Senior Program Officer - Nairobi at World Vision Kenya

This position will focus primarily on grant acquisition but will also providing program management support to select grants. The job holder will lead program and proposal development and design for high-value, competitive, complex funding opportunities, in line with World Vision International / Somalia Program strategy (WVS). He/she will lead proposal planning and development processes by mobilizing a cross-functional proposal team including Quality Assurance, Finance, Technical Advisors, Operations and Support Office staff, ensuring targeted input and reviews for efficient and clear proposal processes. The position will support the creation and promotion of strategic alliances with donors, multilateral agencies and other Non-Governmental Organizations for purposes of increasing resources for children and families within World Vision programming.

Main Responsibilities:

• Programming & Proposal Development:
  • Pursue resource mobilization opportunities aligned to WVS strategy and capacities in humanitarian and developmental sectors by working closely with key stakeholders in developing proposals for a variety of donors to meet local community needs that are aligned to WV Somalia Program’s strategy.
  • Mobilize and lead cross-functional proposal development teams with clear assignments, deadlines and timetable, including appropriate representatives from Operations, Technical Advisors, Finance, Quality Assurance and Support Office support. Anticipate strengths and contributions of each proposal team member for maximum efficiency and effectiveness, as well as team satisfaction.
  • Anticipate, plan for and write proposals with high win rate. Lead in the selection of sectors and geographic areas which maximize WV’s program impact, cost efficiency and donor preferences or requirements.
  • Regularly review project evaluations, lessons learned workshop documents, field and project reports across the program and from other NGOs and donors to apply emerging innovations and best practices in future proposals.
• Relationship building and competitive intelligence gathering:
  • Regularly meet with, brief and provide updates to current and prospective donor representatives to build and strengthen relationships.
  • Represent WV Somalia Program in various donor and coordination forums at National level and providing programmatic information as required to promote WV visibility and good will with donors including, UN Agencies, bilateral, multilaterals, Support Offices and NGO peers.
  • Research, monitor and act upon shifting donor strategy, funding, or regulatory information and advice Program Development and Operations’ leadership of emerging trends that could positively or negatively affect the program.
• Program reporting & donor compliance:
  • Provide timely, detailed and quality program reports to Support Offices and donors on emergency and rehabilitative grant funded programs.
  • Provide effective and reliable monitoring of emergency and rehabilitative programs through liaison with partners, Project Managers and Technical Advisors. Proactively raise implementation or compliance challenges with QA, Ops Managers, Program Management Team Lead, and SO.

Qualifications: Education/Knowledge/Technical Skills and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Development Studies or any relevant social sciences with experience in program development.
• Five years or more working in humanitarian or development field, preferably with one or more previous assignments in fragile contexts.
• Two to three years designing and/or implementing education programmes is strongly preferred
• Should demonstrate training in humanitarian standards and donor requirements e.g. OFDA, DFID and Europe Aid.
• Should have very good proposal development skills: An exceptionally strong writer.
• Very good ability to mobilize cross-functional proposal team (technical, operations, field staff, finance, M&E, Regional/HQ) with right staff at the right time to meet tight deadlines. Can also effectively mobilize multi-partner proposal development teams.
• Should demonstrate very good experience in networking with donors and partners to bring about funding opportunities.
• Strong leadership and demonstrated ability to work independently and within a team, prioritize tasks and manage multiple activities with attention to detail and ability to meet very tight deadlines.
• Demonstrates ability to effectively work across cultures.
• Demonstrates well-developed interpersonal skills, excellent communication skills, both verbal and written as well as negotiation skills.
• Demonstrates the ability to mobilize and work as part of a diverse team to achieve the overall goal.

Working Environment

Work environment: This position will be based in Nairobi, Kenya and requires frequent travel to Somalia.