Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have long term impact.

ABOUT ENERGY 4 IMPACT AND MERCY CORPS

Energy 4 Impact (E4I) and Mercy Corps merged in 2021 with the goal of broadening access to climate-smart, sustainable energy. The merger leverages off E4I’s proven market-oriented delivery of energy access, both on- and off-grid, and Mercy Corps’ strong development track record with communities, local governments and forward-thinking organizations, in order to expand energy programming in new countries and achieve impact at scale. Collectively, Mercy Corps and E4I employ over 5,600 staff, operating in more than 40 countries, including 22 countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).

THE POSITION

The Energy Program Development Officer will support country teams to grow their portfolio of standalone energy projects and energy interventions at the nexus of agriculture, economic opportunities, and humanitarian programming aligned with Mercy Corps Pathway to Possibilities (P2P) strategy. This will involve contributing to the integration of energy in annual country strategies, leading the design of energy interventions and projects, serving as the lead writer for concept notes and proposals, identifying appropriate technical and other local partners, and participating in donor research and engagement.

This position will also work with MC country teams and E4I program teams to help position them strategically for funding opportunities, including by preparing donor presentations and, where required, attending, and presenting in donor meetings. In addition, this role will coordinate closely with the Regional Program Team (RPT) to track the pipeline of potential new business opportunities, and support country teams in prioritizing and preparing for them. This role works closely with MC E4I’s Program Management, RPT, Communications, and Finance teams and MC’s Technical Support Unit (TSU) to realize new funding opportunities

RESPONSIBILITIES

PROGRAM AND PROPOSAL DEVELOPMENT

• Serve as lead writer for proposals from institutional donors, foundations, private corporations, and other philanthropic entities following Mercy Corps’ best practices in proposal development.
• Conduct extensive research and analysis to ensure proposals have country and thematic relevance in energy access and sectors aligned with the P2P strategy such as agriculture, food security, economic opportunities, and humanitarian.
• Lead the preparation and facilitation of design workshops developing supporting materials such as logical frameworks, compliance matrices, technical outlines, and proposal calendars.
• Collect proposal contributions from relevant country and program teams ensuring the quality of inputs and seamlessly integrating inputs in the proposal narrative.
• Lead proposal review sessions and incorporate feedback timely.
• Support program and finance teams in developing competitive cost proposals.
• Oversee the final submission of assigned proposal efforts coordinating with RPT.

PIPELINE MANAGEMENT AND LEARNING

• Contribute to and maintain up to date E4I’s BD Pipeline Tracker.
• Evaluate opportunities that align with MC E4I’s strategic goals and expertise and contribute to go/no-go recommendation and decisions.
• Lead fortnightly pipeline review sessions with E4I’s Senior Management Team.
• Support the preparation of business development presentations for program board meetings and quarterly progress meetings to MC E4I leadership.
• Plan and lead proposal retrospectives to uncover lessons learned from the proposal process and feed learnings into continuously improving E4I’s proposal development.
• Working with the New Initiatives (NI) team, prepare and deliver business development training and capacity building sessions to country teams.

DONOR ENGAGEMENT

• Keep up to date on relevant donor strategies and the evolving energy funding landscape initially focusing on Africa and expanding globally.
• Contribute to the development of high-quality presentations for donor and partner engagements.
• Cultivate and nurture donor relationships that positively impact MC E4I’s ability to grow its standalone energy programming and energy interventions at the nexus of the P2P strategy.
• Provide other support including conducting research, contributing to strategy sessions, and writing communications content, as requested.

Accountability

Reports Directly To:
Director of Global Strategy & Major Energy Programs

Coordinates regularly with:
E4I’s Managing Director

Works Directly With:
E4I’s Senior Management Team, Regional Advisory and Program Teams, RPT, Head of Monitoring Evaluation and Learning, Mercy Corps Regional Leadership, Mercy Corps Country Teams, Mercy Corps Finance Team, and E4I Communications Team.

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

E4I / Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS & TRANSFERRABLE SKILLS

• Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs/Development or related field and 5+ years of experience. Familiarity with the energy access sector in Africa is an advantage.
• Successful proposal writing experience, as lead writer, for six-figure plus opportunities.
• Experience managing and coordinating across the entire business development cycle from capture to award.
• Experience conducting rigorous research and analysis to inform proposal pursuits.
• Proven ability to independently plan, prepare, and lead proposal design and review sessions collaborating effectively with a wide variety of stakeholders under tight deadlines to produce quality proposals.
• Professional fluency in written and spoken English. Written and spoken fluency in French is advantageous.
• Ability to work under pressure with tight deadlines.
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Excellent organizational skills.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

Position is remote with preference for this role to be based in the United Kingdom, Kenya, or the U.S. (Washington D.C. or New York).

The position requires travel up to 30% time to the field where living conditions may be rugged or be in volatile environments where security protocols will need to be followed. When in the field, the team member must able to work in remote settings, over weekends and/or evening as required by the schedule, and in settings with limited infrastructure, food options, and living conditions.

Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside work hours when deployed in a field posting or on a visit/TDY to a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC’s policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

Fostering a diverse and open workplace is an important part of Mercy Corps’ vision. Mercy Corps is an Equal Opportunity Employer regardless of background. We are committed to creating an inclusive environment.

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development.

Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity

E4I / Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.

We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding and Ethics

E4I / Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside work hours when deployed in a field. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and Mercy Corps’ policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

E4I / Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct E-learning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.