Specialist II, Food Security Unit Specialist – Agriculture and Markets

Description

Job Title: Specialist II, Food Security Unit Specialist – Agriculture and Markets

Dept/Location: Overseas Support Department/Public Resource Group, Baltimore

Reports To: Food Security Unit Team Leader

Req#: 299

Background:

The Business Development Team (BDT) supports HQ and field staff to identify and develop new public donor funding relationships and increase the agency’s capacity to respond to funding opportunities from various public donors. The team members are collectively responsible for managing information to support proposal development; carrying out research on, and building relationships with, new donors and other potential growth partners; providing assistance to field programs in proposal development; and monitoring progress towards the unit’s objectives and the agency’s public growth agenda.

Within the HQ BDT, the Food Security Unit (FSU) supports resource acquisition specifically in the area of food security, with an emphasis on high-value and strategic funding opportunities from USAID, USDA, the United Nations, and other major public donors. In so doing, the FSU collaborates closely with multiple units in CRS’ Overseas Operations division: country and regional staff (responsible for program development and implementation within CRS’ decentralized management structure); PQSD sectoral teams (responsible for supporting and promoting CRS technical excellence in core program areas); and PRG Strategic Issues Advisors (responsible for policy analysis and advocacy on key issues including global hunger). The FSU also supports the BDT’s broader relationships with other CRS divisions – HR, Finance, USOPS, and CGA – to guide and strengthen the agency’s resource acquisition efforts and maintain its position as a well-resourced, influential, and highly regarded actor in the fields of humanitarian aid and development.

Primary Function:

The FSU Agriculture/Markets Specialist will support the development of public donor proposals in the food security sector, with an emphasis on competitive mechanisms. S/he will contribute to the design and writing of technical proposal narratives and related proposal content to ensure highest quality standards and competitiveness. S/he will lead and support internal learning processes that produce innovative and evidence-based project design elements, and will ensure their incorporation into new applications for food security funding. As a member of the HQ BDT and the agency’s broader business development community of practice, s/he will also provide field and HQ staff with information and informal training to improve their skills in proposal development, representation to donor and partner organizations, donor and partner intelligence-gathering, and marketing of CRS’ capacities to enhance our competitiveness.

Job Responsibilities:

1. Provide direct support to field and HQ staff in development and production of proposals, in an on-the-job training capacity. Serve as Technical Lead on highly strategic priorities, as agreed with HQ, regional, and CP senior managers.

2. Maintain thorough familiarity with the technical programming priorities, promising innovations, best practice guidelines, and emerging issues in major food security donor agencies, including USAID.

3. Collaborate closely with Country Programs, regional offices, and PQSD to support and document technical learning within CRS, specifically for use in future project designs and technical proposal narratives. Assist PQSD to glean lessons from project reports, evaluations, and operations research findings. Lead and support internal learning events to generate and disseminate knowledge that strengthens the technical quality of CRS’ food security proposals.

4. Lead FSU’s collaboration with PQSD and staff overseas to develop future proposal content, update capacity statements and past performance references, and design tools and resources reflecting evidence-based project design elements and implementation methodologies in the Ag/Market sectors.

5. Monitor relevant regulatory revisions, proposal guidelines, and application requirements for priority food security donors, together with OSD and overseas compliance staff. Ensure HQ and field staff involved in food security proposals are aware of these requirements and that technical proposal narratives adhere to them.

6. Together with OSD and PQSD, monitor the technical dimensions of new donor-driven initiatives, such as Feed the Future, and help articulate and represent CRS’ technical expertise within the context of these initiatives.

7. Coordinate processes and mentor staff to ensure timely submission of high quality proposals that are responsive to and compliant with donor requirements and with CRS technical application and cost application standards.

8. Support field and HQ staff in negotiating consortium arrangements based on lessons from similar experience. Coordinate closely with PQSD, OSD, and field staff to identify new and non-traditional partnerships, including universities, for-profit companies, research institutes and other actors.

Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff):

These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.

· Serves with Integrity

· Models Stewardship

· Cultivates Constructive Relationships

· Promotes Learning

Key Working Relationships:
INTERNAL: Overseas Support Department; Program Quality and Support Department; Country Representatives and Heads of Programming, Country and Regional technical and business development staff.
EXTERNAL: Public donor representatives; business development officials of collaborating partner organizations.

Qualifications:

1. Masters Degree in Agriculture, Natural Resource Management, Rural Development, or related field.

2. Five plus years of international development experience, including at least 2 years in a developing country.

3. Experience with USG proposal development; experience with RFAs, RFPs preferred.

4. Familiarity with the funding mechanisms and technical programming priorities of USAID/Food for Peace required. Familiarity with USDA and World Food Program desirable.

5. Project management experience in food aid highly desirable.

6. Excellent interpersonal, oral and written communication and negotiation skills.

7. Demonstrated experience managing people and processes, leading teams to produce deliverables under tight deadlines and at exceptional quality.

8. Exceptional writing ability.

9. Strong analytical skills.

10. Knowledge of CRS programs, justice agenda and Catholic Social Teaching principles, a plus.

11. Knowledge of Microsoft Office software (Word, Excel, Outlook, and Internet) required, experience with Access or other data base programs is a plus.

12. Ability and willingness to travel overseas as needed, up to 40% of job time.

13. Fluency in English required; working ability in French preferred: working ability in Spanish acceptable.

This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skills, efforts, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.

NOTE: All interested applicants must be authorized to work in the U.S. at the time of application.

To apply, visit www.crs.org/about/careers