Grameen Technology Center ICT Social Enterprise Incubator

Position:                  Indonesia – Social Enterprise Development Manager

Job Type:                 18 months contract (with acceptable performance and renewed funding)

About Grameen Foundation’s ICT Social Enterprise Incubator (SEI) in Indonesia

Grameen Foundation’s Social Enterprise Incubator in Indonesia comprises:

·         A Research and Development Applications Laboratory (AppLab) which prototypes, develops and pilots mobile information services that can be delivered over simple mobile devices to aid in the fight against poverty.

·         A technical assistance program that incubates and launches Social Enterprises that bring the applications developed by the R&D AppLab to scale across Indonesia.

 The SEI is working with its first social enterprise launched, RUMA, to recruit, train and enable poor, high-potential entrepreneurs-to-be to become Village Phone Operators, who launch and run sustainable businesses serving the poor in Indonesia.  These Operators provide a testing ground and distribution channel for delivering mobile information and content to members of their communities.  Our efforts in Indonesia build on related efforts in Uganda, and will serve as a platform for further replication and scaling worldwide.

The SEI is an initiative of the Grameen Technology Center (GTC), part of Grameen Foundation.  The GTC focuses on technology and encompassing ecosystems that make microfinance operations more efficient, creates income-generating opportunities for the poor and provides poor communities access to valuable information and local resources.  Our efforts support the Grameen Foundation’s mission to empower the world’s poorest people to lift themselves out of poverty.  Please visit www.grameenfoundation.org and www.applab.org for additional information.

Job Description

The Social Enterprise Development Manager is directly responsible for incubation, launch and growth of partner Social Enterprises, including the provision of strategic guidance, technical assistance, training, product development guidance, marketing, business plan development, funding and financing.   The Social Enterprise Development Manager  will be a part of the senior management team of Grameen Foundation’s Social Enterprise Incubator in Indonesia and will be responsible for growth and replication of the Social Enterprise model, based upon the RUMA template, to other countries.

The Social Enterprise Development Manager will provide strategic and operational leadership by working closely with a range of partners (social enterprises, technology partners, mobile operators, government ministries, NGOs, etc), managing local resources, testing business cases, guiding research and social performance management, tracking and reporting results and guiding overall strategy.  In this high-profile position you will shape Grameen Foundation’s SEI evolution, and create a regional network of successful social enterprises delivering ICT products and services to the poor.

Specific Responsibilities Include:

Social Enterprise Incubation

·         Guiding enterprises through the challenges of start-up

·         Mentoring the management team on strategy, operations, finance, technology integration

·         Identifying areas for capacity building in the management team and delivering the necessary training or coordinating the provision of training and support through third party consultants or volunteers

·         Developing business plans for social enterprises in partnership with the management team of these organizations – ownership of this process and the result must be retained by the management team of  the social enterprise

·         Developing business models, marketing strategies, distribution channel ecosystems, supplier and vendor relationships for new ICT products and services.

·         Facilitating and stewarding introductions between the social enterprise management team and financiers

·         Selecting social entrepreneurs for geographic expansion of the model

• Serve as local link with partners based outside of Indonesia

Contributing to the Development of Grameen Foundation’s Social Enterprise Incubator strategy

• Gain deep understanding of complementary initiatives, global trends in application usage and learning from related experiences and incorporate into implementation strategy
• Develop recommendations for short-, mid- and long-term strategy and update regularly based on learning

Project Management Excellence

• Prepare ambitious but achievable detailed project plans covering the incubation of the social enterprises

• Actively manage the incubation process – problem-solve and remove barriers as they arise, hold team to goals, milestones, schedule and budget
• Provide technical subject matter expertise and work closely with partners to ensure effective technical implementation
• Develop creative, efficient and effective training programs with the potential to reach  Village Phone Operators or other trusted intermediaries (e.g., midwives, agriculture extension workers, etc.) in multiple geographies

Track and report results

• Establish transparent and easily accessible reporting framework to measure and communicate progress on a real-time basis (including budget)
• Prepare timely and comprehensive analyses of pilots, suggest approaches to strengthen partners,  applications/business models and draw conclusions about scaling potential & approach
• Prepare summary updates and reports as needed

Manage local resources and vendors/suppliers

• Hire/manage local team in all aspects of work, including consultants and volunteers
• Prepare RFPs and contracts for vendors/suppliers and evaluate responses (as necessary)
• Manage local vendors/suppliers (e.g., outsourced development, market research consultants)

Guide research

• Work closely with local researcher(s) as required to coordinate needs assessment and social performance measurement and research
• Drive local efforts to build needs assessment findings into iterative process of developing and testing new applications
• Disseminate findings

Ideal Candidate

Strong Entrepreneurial Spirit

• Experienced as an entrepreneur with start-up credentials
• An ability to think strategically and act tactically.  Ideal candidate would have started and run own company, or worked in a leadership role in a fast-paced entrepreneurial environment

Outstanding project management skills

• Experienced and savvy project manager with a proven track record of achievement under a range of challenging situations (ideally in multiple countries)
• Demonstrated experience in managing complex projects (strategic, operational and tactical) – with proven ability to work effectively with diverse partners

Strong business leadership abilities

• Strong, innovative and creative problem solver and strategic thinker;
• Excellent analytical, interpersonal, leadership, and communication skills
• Comfort with unstructured problems and ability to manage complexities under pressure
• Ability to promote knowledge transfer through strong mentoring and team building skills

Enthusiasm and passion for our work in Indonesia

• Enthusiasm for learning from different cultures – eager to build cultural realities into products and project plans
• Equally comfortable presenting to a room of business executives and discussing needs with villagers sitting on the dirt floor of a rural home
• Passionate about the work of Grameen Foundation & role of technology in poverty alleviation

Compensation

• Competitive salary
• Opportunity to serve as a high-profile leader in the Indonesian business, government and NGO community,  combining innovation, entrepreneurial problem solving, project management and stakeholder management to deliver deep and lasting social impact in Indonesia and beyond