IUCN has developed a Business Engagement Strategy that builds on the current portfolio of partnerships with the private sector companies as well as new value propositions for broader engagements with the private sector. The Business Engagement Unit (BEU) is led by the Head of the newly created unit responsible for further developing and implementing the Business Engagement Strategy of IUCN Secretariat and lead business development efforts and engagement with the private sector. The Business Development Officer is a new position that will support business engagement growth providing organisational, strategic and business administrative support to the BEU Head and team while working closely with relevant colleagues in the Strategic Partnerships Unit and other areas of IUCN as relevant. S/he will support business engagement activities through cross-functional collaborations and coordination.
Key responsibilities:
- Support the implementation of the Business Engagement Strategy
- Develop institutional knowledge of nature positive implementation in priority economic sectors to enable IUCN to improve effectiveness on client outreach and conversion
- Conduct high quality prospecting towards lead generation for pipeline and portfolio growth as well as establishing strategic partnerships
- Develop marketing materials for business engagement
- Develop proposals for potential clients in collaboration with relevant IUCN colleagues
- Liaise with colleagues in the Strategic Partnership Unit, Centres and Regions to support coordination of the unit’s strategy implementation
- Coordinate preparation of written internal and external facing material such as client proposals, presentations, meeting briefs, and/or others requested by the Head
- Work closely with the Legal Office to prepare partnerships and service level agreements as well as any other legal documents as needed
- Assist in ensuring business engagement processes are in place, followed and monitored (e.g. due diligence, risk and assessments, etc). Develop workflows, templates and tools where necessary
- Work with the Finance team to develop budget templates and support consistent implementation
- Keep up to date CRM for business engagement and coordinate inputs from across the secretariat
- Develop, plan and implement, together with relevant colleagues, prospecting events and specific business engagement opportunities in IUCN convenings
- Contribute in developing annual plans of BEU
- Any other tasks assigned to support the implementation of the BEU strategy.
The above job description contains the main duties and responsibilities for this position. However, staff members are expected to show flexibility in their approach to work and be willing to undertake other tasks that are reasonably allocated to them but which are not part of their regular job description. Where any task becomes a regular part of an employee's responsibilities, the job description will be changed in consultation with the employee and the Human Resources Management Group.
Note that as the BEU is a newly created unit and as the Unit grows, the role and scope of the BDO position can also grow.
Reporting line:
The Business Development Officer of the Business Engagement Unit will report to the Head of Business Engagement Unit.
Requirements:
Education:
Bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline (Marketing, Business Administration, International relations, Economics, Social sciences, Communications, etc.).
Experience:
5 to 10 years of experience in relevant fields, including business development, resource mobilization and partnership building.
Experience in working or engaging multinational companies
Experience in working in multicultural and multidisciplinary settings
Skills:
Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills.
Proven ability to be flexible, understand how to incorporate new ideas and innovation into business engagement processes.
Excellent attention to detail and strong ability to produce high quality reports and presentations.
Dynamic self-starter and fast learner. Able to perform under pressure with high level of accuracy, speed and leadership in coordinating several tasks.
Effective interpersonal skills with service-oriented mind-set, resourcefulness, initiative, tact and integrity.
Ability to effectively develop working relationships with several stakeholders at different levels of a multicultural global organization and private sector, with a trustworthy and professional image. Must be a team player.
Demonstrated ability to organize/ prioritize work and meet deadlines within a fast-paced environment with multiple and competing demands.
Excellent English written and oral communication skills. Proficiency in the other IUCN official languages is a plus.
Understanding of business and biodiversity, climate change, and nature positive is a plus.
