Senior Operations Officer

IFC — a member of the World Bank Group — is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2023, IFC committed a record US$43.7 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity as economies grapple with the impacts of global compounding crises. 

• The IFC 3.0 strategy aims to stimulate more investment activity across emerging markets, especially in Low Income Countries (LICs) and Fragile and Conflict affected States (FCS). This strategy aims to create new opportunities for private investments in riskier markets and sectors by proactively working “upstream” to create, deepen, and expand markets and design and develop potential investment projects. Achieving these growth and impact ambitions at scale requires a different approach to business development, deal sourcing, and client support that relies on 1) a broader product offering to engage earlier in the project cycle and secure opportunities; 2) a greater focus on preparing clients in nascent markets and sectors for investment; 3) a greater focus on value addition and risk management of portfolio investment clients to enhance their performance; and 4) a longer time horizon and a more patient, longer-term perspective.
• To support this approach, IFC is seeking a Senior Operations Officer (SOO) specializing in Climate Finance to support strategic priorities for the FIG department of the Africa region. The SOO will be responsible to support the department’s efforts to enable investment opportunities, enhance investment outcomes, and improve investment conditions – critical activities for the corporation to deliver on its ambitious strategy. The mix of these varied activities should be calibrated to meet the development needs of the market and contribute to IFC’s growth and impact objectives.
• The SOO will be based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and is expected to frequently visit (travel permitting) other offices where their team and clients are based. They will report to the Manager, FIG Africa Upstream and Advisory Eastern and Southern Africa, will be co-supervised by the Manager, FIG Africa Upstream and Advisory, North, West and Central Africa, and will be a member of the FIG Africa Upstream and Advisory Leadership Team. They will work in partnership with relevant Country/Regional/Global and Investment Managers and Officers to support the country and sectoral strategic and business objectives. They will have supervisory responsibility over Project Teams and will closely collaborate with the FIG Africa Upstream and Advisory Leadership Team to leverage skills and knowledge across IFC. The SOO will also be responsible for driving the development of the Upstream and Advisory business program in their thematic area in collaboration with Investment Officers towards the coordinated provision of services that span the continuum of IFC’s operations – across idea generation, enabling environment, project development and client preparation, investment, and portfolio operations – and to further collaboration and synergies across the FIG Africa department.

Duties and Accountabilities

As a senior member of FIG Africa Upstream and AS team, the SOO will be responsible for the technical oversight of FIG Upstream and Advisory services projects in the region with primary emphasis on Housing Finance, but also supporting and collaborating with other practice areas, such as Climate Finance, Agrifinance, Digital Financial Services, MSME Finance, Risk Management and Gender Finance, among others. They will be responsible for delivering market-leading client solutions by leveraging local and regional resources. IFC designs and implements capacity building to strengthen clients’ institutional capabilities to better serve underserved market segments, usually following a comprehensive diagnostic assessment and knowledge resources. 

• IFC’s FIG Advisory Services aims to deliver innovative solutions to support target clients’ objectives to expand and grow their business, in line with IFC’s country strategies to address development challenges.
• The SOO should have demonstrated experience in structuring, negotiating, and implementing successful technical assistance programs for financial institutions and non-bank financial institutions, and an ability to clearly communicate and present the deliverables to senior stakeholders.
• The SOO would play an instrumental role in helping FIG Upstream and Advisory deliver its targets, especially those related to signing new projects, client cash fees committed, effective project delivery and management and contributing to the team’s knowledge management initiatives. His/her specific responsibilities in each of these areas include the following:

Business Development

• Lead/organize business development efforts through market analyses and meetings with existing and potential clients to identify potential areas of support.
• Work closely with IFC Investment teams in pipeline identification, participation in due diligence and closing of deals, where there is potential for advisory services support.
• Working with the project teams, improving our FIG Upstream and Advisory Value Proposition, lead the preparation of pitch books and project proposals including project objectives, scope of work, key deliverables, timelines, and budget with input from the client and relevant IFC staff.
• Lead the presentation of project proposals to get buy in and the negotiation of fees for the projects.
• Have overall responsibility for the quality and timelines of the internal project-related documents such as Implementation Plans, Budgets and Legal Agreements.

