Job Description and Person Specification

Please note this statement is for information only and does not form part of a contract. This list is not exhaustive and you will be expected to undertake such duties as may be assigned to you by the Foundation from time to time. WFD is a small team and staff are expected to be flexible in their work in order to deliver the objectives of the organisation[1].

Job title / Maternity Cover for Senior Programme Manager (SPM) –Business Development / Location / Victoria, London
Contract type / Full Time / Contract length / Fixed Term - Until 31st October 2017
Salary Range
And benefits / £33,428 - £41,258 – depending on experience
Membership of the Principal Civil Service Pension’s defined benefit scheme
(between 8% - 20.9% employer contributions, depending on scheme choice)
Context
The Foundation:
Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) is an independent foundation sponsored by the Foreign and Commonwealth (FCO) and the Department for International Development (DFID). WFD specialises in parliamentary strengthening and political party development, while also supporting electoral processes and civil society strengthening. It does this by assisting in the development of parliaments, political parties and civil society organisations. It is uniquely placed to draw directly on the expertise of the Westminster political parties, members of parliament (MPs) and devolved assemblies, and British civil society and technical experts in all its work.
Established in 1992, WFD has supported transitions to democracy in central and Eastern Europe, strengthened multi-party democracies in Africa, and extended its work to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) in 2004, Asia in 2009 and Latin America in 2015. For more information, please visit www.wfd.org
Main purpose of the role
Under the guidance of the Director of Programmes, the Senior Programme Manager (SPM) – Business Development (BD) plays a critical role in two primary areas: business development and contract negotiation. The SPM BD will lead a three-person business development team, developing and maintaining relationships with donors, international NGOs/private sector contractors, and local partners as well as leading and supporting bid writing, ensuring quality control. The SPM BD will play a leading role in ensuring compliance with donor rules and regulations and negotiating subgrants and subcontracts with other NGOs and local partners, in some circumstances, the SPM BD may also be asked to contribute to the delivery of special projects (as assigned by the Director of Programmes), including election-related programming.
Business Development
The SPM – BD has a leading role in business development across all of WFD’s programming areas. The SPM – BD plays a deputy role to the Director of Programmes in terms of international donor engagement (except FCO/DFID) as well as partnership development with international and regional implementers (NGOs/CSOs and independent contractors) and individual technical experts. He/she also builds WFD’s business development capabilities, by developing materials, standard language, past performance references and organisational background information, as well as developing and/or delivering training to WFD staff on business development, proposal writing, budget preparation, etc.
He/she leads on tracking and identifying business opportunities through online resources such as Devex, Assortis, DevelopmentAid, DFID, FCO, EU portals, sharing promising opportunities and advice to regional teams for consideration. He/she leads on some bids as lead writer, but also contributes in a supporting role to other proposal teams.
Contract Negotiation
He/she will advise the business development, regional, and field teams and consult with the finance team as they negotiate agreements with consortia members and co-bidders when submitting tenders. In some cases, the job holder will lead negotiations while in other cases they will play a supporting, advisory role. The job holder will help identify and mobilise legal expertise as necessary to review contracts, MOUs, and other legal arrangements.
The job holder will also be responsible for overseeing WFD’s subgranting and subcontracting processes. He/she will support regional teams as they identify and vet potential subgrantees, helping review their systems, legal registration, financial health (with the Finance department), current portfolios, and past performance. He will also support negotiation of grant agreements, pre- and post-bid, ensure the signature of non-disclosure agreements and non-compete clauses, and eventually recommend for approval all subgrants and subcontracts.
Special Project Support
The SPM - BD will occasionally lead or assist on special projects, such as coordinating special events including global, UK, or EU workshops and other relevant activities that promote and advance the work of WFD.
Management and key relationships
Staff managed[2] / Two Business Development Managers
Reports to[3] / Director of Programmes
Key Relationships
·  Reports directly to the Director of Programmes
·  Shares best practices, lessons learned, and resources (written and human) with other programme team staff
·  Works closely with the Finance Department to ensure proposed budgets are accurate and clear
·  Liaises with the Communications Manager to identify target communications opportunities for internal and external publication
·  Coordinates with the HR Manager and HR Assistant on issues of recruitment
·  Engages external actors, including DFID, FCO, EU, INGOs, among others, to promote WFD’s work and develop and maintain partnerships.
·  Engaging with key international NGOs and contractors including Development Alternatives Incorporated, Price Waterhouse Coopers, Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, Palladium, British Council, National Democratic Institute, UNDP, among others.
Main Duties
1 / Business Development and Networking
·  Assist the Director of Programmes in identifying and developing relationships with other leading implementers in democracy assistance, including representing WFD at relevant events/meetings, leading business development missions abroad, and negotiating partnership agreements/MOUs.
·  Engage key stakeholders in the UK, EU, and globally on election-related programming and ensure other WFD staff are effectively engaged and actively pursuing programming opportunities in election-related work
·  Ensure WFD has materials pre-prepared for developing successful bids, including past performance references (PPRs), CVs/biographies, relevant background material, diagrams/infographics, and other related materials;
