Business Development & Communications Manager

Summary

Laterite is looking for a hands-on Business Development and Communications Manager to coordinate our BDC Team and drive a new strategy to diversify our portfolio of work.

About Laterite

Laterite is a data, research, and analytics firm specializing in complex development challenges. We work with universities, global think tanks, international NGOs, multilateral donor organizations, and government ministries and agencies. Our clients include, for example, the World Bank, USAID, TechnoServe, the Mastercard Foundation, and more.

We currently have offices in the Netherlands, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Sierra Leone and Peru. The team brings together more than 90 full-time local and international staff, as well as 2,000+ enumerators across all countries. We are proud to be a culturally diverse organization, and we welcome applications from groups currently underrepresented in our team.

We work in socio-economic development research projects. We believe that impact is a long-term endeavor that requires being embedded in the local context. Delivering high-quality research requires building local teams and data collection systems, knowing the country, and establishing close working relationships.

One of Laterite's key strategic goals is to create a collaborative and rewarding working environment for our staff, where every team member feels engaged, represented, and heard. Laterite is committed to creating opportunities for learning and career development within the team and across our offices.

Laterite is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunities employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.

About the team:

Our new colleague will join the Business Development and Communications (BDC) team in our Amsterdam office. The Amsterdam office consists of 14 full-time team members, including our BDC team of 3 people. The BDC team leads and supports Laterite's business development processes including scoping for new opportunities, proposal development and support for local outreach activities led by the different offices. The team is also responsible for developing and implementing Laterite's communications strategy, and for maintaining and updating the knowledge base.

What you will do:

Leadership & strategy:

• Develop and implement business development and communications strategies that align with organizational goals and build on each other
• Lead on all BDC tasks, coordinate day-to-day BDC activities, and mentor the BDC Analysts & Associates

Business development:

• Bring new ideas and strategies to diversify Laterite's portfolio of work and expand our reach to potential clients (e.g. philanthropic foundations, NGOs, multilaterals)
• Coordinate outreach and business development activities at the country level in partnership with country offices
• Manage Laterite's proposal pipeline from strategy to delivery, and work with the Research Team to prepare strong bids and grant applications

Communications:

• Oversee and enhance Laterite's website and social media presence to amplify the organization's voice and impact
• Work with the wider Laterite team to source and develop new content to showcase Laterite's work and impact (e.g., blogs, publications)
• Improve how Laterite communicates its findings by exploring and implementing interactive and engaging methods of presenting data

Requirements

What you will bring:

Our ideal candidate is a natural communicator and relationship builder, who combines a proven track record of project acquisition with an established network in the development sector. They have previous experience in a similar role, for example at a research firm, multilateral or implementing organization. They are organized, self-motivated, with excellent attention to detail and a drive to get things done in a collaborative environment.

Our future colleague has:

• At least a Bachelor's degree in a relevant field.
• 5+ years of relevant experience working in a similar setting.
• Excellent oral and written communications in English.
• Experience in leading and mentoring delivery teams.
• Experience with managing proposal pipelines according to funder and donor procurement rules (including private funders as well as multilaterals).
• Experience with strategic communications activities geared towards business development and outreach. Experience with writing blogs, and creating engaging content is welcome.
• Excellent organizational and interpersonal skills, self-motivation and drive to flourish in a fast-paced environment, where timelines can often be unpredictable.

In addition, we are looking for:

• A strong understanding of, and/or interest in, social and economic research in development contexts, particularly in the areas of agriculture, education, public health, livelihoods, and gender.

Benefits

What's in it for you?

We offer an initial one-year contract, with a view to extending this upon satisfactory performance.

We offer a flexible working environment, including the choice to work from home a couple of days per week and the possibility of working from a remote location of your choice for up to 6 weeks per year. We are also committed to supporting learning and development of our team members, providing an annual learning budget of up to $1,000 per person and 10 days of time off for professional learning each year. Our office is in the heart of Amsterdam, about fifteen minutes' walk from Amsterdam Centraal Station.

The salary range for this role will start at EUR 74,042 annual gross, commensurate with experience. We are advertising a full-time role at 40 hours per week, but we are open to negotiating a 32-hour part-time contract (0.8 FTE) for interested candidates. In the case of a 32-hour contract, the salary will be paid pro rata. Salaries are pegged against Laterite's pay matrix, and grades are reviewed every 12 months.