Principal Consultant - Private Sector Development Lead (East Africa)

About the job

The initial focus of this position (~50%) is to be the Project Lead for a long-term evaluation and learning partner for a major new pan-African programme focusing on creating employment opportunities for young people by supporting MSMEs in the agriculture, digital economy and climate adaptation sectors though a challenge fund mechanism. You will direct and oversee the day-to-day technical implementation of the programme by a talented group of Triple Line staff and external consultants, as well as supervise the operational management of the assignment.
You will also play a significant role as Triple Line’s Private Sector Development lead in East Africa. You will lead the development and delivery of a portfolio of projects and programmes that respond to the challenges and opportunities facing the private sector in East Africa and the wider region. You will work to grow our business with a diverse group of clients, including bi lateral and multi lateral donor agencies, philanthropic foundations, DFIs, impact Investors, corporate clients and Governments. You will provide high quality technical advice to our clients and projects, oversee the delivery of complex projects and programmes across the region, manage and grow a team of outstanding professionals, and work collaboratively with multi disciplinary teams in East Africa, the UK, South Asia and SE Asia.
Thought leadership is central to how we work, and you will also ensure the learning from what we do is captured and used to inform what we do and how we work, and shared and disseminated to inform wider learning among our clients and partners and the wider global development community.

Roles and responsibilities and the specific tasks you will undertake:

Project delivery and consultancy services (70%)

In your role as Portfolio monitoring and insights lead on a major new programme, you will be the Primary client contact point and will be responsible for:

Coordinating the initial development of the results and learning framework during the programme inception phase, participating in the investment selection process and overseeing the onboarding of new partners,
Overseeing / coordinating the progress reporting process for up to 90 partners, portfolio data collation & analysis, site visits for verification and learning purposes, and preparing progress / impact reporting to the end client.
Coordinating the activities of the learning and evaluation leads (and contribute to these workstreams), and directly managing a team of MEL leads and data analysts expected to grow to six members.
Lead the preparation, design and facilitation of workshops and learning events both internally and externally to facilitate learning and reflection, co-create recommendations, explore and share learning; and promote an adaptive management approach.
Work with the team to present analysis, findings and research clearly both in writing, visually and orally, through case studies, reports, presentations and webinars for the client and other stakeholders, to support uptake and sharing of findings as part of the programmes ‘influencing’ component.

In addition you will:

Act as Project Director or Team Leader on key projects and programmes within your areas of expertise, managing project teams and project partners and acting as the main company interface with clients on the projects you lead.
Provide consultancy support on key projects and programmes, working as a technical specialist or advisor as part of a wider multi-disciplinary team on projects as and when needed.
Ensure that projects you manage are delivered on time, on budget, to an outstanding level of quality, and in compliance with key company and client policies and procedures with major risks to project success properly mitigated.

Business Development and knowledge management (25%)

Develop and implement a strategy to build, cultivate and manage relationships with a diverse range of clients across the region, helping them to respond to their needs and demonstrating the value of our services in addressing the challenges and opportunities facing the private sector within the region. This may include representing Triple Line at relevant sector events and conferences.
Develop and manage a pipeline of new business opportunities for East Africa and our global business, in liaison with colleagues in UK and Ethiopia, leading on the development and submission of high-quality proposals and expressions of interest and managing bid teams across the company.
Develop and cultivate a network of partner organisations and technical experts within the region who can be called upon to support the delivery and execution of our projects and programmes
Promote knowledge management and learning within the team you manage, and capture, disseminate and share the lessons from your work, both with the company and to our clients, partners and the wider global development community

Line management and staff development (5%)

Line manage a growing team, develop and support existing team members in their professional development, contribute to corporate capacity building initiatives and training, and identify and recruit new talent into your team as you build the business.

About you

We are looking for someone who is passionate about supporting the role of the private sector and markets in creating jobs (particularly for young women and men), increasing incomes, and providing critical goods and services to poor and disadvantaged people in the developing world. You are thoughtful, excel at problem solving and have the confidence to contribute new ideas and challenge those around you, while remaining a committed team player. You will have international experience, and have worked with donor organizations, DFIs and the private sector (both informal MSMEs, early stage SMEs and large, anchor investors) on projects relevant to this role.

