Director of Advocacy, Partnerships and Member Engagement

INTRODUCTION TO THE ROLE

Girls Not Brides is the only global organisation uniquely focused on creating and sustaining a worldwide movement to end child marriage and ensuring that this movement leads to tangible change for girls at risk or affected by the practice. We are a network of over 1,600 civil society organisations in over 100 countries working in partnership to end child marriage.

Our vision is a world without child marriage where girls and women enjoy equal status with boys and men and are able to achieve their full potential in all aspects of their lives. This invovles challenging deeply embedded social norms that harm the lives of girls, women and their communities*.*

We are seeking a visionary, optimistic, inclusive leader who believes in the power of strategic advocacy at multiple levels, whilst joining forces through partnerships, to advance gender equality and bring an end to child marriage. The Director of Advocacy, Partnerships and Member Engagementwill be a member of Senior Leadership Team, and will lead Girls Not Brides’ advocacy work as well as its partnerships and member engagement, in the secretariat’s and member organisations’ collective efforts to end CEFMU.

They use their leadership skills and extensive experience at the global and local levels to support the organisation’s strategic objectives: movement building, influencing and learning. They work as part of a globally-dispersed and diverse team, and closely with members, National Partnerships and coalitions to empower others, open spaces for voices to be raised, and drive transformational change.

Job location Dakar, Nairobi, or New Delhi.

Accountable to CEO

Salary range The salary is competitive and in line with local market salary ranges in the location in which the role will be based.

ContractThis is a 3-year fixed term contract with the potential to renew. The successful candidate must have the r ight to work in their chosen location.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE ROLE

Strategic Leadership

As member of SLT, and in close collaboration with the CEO, the Director of Advocacy, Partnerships and Member Engagement will:

• Contribute to broad organisational leadership, strategic direction and development to inform broader organisational decision making, policy and processes.
• Lead the communication with the CEO, Board and other key stakeholders around advocacy, partnership and member engagement, and support the CEO in reporting to the Board of Trustees on matters pertaining to these areas.
• Lead the Advocacy, Partnership and Member Engagement teams.
• Support the CEO in preparing reports and other key documents to communicate effectively internally and externally about Girls Not Brides’ success and impact across advocacy, partnerships and member engagement.
• Assume responsibility for planning and monitoring the Advocacy, Partnerships and Member Engagement directorate’s budget and also contribute to wider organisational budget discussions, pipeline reviews, and fundraising targets.
• Oversee the implementation of the organisation’s advocacy and regional strategies (Africa, Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean), ensuring strong synergies and coherence between the different strategies.
• Monitor and mitigate risks related to the implementation of relevant organisational strategies.

Impactful Advocacy

• Oversee the implementation of Girls Not Brides’ 2023-2025 global advocacy strategy and support the global advocacy team in successfully translating the strategy into impactful annual workplans.
• Connect the synergies between the regional teams’ advocacy strategies and Girls Not Brides’ global advocacy strategy for 2023-2025 to ensure that the latter is informed by the needs and priorities at regional and national levels.
• Oversee the advocacy commitments made at the national and regional level and work closely with regional teams, members and national partnerships to advocate for strategic change at global levels.
• Oversee the production and dissemination of policy and advocacy content including fact sheets, policy briefs, updates, and position statements.
• Oversee and facilitate direct and indirect engagements with policymakers and decision makers at the local, national, regional and global level, as well as those who influence and advise, to take action to end child marriage.
• Represent Girls Not Brides externally in global, regional and national forums, if and as required alongside colleagues.
• Alongside the Director of Development, Communications and Outreach, explore how the partnerships with the Girls First Fund and VOW: To End Child Marriage can contribute to impactful advocacy at the global, regional and national levels.
• Lead Girls Not Brides’ stakeholder engagement and sector integration agenda strengthened the movement collaborating with UN organisations, sector leaders and thematic international organisations to maintain strong existing partnerships.

