Resource Development and Strategic Partnerships Director

World Vision · Saysattha District

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With 75 years of experience, our focus is on helping the most vulnerable children overcome poverty and experience fullness of life. We help children of all backgrounds, even in the most dangerous places, inspired by our Christian faith.

Come join our 31,000+ staff working in nearly 100 countries and share the joy of transforming vulnerable children’s life stories!

Key Responsibilities:

Resource Development and Strategic Partnerships Director 

National Office, Vientiane Capital

World Vision is a global community of millions, working together for one purpose: to change the lives of vulnerable children.

Our vision for every child, life in all its fullness.

Are you a motivated professional who wants to make a difference in Lao PDR?

The Director for Resource Development and Strategic Partnerships is the growth engine for World Vision International Lao PDR, providing strategic leadership while directly driving the work needed to grow and diversify income. The role builds a strong funding pipeline, embeds sustainable acquisition and grants management systems, strengthens donor and partner relationships, and advances the organisations’s positioning. and technical brand. Working through a small team, the Director combines direction-setting, hands-on delivery, and intentional development of people, systems, organisational capacity, and a positive and healthy culture. As a member of the Senior Leadership Team, the Director collaborates across functions and with Support and Regional Offices to translate strategy and evidence into funding, influence, and results for the most vulnerable children.

Major Responsibilities:

Drive Resource Growth and Funding Acquisition

• Develop, implement, and continuously improve the WVI Laos Resource Development Strategy, ensuring resource development and communications contribute directly to organisational strategy, programme priorities, national context, and Partnership objectives.
• Contribute actively to organisational strategy, annual planning, risk management, and Senior Leadership Team decisions, bringing a clear perspective on growth, external positioning, organisational sustainability, and emerging opportunities.
• Own the funding pipeline and annual acquisition plan, including donor mapping, market analysis, opportunity forecasting, capture planning, and progress against agreed targets.
• Establish and embed disciplined, fit-for-purpose grants acquisition systems, processes, decision points, quality standards, and accountabilities that enable consistent performance beyond individual staff members.
• Lead and contribute to the development of concept notes, expressions of interest, and proposals, including writing, coordination, budgeting, quality assurance, compliance, and submission.
• Lead bid teams and Go/No-Go recommendations, ensuring clear accountabilities, timely decisions, and disciplined pursuit of the strongest opportunities.
• Develop fundable programme concepts that respond to the priorities and rights of the most vulnerable children in Lao PDR and incorporate safeguarding, gender equality, disability and social inclusion, climate adaptation, and environmental sustainability.
• Coordinate donor feedback, revisions, negotiations, award communications, start-up planning, and handover to implementation teams.
• Lead or support rapid funding analysis, donor coordination, proposal development, and award mobilisation during humanitarian emergencies.
• Capture and institutionalise learning from successful and unsuccessful bids to strengthen future performance.

Strategic Positioning and Partnerships

• Build and sustain strategic relationships with institutional donors, Support Offices, the Regional Office, UN agencies, government counterparts, peer agencies, civil society, private-sector partners, and other development actors.
• Position WVI Laos early for priority opportunities by connecting organisational evidence, technical strengths, local presence, and partnership capabilities to donor interests.
• Represent WVI Laos in donor meetings, technical working groups, partnership forums, resource development networks, and other external engagements delegated by the National Director, consistently advancing agreed organisational priorities and values.
• Serve as the primary focal point for Support and Regional Offices on funding opportunities, programme design, joint positioning, and relevant communications priorities.
• Maintain current intelligence on the operating context, donor priorities, competitor and partner activity, and emerging funding and communications trends.

Acquisition and Grants Systems, Performance, and Accountability

• Design, establish, document, and embed strong end-to-end systems for grants acquisition and management, from opportunity identification and Go/No-Go decisions through proposal development, award start-up, implementation support, closeout, and learning.
• Clarify roles, workflows, decision rights, quality standards, tools, templates, and accountabilities across participating functions.
• Ensure systems are practical, consistently applied, and sufficiently institutionalised to reduce dependency on individual staff members and sustain organisational performance through transitions.
• Provide the National Director and Senior Leadership Team with timely analysis of pipeline health, funding performance, market trends, risks, and strategic choices.
• Maintain accurate and complete acquisition and grants data, documentation, reporting, and knowledge management in Horizon and other required systems.
• Champion and embed safeguarding, integrity, risk management, donor compliance, WVI policies, financial standards, and Partnership requirements throughout acquisition, grants management, communications, and external engagement.
• Monitor acquisition costs and the Resource Development and Communications budget, using resources strategically to maximise return and results.

