International Development Consultant

HEADLINE Frustrated with the way international development works? Feel your ideas and skills are going to waste? Want to rekindle the enthusiasm and ambition that drew you to the sector in the first place and to shape the field of development, instead of just working within it? Join the Springfield Centre and look at development from a fresh perspective. WHAT’S THE OPPORTUNITY? “ Any development that is not sustainable is not development ” Dr. Manmohan Singh The international development sector is driven by good people with the right intentions, yet all too often we don’t deliver the results we’d like. Too many programmes fail or produce puffs of temporary impact for small numbers of people. Springfield is offering an opportunity for those who are interested not just to think seriously about development impact and its sustainability, but to put it into practice and catalyse others to do the same. This is an opportunity to work differently; to be critical, be technical, be more effective and to have more impact. It’s that rare opportunity to remind yourself why you got into development in the first place. WHO ARE YOU? You’re inquisitive, principled and self-motivated. You enjoy working in development but you want to challenge yourself intellectually while continuing to be hands on. You’ve been working in development for four to ten years but are looking to further develop the skills you’ve learned during this time. And, importantly, you want to be inspired both professionally and personally, working within a team of like-minded and supportive people. The skills and experience that will be useful to you in achieving these goals include: Experience living, working, or conducting research in developing countries Experience advising development organisations, funders or government Innovation and creativity – this is essential in the problem-solving nature of our work Excellent communication and presentation skills – able to verbally communicate complex ideas to audiences with different levels of understanding. You’ll need to be fluent in verbal and written English and able to develop succinct, accessible reports to tight deadlines Experience working with and managing people and projects – in considering complex development challenges you’ll need to work with and manage diverse teams to deadlines A rich and diverse personal profile – being someone with a diverse range of interests and experience helps you relate and cope with the challenges of the job we do WHO ARE WE? The Springfield Centre ( www.springfieldcentre.com ) is an advisory, training and research firm based in Durham and is part of Swisscontact – a private foundation, based in Zurich, which promotes sustainable economic growth in developing countries and works exclusively in international cooperation and development, implementing its own as well as mandated projects ( www.swisscontact.org ). Springfield is not your typical development organisation. We’re a kind of ‘think-do-and-teach’ tank. All our work is technical, as are our staff. We don’t sub-contract other people to do our work and, importantly, we have a clear view of what underpins good development practice, which shapes everything we do. We are diversifying – both in terms of our clients and our interests. Alongside our extensive portfolio of bilateral and multi-lateral donor work we are partnering increasingly with foundations, ‘new’ aid clients and the private sector. We also aim to bring systems thinking and practice to ‘new’ frontiers such as skills and employment; urban development; WASH; refugee contexts and more. We believe development should be transformative. All of our work is targeted towards trying to improve the systems that help poor and disadvantaged people to get – and continue to get – the goods, services, jobs, and incomes that they need to improve their lives without the need for indefinite development assistance. This is the essence of sustainable development impact which underpins everything we do. We’re also not stuck in London – or indeed anywhere. Our base is in the North East of England, though members of the team can be found as far and wide as North America and Asia. WHAT’S THE JOB? We are looking for more people who share our objectives in development to help us do more of it. We are a small team at Springfield and as such, we each contribute to our consulting, research, and training activities. As consultant and advisor, you will work with development programmes, government, NGOs, and philanthropic foundations to help them contribute to the objective of sustainable development. This will involve travelling and spending time in a variety of developing countries – about 100 days per year on average. You will find yourself analysing markets and systems: how they work and what the constraints are to achieving better outcomes for poor people. But more than this, you will seek to effect change within these systems. This will involve advising, coaching and mentoring project teams, catering to different abilities in varied contexts. As a researcher, you will help draw out the lessons from development practice, explore and develop new ideas and guidance, and share these with fellow practitioners. You will have the opportunity to work across the continuum of knowledge and information sharing from more formal and empirical research and think pieces, to more pithy and punchy opinion pieces, blogs and presentations. There’s a role and contribution to be made by everyone in the team – and good communication skills are essential. As a trainer, having developed your knowledge and experience through research and consulting, you’ll contribute to our internationally-recognised training programmes. You’ll guide practitioners from development projects, funding agencies and governments through key concepts and frameworks. You’ll help develop, refine and deliver new materials which emerge from your experience and thinking across your work with Springfield. In practical terms candidates will be UK-based, ideally in the North East of England, to contribute to learning and collaboration within our small and friendly team environment. Flexible working arrangements will be considered for the right candidates. You will enjoy a competitive salary, above average annual leave entitlement, and access in collaboration between Springfield and Swisscontact to a fascinating, diverse and rewarding international development career. If this is you then please send a CV and covering letter to recruitmentspringfieldcentre.com . The deadline for applications is 24 th April 2020 but early application is encouraged. The candidate will be expected to be in position before September. Please confirm in your application: Your right to live and work in the UK Your willingness to travel for approximately 100 days/nights per year ·Your fluency in spoken and written English. Applications which do not confirm these criteria have been met will not be assessed. Please also indicate where you saw the advert for this position. N.B. Springfield continues to welcome CVs from consultants interested in short-term opportunities, who should submit CVs separately to rburnsspringfieldcentre.com .