Business Development Manager

JOB PURPOSE :

DRC is characterized by recurrent natural and man-made crises including conflict, disease outbreaks and flooding, resulting in a significant humanitarian impact including mass displacement which has left the population in need of life-saving assistance. Oxfam is committed to supporting vulnerable communities through both humanitarian and development/resilience programming.

The Business Development Manager (BDM) supports the Country Director and DRC country team to identify, develop, and manage strategic opportunities that support the organization’s mission, goals, and financial sustainability. The BDM leads the Funding team to ensure donor engagement strong program design and proposal development, building relationships with donors and stakeholders, working cross-functionally with internal teams to manage, systems interaction (OPAL) and deliver quality compliance (narrative, budgeting and alignment within the relevant frameworks).

To achieve the country program ambitions, the Country Business Development Manager will be responsible for developing and implementing resource mobilisation strategies, for developing a new business strategy in order to forge strategic partnerships between Oxfam and institutional donors and identifying and developing new funding opportunities. The post holder will be expected to work across the confederation of OI affiliates in achieving the country funding strategy and be the primary link for accessing technical fundraising assistance and support from the confederation’s fundraising architecture.

DRC Context

Oxfam has been working in DRC since 1960, working to support and empower people against the impacts of conflict and poverty. In 2022 the organisation consolidated its efforts to meet the needs of the most vulnerable and has reached over 1 million people across the country with life-saving, resilience and sustainable assistance.

Oxfam in DRC works on WASH, Emergency Food Security and Livelihoods, Protection, Advocacy, Governance, Gender Justice and Resilience programming. Gender Justice programming is mainstreamed in all the work, and standalone Gender Justice projects are being developed. Oxfam works in partnerships where possible and would like to increased the number of women’s rights organizations partnered with.

Dimensions

• Significant responsibilities for external stakeholder engagement and relationship management with institutional donors and Oxfam in DRC.
• Engagement both internally and externally on proposal development, funding opportunities, and donor strategies.
• Provide specialist advice, knowledge and skills related to partnership-building with institutional donors and Oxfam’s program in DRC to a range of Oxfam senior managers and staff members.
• Management tasks are complex, not routine, and involve high degree of specialisation.
• Responsible for growing income from donors working in country for the confederation.
• Decision-making requires significant levels of judgement based on technical knowledge, experience, and consultation.
• Collaborates with and influences colleagues in different parts of organisation including programs, finance, human resources, logistics, and funding.
• Provides leadership in the design, coordination, and delivery of agreed strategies and plans for resource mobilisation.
• Contributes to country income and budget planning processes according to agreed Oxfam processes.
• Manages bids and proposals with potentially significant financial and reputational impact for Oxfam and its partners.
• Engages with external stakeholders in the development of consortia bids in DRC.
• Works across the global program funding function to ensure coherence, consistency and quality in fundraising efforts and results.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES (Technical, Leadership, People and Resource management)

• Resource mobilisation strategies: Leads the design and implementation of resource mobilisation strategies intended to strengthen income and partnerships to deliver the country strategy. Monitors the funding pipeline and leads on income planning and forecasting at a country level.
• New business development: Actively identifies, qualifies and tracks funding and partnership opportunities in a systematic manner in pursuit of supporting Oxfam’s program. Including scoping new consortium partnerships with local stakeholders.
• Strategic donor engagement: Responsible for managing and building Oxfam’s relationships with donor representatives in the country. Proactively engages on a strategic basis with institutional donors at a country level in order to facilitate technical programme exchanges, influence policy and thinking, and identify key areas of potential cooperation, including program funding.
• Bid development: Prepares all necessary groundwork for proposal development[1], helps assemble bid development teams, provides effective bid coordination and project management in country and undertakes quality assurance of donor proposals to ensure high quality competitive proposals in order to successfully secure institutional donor funds.
• Donor compliance: Provides technical advice in negotiations with institutional donors over contracts, costs, governance and accountability, and donor conditions. Advises program and finance staff to deliver strong donor compliance and undertakes quality assurance for reports for donors in country considered to be high risk, in order to help minimise any negative impact to Oxfam’s income and reputation[2].
• Capacity building: Undertakes capacity assessments and provides technical training, support and advice for staff on how to work with donor funding in country.
• Coordination: Links with the confederation funding architecture to access intelligence, opportunities and skills. Brokering assistance from technical advisers and donor account managers in affiliate HQs, regional offices and shared services. Supports in-country staff to adhere to funding policies and guidelines of the confederation. Collaborates with other affiliates to co-create or develop global or multi-country funding opportunities.

EXPERIENCE, KNOWLEDGE & COMPETENCIES

Essential

• Post-graduate degree from a recognized university/ college in International Development, Public Policy, Public Health, Sustainable Livelihoods, Humanitarian Assistance, Programme Management or other relevant area
• Relevant experience in a similar position for a minimum of 4 years for Postgraduate degree holders or 6+ years for bachelor’s degree holders, in an international NGO in a similar context.
• Demonstrable experience and success in securing and managing funds from bilateral and multilateral donors such as ECHO, FCDO, BHA, SIDAM GAC, GFFO and UN agencies for an international agency like Oxfam.
• Proven record on identifying new business opportunities and partnerships, implement resource mobilization strategies and effectively engage with donors/prospective donors.
• Experience of collaborating with multidisciplinary technical teams to develop successful humanitarian and development proposals funded by institutional and private donors.
• Strong networking, interpersonal and negotiation skills.
• Ability to work effectively with others in a team across business units and geographic locations.
• Ability to adapt and work within a multicultural, multilingual, and multidisciplinary environment.
• Experience of managing staff: challenging, motivating, developing, and inspiring team members
• Superior verbal and written English communication skills with the ability to analyses and synthesize complex issues.
• Ability to make effective, timely decisions and take prudent risks.
• Excellent programme planning and budgeting skills, and a sound understanding of the Grant Cycle Management in emergencies and/or development environments.
• Strong analytical and conceptual thinking skills; able to understand complex issues and translate them into simple, workable concepts and proposals.
• Commitment to Oxfam’s overall aims and policies and experience of promoting women’s rights and those of marginalised people in all aspects of Oxfam’s work in DRC.
• Comprehensive evidence in knowledge and experience of developing program proposals either humanitarian response, resilience and development.

Desirable

• Experience working/living in DRC
• Knowledge of Oxfam contract management system
• Good knowledge and awareness of issues related to Oxfam’s strategic objectives and theories of change.
• Previous work experience with Oxfam
• Experience working in a conflict affected/hardship location

Behavioural competencies (based on Oxfam’s Leadership Model) (see Job Profile)