 Client and Stakeholder Management

• Have overall responsibility for managing senior level client relationships with clients and articulate IFC’s value proposition, leading to increased development impact supporting Investment Services.
• Hold knowledge transfer sessions, lead diagnostics with the client, and function as the technical lead for advisory services projects as per area of specialization.
• Provide oversight supervising the team of Operations Officers and experts to ensure consistency in the approach and high standards of delivery that meet client expectations.
• Work collaboratively with Investments to align Upstream and Advisory to help close pipeline investment projects and provide solutions to key portfolio clients.
• Engage with the relevant teams at the World Bank and IFC for reforms needed to unlock new markets and collaborate with Upstream teams.

Technical Expertise

• Collaborate with Client Engagement staff as well as industry specialists in the design, pitch negotiation of client solutions.
• Lead the delivery of advisory projects.
• Contribute to the development or review of and relevant project documents and client deliverables and in the related approval processes. Participate in senior level client meetings to provide technical advice, monitor progress, address challenges/ issues to successfully implement project recommendations.
• Improve the design and delivery of client solutions by incorporating global best practices and lessons from previous projects.
• Partner with the Monitoring & Evaluation team in the development of appropriate theories of change and results frameworks and indicators to strengthen the development impact and sustainability of client solutions and continuously learn from client projects/ engagement.

Knowledge Sharing/Creation

• Identify and participate in /conferences to highlight IFC offerings and value proposition, which includes serving as panelists/ moderator for internal and external events related to thematic area.
• Conduct research to shape on-going and future offerings in thematic area and develop new tools and guidance to incorporate internal and external best practices.
• Conceptualize and lead knowledge management initiatives.

 Capacity Building

• Design and deliver training for Advisory Services staff, e.g., to build technical skills, client management capabilities.
• Share knowledge with Investment staff and other key internal stakeholders (e.g., upstream team) to better enable them to be Upstream and Advisory Services champions, and with external stakeholders to generate interest in thematic areas and understanding of why it is important/ advantageous to businesses, business climate, community and/or economy.
• Build tools and methodologies for enhancing the Upstream and Advisory delivery capacity, especially in the country and the region.
• Coach and mentor junior staff and strengthen their technical capacity; identify and address training needs.

 Staff Supervision and Governance

• Effectively staff and supervise the Project team and ensuring the quality control of project deliverables.
• Oversee the preparation and drafting of internal and external project documents and reports e.g., project documents, legal agreements, mission reports, project supervision documents, project completion documents, and ensure adherence to AS governance.
• Build the capacity of assigned staff and members of the broader team through mentoring, coaching, and by providing on-the-job learning opportunities.
• Determine resources needed to support projects and ensure efficient/ effective use of resources.

Selection Criteria

• A Master’s Degree in Business, Economics, Finance, International Development, or related fields, or equivalent professional experience.
• Minimum of 12 years of experience in commercial banks, consulting firms, or development financial institutions (ideally in an advisory capacity) of which at least 5 years should be in a position with oversight of teams.
• In-depth knowledge of Housing Finance, and strong knowledge in other thematic strategic areas, such as Climate Finance, MSME Inclusion, Agrifinance and Digital Financial Services, and a solid understanding of commercial banks, the broader financial sector, and the Africa region in general.
• Strong business development track record including ability to design, negotiate and lead efforts to develop and sell client offerings that reflect in-depth knowledge of thematic area and communicate effectively to clients how FIG Upstream and AS products would improve their businesses.
• A strategic thinker with an ability to see the “big picture” of country, regional and global private sector development challenges, and an ability to identify how emerging market trends may create opportunities to refine its FIG Upstream and AS products for increased uptake.
• Ability to design research and analytical projects to produce new understanding of a thematic issue and/or potential opportunities to unlock new markets or new streams of business.
• Strong project management and team leadership skills and an ability to develop and drive strategies and work with multiple stakeholders.
• Strong organizational skills with an ability to work under time pressure, respond to ad-hoc shifts in client priorities, unstructured situations and unexpected events while maintaining order and professional delivery.
• Ability to work in a multicultural environment.
• Willingness and ability to travel extensively and work across time zones.
• Ability to communicate ideas clearly and confidently, both orally and in writing.

Source: https://worldbankgroup.csod.com/ats/careersite/JobDetails.aspx?id=27185&site=1