Project Lead Farmer to Farmer Access to Finance Program at Grameen Foundation

CA Level: Insight & Implementation - Accomplishing

Class: Non- Exempt

Job Summary: The Project Lead will use broad and comprehensive experience, skills and knowledge to direct all activities related to managing the assigned project, “The Digital Inputs Financing Toolkit - increasing rural smallholders’ usage of improved agricultural inputs through data-driven decision support and digital financial services.” He/she will work directly with the Grameen Foundation global and country-level teams, and with partner and donor organisations, to drive product design, development, implementation and scaling efforts.

Reporting and relationships: The position will report to the Regional Director, East Africa. The role will directly supervise staff and contractors related to the project.

Availability: The Project Lead will be expected to work a typical work week of 40 hours plus additional hours to get the job done. The position will be based in Nairobi, Kenya. This position will need to be flexible to work in local conditions, and be available to work across different time zones. This position will require travel (25%) within Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and other countries as needed.

Main Objectives of the Role:

Mission & Business Results

This role is accountable for leading and implementing projects/ongoing work related to our integrated solution areas, namely Agriculture & Financial Services (AgFin). The work involves close partnerships with commercial institutions, and their leadership teams, to generate results and deliver against deadlines and internal/external partner requirements. The role is accountable for:

• Successfully taking substantive projects or initiatives from start to finish, with clear milestones, deliverables and standards for success.
  Leading and effectively re-prioritizing work to deliver results in a timely manner. Proactively driving processes for getting feedback on project output - resulting in on-going improvements.
  Generating results that demonstrate advanced knowledge of financial services for agriculture, country-level strategies, area-specific ecosystem and issues, and their impact on the broader work area.
• Contributing to frameworks/tools for program theory assessment, impact assessment, and work progress. Analyzing project data and providing recommendations for improvements to current processes/offerings.
• Integration Results
• Driving proactive monitoring and analysis of relevant project/work portfolio data to generate trends and insights, and identify potential issues in a timely manner.
  Seeking relevant input, review and buy-in from managers and internal stakeholders, especially for key milestones and significant changes for their work area. Analysing project data and providing recommendations for improvements to current processes/offerings with team, client or broad impact.
  Mapping and owning operational and financial processes and data flows relevant to their work area. Implementing improved automated solutions and process improvements that increase data driven insights, efficiency and effectiveness.
• Stakeholder Results
• Accountable for supporting the finalization and on-boarding of new relationships; and working with external organisations to provide and generate support or answers for a varied content area. Establishing and managing high impact partnerships with external pro-poor organizations such as financial service providers (FSPs), international NGOs, social enterprises, and donor organisations.
  Finalizing and owning end-to-end proposal/bid processes for their work portfolio. Creating project reports, communication materials for internal and external audiences. Providing insight, analysis and recommendations for the development of new business models.
  Representing their work in related industry, trade or community events. Provides recommendations, and implements campaigns and strategies to grow donor, client and partner base – for new and existing offerings – to further area sustainability.
• Leadership Results
• Serving as a Subject Matter Expert for AgFin related questions. Sought out for specific technical expertise or field experiences by team members.
  Creating a team climate where staff members feel engaged, motivated and productive. Providing clarity, alignment, feedback, strong sense of connection, and development/ growth opportunities to their direct reports.
  Delivering against GF Talent Processes: Recruiting and On-boarding, Commitment/Goal Setting, Career Development Planning, and Annual Performance Reviews.
  Demonstrating the ability to establish productive partnerships that span several regional and cultural boundaries.

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Ability to drive change by using an array of influencing techniques within a partner organisation, e.g., for embedding new product innovations
• Outstanding project management skills with proven track record of achievement under a range of challenging situations
• Excellent analytical skills, specifically when applied to business model development
• Knowledge of using a human centred design process and with interdisciplinary teams
• Knowledge in a subject area, AgFin, specifically within the country context
• Practical knowledge of applying information and communication technology (ICT) for enabling product and service operations
• Deep commitment to eradication of poverty and alignment with Grameen Foundation’s mission

Education and Experience

• At least a bachelor’s degree, and post-graduate degree preferred
• 6+ years of relevant professional experience in either a for-profit or non-profit organisation, with 4+ years project management experience in multi-disciplinary teams
• Excellent written and verbal English language skills; knowledge of Swahili will be given preference
• Experience working in a global/multicultural organization across multiple time zones and multiple countries

Physical and Environmental Conditions: This position does not require unusual demands for physical effort. This position may occasionally require physical effort to lift and transport boxes weighing no more than 50 pounds. Work environment involves everyday risks or discomforts that require normal safety precautions typical of places such offices, meeting or training rooms, residences, or commercial vehicles; e.g., use of safe work place practices with office equipment, and/or avoidance of trips and falls, and observance of fire regulations and traffic signals.

Additional Comment: The above job description is not intended as, nor should it be construed as, exhaustive of all responsibilities, skills, efforts or working conditions associated with this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made in appropriate circumstances to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this job.