Programme Operations, Partnerships & Enterprise Development Associate

About Braintec Consulting Limited

Braintec Consulting is an emerging consulting and advisory firm delivering high-impact solutions across the Horn and East Africa. The firm specializes in Market Systems Development (MSD), Private Sector Development, Enterprise Competitiveness, Business Development Services (BDS), Investment Readiness, Inclusive Finance, Institutional Strengthening, Organizational Development and Public Sector Advisory.

Braintec partners with development agencies, INGOs, financial institutions and the private sector to design and implement sustainable, market-driven solutions that improve livelihoods, strengthen institutions and promote inclusive economic growth.

Braintec designs and implements interventions that strengthen market systems, improve enterprise performance, facilitate private sector participation, unlock investment and build sustainable business models for service delivery across Somalia.

About the Assignment and Programmes

Braintec delivers consulting, advisory and implementation assignments across the Horn and East Africa. Its work spans market systems development, private sector development, enterprise support, institutional strengthening, investment readiness, inclusive finance and related development initiatives.

Assignments may involve close coordination with authorities, development partners and donors, financial institutions, private sector actors, enterprises, community institutions and other market-system stakeholders.

The Programme Operations, Partnerships & Enterprise Development Associate provides Braintec with senior operational coordination and relationship-management support.

The role connects programme delivery with stakeholder engagement, enterprise strengthening, investment readiness and private sector/financial-sector partnerships, helping ensure that Braintec’s technical work is locally anchored, coordinated and translated into practical opportunities.

The Opportunity

Braintec is seeking an experienced, well-connected and delivery-oriented Programme Operations, Partnerships & Enterprise Development Associate to support the effective implementation of Braintec’s programmes in Somalia while managing critical relationships with authorities, donors and development partners, financial institutions, private sector actors and other strategic stakeholders.

This is a cross-cutting role combining programme operations, stakeholder engagement, Business Development Services (BDS), private sector development and investment-readiness support. The successful candidate will act as a key Mogadishu-based interface for Braintec, helping maintain relationships, coordinate programme engagement, identify and support enterprises and market actors, and connect viable opportunities to finance, investment and strategic partnerships.

Reporting to the Director – Partnerships, the role will work closely with the Water Market Systems & BDS Lead, Investment & Finance Lead, Business Intelligence & Analytics Specialist, technical teams and regional field teams. The position does not replace the specialist technical leadership of these functions; rather, it ensures strong in-country coordination, stakeholder access, follow-through and integration across them.

Key Responsibilities

Programme Operations & In-Country Coordination

• Support day-to-day coordination of Braintec programme implementation in Somalia, with particular responsibility for Mogadishu-based operational follow-through and external engagement.
• Coordinate programme meetings, field interfaces, stakeholder consultations and implementation follow-up across technical workstreams.
• Maintain visibility over key programme actions, commitments, dependencies and external approvals, and escalate bottlenecks to the relevant technical lead or Director – Partnerships.
• Support coordination between administrative, corridor teams and Braintec technical specialists to ensure timely execution of agreed activities.
• Represent Braintec in operational and coordination meetings when delegated, ensuring actions and commitments are documented and followed through.
• Support preparation for programme reviews, missions, workshops, steering/technical meetings and other high-level engagements.

Corporate Relations & Stakeholder Engagement

• Build and maintain constructive working relationships with relevant Authorities, agencies, regulators and public institutions connected to Braintec’s assignments.
• Serve as a key relationship focal point for stakeholder engagement, facilitating access, consultations, introductions, coordination and follow-up.
• Support engagement with Federal Member State institutions where programme needs require alignment between Federal and sub-national actors.
• Monitor relevant priorities, policy developments, institutional changes and regulatory issues that may affect programme implementation, market actors or investment opportunities.
• Coordinate technical inputs from Braintec specialists into stakeholder discussions while ensuring that formal policy or contractual commitments are made only by duly authorised representatives.
• Maintain a structured stakeholder map and engagement record covering priority public-sector relationships.

