Business Development & Grants Manager

Trócaire is one of Ireland’s top INGO’s with 50 years of experience in international development and humanitarian assistance. Trócaire works with partners and is a member of the global Caritas Internationalis federation. This is an exciting time in the history of the organisation as we deliver upon our new strategic plan 2021-2025 ‘Local Power, Global Justice’.

Since 2011, Trócaire has responded to the protracted humanitarian crisis in the Nuba Mountains of South Kordofan, Sudan. Through a hybrid arrangement of remote management from Nairobi, Kenya and on the ground presence in Kauda, Nuba Mountains, Trocaire is supporting a number of national partners in the Nuba mountains. Our programme focuses on the provision of humanitarian assistance (Cash, WASH, protection) in the current context of the displacement crisis, delivering integrated health and nutrition services to remote communities and in strengthening livelihoods and resilience. The programme is also responding to a rising health needs in neighbouring Blue Nile State.

Trócaire Sudan has recently grown in funding and in response to the current conflict. To strengthen and diversify Trócaire’s institutional funding base and ensure donor compliance with existing and future institutionally funded grants, Trócaire seeks to recruit a Business Development & Grants Manager, to be based in Nairobi, Kenya with regular travel to the field locations.

Please note: this position is only open to national Kenyan candidates. For the candidate with the required experience and passion for the role, Trócaire offers a competitive package of salary and benefits.

Reporting to the Programme Manager with close coordination and input from the Global Partnership and Funding Unit, this is a Fixed Term Contract of 2 years (with the possibility of extension). The position holder will line manage the Grants Assistant. The role is based in Nairobi with regular travel to programme locations in South Kordofan and Blue Niles States, and occasional travel to Ireland.

Safeguarding Programme Participants Policy:

Trócaire is committed to Safeguarding Programme Participants from Exploitation and Abuse and has specific policies on this commitment (including a Global Code of Conduct) which outlines the expected behaviour and the responsibility of all staff, consultants and other organisational representatives. Any candidate offered a job with Trócaire will be expected to sign Trócaire’s Safeguarding Policies and Global Code of Conduct as an appendix to their contract of employment and agree to conduct themselves in accordance with the provisions of these documents.

Key Duties & Responsibilities

Overarching:

• Increase and broaden the institutional funding base of Trócaire’s programmes in Sudan in line with the organisational and country specific institutional funding strategy.
• Coordinate and manage all components of the proposal development process, ensuring a high quality and timely submission to institutional donors, consistent with Trócaire’s Organisational and Country Strategic Plan.
• Support the programme teams in the development of well-designed projects and programmes for submission to institutional donors, consistent with Trócaire’s Organisational and Country Strategic Plan.
• Provide oversight and support to programme staff in the management and compliance of all institutional funding grants and potential commercial contracts in Sudan.
• Position Trócaire as potential partner (sub and lead) for consortia in Sudan.
• Build the capacity of Trócaire’s programme staff and partners to manage existing and future institutional funding grants/contracts.In particular, this role will involve the following components:

Business Development & Programme Growth (50%)

In close coordination with the Global Partnerships and Funding Unit (GPFU) staff in Trócaire HQ:

• Pre-Positioning: Identify relevant upcoming funding opportunities, track grant forecasts, and using advance intelligence gathering prepare recommendations based on specific bid/no bid decision criteria. Identify potential partners; manage pre-solicitation proposal preparations; participate in pre-design meetings; draft sections of the proposal in advance of the solicitation; coordinate and facilitate design workshops; and support field teams to collect relevant country and technical information that informs design.

• Proposal Preparation and Coordination: Lead the coordination and development of high quality and well-designed proposals from initial development to grant submission for institutional and private donor. Manage partners’ inputs to the cost application; provide technical input to the finance team to support the completion of the cost application in alignment with the technical programme design. Manage the proposal review process and budget alignment and compliance with donor guidelines; build effective working relationships with partners on proposal bids; support the management of consultants recruited to support proposal development; support the recruitment process to ensure identification and inclusion of qualified key personnel in proposals. Work closely with programme and partner staff in-country to ensure programmes are well positioned to secure donor funding. Provide regular updates to the CMT on the status of the funding portfolio and key trends to monitor.

• Post Submission: Manage and or/support post submission and lessons learned processes contributing to shared learning. Engage in the Team’s development of best practice and evidenced base approaches utilised in proposals.

  External Engagement and Networking: Identify international and local partners for future opportunities; arrange meetings and calls with partners; conduct potential partner outreach and follow up with subject matter experts for organizing meeting; participate in key donor meetings, when necessary, to foster long-term collaboration and engagement; support technical advisors to develop organisational capability statements in coordination with the GPFU/Programme/Communications team.

• Pro-actively seek donor intelligence on prospective new opportunities or partnerships.

• Lead the development, review and implementation of Trócaire’s country institutional funding strategy, in line with country programme needs and institutional funding landscape and opportunities.

