External Relations Specialist job at Educate!

About the Organization

Youth are the key to a more prosperous future for Africa. By 2035, the continent is poised to contribute more people to the global workforce than the rest of the world combined. Yet, many will struggle to secure dignified employment. It doesn't have to be that way.

Job Description

Educate!, is looking for a Partnerships Specialist to help us move forward new and existing relationships that will enable us to reach our goal of impacting millions of youth annually. As Senior Partnerships Manager, you will serve as a key member of Educate!’s External Relations team, building and maintaining relationships with new and existing partners, and supporting critical project management and compliance with new and existing funding opportunities. While this job will sit on Educate!’s External Relations and Fundraising Team, the role does not require business development or fundraising experience. We are looking for a strong critical thinker and collaborator, with excellent interpersonal and communication skills, who can help manage organizational partnerships and relationships.
Educate!’s work impacts youth across Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Rwanda, and we are currently in an exciting period of growth. The Senior Partnerships Manager will work closely with Educate!’s External Relations team, reporting to Educate!’s Global Director of Growth and Revenue, to develop and implement strategies that generate resources to support the organization’s next phase of growth. The right person for this role will enjoy interacting and collaborating with stakeholders in and outside the organization, managing complex projects, and thinking strategically and creatively within complex situations. You’ll join a motivated, dynamic, and high-performing team committed to personal and professional development and impacting youth.
About Educate!
Africa has the world’s youngest and fastest-growing population. By 2035, the continent is poised to contribute more people to the global workforce each year than the rest of the world combined.
At Educate! we're obsessed with impact. We leverage iterative learning to build highly scalable youth employment solutions aimed at unlocking the potential of the world’s youngest continent.
Educate! prepares youth in Africa learn, earn and thrive in today’s economy by:
1) introducing an employment-focused school subject into secondary, and
2) delivering livelihood bootcamps for out-of-school youth, with a focus on marginalized rural girls and young women.
To date, more than 390,000 youth have been meaningfully impacted across Uganda, Rwanda, and Kenya, and along the way, Educate! has become the largest youth employment and skills provider in East Africa.
Educate! is a team of over 250 largely African staff and 300 volunteer youth mentors. We prioritize building an engaging, fulfilling and growth oriented work environment. 50% of our top 30 leaders have been with us for over 5 years, 10+ alumni have started their own organizations and 6 current or former team members were Acumen Fund East Africa fellows.
We have been backed by top foundations such as Imaginable Futures, Big Bang Philanthropy, #startsmall, Generation Unlimited, CIFF and Echidna Giving. Educate! won a 2018 Klaus J. Jacobs Prize and a 2015 WISE Award, and has been highlighted by the World Bank’s S4YE's Impact Portfolio, an Al Jazeera documentary, BBC, The Brookings Institution as one of 14 case studies on scaling education, and the Gates Foundation as a Goalkeepers Accelerator. In 2022, we received a catalytic investment from philanthropist Mackenzie Scott to scale our systems change work.
Educate!'s long-term vision is to design solutions that measurably impact millions of youth across Africa each year. By 2025, we aim to scale our annual reach by 4x and measurably impact over 400,000 new youth

Duties and Responsibilities

Build a deep understanding of Educate!’s sector and ecosystem, especially key players and stakeholders within the space.
Manage key relationships with new and existing partners, and provide support on key relationships owned by the CEO and Educate!’s leadership team. This includes compiling frequent and strategic communications to partners, supporting leadership to prepare for meetings and speaking engagements, and ensuring prompt follow-up and project management of action items related to Educate!’s fundraising efforts.
Engage in lead generation and prospect research, including supporting Educate!’s engagement in regional and global conferences.
Continuously work to develop and build upon Educate!’s existing fundraising and relationship management systems, processes, and procedures to increase efficiency and move Educate! towards its revenue goals.
Identify new funding opportunities through calls for proposals and building a network of contacts at key funders.
Serve as a liaison between Educate!’s teams and partners to ensure compliance
Operate as a critical liaison between Educate!’s internal teams and external stakeholders and partners. Build relationships with other Educate! teams and become an internal "expert" on specific programs, solutions, or aspects of Educate!'s work.
Project manage complex due diligence processes with Educate! partners, and build and manage systems and processes to ensure compliance with complex grant requirements and conditions.
Collaborate closely with Educate!’s internal teams to understand the requirements and expectations of funders, and coordinate the implementation of grant agreements
Monitor and track progress against grant agreement milestones and deliverables.

Lead and support the team in building new (and streamlining existing) systems and processes to make grant compliance, grant reporting, and information sourcing.
Develop and manage written materials to communicate Educate!'s strategy and impact externally with key stakeholders
Draft, edit, and project manage high-quality communications, collaborating with other team members primarily as an editor.
Support the development of high-quality grant proposals that are customized to address the key focus areas and requirements of prospective and current donors.
Draft, edit, and peer review a large number of internal and external communications as well as work to ensure consistent messaging and branding within the fundraising function as well as across Educate!’s teams.
Work closely with in-country teams to develop and maintain effective communication plans for gathering information needed for reporting and donor materials.

Qualification, Experiences and Competencies

A minimum of 4-8 years total work experience, with increasing responsibility and independence demonstrated over time.
A self-starter, able to prioritize and manage multiple assignments and competing projects, take initiative, and work independently to a deadline.
Demonstrated history of managing multiple stakeholders and experience managing large, complex projects from inception to implementation and completion.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills; experience editing and preparing engaging and nuanced content for both internal and external stakeholders.

An understanding of how to adapt and tailor communications, both written and verbal, for a variety of different audiences and purposes.
Excellent EQ, judgment, and interpersonal skills, as well as comfort collaborating on a wide variety of tasks and projects across teams and external stakeholders and with individuals at all levels—from junior employees to C-Suite executives.
Excellent time management, organization, and prioritization skills—with strong verbal communication skills required for project management/team coordination, and social judgment for cultivating new and existing relationships across teams and with organizational partners.
High degree of proficiency working in a fast-paced, flexible, goal-oriented environment, with the highest level of personal and professional integrity.
Comfortable working in a highly collaborative but dispersed team environment, with teammates working across time zones.
Willingness to travel frequently to Educate! offices regionally in East Africa as well as to global and regional events.
Full proficiency in spoken and written English
This role is open to candidates in East Africa only.