Job: Partnership Specialist

Location: Washington
Deadline: Thursday, 01 August 2013

Description

Background / General description:

Established in 2002, the Global Partnership for Education ('Global Partnership' or GPE), formerly the Education for All Fast Track Initiative, has grown and evolved to become the premier partnership focused on basic education in developing countries. Its members include 58 of the world's poorest developing countries, over 30 bilateral, regional, and multilateral agencies; development banks; the private sector; civil society groups; and teachers organizations. The GPE Board of Directors, the Global Partnership's governing body, sets its policies and strategies and approves all funding.

The Global Partnership provides its developing country partners support to build and implement sound education plans. In this respect, GPE manages trust funds that have allocated approximately $2.2 billion over the past 8 years and will be allocating approximately a further $2 billion by 2014. The Global Partnership aims to achieve Education for All by efficiently using international and national resources and matching donors' priorities with developing countries' own education goals and strategies.

The GPE Secretariat, which has approximately 50 staff, is hosted by the World Bank in Washington, DC. As a consequence of the Partnership taking a greater leadership role to achieve international development goals in education, the Secretariat is developing its capacity to support country level processes and meet expectations from GPE's stakeholders to demonstrate concrete results and outcomes as well as clear value for money.

The Secretariat's Partnerships and External Relations Team includes donor relations, communications, advocacy, civil society outreach, private sector outreach, Board constituency support and the coordination of the Global Partnership's Implementation Plan. The GPE Board approved the Implementation Plan for the GPE Strategic Plan in May 2013 and called for strong support for its application and also for regular monitoring of progress. The Implementation Plan Specialist will support the Secretariat and wider partnership in delivering on the plan and reporting on its progress. The position will offer motivated individuals the chance to shape the future of the GPE and its impact at the global level.

Note: If the selected candidate is a current Bank Group staff member with a Regular or Open-Ended appointment, s/he will retain his/her Regular or Open-Ended appointment. All others will be offered a 2 year term appointment.

Duties and Accountabilities:

The position reports directly to the Manager, Partnerships and External Relations and has the following responsibilities:

1. Plan Implementation:

• Act as the focal point for all partners involved in Plan Implementation, facilitating exchange of information and encouraging broad partner engagement across all Plan outcomes
• Support the various communities of practice and communities of interest established in support of plan implementation
• Support the institutions taking the lead on implementing the outcomes for the five strategic objectives contained in the Implementation Plan

2. Plan Monitoring:

• Update monthly on the GPE website progress against the Implementation Plan
• Prepare semi-annual updates for the Board of Directors on plan implementation
• Monitor the costs of plan implementation, principally for the GPE Secretariat but also other key partners

3. The Implementation Plan Specialist will lead the preparation of annual pledge monitoring reports following the 2014 replenishment pledging conference

4. As part of the Partnerships and External Relations Team, the Implementation Plan Specialist will work closely with colleagues on advocacy and messaging and also in the planning for and execution of major events.

5. Finally, the Implementation Plan Specialist will also participate in Secretariat-wide activities in support of other teams.

Selection Criteria:

• Master's degree in a relevant discipline
• At least 5 years' prior experience working in partnership development in an international development context
• Familiarity with cross-cultural dynamics, strong negotiation skills
• Proven track record in facilitating the functioning of partnerships
• Willingness to work in a complex environment and travel frequently
• Ability to work under pressure
• Ability to function in a flexible manner, where persuasion and facilitation skills are strongly valued
• Ability to write competently in English
• Working proficiency in French or Spanish preferred
• Enthusiasm and commitment to the mission of the Global Partnership for Education

Competencies

• Client Orientation - Takes personal responsibility and accountability for timely response to client queries, requests or needs, working to remove obstacles that may impede execution or overall success.
• Drive for Results - Takes personal ownership and accountability to meet deadlines and achieve agreed-upon results, and has the personal organization to do so.
• Teamwork (Collaboration) and Inclusion - Collaborates with other team members and contributes productively to the team's work and output, demonstrating respect for different points of view.
• Knowledge, Learning and Communication - Actively seeks knowledge needed to complete assignments and shares knowledge with others, communicating and presenting information in a clear and organized manner.
• Business Judgment and Analytical Decision Making - Analyzes facts and data to support sound, logical decisions regarding own and others' work.

The World Bank Group is committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, nationality, culture and educational background. Individuals with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated in the strictest confidence.

More Info and Application