Technical Senior Officer, USAID/Colombia Strengthening Together Activity

At the heart of Pact is the promise of a better tomorrow. A nonprofit international development organization founded in 1971, Pact works on the ground in nearly 40 countries to improve the lives of those who are challenged by poverty and marginalization. We serve these communities because we envision a world where everyone owns their future. To do this, we build systemic solutions in partnership with local organizations, businesses, and governments that create sustainable and resilient communities where those we serve are heard, capable, and vibrant. Pact is a recognized global leader in international development. Our staff have a range of expertise in areas including public health, capacity development, governance and civil society, natural resource management, poverty, fragile states, monitoring and evaluation, small-scale and artisanal mining, microfinance and more. This expertise is combined in Pact’s unique integrated approach, which focuses on systemic changes needed to improve people’s lives.

Department

Programs - Pact strives for a world where all people are heard, capable, and vibrant. The Programs Team helps realize this objective by bridging program management, technical support, and business development, enabling Pact to achieve its global strategy. We ensure program excellence through continuous learning, monitoring and evaluation and provide organizational and industry-wide thought leadership by leveraging a complementary set of cross-functional, multi-disciplinary skills, expertise, and experiences. The Programs team: influences progressive change through the development and implementation of global and regional strategies and business plans; supports advancement of innovative solutions; pursues new business opportunities; and drives effective internal and external engagement to maximize Pact’s impact across the globe. Across all aspects of its role, the Programs Department adheres to and promotes a culture of inclusion, accountability, and respect.

Position Overview

The Technical Senior Officer will provide technical and strategic leadership for project interventions under Objective 4: Colombian organizations effectively provide valued capacity-building services. The Technical Senior Officer will be responsible for strengthening Colombian organizations to lead in the provision of capacity building goods and services, supporting sustainability and local ownership. S/he will also pilot and manage innovative approaches to scale and adapt the current capacity building services market in Colombia. Finally, a core component of his/her responsibility will be to manage the development and/or adaptation of an online platform to facilitate the provision of capacity building services, methodologies, and tools.

Key Responsibilities

· The Technical Senior Officer will identify and strengthen two to three Colombian organizations to progressively lead in the provision of capacity building services to Colombia’s social sector.

· Develop and implement a long-term sustainability strategy for activities under objective four and the project more broadly.

· Manage the assessment of the current Colombian market for capacity building services to inform strategy.

· Lead the creation of an innovative strategy and approach to enhance the local market of capacity building service provision.

· Work closely with project partner(s) and Pact colleagues to plan, implement, and adjust activities to best serve USAID/Colombia’s local partners and the broader Colombian social sector.

· Manage the adaptation and/or creation of an online platform to facilitate the provision of capacity building services, methodologies, and tools.

· Create and coordinate the implementation of an outreach strategy to promote the available capacity building goods and services within the Colombian market.

· Form alliances with key stakeholders (government, private sector, international cooperation) in support of the expansion of the Colombian capacity building services market.

· Ensure high-quality technical programming through participatory methodologies, co-creation, and contextualization, as per Pact’s capacity development overarching principles, approaches, and tools.

· Will foster strong collaboration and coordination with the grants management team to integrate capacity building and subaward monitoring processes and to ensure that capacity development is incorporated into subawards, as appropriate.

· Support knowledge management, linkages, and exchange of learnings and best practices across program activities and project teams.

Basic Requirements

· Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field including organizational development, social sciences, education, etc.

· At least seven (7) years of experience in the organizational, strategic, administrative/financial capacity building context, including experience working with local partner issues.

· Excellent grasp and demonstrated experience in participatory capacity building methodologies.

· Demonstrated skills in digital solutions for capacity development including the use of online learning platforms, virtual facilitation, and the adaptation of in-person learning to remote / virtual settings.

· Excellent facilitation, training, and mentoring skills in a variety of organizational development and technical topics.

· Ability to develop and maintain strong relationships with civil society partners and other strategic stakeholders in the government and private sector to ensure sustainability of results.

· Proven ability to manage a team, set realistic priorities, and plan for the successful implementation of activities.

· Strong written and oral communication skills, including presentations and preparations of written reports.

· Proven program leadership, management, project planning, organizational, interpersonal, and communication skills.

· Ability to frequently travel to project sites within Colombia.

· Fluency in Spanish (oral, writing and reading).

· Working proficiency of English (oral, writing and reading).

Preferred Qualifications

· Experience implementing USG-funded programs in Colombia.

· Solid understanding of the contemporary challenges and opportunities facing the civil society sector in Colombia.

· Fluency in English (oral, writing and reading).

· Colombian nationals are encouraged to apply.

Pact is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in its selection and employment practices on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, citizenship status, genetic information, matriculation, family responsibilities, personal appearance, credit information, tobacco use (except in the workplace), membership in an employee organization, or other protected classifications or non-merit factors.

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