Job Description
Global Communities is seeking a qualified and experienced Cooperative Specialist and Team Lead for the USAID/Kenya Cooperative Development Program (CDP). The program will be designed to support three pillars 1) promote the adoption and implementation of cooperative legislation and policies that support and strengthen cooperative businesses in 25 counties; 2) strengthen the business acumen and performance of cooperative businesses while integrating and empowering youth and women within cooperative business structures in targeted urban and peri-urban markets to increase economic participation and county revenue growth; and 3) improve understanding of the psychosocial behavioral impacts associated with membership in cooperative businesses and determine whether those behaviors contribute positively to household and community resilience strategies.
The Cooperative Specialist will report to the USAID/Kenya CDP Chief of Party at Global Communities Headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland. S/he will be responsible for the management and leadership of program operations in Kenya, and will serve as the Country Program Representative.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The Cooperative Specialist and Team Lead will be responsible for providing strategic leadership to the CDP program in Kenya in collaboration with the Chief of Party (COP). The Cooperative Specialist and Team Lead shall be responsible for the management and implementation of in-country operations. The Cooperative Specialist and Team Lead will work with key stakeholders and cooperative partners to develop capacity of cooperatives in the service sectors in collaboration with the CDP Kenya team. S/he will also be responsible for management and oversight of the program’s three core objectives, monitoring the progress, milestones and achievements of the cooperatives over the life of the program, and be responsible for oversight and delivery of program administration including annual and monthly budgets in coordination with the team Finance team. The CDP Cooperative Specialist and Team Lead will be expected to work locally with the Kenya Country Director, and will supervise a team of at least three (3) in-country staff and local consultants to accomplish the work plan. This position will have at least two direct reports and oversee a team of up to five individuals.
Critical to this position is a strong functional understanding of the cooperative business model and have a background in working with cooperatives to strengthen their operations, management, financial and governance systems. The successful candidate should be open to working in a nontraditional working environment with remote management and have good communication and cooperation skills. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
Serving as the primary in-country representative for Global Communities’ CDP Kenya program;
Providing day to day team management and have a flexible schedule for working with HQ Management team and COP;
Designing, implementing and monitoring work plan for all three pillars in collaboration with HQ Management team
Working in close collaboration with the program Chief of Party to accomplish program goals, objectives and targets;
In coordination with COP represent program in forums and meetings.
Building cohesive team spirit among and between team members in collaboration with HQ Management team
Providing training and mentorship to the nascent cooperatives that the program will be supporting which includes but is not limited to: good governance, operational management, cooperatives membership roles and responsibilities, and strategic business planning;
Supporting the collection, analysis and management of data/knowledge to track program progress and to provide recommendations for ongoing improvements;
Working closely with universities and technical vocational programs in Kenya to support youth employment in various cooperative sectors;
Working closely with other program staff and county government officials to design and develop cooperative-related internship programs for youth;
Expanding cooperative networks and integrating cooperative businesses into existing business forums and commercial networks;
Developing program reports including monthly performance reports, learning documents, quarterly blogs and USAID semi-annual reports;
Managing the program budget and expenditures in collaboration with Finance team;
Meeting internal programmatic deadlines such as finance, M&E, workplan and reporting;
The duties listed above are not inclusive of all the duties of the position at Global Communities. Global Communities reserves the right to change and update position descriptions at any time.
EDUCATION AND QUALIFICATIONS
Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Finance, Agriculture, Cooperative Economics or related field of study with at least 10 years of experience working with cooperatives in various sectors including service industry and agriculture to strengthen their business goals.
Master’s degree in similar field of study with at least 7 years of relevant experience preferred;
SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE
Ability to design educational content and provide capacity building around complex cooperative business strategy and business planning, feasibility studies, and best practices in cooperative governance and membership roles and responsibilities, knowledge of accounting a plus;
Demonstrated work in value chain and/or market systems analysis programming;
Knowledge of share valuation and strategies for building equity;
Established cooperative network;
Experience working with start-ups and assisting them become profitable;
Experience managing teams of at least 3 full-time staff and consultants;
Excellent critical thinking skills;
Knowledge of the Collaboration, Learning and Adapting (CLA) approach and how to successfully incorporate CLA into program management plans;
Oversee and participate in both the Cooperative Legislative Affairs and Policy program implementation as well as the Collaboration, Learning and Adaptive objectives in up to 25 counties in collaboration with country team.
Experience in writing program reports, developing curriculums, and writing concept notes and Scopes of Work; USAID reporting skills a plus;
Strong public speaking skills with the ability to lead workshops and engage with individuals with a variety of backgrounds in the cooperative sector;
Demonstrated experience in team building and successful collaboration efforts;
Proficiency level of comprehension of Microsoft Office suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint);
Ability to be flexible with time schedule to allow for communication via Skype or other communication software with the Washington-based Program team;
Excellent verbal, writing and reporting skills,
Ability to travel domestically at least 25% of the time, potential for international travel as needed;
Kenyan National strongly preferred.
LANGUAGE SKILLS
Fluency in written and oral English and Swahili
WORKING CONDITIONS
Based in Nairobi office with travel within and outside the country as required to perform duties.
Able to work at a computer keyboard for extended periods of time.
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