Position Description

Role Purpose

The key purpose of our Head of Partnerships is partnership management to drive transformational change for children. This may be through program delivery, organizational capacity building and/or impact investing, consistent with ESG trends. Critical to success in this role is the ability to navigate complex cross-sector stakeholder groups, as well as management of a business unit with fiscal requirements.

Our Head of Partnerships will:

• Drive significant strategic partnerships to support the Save the Children Group mission,
• Drive value for our partners through support of practice and delivery of their Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) goals, and
• Support relationships with our corporate partners to facilitate outcomes for children.

Key Areas of Accountability

Role requirements:

Development and implementation of the Partnership strategy:

• Developing our annual partnership strategy to significantly grow the portfolio, achieving both financial and non-financial organisational outcomes,
• Effective collaborating across the broader Save the Children Group, to deliver partnership strategy to grow and diversify revenue streams,
• Proactively manage existing and prospective partners with a focus on large multi-year opportunities to drive transformational change.

Leadership of the Partnerships team:

• Leading, supporting, and developing the Partnerships team, identifying opportunities for skills development to instil an outcome-focused culture,
• Representing and advocating for Partnerships across the organization and the broader Movement, through active involvement and influencing key initiatives,
• Leading by example in partner management and innovative proposal development by applying a strong donor-centric approach,
• Championing the strategic partnerships agenda, ensuring alignment with evolving industry trends, including knowledge of ESG reporting mechanisms.

Relationships and Communications:

• Taking a proactive approach to identifying, presenting to, and negotiating with prospective partners,
• Preparing and presenting audience-appropriate communications and presentations.

Reporting and Compliance:

• Ensuring Partners usage of relevant Save the Children collateral, standards and guidelines are compliant,
• Managing the partnership budget and taking responsibility for all reporting requirements,
• Affectively managing the Save the Children donor acceptance and refusal policy.

Strategic growth:

• Driving the strategic approach and tactical plan to increase partnership opportunities across the asset areas of Environmental, Social & Governance, as well as accessing and leveraging external assets and capability to drive growth and impact,
• Understanding and amplifying the importance of Save’s GCF partnership, as well as ‘impact investment’ to our corporate Partners as a significant point of difference within a saturated market.

Business Development Readiness

• Leading a team of business development and relationship managers to achieve our growth ambition, including securing new partners as well as retaining and growing our existing partnership base,
• Leading and facilitating agile teams and processes to conceptualise thought-leading, game-changing offerings, that have substantial impact,
• Personally leading and facilitating relationships with our Top 10 Partners,

• Driving the team’s ability to unlock more unrestricted funding, as well as grow large, multi-year partnerships,
• Driving the team’s ability to unlock non-financial partnerships (e.g., capacity building, corporate consultancies, and provision of expertise, industry skills and knowledge to SCA),
• Establishing effective coordination mechanisms to ensure alignment in business development activities across SCA,
• Identifying synergies with our Partners and developing a targeted team workplan to drive collaborative partnerships outcomes.

Leadership

• Building high-level capacity within the team to ensure the ability to scale up as needed,
• Building strong internal and external relationships,
• Ensuring all members in the team are given all possible opportunities to succeed via effective career development and performance management plans,
• Working collaboratively across the broader SCA Movement to ensure organisational objectives are achieved.

Health, safety, security and risk management

• Be a role model for safety and security and comply with all workplace safety policy, procedure, work instructions and training
• Act safely at all times
• Report all incidents, injuries and potential hazards in a timely manner
• Participate in, and contribute to, health and safety awareness and improvements
• Be aware of, document and manage the risks associated with your team’s programs and workplaces and ensure appropriate elimination or mitigation measures are applied
• Ensure staff have completed all required training and have up-to-date background and working with children checks
• Lead and promote a culture of strong governance promoting employee health, safety and security and operational risk management
• Show leadership towards health and safety awareness and improvements

Child protection and safeguarding requirements

• Maintain a child safe environment at the workplace and safeguard children’s rights, acting in the best interests of children at all times
• Comply with the Child Safeguarding Code of Conduct and child safeguarding and protection policies and standards (click here to view further details)
• Demonstrate the highest standards of behaviour towards children in both your private and professional life
• Never abuse the position of trust that comes with being a part of the Save the Children family
• Maintain a safe and positive relationship at all times when working with children and young people
• Respond to any concerns for the safety or wellbeing of a child in a program in accordance with internal reporting processes
• Ensure staff have completed background checks and are trained in child safeguarding in line with organisational and program requirements

Person Specification

Essential knowledge or experience

• Demonstrated experience in working within an ESG culture, either in a NFP or corporate setting.
• Ability to develop value propositions and aligning organisations’ ESG goals and opportunities to Save the Children offerings,
• Understanding of global issues, development practice, and industry trends,
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams to develop innovative and effective offerings for external partners,
• Strong interpersonal & communication abilities essential,
• Demonstrated experience in acquiring and managing multi-year partnerships with highly reputable corporate organisations.

Desirable knowledge or experience

• Demonstrated business development skills will be highly regarded,
• Demonstrated experience in building team & individual business development capabilities,
• Demonstrated experience in growing revenue,
• Demonstrated experience in leading large corporate partnerships teams,
• Proven ability to build capacity within multi-disciplinary teams / environments,
• Ability to introduce an extensive network of contacts (at C-level and above) to the organisation will be highly regarded.

Required qualifications and/or accreditations

• Relevant sales / management and/or tertiary qualifications preferred,
• A background in corporate affairs, ESG leadership and/or business development.

Additional Information

• Any offer of employment at Save the Children Australia will be subject to a satisfactory National Police Record Check and, where required, a Working with Children Check
• Employees must sign on to Save the Children Australia’s Child Safeguarding Policy and Code of Conduct
• Ongoing performance and employment will be measured against KPIs, values and demonstrated behaviours outlined above
• Save the Children Australia is an Equal Opportunity Employer