JOBS: Officer Policy And Partnership at Bridge International

About the Role
As Officer, Policy, and Partnership you will play a substantial and crucial role in mobilizing, growing, and managing sponsorships and partnerships across Bridge Kenya. The officer will use resource mobilization, account management, communication skills, and administration experience to establish, develop and harness collaborative relationships with external stakeholders. This will also involve sourcing new sponsors and partners and managing existing databases. In the role, you will document, manage, and maintain the relationships between partners and sponsors whilst collaborating with other internal departments so as to ensure a clear and efficient process that allows for easy and transparent partnership and sponsorship programs. As part of the process, you will be required to communicate with sponsors and partners, support in managing the payment process for sponsors, and provide administrative support to the department. The officer will be involved in developing and managing an exciting and innovative project pipeline of partners and sponsors. 

What You Will Do

• Report to the Director, Policy & Partnerships (P&P) to help build partnerships, secure sponsorships and execute a strategy to advance Bridge’s goals in Kenya.
• Engage with existing or prospective partners and sponsors and provide necessary information and updates on their respective partnerships or sponsorships.
• Research, scout, and close on new sponsorship opportunities for Bridge pupils.
• Identify opportunities and work with partners in the private sector to drive efficient service delivery with government schools;
• Identify CSR partners in the private sector to strengthen Bridge International Academies’ market presence and delivery;
• Engage with the relevant departments to identify needy pupils and relevant CSR programs.
• Coordinate the funding that comes in and ensure that it goes to the identified pupils and schools whilst ensuring that accountability documents are provided to the partners and the sponsors.
• Utilize lead management techniques and maintain a detailed and dynamic database of these key stakeholders while tracking progress;
• Maintain a relationship with the sponsors through providing monthly updates and progress on their beneficiaries
• Analyze and present research findings or meeting findings in a written and verbal format including preparing and managing master-sheets, briefing notes, executive summaries, etc. as agreed on by your managers
• Actively participate in regular department and team meetings, contributing to strategy, discussions, and decisions which will be beneficial to Bridge’s Policy & Partnerships initiatives.
• Work with local, regional, and national officials and groups with respect to the Bridge International Academies’ registration, strategic efforts, and related activities;
• Work in partnership with the P&P Consultants and the Ministry to ensure all Bridge schools become registered.
• Plan, develop, administer and evaluate programs, activities, and daily operations related to the Policy & Partnership support function
• Undertake any other specific Policy & Partnership projects as necessary.

What You Should Have

• Bachelor’s degree with superior academic performance;
• Proven ability to produce material for external audiences such as summary reports, blog/website updates;
• Well-developed written and verbal communication skills to deal effectively, efficiently, and appropriately with internal and external stakeholders;
• Experience in government program delivery or working in account management or as an engagement officer;
• Experience building and systematically managing key complex relationships and accounts to ensure program delivery in a complex, multi-stakeholder program or project;
• Previous experience working with a Ministry of Education on program delivery preferred; If not within education, experience with another government delivery program or projects, such as in health or ICT;
• Knowledge of the education sector and specifically the provision of primary education in Kenya would be an added advantage;
• Ability to balance commercial interests and social benefits – a blend across business and political acumen, but also high emotional intelligence and relationship-building skills;
• Highly capable and thoughtful problem-solving skills; able to act as an intermediary and a solution-driven lead, to ensure effective collaboration and communication between the stakeholders and our organization;
• Prior experience within a fast-paced, high-growth, metric-driven operational organization will be an advantage;
• Experience working for a political, non-profit, or other social campaigns that concerns an idea or a movement rather than a product.

You’re also

• A detailed doer – You have a track record of getting things done. You’re organized and responsive. You take ownership of every idea you touch and execute it to a fine level of detail, setting targets, engaging others, and doing whatever it takes to get the job done. You can multi-task dozens of such projects at once and never lose sight of the details. Likely, you have some experience in a start-up or other rapid-growth company.
• A networking mastermind – You excel at meeting new people and turning them into advocates.  You communicate in a clear, conscientious, and effective way in both written and oral speech. You can influence strangers in the course of a single conversation. Allies and colleagues will go to bat for your ideas. You have an existing network from prior experience in the country, preferably in the regulatory, education, or business sectors.
• A creative problem-solver – Growing any business from scratch comes with massive and constant challenges. On top of that, Bridge works in often fragile, sometimes volatile low-resource communities and with complex government systems. You need to be flexible and ready to get everything done effectively, quickly, and affordably with the materials at hand.
• A malleable learner – You believe you can always do better. You welcome constructive criticism and provide it freely to others. You know you only get better tomorrow when others point out where you’ve missed things or failed today.
• A relentless advocate – The children we serve and teachers we empower never leave your mind. You know them, get them, have shared a meal with them (or would be happy to in the future). You would never shrink back from shaking a parent’s hand or picking up a crying child, no matter what the person was wearing or looked like. Every decision you make considers their benefit, experience, and value.
• A data-driven decision-maker – When making decisions, you don’t rely on your intuition alone. You collect data, analyze it, and make decisions with clear justifications.
• A curious investigator – You ask why a lot. You don’t just take what you see and accept it. You wonder why it is that way, and are aware that the world we see is created by human choices and actions – and it could be different. You wonder, and see the world as wonderful even when you want to change a part of it that is unjust.