Terms of Reference
As a Southern-led network, PEP’s mission centers on local capacity building and evidence-based policy. This is a critical turning point as shifting geopolitics and donor dependency threaten its sustainability. By transitioning into a global knowledge broker, PEP will expand beyond Sub-Saharan Africa into Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean and broaden its thematic scope. This evolution ensures the Global South leads the development agenda, transforming PEP from a specialized researcher into a diversified, resilient, and influential global partner.
We invite you to join our dynamic team to make an impact in this important and strategic direction.
Objectives
PEP is seeking an exceptional Director of Strategy and Resource Mobilisation to lead the organisation’s strategic efforts to identify, engage, and secure financial and non-financial resources (bilateral, multilateral, philanthropic, private) and build lasting partnerships, ensuring alignment with the organisation’s mission.
PEP is a leading global network generating research and policy training to empower decision-making in developing countries.
The Director of Strategy and Resource Mobilisation will play a pivotal role in expanding the organisation’s funding base, leveraging on their strong established network of global donors and alliances to deepen its impact across Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Asia.
Reporting and Management
- Reporting: This position reports directly to Executive Director
- Seniority: The Director of Strategy and Resource Mobilisation is a senior position within PEP.
- Team oversight: This position will build and oversee a team over time.
Key Functions and Responsibilities
1. Strategy & Leadership
- Develop and implement a comprehensive Resource Mobilisation Strategy, aligned with the organisation’s goals and values.
- Spearhead the organisation’s regional outreach in underrepresented geographies, notably Asia, Latin America, and MENA, by identifying local institutions, researchers, prospective donors, and strategic partners.
- Lead the design and implementation of tailored regional engagement plans, including regional mini-events, policy dialogues, and visibility campaigns; in close collaboration with the organisation’s communications and events teams.
- Represent the organisation in regional platforms, think tank networks, and donor meetings, being active and visible among different stakeholders upon careful identification of the target groups to build awareness and long-lasting partnerships.
- Support the development of regionalised content (e.g., blogs, webinars, briefings) in collaboration with the technical/communication teams and promote local participation in the organisation’s programs.
- Monitor donor landscapes, identifying trends, priorities, and new funding mechanisms (e.g., climate, digitalization, South-South cooperation).
- Set annual fundraising targets and report progress to the Executive Director and the Board on a quarterly basis.
2. Donor Engagement & Proposal Development
- Support the Executive Director build and sustain relationships with traditional and non-traditional donors: bilateral and multilateral agencies, foundations, corporate and private sector.
- Lead the drafting and pitching of high-quality concept notes, proposals, and budgets in collaboration with technical teams.
- Navigate complex donor processes, agreements, and compliance protocols.
- Build and maintain a proposal pipeline tracker that tracks the chain of events from identification of calls for proposal to conversion.
3. Partnership Cultivation & Management
- Support the Executive Director in identifying, developing, and nurturing strategic alliances with research institutions, think tanks, consultancies, networks, and NGOs in preparation for fundraising opportunities.
- Support the Executive Director in forging partnerships that contribute technical, in-kind, or programmatic value beyond financial support.
- Support the Executive Director in the negotiation of MOUs and agreements, anchoring finalization with the finance/legal team. Oversee partner engagement and reporting.
4. Collaboration & Internal Coordination
- Work closely with other organisation programme directors and researchers to design proposals that capture the organisation’s comparative strengths.
- Train and mentor staff on donor relations, proposal writing, and relationship management.
- Collaborate with the organisation’s communications team to develop materials (brochures, funder briefs, case studies, impact stories).
5. Monitoring, Reporting & Stewardship
- Oversee the maintenance of a donor database with tracking of contacts, proposals, budgets, and expected outcomes.
- Produce regular reports on resource mobilisation progress, pipeline forecasts, and funding gaps.
- Oversee donor stewardship: schedule briefings, oversee reporting deliverables, coordinate financial reconciliation and evaluation reports.
What Success Looks Like in the First 18–24 Months
A detailed plan and targets will be developed during the first months of the appointments but typically success in this role would include:
- Securing 2 to 3 new medium to large grants (USD1.5m to USD3m each) and another 2 to 3 small grants (USD0.5m to USD1.45m each) per year. The successful candidate will be able to steer PEP towards a USD5m to USD6m a year organisation.
- Increasing the diversity of the organisation’s funding base (e.g., no single donor above 25%; greater share of philanthropic/private funding, etc.).
- Establishing regular engagement platforms with funders in at least two of the organisation’s priority regions (e.g., Asia, Latin America, MENA).
- Embedding basic resource mobilisation processes and skills across the organisation.
Required Competencies
1. Experience & Knowledge
- Significant experience (typically 8–10 years) in senior Resource Mobilisation (RM) roles in the international development/non-profit sector, with a proven fundraising track record, and a focus on demonstrable achievements (e.g., securing and stewarding multi-year funding, building and managing a pipeline).
- Familiarity with major funders (bilateral, multilateral, philanthropic, private, such as the EU, World Bank, Gates Foundation, etc.).
- Understanding of global economic policy and development research aligned with the organisation’s mission.
- Strong knowledge of the development policy landscape and institutional ecosystems in one or more regions outside Africa.
- Proven track record in stakeholder engagement, partnership building, and institutional outreach, ideally in research or development cooperation.
- Excellent communication and representation skills, including cross-cultural fluency and experience in public speaking or policy engagement.
- Ability to work independently and strategically, with strong organizational and coordination skills.
2. Skills
- Exceptional proposal-writing, budget design, and donor communication.
- Strong negotiation and relationship management.
- Strategic thinking, initiative-taking, and decision-making in complex contexts.
3. Leadership & Collaboration
- Proven capacity to lead small technical teams and foster cross-functional collaboration.
- Ability to work independently while fitting into a lean organizational structure.
4. Systems & Compliance
- Proficiency in donor tracking tools.
- Understanding of due diligence, compliance, and reporting obligations of diverse donors.
5. Languages
- Excellent written and spoken English is essential.
- Command of Spanish, French, Arabic, or a regional Asian language, or other widely-spoken languages in partner countries, is a highly desirable asset.
6. Personal Attributes
- High integrity, diplomacy, resilience, and adaptable mindset.
Education
- A Master’s Degree in Economics, Public Policy, International Relations, Business Administration, Strategic Management, or a related field is desirable but not mandatory for candidates with strong commercial/fundraising experience.
Employment conditions
- Location and working pattern: Fully remote. Travel is expected.
- Contract terms: Initial two-year contract subject to a 6-month probationary period.
- Salary and benefits: A competitive package will be negotiated with suitable candidates.
Application Process
To be considered for this position, please submit your letter of motivation, full CV and LinkedIn profile, and complete application through this link no later than 10th February 2026.
Candidates who applied in 2025 need not re-apply.
The recruitment process will follow these stages:
- Shortlisting;
- First-round interviews expected to be held within 3 weeks of the application deadline;
- Second-round interviews, which may include a task such as a short proposal or donor-mapping exercise.
We will provide an indicative timeline to shortlisted candidates. Interviews will be conducted online and at times that work across different time zones.