Business Development Advisor at Oxfam

Requisition ID: 10361
Location: Abuja
Department: Programmes and Business
Reports To: Country Director
Internal grade: C1

Job Purpose

• The Business Development Advisor is responsible for identifying funding opportunities in line with Oxfam’s program priorities, writing successful grant proposals in coordination with program colleagues in addition to strengthening our linkages with local donor missions and national offices.
• As the Business Development Advisor, you will develop and implement a business development and fundraising strategy and professionalize efforts to seek out funding opportunities, develop proposals, and successfully close funding through governmental and multilateral funders and partners.
• You will have a well-established network among the Partnership and funding coordinators of different donors as well as the Business Development forum of INGOs.
• The BDA will be the expert on relevant research to develop strategies and approaches that will be responsive to donor solicitations.
• The incumbent will manage the proposal process, drawing from and collaborating closely with the Institutional funding team in Oxfam alongside the country programme team.

Team Purpose

• The Business Development Advisor  works with the country Leadership team and have responsibility for supporting to mobilize resources for Oxfam’s programme in Nigeria; to develop and maintain good quality and consistent relationships with donors; contract management; effectively support programme teams to develop and plan concept papers/notes and proposals in accordance with country strategy and donor requirements and planning, coordination, securing, management and reporting of restricted income to enable Oxfam in Nigeria to deliver on its Oxfam Country Strategy.
• Oxfam Nigeria is transitioning to an Influencing country status within the Oxfam Confederation and the role will be critical in assuring the necessary funding for this transformation.

Key Accountabilities
Strategy Implementation, Review and Resource Mobilization:

• Develop and implement an Oxfam’s business development and fundraising strategy and processes
• Develop and implement a business development and fundraising strategy including establishing the infrastructure to grow the current annual revenue stream through e.g. solicitation, government   grants, competitive bids and corporate and foundations support for Oxfam.
• Produce regular reports for Country leadership on business development performance analysis
• Oversee overall coherence and quality of donor relationships in the country
• Conduct a new Donor mapping focused on Donors supporting influencing projects
• Research and analyze changing donor environment and strategies and advise on effective influencing of donors, linking in with affiliate HQ (donor leads) as appropriate
• Advise on donor priorities and identify specific opportunities. Identify, pursue and successfully capitalize on funding opportunities among major particularly bilateral and multilateral donors.
• Research, analyze and maintain regular register of donor calls for funding applications including tenders, expressions of interest and requests for proposals.
• Advise on potential partnerships with other organisations and agencies and identify specific opportunities:
  • Development of fact sheets on all Oxfam in Nigeria Programme pillar initiatives in coordination with relevant staff.
  • Strengthen the capacity of colleagues (Programme, Business Support and partners) across the Country Programme (through formal training delivery, coaching and accompaniment) in the planning, securing and managing of donor/restricted funds.
  • Ensure effective coordination and information flows with Global Programme Funding Team, Affiliates HQs as appropriate.
  • Ensure relevant internal approval processes at different levels are followed on making the decision whether or not to pursue a business opportunity.

Programme Development and Bid Development:

• Project design and document production: Lead the development and writing of successful funding proposals and budgets. This will involve leading or supporting proposal development teams across the organization and, where relevant, using outsourced consultancy services. This includes organizing pre-proposal strategy sessions (e.g. developing win themes, SWOTs, partnering assessments); working with technical, management and finance leads on strategy; and ensuring that log frames, budgets and narrative text are developed, reviewed and edited per donor requirements.
• Provide guidance and support to development of proactive concepts, converting ideas into sellable proposals and actively participate in identifying sources of support for such proposals.
• Deliver training and support country staff with project cycle management according to capacity building needs.
• Identify programming ideas and areas of technical excellence with which Oxfam can cultivate donor interest.
• Subscribe to and monitor regularly electronic notices for relevant funding opportunities, and monitor websites of potential donors for information on priorities, requirements and funding.
• Track calls for proposals and tenders as they are published, identify those relevant to Oxfam programmes; determine with Oxfam Country Leadership team when/whether to respond.
• Provide bid development support as well as specialist information about donors to programme staff in order to maintain levels of funding for the Country Programme and achieve the income targets of the overall funding strategy.
• Provide leadership in the development of concepts notes and long-term quality proposals and seek multi-year funding from potential donors.
• Management of information: Direct the development and maintenance of information required for proposal development including updating capability statements, descriptions of Oxfam’s technical areas of expertise, country programme and/or project write-ups, development of graphics and presentations.

Donor and partner affiliates relationship Management:

• Ensure the highest possible level of service to donors: Ensure coordinated communication with donors and partner NGOs. This may involve managing relationships for a portfolio of donors. Ensure quality, consistency and continuity in Oxfam’s approach with donors.
• Be responsible for developing good relationships with key potential donors in Nigeria and pro-actively identify funding potentials, including advising and guiding Oxfam colleagues on country funding plans and donor liaison.
• Represent Oxfam as required with donors.
• Monitor regulatory revisions, proposal guidelines and application requirements for priority donors together to ensure that new proposals adhere to them.
• Develop/cultivate relationships with for-profit and other organizations to increase Oxfam’s opportunities for partnering for funding opportunities.
• Develop and maintain good working relationships with donor organizations, foundations, affiliate fundraising contracts at Executive affiliates and thereby maximize income from these sources.
• Support, build and maintain strong relationships with donors and host country government representatives: This could include representing Oxfam at meetings, conferences and workshops, networking with other NGOs, and working with Country Directors and their teams to access thematic working groups, as well as other Oxfam teams to support their external relations efforts
• Provide quality control on all donor solicitations, reports and communications.
• Ensure sign-off of donor proposals, reports and contracts according to agreed Oxfam processes.
• Support preparation for audits of donor funded programs as required.
• Obtain any donor approvals, extensions and amendments in line with Oxfam standards