Cross-Functional Collaboration and Grants Management

• Convene and coordinate Programme Quality, Operations, Finance, Support Services, People and Culture, Communications, Advocacy, and field teams throughout design, acquisition, start-up, implementation support, and closeout.
• Ensure clear and timely handover from acquisition to implementation, including grant opening workshops, donor requirements, contractual obligations, reporting schedules, risk controls, and visibility commitments.
• Provide strategic oversight of grants management, including emergency awards, and support the timely resolution of compliance, performance, risk, and donor relationship issues.
• Regularly review the effectiveness of acquisition and grants management systems and lead improvements based on implementation experience, audits, donor feedback, and closeout learning.
• Build practical resource development and grants management capability across relevant teams, creating shared organisational ownership rather than concentrating knowledge within one function.

Team Leadership, Development, and Delivery

• Lead, coach, and manage the Resource Development and Grants Management, setting focused priorities, clear performance expectations, and strong collaboration across the functions.
• Build bench strength through intentional coaching, stretch assignments, cross-training, delegation, knowledge sharing, and exposure to donor engagement, proposal leadership, grants management, positioning, and communications planning.
• Identify critical capability and succession risks and maintain practical development and succession plans for key responsibilities, including the Communications Lead and grants acquisition and management roles.
• Support team members to deepen technical, leadership, relationship-management, and delivery capabilities, with regular feedback and clear development objectives.
• Build a positive, healthy, inclusive, and accountable team culture characterised by trust, wellbeing, open communication, constructive challenge, collaboration, learning, and shared ownership of results.
• Create an agile and results-oriented environment in which staff can step into broader responsibilities and provide continuity during transitions or peak workloads.
• Model WVI values, safeguarding behaviours, integrity, self-management, sound judgement, and respectful leadership, and address cultural or performance issues promptly and constructively.
• Allocate work effectively while remaining directly involved in priority opportunities, proposal writing, donor engagement, strategic communications oversight, problem-solving, and critical deliverables.
• Mobilise cross-functional staff and external expertise when additional capacity or specialist input is required.
• Model accountability, sound judgement, continuous improvement, and timely delivery under pressure.

Required Education, Professional Experience

• Significant senior-level experience in resource development, institutional fundraising, strategic partnerships, or business development within international development or humanitarian contexts.
• Demonstrated success securing and diversifying funding from bilateral, multilateral, UN, foundation, private-sector, or other institutional partners, including leading complex, high-value proposals and negotiations.
• Strong understanding of the full grants lifecycle, with experience establishing and embedding effective acquisition and grants management systems, accountabilities, quality standards, and organisational capacity.
• Proven ability to translate organisational strategy, programme evidence, and technical priorities into a focused funding pipeline, compelling programme concepts, and credible external positioning.
• Experience building and managing senior donor, partner, Support Office, and cross-organisational relationships, with strong influencing, negotiation, and representation skills.
• Demonstrated leadership of a small, multidisciplinary team, including coaching, performance management, talent development, succession planning, and building bench strength while remaining directly engaged in delivery.
• Proven ability to lead across functions and mobilise colleagues without relying solely on formal authority, creating shared ownership and delivering results in complex, cross-cultural environments.
• Experience providing strategic oversight and quality assurance for communications, external positioning, technical branding, or thought leadership.
• Excellent strategic judgement, analytical ability, written communication, and proposal development skills, with a record of delivering high-quality results under pressure.
• Master’s degree in international development, business, public policy, communications, a relevant technical discipline, or a related field; or equivalent senior-level professional experience.
• Strong working knowledge of institutional donor requirements and funding approaches, including major bilateral, multilateral, and UN donors.
• Experience working in Lao PDR, Southeast Asia, or a comparable development and humanitarian context.
• Established networks with relevant donors, development partners, Support Offices, or private-sector actors.
• Experience integrating safeguarding, gender equality, disability and social inclusion, climate resilience, and environmental sustainability into programme design and funding proposals.
• Experience mobilising resources and managing donor requirements in humanitarian emergencies.
• Working knowledge of Lao or another relevant regional language.
• Excellent written and spoken English.

Travel and/or Work Environment

The position is based in Vientiane with up to 20% travel within the country and annual overseas travel to attend Global/Regional training and events

Encouragement

World Vision is committed to the principles of workplace diversity. Qualified women and people with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

World Vision offers a competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package. We offer a challenging work environment, opportunities to lead, and a commitment to growing your skills in a fulfilling and international working environment.

Applicant Types Accepted:

World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organisation with a mission centred on following Jesus Christ in service to the world´s most vulnerable children. Therefore, in all locations to the fullest extent legally permissible, the successful applicant will affirm our core documents, observe conduct compatible with Christian principles, serve at a high level of professional ethics and strive to act in accordance with cultural sensitivities. Furthermore, regular attendance with team and office devotions, chapel and prayer gatherings are expected in line with policies in the World Vision host location and its departments.

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