Vice President of Partnerships

Employer: Village Enterprise

Industry: Nonprofit/International Development/Social Entrepreneurship

Function: Fundraising

Job Title:  Vice President of Partnerships

Position Type:  Full time

Location: East Africa based, with strong preference for Nairobi, Kampala, or Kigali. There will be regular calls between Pacific, Eastern, and East African time zones.

Travel: 20%+/- This role includes travel to field offices in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Ethiopia and other potential program sites in Sub-Saharan Africa.  There is also the potential for occasional travel outside Africa.

Supervisor: Vice President of Development (based in Washington DC)

Direct Reports: Director of Business Development (based in Nairobi)

ABOUT VILLAGE ENTERPRISE

Village Enterprise’s mission is to end extreme poverty through innovation and entrepreneurship.  Village Enterprise has impacted the lives of over one million people living in extreme poverty in East Africa. Village Enterprise’s new strategy focuses on ‘scale and impact’, and the organization has ambitious goals in both areas. Village Enterprise intends to impact the lives of 20 million people living in extreme poverty by 2030. Over the next three years, we plan to quadruple the number of people we serve (from 25,000/year to 105,000/year) and expand into new countries. To support this growth, Village Enterprise plans to significantly increase its individual fundraising efforts as a means of achieving ambitious revenue goals.

For more information, please visit www.villageenterprise.org/

POSITION OVERVIEW

Village Enterprise’s Vice President of Partnerships, will play an essential role in the Development team as a leader responsible for implementing the organization’s fundraising strategy. The Development team’s institutional fundraising efforts globally are co-led by this position and Village Enterprise’s Vice President for Development (VPD, based in Washington DC, USA).  The US-based VPD is ultimately accountable for meeting the Development team’s targets; as such, this role will report into the VPD and work closely with the Director of Business Development (based in Nairobi) and the Director of Grants (based in the US) to achieve targets. The VPP will be accountable for implementing the fundraising strategy within Africa to develop revenue streams with funders based in the region, including bi- and multi-lateral funders, in alignment with organization's long-term vision for growth and sustainability. 

The VPP is a strategic thinker who is able to position Village Enterprise with future funders and implementing partners and forge impactful collaborations that propel the organization towards unprecedented success. Experience working within the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), particularly understanding USAID’s funding processes and key decision makers in the region, is valuable and preferred for this role. Your commitment to excellence and collaborative approach will drive shape strategic growth initiatives, drive innovation for the development team, and cultivate a culture that drives continuous growth. Success for a VPP is marked by achieving sustainable growth, fostering strategic partnerships in the region, and building networks to identify funding opportunities. It involves building a robust pipeline of innovative projects, securing funding, and expanding the organization's influence. 

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

The VPP will contribute to Village Enterprise’s multi-year fundraising target, working 1) with the VPP to set targets and 2) with the Development team to develop pathways to achieve these targets. This role reports to the US-based VPD and directly manages a Director of Business Development.  As a member of the Village Enterprise team, you will be consistently guided by our 5 core values of Ubuntu, Passion, Sustainability, Innovation, and Integrity.  

Fundraising Strategy:

• In close collaboration with the VPD, set and implement institutional fundraising targets, annual Key Performance Indicators, and quarterly Objectives and Key Results that are in line with the Development Team’s overall targets and Village Enterprise’s organizational strategy to scale through partnerships.

Business Development:

• Lead prospecting within the Development team for funding and partnership opportunities across sub-Saharan Africa, and particularly East Africa, to map strategic pathways for achieving growth through the organizational strategy.
• Serve as the lead in Africa within the Development Team for strategically aligning programmatic needs with funding opportunities by maintaining a keen awareness of programming developments in alignment with Village Enterprise’s Programs Team.
• Leverage formal (e.g. multi and bi-lateral funding platforms) and informal means (e.g. strong networks with donor and non-profit partners) to track and assess funding opportunities across priority geographies in Africa. 

Partnership Cultivation: 

• Build and cultivate new partnerships that will drive scale of Village Enterprise’s model through direct implementation and technical assistance.
• Identify and embed yourself in key networks operating in priority geographies and thematic areas to represent Village Enterprise as a best-in-class implementer and trusted partner.
• Nurture existing partnerships through consistent engagements to provide timely updates on developments at Village Enterprise that cultivate deeper trust and open pathways to secure additional funding. 
• Serve as the face of Village Enterprise’s Development team at key fora, conferences, workshops, and working group meetings. 

Proposal Development:

• Lead complex proposal development processes and writing of proposals for all fundraising opportunities where the funding originates from African based funders, including country and regional offices/missions of bi-laterals, multi-laterals, corporations, or foundations. 
• Coordinate project design for funding opportunities based in Africa, including working closely with Village Enterprise (and consortium partners as appropriate) Country Directors, other program staff, M&E staff, and finance staff.
• Oversee management of proposal development timelines to ensure internal alignment of relevant team members and coordination with external partners (in the case of consortiums) such that high quality, competitive proposals are developed in a timely manner. 
• In the case of a consortium, serve as the central liaison for consortium partners and nurture relationships in the strategic interests of Village Enterprise. 

KEY CAPABILITIES

Essential:

• 7-10 year track record in raising funds from institutions (bi-laterals, multi-laterals, foundations, etc.)
• Experience fundraising in East Africa, preferable across multiple Village Enterprise geographies
• Excellent communication skills, both written and oral, including the ability to collaborate with a culturally and geographically diverse team
• Existing donor and non-profit networks in East Africa
• Desire, drive and ability to be an ambassador for the mission and work of Village Enterprise

Desirable:

• Experience leading consortium and complex proposals that have resulted in securing multi-millions USD in funding
• Experience in economic livelihoods or similar sector 
• Strong understanding of USAID funding mechanisms developed through experience working within USAID or as a primary liaison with USAID for a funding partner
• Familiarity using Salesforce