Business Development Manager at TechnoServe

Job Summary

• TechnoServe Nigeria has a robust portfolio of projects across the country.
• The team is currently seeking a dedicated business development professional to build upon the existing portfolio and support the cultivation and development of new business opportunities in the region.
• The Business Development Manager will support the Country Director and Project Managers in identifying funding opportunities; developing, leading and strengthening fundraising strategies and tactics; and responding to major contract/grant opportunities from bi-lateral, multilateral agencies, national governments, private foundations, and the private sector.

Department Overview

• The Business Development Manager is part of the Nigeria team and will report to the Country Director with a dotted line reporting to the Senior Regional Program Development Manager and working with other team members in TechnoServe.
• The Business Development department of TechnoServe is responsible for fundraising and partnerships, including identifying and pursuing new opportunities relevant to TechnoServe’s global and country-specific strategies within our areas of excellence.

Primary Functions & Responsibilities
The responsibilities of this position include:

New Business Development:

• Working with the Country Director to champion the design and implementation of comprehensive fundraising strategies and annual plans with specific targets.
• Liaising with public sector funding agencies, institutional foundations, corporations, and other private donors to acquire and maintain an in-depth knowledge of their mission, organization, policies, procedures and key decision-makers.
• Support knowledge management by synthesizing TechnoServe’s work in qualification statements for core technical areas and geographies, and capturing donor knowledge and interactions in TechnoServe’s CRM system.
• Leading and/or supporting opportunity assessments in Nigeria’s priority/areas of excellence.
• Identifying new opportunities that align with TechnoServe’s areas of excellence (entrepreneurship, agriculture markets, food processing) and TechnoServe Nigeria’s strategy and leading the pursuit of these opportunities in collaboration with the Country Director as well as the regional and global PD teams.
• Managing the proposal writing processes for key opportunities with public/private funding, at the country level
• Developing winning proposals in collaboration with local teams and TNS regional and/or development divisions in coordination with the relevant staff of the project team and New Business development division,
• Coordinating the review and maintenance of project lead summaries, the new business pipeline, opportunity tracker, the new business resource prioritization matrix, new business opportunity assessments, and other requirements of the new business process.

Program Design and Development:

• Collaborate with TechnoServe’s West Africa regional team and TechnoServe global practice areas to develop concept notes and proposals for Nigeria that incorporate best practices from TechnoServe’s core areas of expertise.
• Execute all aspects of proposal development, including managing and coordinating complex efforts with dispersed proposal team members, facilitating program design processes, drafting and editing technical proposals, gathering budget inputs, developing work plans, and customizing past performance references.
• Support project design and development in alignment with donor requirements, rules and regulations.
• Working with the Regional Program Development team to ensure a high-quality start-up of confirmed new programs.
• In the case of programs which have been confirmed but where there is no on-the-ground capacity to ensure a successful transition from the proposal phase to project implementation, the New Business Development Manager will work with the Global Surge Support Team, the Regional Program Development Manager, the Deputy Country Director and Country teams to ensure high-quality program start-up.
• Assist the Project Technical Team in the implementation of relevant components as well as monitor activities relating to TechnoServe Nigeria projects.
• Work with the Country Director and the Senior Communications Specialist to create visibility and communications materials to support business development.
• Any other tasks that may be assigned.

Basic Qualifications
The following qualifications are required for the role:

• A minimum of an Undergraduate Degree (BSc) in Social Sciences, Business Management, Agriculture, Economics or a relevant field. A Masters’ degree in a relevant field is desirable, but not required.
• A minimum of 7 years of experience with a BSc. is required or 5 years’ experience with a Masters degree.
• A minimum of 2-3 years’ experience in New Business Development and writing successful proposals is a must .

Preferred Qualifications:
Additional qualifications that are desirable, but not required, include:

• Experience working in Nigeria or West Africa
• At least 2-3 years’ experience working with institutional, bilateral, multilateral donors and foundations is required.
• Experience supporting project design and project start-
• Extensive knowledge of and experience working in the agriculture and food systems.