Regional Program Development Manager at Relief International (RI)

POSITION SUMMARY :  

• The Regional Program Development Manager (RPDM) reports to the Regional Program Director (RPD), with technical supervision of the Head of Program Development based in Washington DC.
• The RPDM will take on a rigorous leadership role as a thought leader working with RSO and GSO to set strategy for the region as well as to support and guide the country offices in various key aspects of developing and accessing funding for new programs, in addition to focusing on improving the consistency and quality of proposal development processes at country level.
• The RPDM will be responsible for working closely with the RPD and country offices on capture management , networking planning, leading on program design workshops for strategic proposals, coordinating proposal development among various departments, ensuring full packages ready for review at regional and global level , and managing contributing directly on proposal writing as necessary .
• The job holder will need to undertake short-term travel to support country programs in the development of large strategic bids and/or providing surge capacity if needed .  
• This role will be critical to overall leadership and management of managing and reporting the ongoing and forecasted opportunities related to program development in the region and facilitate resource availability in coordination with GSO . 

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES :  

Strategic Support  

• Coordinate closely with the Global Program Development team, including participation in requested meetings and initiatives  
• Coordinate closely with the RPDM for RI’s other region, Middle East, to support culture of harmonized approaches between regional teams  
• Act as primary point of contact within the regional team supporting country teams with all aspects of the PD process   
• In coordination with RPD and country teams, develop networking strategy and follow up accordingly on its implementation at CO-level and regional level  
• Support the capacity development of regional and country teams in program development  
• Support effective go/no-go decisions, including ensuring opportunities align with the country strategy and RI global strategy  
• Undertake travel as required (short-term trips 10 days or less) in the pursuit of the above tasks  
• Participate in strategy development sessions for region and country offices  
• Participate in donor meetings at donor HQ and country levels as requested; participation in other meetings such as cluster meetings as requested  

Proposal Development  

• Contribute to program design, for solicited and unsolicited programs, and for pilot and full-scale programs  
• Manage/coordinate the preparation of funding proposals, including leading proposal writing and costing efforts across a broad range of donors and award amounts  
• Ensure full/clean packages for review of global PD team and regional team before submission  
• Work with the RPD and country teams to develop work plan for priority proposals  
• Work with RPD, Regional MEAL Manager and country teams on needs assessment requirements for project proposals as necessary  
• Track country and regional proposal efforts and report to RPD and Head of Program Development on status  
• Ensure PD process is followed within submission deadlines  
• In collaboration with country, regional and global team ensure Africa and Asia proposal development pipeline is accurate and up-to-date  

Risk Management  

• Work closely with regional and country teams on anticipating and mitigating programmatic and organizational risks related to program development and design of new projects  
• Ensure partnerships with other organizations within proposals follow RI’s procedures, including teaming agreements and due diligence requirements are met prior to submission  
• Support understanding of risks associated with taking on new donors  
• Ensure cost-share/ contribution identification for proposals is clear and reasonable  
• Work with country teams and Regional Finance Manager to ensure proposals align with the RI Common Cost Allocation Policy   
• Safeguarding  
• Uphold and promote RI’s commitment to ensuring the safeguarding and safety of the vulnerable communities we serve  
• Consistent with RI’s safeguarding and protection policies, ensure all people who come into contact with Relief International are as safe as possible  

Position requires:  

• Excellent written, verbal and interpersonal communication skills;  
• Ability and willingness to travel to field offices;  
• MA in international relations, business administration or other relevant field;  
• 5 years minimum experience in INGO context, experience in Africa and/or Asia desired  
• Ability to deal with multiple deadlines and competing priorities in a fast-paced environment  
• Demonstrated experience with at least half of RI’s key donors: USAID – BHA, USDOS – PRM, ECHO and various UN agencies. Experience with EC and other development donors is desired.  
• Proven success in grant writing, networking and liaising with country and global support staff