The steady beat of heartbreaking news regarding job losses and furloughs is enough to make any development professional feel stressed and anxious about their future job prospects.
But when you’re the one suddenly faced with a jobless future, the shock, anger, fear, and sadness that follow can make even the idea of a job search feel downright impossible or even pointless, especially if it’s your first time dealing with such circumstances.
“So many of us have never done this while also processing profound trauma and shock,” said one attendee of a recent digital event, referring to finding work after suddenly losing it. The session was attended by several USAID workers who have been hit with layoffs or furloughs.
However well-intentioned, no newsletter, social media post, or 30-second vertical video is going to have all the answers. Actually, most will completely miss the mark. But we have spoken to some very wise and kind people over the last couple of weeks. So, if there’s even a small chance that one of their ideas might resonate in any way with someone in this horrific situation, I am going to give it a go.
In this edition of Career Hub, I’m passing on some potentially helpful guidance curated from our recent digital discussions for those wrestling with what comes next. Plus, some of the best new job opportunities from leading organizations such as The Nature Conservancy, UNICEF, and more.
Top full-time staff jobs this week
1. Director of Policy & Programs
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security
United States
2. Manager, Finance and Administration
Roots
Canada
3. Senior Director, Conservation & Climate Finance Policy
The Nature Conservancy
Singapore | United States | Belgium (remote)
4. Development & Partnerships Associate
Acumen
United States
5. Logistics Officer
World Food Programme
Nigeria
6. Business Development Director
Oxford Policy Management (OPM)
United Kingdom
Devex Talent Solutions, our very own boutique recruitment agency, is assisting Sustainable Agriculture Network (SAN) in its search for a strategic programs, associate manager to work remotely from anywhere across the globe. Those interested should apply by Feb. 20.
+ DTS is also seeking candidates for an underwriter (sovereign risks) with the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (closing March 2), among many others. See more roles DTS is helping to fill.
Hitting reset after redundancy
When you lose a job, there’s no playbook for exactly the right way to react. But there are potential steps to help you eventually work your way back to a focused and fruitful job hunt. Here are a few ideas from a range of sector leaders and career coaches who we’ve spoken to recently.
Grieve, but don’t isolate. From what I’ve observed on LinkedIn and in our events, there’s a hunger for community during this time, and many in that community are eager to help others struggling. If you’ve lost your job, you might have been receiving lots of messages ranging from kind words to more direct offers such as pro bono coaching or legal guidance.
Whether or not you’re feeling supported, reaching out to others in need as well is not only kind but goes to the heart of what successful networking is all about.
“Please extend your olive branch to others in this time, even though you’re going through it. Everyone else’s, too,” says Jennifer Bangoura, a careers coach and consultant, who speaks of her personal situation related to the USAID funding cuts. A short text or LinkedIn message can go a long way for people who are struggling and could be the start of a more meaningful professional relationship when you’re able to refocus on networking and job hunting.
Take stock of your skills. When you’re feeling well enough emotionally, one way to keep the momentum going is to remind yourself of your abilities. Remember, as Devex President and Editor-in-Chief says: “You did not land in this situation through anything … that you did.”
“I would really encourage professionals to complete a skills audit … to make sure they know what it is they bring to the table because being passionate and motivated for the next steps is going to be crucial in the current market,” says Jack Jarrett, a veteran development HR adviser.
This process can take different forms, from filling out a structured template to simply sitting down with a pad and paper and writing down what you might say in an elevator pitch, as Zaid A. Zaid, head of U.S. public policy at Cloudflare and a USAID alum, suggests.
Listen to your fears. Once you feel ready to start considering how to approach a new job hunt, there’s a good chance that feelings of fear are still lingering. “I meet so many people who bring this heightened fight [or] flight energy to their job hunt because of the stakes. The fear is there. It’s very real. But it’s because it has not been considered or reflected,” says Spencer Campbell, a social impact talent agent and coach.
On Wednesday, Campbell and leadership coach Dan Freehling led a workshop with Devex Career Account members on what your fears can reveal about what should be next for your job search. Listening to them can be a powerful first step for any job seeker striving for direction in their job search. “Fears should be used to inform our needs and our wants. Start by getting these down on paper [and] getting these out of our heads.”
We’ve unlocked access to this workshop so everyone who might find it helpful can watch and participate.
+ Join us on Feb. 17: Devex is hosting a free live digital event on LinkedIn featuring a panel of career experts who will offer guidance on how social impact professionals can best weather the uncertainty created by the Trump administration and shifting U.S. policies.
Top consulting and short-term jobs
1. Education Consultant
Inter-American Development Bank
United States
2. Individual Consultant: Procurement Specialist
World Bank Group
Tajikistan
3. Partnerships Specialist (Retainer)
UNOPS
Ethiopia
4. Corporate Alliance Officer
UNICEF
Guinea
5. Senior Technical Officer Biosafety and Biosecurity
African Society for Laboratory Medicine
Ethiopia
6. OR Consultant – Building Coaching Capability & Coaching Leaders
Heifer International
Kenya
+ For more opportunities, check out the weekly Devex Jobs Alert newsletter on LinkedIn, our next early-week edition of Career Hub, and Devex’s Job board.
Globaldev’s top orgs for interns
Internships have always been and will continue to be an important pathway into a global development career. In 2024, Devex’s job board advertised 768 internships across the globe, led by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, or FCDO, the European Central Bank, or ECB, and European External Action Service, or EEAS.
Current internship opportunities from our leading organizations include a finance and estates intern based in Côte d’Ivoire with FCDO; Germany-based opportunities related to communications and computer science with ECB; and an EEAS paid traineeship position in its political, press, and information section, based in the United Arab Emirates.
Read: The top global development employers for interns (Career)
Around the watercooler
News and views from around global development worth knowing about.
Mercy Corps is hit with mass layoffs. As an NGO that gets 26% of its funding from USAID, Mercy Corps says it is making “workforce reductions” in the coming days. The Danish Refugee Council, Norwegian Refugee Council, and several others are planning cuts as well.
Unceremonious sackings may be only a preview. If the future of USAID is privatizing the workforce, Global Health Training, Advisory, and Support Contract, or GHTASC, workers’ experiences with one contract in the agency’s global health bureau may forecast what’s to come (hint: it’s not good).
PEPFAR waiver woes. While Mission for Essential Drugs & Supplies expects to have their stop-work order lifted for HIV programming, “they are very unlikely to be able to restart work since the payment systems are down,” says an email obtained by Devex.
The Trump Effect: Follow the latest news and careers coverage of Donald Trump’s first 100 days in office and their impact on the development sector.
+ To keep up to date with all the must-read global development coverage, be sure to sign up to the daily Devex Newswire.
Sign up to Devex Career Hub for global development’s top jobs, expert career advice, and practical tips to help you do more good for more people.
About the author
Justin Sablich
Justin is a contributing writer and editor who previously led Devex’s careers content strategy. Before joining Devex, Justin served as the managing editor of Springwise, covering sustainable and climate-tech innovation across all business sectors. He also spent over 13 years as an editor and writer for the New York Times, specializing in digital content production and strategy while producing written and multimedia content on a range of topics, including travel, sports, and technology.
