The Global Development Incubator (GDI) partners with social entrepreneurs and subject matter experts to build startups and collaboratives that can address some of the world’s toughest global development challenges. We play a mix of the strategist and implementer role to spin out new organizations over 24–36 months. Throughout each stage of our process, we bring together the right partners and resources across sectors—including corporations, nonprofits, governments, and foundations—to help game-changing ideas scale their impact and prepare them for long-term success. GDI currently retains a mostly remote workforce with major clusters of staff in New York, Washington, DC, Hong Kong, and Nairobi. We anticipate establishing an office in India in 2022.

The Senior Associate role is a unique opportunity to be on the founding team of startups and partnerships focused on social and/or environmental impact. You will work closely with leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs who are addressing some of the world’s biggest problems. The Senior Associate will play a critical role in the development of new initiatives with the greatest potential to address persistent global challenges. Reporting to the Director, the Senior Associate will work across the Strategy & Build team to help design, build, and launch GDI’s initiatives to set them up for long-term success. The Senior Associate role combines both strategy and implementation. As the engine of GDI’s initiatives across focus areas, you will conduct extensive research and analysis to support strategy development; participate in senior-level meetings with experts and partners; manage workplans, workflows, and budgets; and make sure all efforts are implemented for results. Although you will work closely with Strategy & Build Directors as supervisors, the Senior Associate is expected to exercise a high degree of autonomy and initiative and take on significant responsibility. While the role will involve working on multiple initiatives, The Senior Associate will initially work closely with the Director of Climate and Environment to help operationalize the Resilient Water Accelerator (RWA) in key countries such as Bangladesh and Nigeria. The Senior Associate will be based in India but would be expected to engage with partners mainly in South Asia/Africa. 

Note: this role could involve significant external consultations with global stakeholders and will require a work schedule that can periodically accommodate calls slightly earlier or later than usual work hours, despite their time zone. 

Responsibilities

Strategy Development

• Support Strategy & Build Directors and our partners to develop strategies for systems-change. 
• Conduct relevant market/industry/stakeholder research and analysis on evolving trends/best practices to support the strategy development.
• Develop materials that convey the strategy to align stakeholders and mobilize resources for implementation. 

Project Management + Implementation

• Support the translation of strategy blueprint into actionable plans, for example by developing, managing, and directly contributing to work plans and budget management.
• Support founding teams to deliver key components of “Design” and “Build” plans, ranging from early program design and piloting to developing organizational infrastructure.
• Coordinate consultants and/or service providers, including assisting supervisors in preparation, processing, and administration of consultant and technical services contracts/agreements.
• Engage with the finance, operations, and talent teams to address program management issues and involve Country/Global leadership in a timely manner.
• Review the quality of the work completed with the project team on a regular basis to ensure that it meets established standards. Evaluate the outcomes of the program as established during the design phase.
• Track risks, issues, stakeholders, potential funders and report effectively to Management.
• Coordinate support from other GDI teams.
• Travel as needed to support implementation, including internationally.

Communication

• Support the development and delivery of structured communications, especially reports and presentations in coordination with Reporting Director and the communications team
• Draft memos, proposals, and pitch materials for new initiatives.
• Contribute to the development of knowledge products for internal and external audiences.

Donor Engagement

• Support the development of concept notes and other fundraising materials.
• Review and analyze financial expenditure reports against budgets and donor agreements.
• Collect, organize, and prepare program and financial information for donor progress and internal grant management reports, as well as routine queries.

Support to GDI 

• Brief leadership on a weekly basis as to progress, risks, and issues.
• Participate in bi-weekly and quarterly reviews with the GDI leadership team, initiative management team, and advisors.
• Contribute to the refinement of incubation methodologies based on your hands-on experiences.
• Support broader knowledge management and dissemination.

• Undergraduate college degree with 2–5 years of related professional work experience (especially strategy consulting and/or human-centered design). Prior experience of working on climate/sustainability in emerging markets is a plus.
• Demonstrated ability to break down large, complex problems into smaller pieces, develop hypotheses, assess multiple scenarios, structure analyses to test these hypotheses, and generate clear insights and actionable recommendations.
• Ability to conduct independent market/industry research and analysis.
• Outstanding analytical skills with a demonstrated ability to synthesize quantitative and qualitative data across multiple scenarios and surface clear, actionable insights for leadership.
• Prior experience of working with multi-stakeholders including clients/partners /donors and building the trust to exchange information as needed. 
• Collaborative team contributor; excellent listening skills; effective influencer; strong interpersonal skills. Ability to work successfully in multicultural teams across boundaries.
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills; good attention to detail.
• Ability to self-manage work streams and tasks; self-directed and resourceful with high standards for quality output.
• A curious and creative intellect and a style that includes flexibility, levelness, and a sense of humor and humility.

Compensation and Benefits
The salary range for this position is $35,000–45,000 USD. GDI offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes employer contributions to health, dental, and vision insurance plans for employees and dependents.

How to Apply
If you are interested in this position and meet the qualifications above, please submit a single PDF document containing a one-page cover letter and resume when applying.

Global Development Incubator is an equal opportunity employer and we are committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace.