Chief Development Officer, Washington, D.C.

Position Description

About PADF

The Pan American Development Foundation (PADF) believes in creating a hemisphere of opportunity, for all. We work across Latin America and the Caribbean to make our region stronger— more healthy, peaceful, just, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable for current and future generations. For over 60 years, we have served the most vulnerable communities, investing resources throughout the hemisphere. We partner with and enable civil society, governments, and the private sector for the greater good of the region.

Position Overview

The Chief Development Officer is responsible for providing strategic and operational leadership and oversight of the organization’s efforts to win new donor-funded programs. They will help to shape and drive the organization’s growth strategy; collaborate with other senior staff to effectively leverage all of PADF’s resources to promote organizational growth and financial stability; supervise and orchestrate teams to craft winning proposals and contribute directly to help win high leverage opportunities;  own, manage, and continually refine the internal systems and processes by which PADF annually submits proposals; represent the organization externally to donors, beneficiaries, stakeholders, potential partners / competitors, and collaborators as the face of its growth efforts; align its external marketing and communications efforts to its forward market pipeline and resource development goals; manage the organization’s central business development team, and build capacity of staff at all levels for all aspects of business development.

The Chief Development Officer reports to the Executive Director and will work closely with PADF headquarters and field staff.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

The Chief Development Officer works across the key areas below:

Strategy:

• Develop a Growth Strategy for PADF to maximize results and optimize financial and human resource allocation, for approval by the Executive Director, in collegial partnership with senior PADF leaders across the hemisphere.
• Project future revenue performance based on market trends and the business development pipeline.
• Play a leading role in determining which funding opportunities to pursue and how.
• Advise the organization on how donor trends should inform its pursuit and prioritization of new and existing markets. For existing markets, propose ways to pursue and win bigger bids in assistance and define strategies and plans for market segments. For new markets (e.g., contracts), donors, and partners, provide information on new markets including landscape, timing, and what PADF needs to develop in order to effectively pursue.
• Lead business forecasting and orchestrate capture for the organization.

Analysis and Systems Strengthening:

• Oversee the appropriate use of knowledge management systems, including MyGrowth.
• Proactively monitor, analyze, and regularly brief the organization about key trends, priorities, and potential policy and funding implications for PADF’s core donors that impact growth strategy.
• Lead monitoring and analysis of the competitive landscape and provide inputs into how the organization needs to position itself to achieve its mission and remain viable against its competitors.
• Track, analyze, evaluate, and regularly report to senior leaders on the organization’s performance against meeting established growth targets.
• Ensure ongoing evaluation of proposal processes and oversee periodic efforts to adjust, refine, and/or create systems, processes, tools, and other assets to promote business development effectiveness and efficiency.
• Develop a system for after-action analysis and incorporating lessons learned into NBD processes and future proposals.

Proposal Oversight and Direct Proposal Leadership:

• Provide strategic leadership to teams supporting the development and submission of proposals to funders, including US government agencies, multi- and bilateral donors, foundations, and the private sector.
• Supervise and provide troubleshooting support to long-term capture by proposal teams during regular check-ins.
• Facilitate the organization’s bid no bid decision process, with input from appropriate stakeholders.
• Work with leaders to effectively allocate PADF-wide human resources to ensure proposal teams are adequately staffed.
• Oversee the systems to develop proposal technical approaches and win themes.
• Manage the proposal review process, ensure quality control and compliance, including by directly driving or proposing ways to help teams improve their submissions.
• Ensure coordination and alignment between proposal technical and budget/costing strategies.
• Troubleshoot difficult challenges on live proposals, including by directly stepping in to help solve complex issues.
• Play direct leadership roles on key proposal efforts, including pinch hitting as needed. Contribute to other roles, when necessary, including by writing other sections, recruiting candidates, and completing cost proposals.
• Manage the post-proposal audit process, and periodically communicate lessons learned.

Business Relations and Marketing:

• Cultivate strong, collaborative relationships with new and current public and private sectors donors, potential partner and competitor organizations, and potential recruits.
• Align PADF external marketing and communications efforts to its forward market pipeline and resource development goals. Ensure consistency of external corporate communications and outreach with donors and stakeholders.
• Oversee efforts to align the organization’s marketing and communications efforts with PADF’s technical thought leadership activities, technical publications, and conference participation. Align communications with the upcoming forward market, at the country level and across the broader LAC region.

