Partnerships Specialist - Liaison

Job Description

Dutystation: Colombo, Sri Lanka

Functional responsibilities

Partnership and programme development planning.

• Develop a comprehensive partnership and programme development plan, with particular focus on Korea and KOICA in line with UNOPS Strategic Plan and Regional Strategies.

• Research and analyse specific donor programming priorities in order to identify potential partnership opportunities and support country offices to develop respective project proposals in line with UNOPS strategy.

• Establish contacts and build working relationships with key personnel working in partner organisations, fostering productive relationships through meetings and other relevant platforms.

• Develop both internal and external feedback mechanisms to support regular communications and improve both the form and content of partner outreach.

• Provide continuous analysis and guidance on partner funding trends and opportunities.

• Liaise with partner organisations to collect essential information, updates and reports related to new and ongoing partnership activities and collaborate with country offices to ensure timely dissemination of key information and updates received.

• In close collaboration with relevant Partnerships personnel at local, liaison and HQ level, as well as Project Managers and project personnel of the country offices, facilitate communication and meetings at both HQ and country office level with partner organisation to discuss progress, challenges and opportunities for partnership.

Development of partnership opportunities and support of ongoing projects.

• Advise country offices in business development opportunities analysis, partnerships development and programme design

• Work in close consultation with country offices in both building partnership strategies and in implementation thereafter. Actively participate in the identification, design, formulation and negotiations of new projects and programs and ensure proposals are well-conceptualized and meet the specific need and quality standard of the partner organizations.

• Support the country offices in the coordination of the project development processes in conducting consultations, feasibility studies, risk assessments, and cost-benefit analyses when required by partner organizations.

• Provide business intelligence and analysis to support meetings, projects and negotiations.

• Proactively engage with Project Managers in the country offices to ensure clear and effective communication and coordination for key ongoing KOICA projects.

• Participate in key meetings of ongoing projects, ensure systematic and timely follow up, proactively solve conflicts and address issues that could occur between UNOPS and partner organisations.

• Understand and clearly explain UNOPS procedures and pricing policy to partners.

Deepening and Expanding partnership.

• Expand UNOPS outreach by exploring new partnership opportunities with partners in Korea.

• Lead analysis, mapping and identification of potential opportunities in Korea, disseminate key information with relevant internal stakeholders to strategize partnership development.

• In close collaboration with relevant Partnerships personnel at HQ and regional level, coordinate and manage communications, meetings and negotiations to initiate and develop partnerships.

Knowledge management

• Conduct ongoing research, identification and dissemination of best practices, lessons learned and innovative approaches by partners with a view of continuous improvement of UNOPS engagement in the country offices.

• Keep abreast of the ongoing projects with key partners as well as developing opportunities.

• Work collaboratively with the communications team to share relevant updates and success stories for both inward and outward communications.

• Develop partner specific documents, such as factsheets, visibility material, etc.

• Help build partnerships capacity and negotiation skills among project managers.

Education/Experience/Language requirements

Education:

• A Master’s degree in a relevant field such as Business Administration, Public Administration, International Development, Engineering, Political Science, Communications or International Relations.

• A combination of a Bachelor’s degree with an additional 2 years of relevant work experience may be accepted in lieu of the education requirements outlined above.

Experience:

A minimum of 5 years of experience (or more based on academic merits) in international development is required. Including demonstrated experience in one of the following:

• Developing and executing partnership and programme development plans.
• Project development and proposal writing.
• Establishing partnerships with UN agencies, international development organizations, governments, foundations, international NGOs or private sector organizations.

• Minimum 2 years experience working in developing and implementing partnerships programmes is required.

• Experience working with a development partner and donors in-country, is highly desirable.
• Skills in partnership building and project proposal development are essential.

Language:

• Full working knowledge of English is essential.
• Fluency in one or more additional official UNOPS languages is an advantage.
• Korean is highly desired.

About the Organization

TOGETHER, WE BUILD THE FUTURE

UNOPS – an operational arm of the United Nations – supports the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by successfully implementing its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world.

Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve peace and sustainable development.

We are proud of our people and embrace diversity and are committed to equal employment opportunities. Our workforce brings together approximately 160 nationalities, represented by over 5,000 UNOPS personnel as well as some 7,800 personnel recruited on behalf of our partners. Spread across 80 countries from a range of backgrounds, and languages and have different gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities.

We encourage women and candidates from underrepresented groups in UNOPS to apply. These include candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities.