BACKGROUND

Over the past 80 years, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) has developed unparalleled expertise in responding to emergencies and helping uprooted communities to rebuild. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC offers lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster. The International Rescue Committee UK is part of the IRC global network, which has its headquarters in New York and London. The IRC is on the ground in more than 40 countries, providing emergency relief, relocating refugees and rebuilding lives in the wake of disaster. The IRC is committed to a culture of bold leadership, innovation in all aspects of our work, creative partnerships and, most crucially, accountability to those we serve. The IRC is a tireless advocate for the most vulnerable.

IRC UK

IRC UK was established in 1997 to support the organisation’s global activities and particularly to diversify its donor base and be able to better advocate with policymakers on behalf of the people we serve. Since its establishment IRC UK has grown rapidly and now comprises approximately 180 staff. In Europe, the IRC also has offices in Berlin, Bonn, Brussels, Geneva and Stockholm.

The Purpose of the Role

The Senior Program/Business Development Advisor will join a global BD team and will help drive IRC’s new business development efforts by engaging with global, regional, country, and technical staff throughout the business development cycle from opportunity tracking and positioning/capture planning to proposal development, and submission. The SPDA will primarily serve as capture and proposal manager, and s/he will also offer technical assistance and mentor staff working on proposals on relevant business development topics. The ideal candidate will have a successful track record of leading large-scale and complex new business efforts in international development with particular emphasis on FCDO commercial contracts. The successful candidate will have very strong FCDO experience in both grants and contracts and experience with a diverse range of donors including USAID, ECHO, BHA, SIDA, INTPA, DANIDA, World Bank, and others.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

Bid leadership and coordination (70%)

·Lead proposal development for complex and strategic public opportunities, including capture strategy, management of proposal teams, calendars, and deadlines; strategy development with technical staff; partner identification and negotiations; recruiting; writing; production; and after-action reviews.

·Identifies and shares public funding opportunities with relevant Technical Units and Country/Regional Leads.

·Advises Technical Teams and Country Teams on strategic approaches for funding opportunities, guiding a robust and evidence driven Go/No Go process.

·Supports technical units and country teams to offer pitches to prospective partners to secure the most competitive consortia possible.

·Review and/or draft expressions of interest, concept notes, and proposals to ensure quality and compliance with donor standards.

·Collaborate with IRC’s pricing team, ensuring technical coherence with the cost proposal.

·Collaborates with Proposal Recruiter to identify and assess candidates for key personnel positions on proposals.

·Organizes and manages internal processes to ensure IRC is always submitting the most competitive proposals.

Business Development process improvement and knowledge management (10%)

·Conducts After Action Reviews and captures learning to disseminate to wider organization

·Contributes to and models the use of standard business development processes, tools, templates and information.

·May serve in short term mentor role to junior staff leading large bids for the first time.

Partnerships and Strategy (20%)

·Conducts landscape analyses to identify most strategic partnerships in public donor markets, with a particular focus on fostering local partnerships.

·Drafts high quality positioning materials as necessary, including capability statements and prior project reference sheets.

·Strengthen collaboration with internal stakeholders including country teams, technical units, and other team members.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Skills, Knowledge and Qualifications:

·Bachelor’s degree in relevant field, including international relations, political science, public administration, and communications

·At least six years of focused experience working with UK and US Government donors. Additional donor expertise with ECHO, BHA, SIDA, INTPA, DANIDA, World Bank strongly desired.

·Strong knowledge of FCDO and/or USAID rules and regulations.

·Training or familiarity with Shipley Proposal Development process.

·Fluency in English with proficiency in one other language (French, Spanish, German, Arabic) highly desirable.

Experience:

·Successful track record leading large proposal teams on complex subject, multi-year, multi-partner proposals with minimal supervision

·Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, including the ability to effectively manage a variety of relationships in a multicultural environment

·Demonstrated ability to collaborate equally effectively with colleagues in ‘remote’ and diverse teams, including as team leader for proposals

·The ability to work productively and accurately while under pressure in a fast-paced, demanding environment

·Experience managing FCDO or USAID programs remotely or at country-level also beneficial

·Ability to travel internationally (up to 20% of time)