Grants Management & Compliance (40%)

• Keep up to date with donor regulations, relating to all current grants, and communicate relevant changes to staff, ensuring links with HQ in terms of global donor strategies and updates on regulations.
• Support programme staff to manage grant agreements for all institutional grants including adherence to supply chain and financial management policies and procedures, fraud etc. Keep relevant HQ staff informed about the progress of grant agreements/ contracts through the programme cycle.
• Develop appropriate procedures, tools and operational systems to support partners in adherence to Trócaire and donor compliance requirements, including adherence to Trócaire’s minimum requirements.
• Conducting quarterly update meetings with Sudan programme and finance team on donor compliance standards.
• In coordination with programme / finance staff, monitoring and ensure compliance of programmes with donor rules and requirements incl. financial tracking and reporting/amendments, visibility, communication strategies etc for all grants.
• Advise and support programme teams on building the capacities of partners to handle contractual compliance issues, including project audit and verification requirements.
• Support programme staff, and take responsibility for as the need arises, in preparing high quality reports for submission to donors in a timely manner. This will involve close liaison and joint working with institutional funding staff in HQ.
• Support the organisation and follow-up of grant inception meetings, grant review meetings, and grant close out meetings.
• Ensure that all information relating to proposals and donor compliance is stored on Trócaire’s information management system (Salesforce). Work with the GPFU staff in Trócaire’s HQ, as well as the finance and programmes staff in country to ensure Salesforce and Agresso funding figures reconcile.
• Provide training and tools for Trócaire staff and partners entering into new institutional donor contracts, including compliance with regulations on financial management, procurement, audit, reporting, visibility and communications.
• With the Finance & Operations Manager, advise and support programme team and partners on how to comply with donor specific audit and expenditure verification requirements.

3. Representation / Networking (5%)

• Actively represent the organisation at donor/partner meetings as well as other relevant fora or meetings/workshops which are relevant to Trocaire and our programme in Sudan.
• Ensure maximum visibility of the organisation amongst the NGO/donor community in relevant fora.
• Contribute to the creation of a positive image and overall credibility of the organisation, notably through the application of Trocaire’s Code of Conduct, ethics, values and standpoint with regard to internal and external actors.

4. Capacity Strengthening (5%)

• Provide training to staff and partners around proposal development, log frames, budgeting, report writing, MEAL in relation to donor compliance and in collaboration with other relevant Sudan country programme staff.
• Advise and support programme teams on building the capacities of partners to handle complex contractual compliance issues.
• Support partners in the development of their resource mobilization and donor engagement strategies.
• Provide capacity strengthening and support to partner proposal development.

5.Other
Carry out any other responsibilities as requested by the Programme Manager.

Person Specification – The ideal person will have

(E) Qualification

• Third level qualification in Development, Humanitarian, Business Administration or related field of study

(E) Experience

• Minimum of 3-5 years’ experience working in overseas development and the humanitarian sector
• Experience of proposal and report writing for major international donors including Irish Aid, UN Agencies incl. UNICEF and WFP, EU and other relevant institutional donors and trusts/foundations.
• Proven record of accomplishment of securing institutional funding from successful grant applications, incl. in consortia.
• Experience of managing grants financed by donors such as: Irish Aid, UN Agencies, EU, other European Governments, UN, US Government funding and other relevant institutional donors and trusts/foundations.
• Project cycle management using results frameworks and/ or logical frameworks.
• Working with civil society partner organisations.
• Training/capacity sharing in a multi-cultural environment.

(E) Skills

• Keen interest and excitement in business development, entrepreneurial interests, willingness to learn, ambition to take on positions of increasing responsibility.
• In depth knowledge of managing grants requirements of institutional donors.
• Proven strategic thinking and planning skills, including ability to think creatively, analyse and be innovative, set priorities, manage work plans and evaluate progress.
• Experience working with civil society partners and good understanding of partnership approach.
• Critical thinking on emergency response, women, climate change & resilience.
• Detail-oriented, flexible, and able to handle multiple concurrent tasks.
• Able to work independently as well as part of a team.
• Able to quick build cross cultural relationships with teams and partners.
• Highly developed relationship, negotiation and interpersonal skills.
• Excellent facilitation & capacity building skills and experience of applying them when working with individual partners or groups of partners.
• Excellent written, oral and presentational communications skills.
• Computer literacy skills in word, excel and internet/email.
• Fluency in English.
• Work expereince in either or more of the following areas: Agriculture/nutrition and Livelihoods, Health, Protection (GBV, Mental Health and Psychosocial Support); WASH, Cash/Voucher programming and M&E experience highly preferred.

(E) Qualities

• Dynamic, willing to take initiative and able to manage multiple priorities.
• A team player but also willing and able to work with minimal supervision.
• Capacity to be flexible and adaptable to changing contexts and priorities.
• Deep commitment to social justice.
• Ability to travel internationally at short notice, to work under pressure and to meet deadlines.
• Patient and pays high degree of attention to detail.
• Understanding of, and empathy with, the role of the Catholic Church in development/humanitarian settings.

(E) Other

• Cross cultural communication skills.