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Vacancy Announcement

ETHIOPIAN AGRICULTURAL TRANSFORMATION AGENCY

Position: Director, Analytics

Term of Employment: One year with possibility of extension

Duty Station(s): Addis Ababa

Required Number: One

Salary & Benefits: Competitive

Application Deadline: February 03, 2020

BACKGROUND:

The Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency (ATA) is a strategy and delivery-oriented government agency created to help accelerate the growth and transformation of the country’s agriculture sector. The ATA envisions that, by 2025, smallholder farmers are commercialized with greater incomes, inclusiveness, resilience and sustainability, contributing to Ethiopia’s achievement of middle-income country status.

The agency focuses on two primary national approaches to catalyze agricultural transformation. First, we support the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Resources (MoA), its affiliate institutions, and other partners to identify and address systemic bottlenecks within an Agricultural Transformation Agenda. Second, we support Regional Governments to accelerate development of high-priority commodity value chains in clearly defined geographic clusters, through the Agricultural Commercialization Clusters (ACC) Initiative.

Our major activities include conducting strategic and analytical studies, providing technical implementation support, coordinating platforms to better integrate partners and projects, and designing and directly leading a number of implementation projects. Our headquarters are in Addis Ababa, and we have regional offices in Amhara, Oromia, SNNP, and Tigray regional offices, allowing us to work closely with a wide range of public, private and development sector partners across the country.

Our Culture

We have an exceptional team of highly competent employees with a proven track record of success in managing complex activities and achieving transformational results. Our culture is one where talented, dedicated and adaptable individuals are committed to doing their best and exhibit great team work to achieve excellent results.

At ATA, we provide an exceptional platform for people who want to achieve their highest potential and make a meaningful contribution in changing the country’s agricultural sector. We offer rewarding work in a young, fast-paced growing organization with passionate, committed, motivated colleagues and excellent career development and training. We recognize our most valuable assets are our staff and are committed to providing our employees with the tools, training and mentorships necessary to achieve their career goals.

POSITION SUMMARY:

The Director of the Analytics Team is responsible for ensuring the continued growth, development and effective functioning of the team as a provider of best-in-class strategic advisory and consulting services to senior internal and external clients. He or she oversees planning and execution of a diverse portfolio of strategic and analytically focused cases, relationship-building and partnership with senior internal and external clients and stakeholders, and rapid team and staff development.

The role also involves further building out and refining of the team’s operating model, management structure, and support systems and processes, including leading the dedicated Data Management & GIS unit within the team. Significant experience leading and delivering high-impact, challenging engagement for senior clients across government, private-sector, and development organizations, and building and managing high-performance teams, are therefore important prerequisites for this role. Specific experience in agribusiness and industrial development initiatives in developing countries and Africa in particular is desirable, as is a strong passion for transforming agriculture and improving the lives of smallholder farmers.

The terms of employment for this position may be done and governed by World Food Programme (WFP) and managed in accordance with the internal framework of the WFP, which provides employment contracting and related services to the ATA.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES:

· Participate and lead discussions at ATA-wide meetings and off-sites, Team and Management meetings.

· Engage with external partners and stakeholders, to socialize the working modalities of the Analytics Team and secure buy-in from clients, partners and stakeholders.

· Oversee planning and execution of diverse, strategic and analytically-focused high impact cases, including effective relationship building and partnership with internal and external clients

· Develop and manage overall teamwork plans based on case planning and prioritization with ATA senior management, and ensure the timeliness, analytical rigor, practicality and quality of outputs

· Lead the dedicated Data & GIS Unit, including roll out and ongoing support of data management, visualization and GIS technology solutions, capacity building and high-quality service provision to other teams at ATA.

· Provide day-to-day guidance, coaching, feedback and quality control support to Principals overseeing multiple client engagement, Data & GIS Manager, and other direct reports.

· Lead engagement and relationship management with more senior stakeholders, and support Principals and case teams in internal and external steering committees and workshops.

· Lead the ATA's efforts to provide analytical capacity-building internally and to key partners

· Ensure rapid staff development and progress towards fully local staffing within three to four years

· Continuously enhance team and project management, budgeting and financial management, recruiting, staffing, team health, team building, performance management, training and professional development, knowledge management, and other critical systems, processes and initiatives as needed to ensure the effective and efficient functioning of the team.

· Work closely with and provide strategic advisory and thought partnership to the Senior Director and other Directors of the Implementation Support vertical on diverse topics.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

· Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant field from a reputable university required; MBA, MPA or master’s degree in a relevant field from a reputable university preferred.

· At least 12 years of experience for bachelor’s and 10 years for Master’s on International experience in a top-tier global strategy consulting firm and other organizations in strategy and analysis focused roles.

· At least a year of experience required at Principal level or equivalent, leading, structuring and managing cases in a range of client or senior management engagements on diverse industry and functional topics, with experience managing across multiple cases and client relationships at the same time.

· Experience managing policy analysis cases and/or data management, visualization and GIS solutions and services preferred.

· Strong understanding of development sector issues, and ability to effectively liaise with senior decision-makers across government, non-governmental and private sector organizations.

· Exceptional ability to communicate clearly and effectively in a complex, cross-cultural environment (fluency in English is essential).

· Highly collaborative leadership style and demonstrated success in leading, managing and developing high-performance teams.

· Strong set of personal values including integrity, honesty and desire to be of service.