Partnership Development

• Lead development and oversee implementation of a cohesive National and State Partnerships capacity development strategy.
• Oversee the development of Girls Not Brides’ approach to National Partnerships and coalitions development, in close collaboration with regional teams and partnership teams.
• Oversee and develop a strong membership engagement strategy, which is implemented in countries with no National Partnerships or Coalitions to enhance the global reach of the movement.
• Oversee the development, refinement and implementation of a partnership development framework which defines how we manage membership growth, capacity development and broader partnership development.
• Oversee the cultivation of Girls Not Brides’ membership base, with particular attention to increasing engagement of broader sectors such as education, HIV, human rights, economic justice, climate change and humanitarian settings, as well as leading actors on SRHR.
• Define parameters for establishing new Partnerships in ‘emerging countries' where Girls Not Brides has had a limited membership to-date.
• Ensure a systematic methodology for capturing strategic Partnership Impact with the Partnership Team and the Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Team.

Membership Engagement

• Oversee and lead the globally dispersed Girls Not Brides regional teams to enhance and ensure the effective and coherent implementation of their respective regional strategies for Partnership development, member engagement and advocacy to accelerate change to end CEFMU at regional and national levels.
• Lead on identifying best practices in Partnership development member engagement for Girls Not Brides, and ensure their effective implementation through the respective regional teams’ strategies with the Learning and Impact teams.
• Ensure that regional teams, National Partnerships and members develop and use advocacy opportunities, to monitor, analyse, influence and respond to relevant legislative and policy opportunities.
• Provide strategic leadership on youth advocates and advisers in the implementation of regional teams’ advocacy, influencing and communications work.

Wider organisational responsibilities

• Commit to the mission and vision of Girls Not Brides, putting these at the forefront of all planning, work and actions.
• Uphold the core values of Girls Not Brides in all areas of work and interactions with colleagues, members, partners and other stakeholders.
• Line manage roles and consultants as necessary, delegating responsibilities and tasks as appropriate.
• Comply with Girls Not Brides policies and processes, with particular note for safeguarding, diversity and inclusion, the code of conduct and data protection.
• Prepare and deliver reports for the Senior Leadership Team and Board of Trustees, as necessary.
• Ensure that internal databases and monitoring information are kept fully up-to-date.
• Commit to ongoing personal development and learning.
• Fulfil any other reasonable requests for the advancement of Girls Not Brides.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Essential experience

• Significant professional experience in a comparable role at a senior level in the not-for-profit sector, international/intergovernmental organisation or social enterprise.
• Degree-level qualification in a relevant area such as development studies, international relations, communications, human rights or gender issues or proven experience in a related field plus extensive relevant professional training.
• Extensive and proven experience of working with international NGO partnerships and coalitions anchored in grassroots level work.
• A proven track record of successfully developing and implementing an advocacy, partnerships or movement building strategy in an international development, human rights or gender equality setting.
• Broad experience in movement building, global, regional and/or national policy and advocacy work, leveraging global commitments to accelerate tangible change at national levels.
• Experience of being a spokesperson in external facing forums, and of relationship building with stakeholders such as policy makers, government ministries, NGOs, grassroots groups, and advocates for social change.
• Experience of successfully managing teams, including geographically dispersed staff.

Essential skills and knowledge

• Advanced and demonstrable understanding of global, regional and national policy and advocacy tactics, and how to accelerate change through strategic advocacy and influencing work.
• Demonstrated ability and understanding of how to deliver effective movement building and member engagement strategies on global social issues that align with and further an organisation’s strategic goals.
• Excellent strategic thinking and practical planning ability.
• Strong written and oral communication skills, including the ability to work with a diverse range of actors at different levels and from different cultural contexts.
• Confident networker and influencer with the ability to represent Girls Not Brides at high-level events.
• A strong understanding and ability to contribute to the advancement of Diversity, Equality and Inclusion (DEI) at organisational and partnership levels.

Essential values and attributes

• Strong commitment to the mission and values of Girls Not Brides and our vision in relation to addressing child marriage and the empowerment of girls and women.
• Proactive and able to confidently take initiative and make appropriate decisions.
• Willingness to work flexibly and regularly travel internationally, as necessary.

Desirable

• Experience managing or supporting organisational change processes.
• Advanced knowledge of French and/or Spanish is highly desirable.
• Direct experience of working on child marriage or closely related issues.

How to apply

Girls Not Brides is an equal opportunities employer. We embrace diversity, equal opportunity and inclusion in a serious way. We are committed to building a staff body that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. The more inclusive we are, the better our work will be.

To apply, please submit a CV and a covering letter, here, using the below address detailing how you fulfil the role description and personal specification.The deadline for applications is 20 August 2023 at 23.59 (BST).