful candidate is a quick learner, detail oriented, flexible, and a team player who wants to own their own work, hone skills, and contribute to the success of a mission-driven organization.
Basic Qualifications
- BA/S in relevant field required;
- Minimum of two years of experience in international relief and development; demonstrated knowledge of grant-based funding models, proposal development, emergency response and development strategies and operational challenges in the sector;
- Experience with grant-writing, international development, and programmatic design and learning efforts.
- Excellent writing and editing skills;
- Strong written and verbal communication skills;
- Proven experience contributing to winning proposals;
- Proven high level of computer literacy skills with MS Office software required (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
Preferred Qualifications
- Master’s degree in International Development, Humanitarian Studies, or a relevant field in alignment with relief or development sectors;
- Proficiency in French or Arabic.
- Familiarity with US government grant processes, as well as grants from other institutional donors (e.g., ECHO/EC, UN, FCDO);
- Demonstrated ability to coordinate complex activities, meet deadlines and exercise sound judgement and discipline;
- Demonstrated ability to work efficiently and effectively as part of a team with a high degree of drive, autonomy and initiative;
- Ability to travel internationally to support country programs, as necessary.**
Position Criteria:
- Functional competencies that show flexibility and ability to multitask, establish priorities taking into consideration special assignments, deadlines, and available resources;
- Strong independent task management skills and techniques, ability to prioritize and organize own workload;
- Ability to work under pressure in a deadline-driven environment.
How to apply:
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
NEF will accept rolling applications until the position is filled. Review of applications will begin on Monday, October 25, 2021. Interested candidates are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.
Please apply by submitting the following documents to the Near East Foundation Career Page at https://neareast.bamboohr.com/jobs/view.php?id=173&source=aWQ9OA%3D%3D :
- Cover letter outlining all relevant experience, with attached writing sample that demonstrates the candidate’s own proficiencies (1-2 pages writing sample);
- Curriculum Vitae;
- List of three references (including one from current, or most recent, employer).
Applicants are strongly encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Near East Foundation by visiting the NEF website at www.neareast.org.
The Near East Foundation promotes Equal Employment Opportunities for all applicants seeking employment and NEF employees.