Grant Management:

• Provide programmatic support to the Country Director e.g. in relation to reporting to donors and affiliates.
• Support quality contract management, including donor reporting, in collaboration with Oxfam colleagues.
• Ensure that donor-reporting schedules are distributed to programme leads /budget holders and finance department to ensure that donor reports will be managed on time and with the quality needed.
• Work closely with colleagues in finance and programme to ensure the timely submission of high-quality reports.

Strengthen internal new business development capacity:

• Strengthen the capacity of Oxfam team members to participate  in technical and cost proposals and other business development efforts through mentoring, technical assistance visits and direct training. Support country programmes to develop fundraising strategies, develop and deliver trainings and on-the-job tools and aids as required.
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of Oxfam’s systems by developing better tools, systems, techniques and strategies for identifying, tracking, and pursuing new business opportunities, developing proposals and budgets, and managing institutional knowledge.

Technical Skills, Experience & Knowledge
Essential:

• Advanced qualification in relevant areas (Humanities, Business Administration, Economics) or proven experience at this level.
• At least seven (7) years of work experience in the field of development cooperation, preferably with INGOs.
• Successful track record of securing multiple high-value projects/contracts from bilateral and multilateral donors, trusts and foundations.
• Three years (5) experience of raising funds, preparing project proposals for international organizations such , MoFA, DFID, EU, OFDA, DANIDA [TAH1] etc., foundations, Private corporate organizations as well as and UN Agencies and other institutional donors which are predominant in Nigeria.
• Experience with donors’ rules and regulations.
• Knowledge of the landscape of Influencing in Senegal and West Africa and its stakeholders
• Significant capacity building and training experience.
• Good communication and facilitation skills.
• High level of analytical skills and critical thinking.
• Ability to network and represent Oxfam to donors and external institutions.
• High level numeracy, budgeting, financial reporting and IT skills.
• Excellent research skills: knowledge of how to find new sources of funding for advocacy work.
• Good communication skills; both written and verbal; experience with writing proposals and reports.
• Experience with project cycle management (Planning, implementation, monitoring, reporting, evaluation and learning).
• Excellent planning and budgeting skills.
• Self-motivated, target-driven and an entrepreneurial approach to fundraising opportunities.
• Strong sense of integrity and personal commitment to the goals of Oxfam, including Gender and Diversity.

Desirable:

• Knowledge of any or all of the key pillars of Oxfam country programme in Nigeria (Just economy, Accountable Governance, and Gender justice).

Key Behavioural Competencies:

• Decisiveness: We are comfortable to make transparent decisions and to adapt decision making modes to the context and needs.
• Influencing: We have the ability to engage with diverse stakeholders in a way that leads to increased impact for the organization We spot opportunities to influence effectively and where there are no opportunities, we have the ability to create them in a respectful and impactful manner.
• Humility: We put ‘we’ before ‘me’ and place an emphasis on the power of the collective, nurture the team and play to the strengths of each individual. We are not concerned with hierarchical power, and we engage with, trust and value the knowledge and expertise of others across all levels of the organization.
• Relationship Building: We understand the importance of building relationship, within and outside the organization. We have the ability to engage with traditional and non-traditional stakeholders in ways that lead to increased impact for the organization.
• Listening: We are good listeners who can see where deeper levels of thoughts and tacit assumptions differ. Our messages to others are clear and consider different preferences.
• Mutual Accountability: We can explain our decisions and how we have taken them based on our organizational values. We are ready to be held to account for what we do and how we behave, as we are also holding others to account in a consistent manner.
• Agility, Complexity, and Ambiguity: We scan the environment, anticipate changes, are comfortable with lack of clarity and deal with a large number of elements interacting in diverse and unpredictable ways.
• Systems Thinking: We view problems as parts of an overall system and in their relation to the whole system, rather than reacting to a specific part, outcome or event in isolation. We focus on cyclical rather than linear cause and effect. By consistently practicing systems thinking we are aware of and manage well unintended consequences of organizational decisions and actions.
• Strategic Thinking and Judgment: We use judgment, weighing risk against the imperative to act. We make decisions consistent with organizational strategies and values.
• Vision Setting: We have the ability to identify and lead visionary initiatives that are beneficial for our organization and we set high-level direction through a visioning process that engages the organization and diverse external stakeholders.
• Self-Awareness: We are able to develop a high degree of self-awareness around our own strengths and weaknesses and our impact on others. Our self-awareness enables us to moderate and self-regulate our behaviors to control and channel our impulses for good purposes.
• Enabling: We all work to effectively empower and enable others to deliver the organizations goals through creating conditions of success. We passionately invest in others by developing their careers, not only their skills for the job.  We provide freedom; demonstrate belief and trust provide appropriate support.