·  Act as lead writer on proposals to 3rd party funders assigned by the Director of Programmes, coordinating with relevant Regional Directors and working together with relevant HQ staff, field offices, and independent experts to lead in the development of proposals, identification and securing of partners and relevant experts, development of narrative proposals and budgets, and other related tasks;
·  Review tender opportunities published online from Devex/Assortis, DFID/FCO, EU, and other relevant sources and share them with the Director of Programmes and relevant regional and functional teams.
2 / Contract Management
·  Work with programme teams in negotiation of individual bids, with an emphasis on maximising WFD’s resources and ensuring value for money (VfM)
·  Oversee and maintain WFD’s subgranting systems, procedures, templates, and work closely with other WFD teams
·  Serve as the focal point for understanding donor rules and regulations
·  Establish and maintain knowledge about contract options and legal advice for WFD
·  Maintain programme contracts database (including MoUs and similar obligations) using Microsoft SharePoint
Person Specification
Knowledge, skills and experience
Requirement / E/D[4] / Evaluation[5]
1 / Experience managing and motivating teams, in particular in the writing of bids, in a time-sensitive, occasionally high-pressure environment, setting clear priorities and delegating effectively. / E / Application & Interview
2 / Excellent written and oral communications skills needed to produce proposals and to present them to WFD’s Board, funding organisations, partners on the ground and other stakeholders. / E / Application & Interview
3 / Experience leading programme development or assessment visits involving contact and negotiation with senior officials, politicians and representatives of international organisations and NGOs. / E / Application & Interview
4 / Knowledge and experience of developing programme budgets and ensuring value for money. / E / Application & Interview
5 / Experience negotiating contracts and subgranting agreements / E / Application & Interview
6 / First-hand experience of designing programmes in areas relevant to WFD’s interests, such as parliamentary strengthening, political party assistance, electoral processes, and women and youth political empowerment. / E / Application & Interview
7 / Experience of adapting to modern IT systems and proficient in Microsoft Office applications (SharePoint and Office 365 desirable) / E / Application & Interview
8 / Relevant specialised knowledge and experience, particularly of evaluation methodologies, logframes, indicators for multiple donors (particularly DFID, FCO, and EU) / E / Application & Interview
9 / Track record of success in bid writing for British and international funding institutions and donor agencies (DFID, FCO, EU, SIDA, NORAD, DANIDA, USAID, UNDP, World Bank, etc.). / E / Application & Interview
10 / Fluency in written and oral English (fluency or high competence in commonly spoken international languages, ie. French, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Russian, etc. desirable) / E/D / Application & Interview
11 / Knowledge of election assistance principles and practices as well as political environments, combined with an understanding of the challenges of democratic progress. / D / Application & Interview
Competencies[6]
Requirement / E/D / Evaluation
1 / Analysis and Judgement:
-  Generates options and evaluates these to produce recommendations which reflect organisational aims and priorities / E / Application & Interview
2 / Communication and Influencing:
-  Takes time and actively listens to thoroughly understand the needs and aspirations of colleagues and contacts;
-  Uses facts and rational arguments to influence others’ thinking;
-  Creates situations for sharing ideas and discussion; encourages others to contribute
-  Cultural sensitivity in terms of communication skills / E / Application & Interview
3. / Delivering Results:
-  Makes opportunities to share knowledge, learning and best practice to improve organisational delivery;
-  Tackles difficult problems, seeks to understand the reason for obstacles and takes personal responsibility for finding solutions / E / Application & Interview
4. / Initiative and Creativity:
-  Responds to new or different ideas by discussing why they might work rather than why they won’t;
-  Works with colleagues to understand factors which hinder performance, to brainstorm solutions and to plan improvements / E / Application & Interview
5. / Leading and Developing People:
-  Treats everyone equally and respects the knowledge and experience of others;
-  Takes time to help others to come up with solutions, rather than solve problems for them / E / Application & Interview
6. / Self-awareness and Improvement:
-  Learns lessons from success and failures and freely shares knowledge and findings with others;
Recognises areas of one’s own weakness and seeks guidance and support. Looks for opportunities to improve / E / Application & Interview
7. / Strategic Thinking:
-  Helps colleagues to understand complex ideas and to make the links between their work and organisational strategy;
-  Understands and is committed to the organisation’s mission, purpose and strategy / E / Application & Interview
8. / Working with Others:
-  Makes time to help colleagues with their work and prioritises team goals over personal preferences or interests;
-  Seeks advice and ideas from others and proactively shares information and learning
-  Contributes positively to a small office team environment and demonstrates an awareness of their own impact on others / E / Application & Interview

[1] This JD is only a summary of the typical functions of the job, not an exhaustive or comprehensive list of all possible tasks and duties. The responsibilities of the jobholder might differ from those outlined in the JD and that other duties, as assigned, might be part of the job.

[2] Please note WFD reserves the right to increase or reduce the number of staff managed according to the needs of the organisation.

[3] Please note WFD reserves the right to change the line of management according to the needs of the organisation.

[4] Essential or desirable

[5] This is relevant for recruitment purposes and sets out how a candidate will be assessed against requirements. Options are application form (App), interview (Int) or test (Test)

[6] Competencies articulate the behaviours which an organisation expects its staff to demonstrate in the course of their work both to reflect organisational values and add significance and worth.