Management, Capacity Building, and Mentoring:

• Manage the central new business development team, including by allocating their efforts to forecasting, capture, analytics, proposals, lessons learned, and other initiatives, supervising their performance, and promoting their ongoing professional development.
• Build capacity of PADF staff at all levels in business development, including around forecasting, capture, analytics, proposals (proposal management, technical writing, writing of other proposal sections, recruitment, and cost proposal preparation, including at the country level), and lessons learned.
• Mentor staff at all levels when they take on new or unfamiliar roles within business development.

Competencies

• Strategic Planning – The Chief Development Officer develops and enacts long-term growth strategies and takes a high-level view of organization’s goals and objectives to drive business growth. Ability to project future revenue performance based on market trends and the business development pipeline, and to align PADF external marketing and communications efforts to its forward market pipeline and resource development goals. Ability to understand and analyze key trends and draw conclusions for action.
• Analysis and Continuous Improvement – The Chief Development Officer continuously seeks and analyzes data and evidence for decision-making. Continuously optimizes resources and processes through ideas, approaches, or solutions by applying best practices, methodologies, and technologies. Capitalizes on his/her own experience and that of others and promotes acquired know-how. Systematically seeks to learn from losses and competitive experiences.
• Craft Winning Proposals – The Chief Development Officer develops and orchestrates teams to craft and submit winning proposals. Is able to work across diverse teams and technical areas to develop and position the right win themes.
• Relationship Management – The Chief Development Officer needs excellent relationship development and management skills to build both internal and external relationships. Works in a respectful and collegial manner. Finds constructive ways to communicate truths that require shifts in internal processes or behaviors. Seeks, shares, and internalizes useful information to resolve issues.
• Communication Skills – The Chief Development Officer possesses excellent written and verbal communication skills, which are vital to prepare proposals and present ideas, as well as enhancing business performance.

Personal Characteristics

• Inspiring Leader – The Chief Development Officer displays a leadership style which inspires and promotes inclusiveness and intellectual curiosity. Multiplies the energies of others. Offers multiple perspectives to inform decision making, while also being direct and decisive in key moments.
• Collegial and Collaborative – The Chief Development Officer cultivates a culture of collaboration and cooperation with staff at all levels, including during difficult or stressful periods. Proactively collegial. Always respectful.
• Professional – The Chief Development Officer strives for excellence and is passionate about helping the organization to succeed. Represents themselves to both internal and external actors in ways that increase confidence in their abilities and reflect positively on PADF. Models high levels of dependability, so colleagues always know they can count on her/him. Goes the extra mile.
• Adaptable and Creative – The Chief Development Officer quickly identifies and understands changes in PADF’s internal and external environment; transforms weaknesses into strengths; and leverages the latter through action plans to ensure PADF’s long-term presence, positioning, and achieves desired goals. Devises new and different solutions to problems or situations within the position itself, the organization, and/or with stakeholders to add value to the organization.

Required Qualifications

• Minimum of ten (10) years of experience in international development, with at least eight (8) years of experience leading and winning donor funded proposals for organizations.
• Demonstrated track record leading and winning international development proposals funded by USAID and/or U.S. Department of State required. Additional U.S. Government agencies preferred.
• Proven experience leading multi-disciplinary HQ and field-based teams.
• Excellent organizational, writing and oral presentation skills.
• Demonstrated understanding of key economic and social developments in the Americas.
• Experience collaborating with other country development agencies, World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, foundations, and private sector donors preferred.
• Personal experience working or living in Latin America and the Caribbean, preferred.
• Spanish language proficiency highly desirable.

Salary Range: $240,000 – $269,000.

A candidate’s salary is determined by multiple factors including, but not limited to, relevant work experience, job-related knowledge, skills, abilities, and internal organizational equity.

More About PADF

PADF is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established by the Organization of American States (OAS) in 1962.  www.padf.org

PADF’s core values. “H-E-A-R-T” = Honesty, Excellence, Accountability, Respect, and Teamwork.

Diversity. PADF is strong because we are diverse. We actively seek a diverse applicant pool and encourage candidates of all backgrounds to apply. PADF does not discriminate based on ability, age, gender identity and expression, national origin, race and ethnicity, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, or criminal record. We welcome all kinds of diversity. Our employees include people who are parents and nonparents, the self-taught and university educated, and from a wide span of cultures, languages, socio-economic backgrounds, and perspectives on the world.

PADF is committed to safeguarding employees and those we serve, addressing inappropriate behavior, discrimination, and harassment. We take an intersectional approach, promote gender equality, and follow our Global Code of Conduct emphasizing our H.E.A.R.T. values. The code covers various aspects, including anti-trafficking, PSEAH (Protection against Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment), whistleblowing, and online safety.

PADF is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Level of Education: Bachelor Degree

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: No requirements