You have a strong track record of working across all aspects of monitoring, evaluation and learning (particularly for large programmes), and have had exposure to measuring results around system change and using participatory and innovative approaches.

You will bring technical and thematic expertise in at least 3 of the following areas:, market systems development, MSME development, financial inclusion, agriculture & food systems, climate adaptation, digital economy, youth employment, market assessments & value chain analysis, investor engagement and policy analysis. You will have a good understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing the private sector in East Africa.

You’ll have managed a team before, and will be comfortable coordinating with others across time-zones and geographies and travelling internationally.

Essential candidate attributes:

Postgraduate education in a relative academic discipline, including Economics, Business Studies, International Development, or Political Science
Established consultancy skills, and experience of successfully leading the technical delivery of MEL focused programmes or the MEL component of a programme (including development of approach and methodology) for international development clients and organisations
Technical expertise with key frameworks and approaches to supporting private sector development. E.g value chain analysis, market systems development, access to finance and financial inclusion, investor engagement and policy analysis
Thematic expertise in at least 3 of the following areas:, market systems development, MSME development, financial inclusion, agriculture & food systems, climate adaptation, digital economy, youth employment, market assessments & value chain analysis, investor engagement and policy analysi
Track record of successfully building, cultivating and managing relationships with existing and potential clients
Extensive experience of working across East Africa with a strong network of partners and experts to draw on to support project delivery and business development
A team player who is a highly experienced in what they do, but always looking to learn new things, flexible and able to adapt to changing priorities, and able to work under pressure
Excellent writing and presentation skills, with the ability to communicate findings and recommendations clearly, in plain English, to a range of audiences
Outstanding project management skills and the demonstrated ability to manage projects on time and within budget
Excellent listening skills, patience, and a great sense of humour

Desirable candidate attributes:

Experience with monitoring and evaluating project/programme results at the outcome and impact levels, and mainstreaming gender equality and social inclusion. Experience working with a large portfolio of partners to collect monitoring and reporting data and generate insights
Corporate experience working within companies operating in key growth sectors in East Africa, and/or supporting impact investors in deal sourcing and portfolio management
Exposure and experience in adaptive management approaches, intentional learning, and the leveraging of insights as part of an influencing strategy
Proven experience of leveraging these relationships for repeat/new work
Past experience of working elsewhere in Africa, including Southern Africa and the Horn of Africa region (e.g Ethiopia and Somalia)
Past experience in financial modelling, cost benefit analysis, producing business plans and conducting market assessments for private sector clients
Certified in PRINCE 2 or equivalent

About us

For over 20 years, Triple Line has worked with governments, financial institutions, the private sector, foundations and civil society to deliver an expanding portfolio of development assistance in countries across Africa, Asia and the rest of the world.

Climate change, loss of biodiversity, growing povert, entranched inequality, unemployment, access to decent work and shifting demographics – these are just some of the complex problems standing in the way of the global sustainable development goals. We are helping to address many of them at both a policy level and on the ground. By combining innovative thinking with practical solutions, we aim to help meet today's challenges and prepare for tomorrow's opportunities.

Our ultimate goal is to create opportunities for people, protect the environment and generate prosperity in responsible ways that create lasting value, unleash innovation and build inclusion and equity.

We work across two teams (Inclusive Growth and Resilience and Evaluation, Policy Analysis and Learning) to deliver 7 services to our clients:

GDPR declaration

By applying for this position, you are confirming that you allow Triple Line to retain your CV and personal details on record, unless you explicitly ask for them to be removed. In turn, we acknowledge that the team will not use your details for any purpose beyond the recruitment of this position and will not share your CV with any third party without your permission.

Recruitment process

Interested candidates should submit an up-to-date CV (3 page max.) and a cover letter to 3L@tripleline.com referencing the title of the position in the subject line. The cover letter should include an explanation of how your experience and qualifications meet the criteria for this position and provide information about availability, salary expectations, and any additional points related to your application that you would like us to consider.  

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. The recruitment process will include two rounds of interviews, a practical written assessment or case study, and two reference checks.  

Triple Line is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We have a zero-tolerance approach to discrimination within our recruitment process and actively encourage applications from a range of backgrounds.   

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