Who are we?

DRC’s Global Strategy 2025 aims to assist people affected by displacement and conflict and advocate on their behalf, the organisation has implemented an organisational transformation aiming at advancing accountability, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness, while increasing efforts to generate sufficient resources to fulfil DRC’s strategic ambitions. Following this organisational transformation process, the new division Partnerships, Engagement and Fundraising (PEF) has been established, which is responsible for DRC’s global strategic partnerships and engagement with institutional donors (ID), global foundations, and private contributors at a global level. The division is part of the DRC HQ department for Partnerships, Advocacy & External Relations (PAER). Most DRC resources generated in support of our work with conflict and displacement affected persons come from institutional donors such as the European Commission, UN agencies, and bilateral humanitarian and development funding envelopes from major donor countries. While most funds are raised at country and regional level, the newly established Institutional Donors team is accountable for ensuring that DRC has a centralised and harmonised approach of high quality to addressing donors and keeping an overview of funding opportunities. Together with the rest of the department, the Institutional Donors team is working to increase DRC’s capacity and ambition to expand, deepen, and strengthen partnerships and fundraising activities with institutional donors.

About the job

As Senior Partnership Advisor you will be part of the Institutional Donors (ID) team working directly with the Head of Institutional Donors, colleagues based in HQ, and DRC Representations in Geneva, Brussels, and Berlin. Your overall responsibility will be to support DRC’s capacity strengthening to maintain and improve donor relationships and fundraising efforts.

The Senior Partnership Advisor oversees the engagement and fundraising efforts focusing primarily on the ID. In this role, you are responsible for supporting the strategic planning and leading donor-specific engagement plans in collaboration with colleagues from DRC Regional and Country Offices. An important part of your role is to lead on partnership engagement with the ID in close collaboration with key internal stakeholders, namely Regional Business Development Coordinators and Regional Head of Programmes, HQ Finance, HQ Operations, Code of Conduct, MEAL, Advocacy, and Programme Units. You are tasked with undertaking analyses, elaborating donor intelligence to inform and advise senior management and colleagues about the partnership development and fundraising opportunities. You will be accountable for sharing relevant information and developing tools on strategic compliance. Finally, as the Senior Partnership Advisor for Danida will be responsible for overseeing the framework management of the DRC Strategic Partnership Agreement and be responsible for daily technical coordination and support of the Partnership Coordinator – Danida.

Your main duties and responsibilities will be:

Strategy

• Support design and advancement of the global donor engagement strategy based on the ID donor trends and priorities.
• Lead the development of donor-specific engagement action plans for the ID and steer implementation.
• Contribute to income growth by supporting COs/ROs in meeting and exceeding institutional donor funding targets.
• Lead and/or coordinate the DRC steering committee for the ID.

Partnership Engagement

• Lead on a strong and strategic partnership between DRC and the Danida at capital level. DRC focal point for the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
• Engage proactively with Danida to address challenges and opportunities related to DRC’s partnership with the Danida at global level and inform/advise ROs/COs accordingly.
• Develop clear protocols for sharing information, communicating, and engaging with the Danida in strategic policy issues across the organization.
• Responsible for maintaining an overview of DRC engagement with Danida across the organisation – senior management, programmatic and country-focused etc.
• Prepare, document and overview high-level engagement between DRC and Danida, in particular senior management meetings or major donor-specific events.
• Provide support and expertise to DRC country and regional operations on ID partnership.
• Represent DRC in dialogues with core donors on regulatory frameworks.
• Actively participate in coordination mechanisms with peer organisations or other networks and platforms – e.g., Globalt Fokus

Donor intelligence and knowledge management

• Monitor and analyse relevant ID trends and donor intelligence and provide strategic advice on possible impact and ways to adapt across all levels of the organization.
• Provide information and advice on donor priorities and interests to inform leadership and colleagues on strategic and programmatic opportunities for resource mobilization.
• Develop qualitative and quantitative surveys and analyses to feed into donor trends and global donor analyses, lessons learned and other dissemination documents.
• Coordinate and compile information requested by donors from DRC’s global operations.
• Maintain ID portfolio overview.

Strategic Compliance

• Proactively monitor and notify management on global-level concerns and risks related to donor compliance and support decision making process.
• Disseminate internally key strategic compliance topics as necessary.
• Oversee the development of tools, platforms, and internal workflows for efficient strategic donor compliance (this includes maintaining DRC Insite donor pages, updating, and publishing internal guidance tools such as Donorpedias, fact sheets etc.).
• Provide strategic donor compliance trainings – internal in-person and e-learning trainings on donor compliance related to Danida.
• Strengthen capacities of Grants Management Unit staff on donor policies and guidelines.
• Lead and coordinate donor HQ capacity assessment and due diligence processes as relevant such as Danida Capacity Assessments and Danida Financial Monitoring Visits.

Danida Strategic Partnership Agreement

• Responsible for oversight of the framework management of the DRC Strategic Partnership Agreement supported by the Partnership Coordinator – Danida

Staff management

• Responsible for daily technical coordination and support of the Partnership Coordinator – Danida. Line management is with the Head of Unit – Institutional Donors

About you

The Senior Partnership Advisors are essential to DRC’s efforts in managing partnerships with existing institutional donors, as well as ensuring that DRC stays ahead of strategic compliance topics.

To excel in this role, you will have natural communication and social skills, including networking and the ability to influence. You are comfortable navigating internal stakeholders horizontally and vertically, and representing DRC externally with donors, peer organisations and in other forums.

The role will further require deep knowledge of the ID structure and funding priorities, including regulatory frameworks and contracting. This role calls for someone who is both a “thinker” and a “doer”: an ability to work on strategic-level analyses while being detailed, as well as result and service-oriented.

Moreover, we also expect the following:

Required

• Documented extensive experience with institutional donors and donor engagement, and in particular Danida.
• Understanding of the links between compliance and building the image of a go-to organisation for donors
• Good relationship building skills and proactive approach to partnership building and nurturing
• Experience with networking and representation at all levels
• Strong coordination skills
• Strong verbal and written communication skills with an ability to identify, address and communicate the core of an issue even if very complex
• Master’s degree in relevant field of study or equivalent in experience
• Fluency in Danish and English is a requirement, and professional proficiency in languages other than English is an asset.

Desirable

Experience in working in an international, multicultural work environment, experience at country or regional level will be considered an asset

We offer

Contract length: Permanent

Workplace: DRC Headquarters at Borgergade 10, 1300 Copenhagen K

Start date: as soon as possible, preferably January 1st 2024

Salary and conditions will be in accordance with the agreement between DRC and AC. This is a national position for which local terms and conditions apply.

Please note that it is a requirement to have the right to work in Denmark (through nationality or existing work visa) to be considered for this role.

Application process

All applicants must send a cover letter and an updated CV in English. Apply online on our page Current Vacancies at www.drc.ngo.

Closing date for applications: 16 November 2023. We will conduct interviews on a running basis.

Further information

For questions regarding the vacancy please contact Karen Faarbæk de Andrade Lima [email protected]

For further information about the Danish Refugee Council, please consult our website drc.ngo.