Business Development Adviser Job at WaterAid Nigeria

WaterAid is an international organisation whose mission is to transform the lives of the poorest and most marginalised people by improving access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene. Through their partners, they have reached 2 million people with safe water and 3 million people with sanitation last year.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Business Development Adviser

Location: Abuja
Pay band: F
Contract Type: Full time, 2 years fixed term (renewable) 
Reports to: Country Director
Travel: 60 % (Local)

Job Purpose

• WaterAid maintaining its profile as a leader in the WASH sector in Nigeria requires that we design and implement all our programmes in a manner that constantly demonstrates needs driven innovation to maximize our effectiveness and impact.
• This role will be expected to serve as WANG’ss in house business development expert and will bring strong private sector type thinking to all our programmatic priorities and internal processes.
• The role will assume full responsibility for gradually building WaterAid Nigeria’s niche as a thought leader in provider of innovative and contextualized solutions for applying private sector thinking to designing and delivering high quality water, sanitation and hygiene services.
• The role will also be responsible to coordinating and providing technical guidance to WaterAid staff and partners on how to effectively engage with private sector actors to provide WASH solutions.

AccountabilitiesBusiness Development Support:

• Identify and propose approach for attracting private sector support to WaterAid Nigeria programmes and strategy priorities
• Conduct regular scanning of WANG operating context and evaluate emerging business development potentials with private sector institutions to achieve increased WASH access; provide expert advice to the CP to achieve maximum leverage from collaboration with private sector actors.
• Offer in house business development consulting support to other departments to improve collaboration with private sector/profit making organizations
• Lead the integration and application of private business models, approaches and ways of working in WANG processes and systems
• Develop WASH programmes from a market led /driven perspective.
• Build linkages with private sector and private sector development consulting firms.
• Develop innovative options for integrating private sector led /driven initiatives for scaling up WASH access in Nigeria; Develop and implement strategy to grow private sector contribution to increasing WASH access through Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives.
• Design briefs and materials to attract and increase private sector awareness of business opportunities within the WASH value chain

Knowledge Management and Learning:

• Organize sessions for staff and SMT on ways of working to drive increased business with market led models/private sector stakeholders.
• Work in close collaboration with  communications and advocacy teams to influence governments (national, state and local) to adapt and replicate market led models to increase WASH access.
• Build collaborations with universities, technology developers, research institutes and private researchers/providers to improve market led models for delivering WASH solutions
• Support re-modification of technology and design to suit different markets for
• WASH services and to build wider interest for market based uptake of WASH services.
• Conduct periodic analysis to understand emerging knowledge,attitudes and practices that have implications on application of market led models for improving WASH access.
• Contribute to knowledge management in WANG by capturing and documenting lessons and disseminating across the organisation
• Initiate/participate to national and state events for promoting WANG sanitation and hygiene approaches such as sanitation marketing.

Cross organisation Collaboration:

• Contribute actively to building a culture of learning and knowledge management across the organization.
• Encourage effective documentation and sharing of learning through workshops, seminars, exposure visits, sharing meetings etc.
• Be an active member of the Tactical Team and contribute to reflection, analysis and translate strategic direction to operational actions to achieve country programme goals.
• Promote interaction and collaboration between departments
• Participate actively to sanitation and hygiene communities of practices in country and at international level

Person specification
Essential Criteria:

• Strong academic background (preferably at Master’s degree level) in business administration, project management or the social sciences
• Seven year’s; experience in  a consulting, marketing and business development type role
• Proven experience in building and successfully maintaining strong working relationships with diverse personalities both internally and with external stakeholders
• Excellent inter-personal and networking skills with experience of developing and cultivating effective network of business development contacts and relationships
• Experience with analysis of strategic business risk and the experience creating best fit approaches to manage /mitigate such risk
• Strong numerical ability, ability to develop and review complex budgets
• Excellent written and oral communication skills. Including excellent report writing skills, and the ability to communicate information and ideas effectively
• Experience of working in a matrix management structure
• Ability to influence others to achieve results and deliver on time
• Attention to detail and ability to produce high quality and accurate documentation
• Ability to effectively support and challenge colleagues and other stakeholders
• Effectively plan, priorities and co-ordinate the work of others in the team and other teams
• Ability to work autonomously with minimum supervision and can work under pressure to competing demands.
• Ability to resolve conflicts as required and negotiate effectively with others
• Strong initiative, with a willingness to take on new responsibilities and challenges.
• Commitment to WaterAid’s values and a working style that reflects these.

Method of Application 
Interested and qualified candidates should send an Expression of Interest and updated CV to: hrnig@wateraid.org The position title should be indicated in the subject line of the email.

Note: To apply for this role you must be able to demonstrate your eligibility to work in Nigeria.