OED Facilitator - Socodevi

SOCODEVI contributes to improving the living conditions of communities by supporting the creation and strengthening of sustainable and inclusive cooperative or mutual companies.

Job Description

Project Description

SOCODEVI contributes to improving the living conditions of communities by supporting the creation and strengthening of sustainable and inclusive cooperatives or mutual companies.

The TogetHER Project aims to empower women and young adults (18-30 years old) in rural cocoa-producing communities in the Ashanti and Western North regions of Ghana. Training and support will encourage collective savings, entrepreneurship, and financial inclusion, while contributing to the sustainable resilience of the cocoa sector and the equal distribution of economic benefits and opportunities.

This project aims to reduce gender gaps in the cocoa sector and encouraging resource flows at the community level, so that cocoa cooperatives can become more inclusive, foster women and youth equal and effective participation and truly sustain their empowerment. Through this project, SOCODEVI is leading the way in transforming existing cooperatives to be more inclusive and resilient in collaboration with all levels of government of Ghana.

Job Summary

The Organization and Enterprise Development Facilitator is responsible for building the capacity of supported cooperative enterprises, VSLAs and small business enterprises coordinating activities with them and participating in the evaluation of activities to promote organizational development. He/She works closely with other project advisors and field officers to develop growth and service development strategies that meet the needs of partners and project beneficiaries.

Reporting to the Regional Coordinator & OED Specialist and working closely with the SOCODEVI Organizational Development Department in Canada, the Organizational and Enterprise Development Facilitator is responsible for:

Capacity building

• Support and advise the Board of Directors and coop members in collaboration with the partners in the management and governance of their business;  
• Plan, organize and assist the delivery of training workshops on Coop Skills and/or other training topics, implement management tools and introduce innovations;
• Carry out diagnoses of partner cooperative enterprises following SOCODEVI's intervention methodology, the PerformCoop Approach;
• Develop, implement and monitor capacity building plans in a participatory manner;
• Assist the partners in training workshops on the Coop Skills material and/or other training topics, implement management tools and introduce innovations in accordance with mutual commitments signed;
• Provide advisory support on all aspects of cooperative business development related to the training offered, management tools implemented and innovations introduced to ensure skills consolidation and ownership;
• Collect data periodically from partners in order to enter them in the PerformCoop Platform and analyze them;
• Assist and provide advisory support to VSLAs and small business organizations related to training offered to develop or strengthen their business ideas and income generating activities.

Monitoring and evaluation of organizational learning

• Track the beneficiary coops’ performance on a monthly basis and complete PerformCoop software data;
• Regularly analyze financial data and/or market developments and present to the Project Director, the Principal Coordinator, the Regional Coordinator, the field Specialists, and the DO Specialist at head office the main findings leading to informed decision-making;
• Achieve annual performance assessment with the project partners concerning the Coop Board and to set with them the objectives to be achieved for the next year;
• Follow-up with the beneficiaries concerning the development of their business ideas and income generating activities.

Systematization of good practices

• Contribute to the documentation of learning and innovations developed by SOCODEVI and its capacity-building partners.

Required Skills or Experience

• Undergraduate university degree in organizational development, business studies or relevant field;
• Minimum of 3 years of relevant experience in Organizational Development, Business Development or in a similar role working with international organizations, NGOs or donor funded projects;
• Proven experience in Organizational Development, Business Development, Entrepreneurship;
• Experience in training is an asset;
• Good knowledge of the cocoa sector and rural areas in Ghana;
• Knowledge of Ghanaian business and cooperatives development legal environment;
• Demonstrated experience in adult training (andragogy) and participatory methodologies in rural context;
• Experience in gender mainstreaming and/or knowledge of gender equality would be an asset;
• Excellent written and verbal interpersonal skills;
• Commitment to teamwork and supporting others;
• Creative and continually develop skills in response to changing work demands;
• Proactive and self-motivated individual with excellent organizational skills;
• Advanced computer skills (Windows, MS Office, Sharepoint);
• Proficient in English

Skills

• Good understanding of collective business management;
• Good understanding of cooperative governance;
• Ability to create and track a task schedule to be performed (seasonality of actions);
• Ability to analyze, synthesize and communicate key issues (to coop, to project coordinators, etc.);
• Ability to design and adapt capacity building programs (training and support) and tools on management and governance;
• Ability to use participatory approach in its animations and advice sessions;
• Ability to work within a team of local and distant colleagues;
• Ability to use Excel to present well documented scenarios.

Location: Sefwi Wiawso