Donor, Development Partner & Consortium Engagement

• Support Braintec’s working relationships with donors, development partners, implementing partners and consortium members at programme and country level.
• Participate in coordination meetings, technical discussions, learning events and partner engagements as delegated.
• Support preparation of briefs, talking points, presentations, meeting notes and follow-up actions for senior stakeholder engagements.
• Identify areas for collaboration, complementarity and programme-level partnership that strengthen approved assignments and implementation objectives.
• Ensure stakeholder commitments, information requests and agreed actions are communicated to the appropriate Braintec technical or management lead and followed through.
• Support programme visibility and institutional positioning through consistent, professional engagement with external partners.

Enterprise Development & Business Development Services (BDS)

• Support identification, onboarding and profiling of Water Service Providers, SMEs, community-managed systems, cooperatives and other relevant market actors.
• Conduct or support enterprise diagnostics covering operations, revenue models, cost structures, customer management, and commercial sustainability.
• Work with the Water Market Systems & BDS Lead and field teams to translate diagnostic findings into practical business improvement and 90-day action plans.
• Support delivery and follow-up of BDS interventions, including business planning, revenue collection, cost control, customer management, record keeping, and basic financial management.
• Support rollout and adoption of practical business SOPs and management systems, coordinating with digital and technical specialists where technology or O&M inputs are required.
• Maintain relationships with supported enterprises and market actors and help resolve engagement or coordination barriers affecting implementation.

Investment Readiness & Financial Sector Engagement

• Work with the Investment & Finance Lead to identify enterprises and market actors with potential to progress toward investment readiness.
• Support collection and organisation of business, financial, and operational information required for investment-readiness assessment and due diligence.
• Assist enterprises to strengthen basic business plans, financial records, management information and supporting documentation required by banks, MFIs and investors.
• Build and maintain relationships with commercial banks, MFIs, Islamic finance institutions, investors, diaspora networks and other relevant financing actors in Somalia.
• Facilitate introductions, market-sounding discussions, enterprise-financier meetings and follow-up on potential financing pathways, under the technical direction of the Investment & Finance Lead.
• Track engagement status and practical bottlenecks from enterprise readiness through financing discussions, while recognising that financing decisions remain with the relevant financial institution or investor.

Private Sector & Market Ecosystem Partnerships

• Develop and maintain relationships with private sector companies, business associations, service providers, technology providers, suppliers and other ecosystem actors relevant to Braintec’s programmes.
• Identify programme-relevant partnership, market linkage and service-provider opportunities that can strengthen enterprise performance, service delivery and sustainability.
• Facilitate linkages between supported actors and appropriate commercial partners, technical service providers, suppliers and market platforms.
• Support mapping and engagement of actors capable of providing sustainable commercial services beyond the period of direct programme support.
• Provide practical market intelligence on emerging private sector opportunities, constraints and actors relevant to programme objectives.

Stakeholder Intelligence, Relationship Management & Representation

• Maintain an up-to-date stakeholder and relationship-management database covering authorities, donors, development partners, financial institutions, private sector actors and strategic programme contacts.
• Prepare stakeholder engagement plans identifying relationship objectives, key contacts, engagement history, next actions and responsible Braintec staff.
• Provide timely intelligence to Braintec management and technical leads on stakeholder priorities, institutional dynamics and opportunities relevant to programme delivery.
• Represent Braintec professionally in external meetings and events when delegated, protecting the firm’s reputation and ensuring consistency of messaging.
• Support senior management visits and high-level engagements by arranging meetings, preparing briefs and coordinating follow-up.

Reporting, Documentation & Knowledge Management

• Prepare concise operational and stakeholder-engagement updates highlighting progress, decisions, risks, opportunities and required management action.
• Maintain accurate records of meetings, commitments, referrals, enterprise engagements, financing discussions and stakeholder follow-up.
• Contribute to programme reports, case studies, learning products and management briefs with information from enterprise and stakeholder engagement.
• Coordinate with the Business Intelligence & Analytics and Digital/Communications functions to ensure relevant programme evidence and relationship information is captured appropriately.
• Ensure sensitive stakeholder, enterprise and financial information is handled with appropriate confidentiality and professional judgement.

Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration, Economics, Finance, Development Studies, Public Policy, International Relations, Management or another relevant discipline.
• A Master’s Degree or relevant professional qualification in business, finance, development, public policy or a related field will be an added advantage.

Professional Experience

The ideal candidate will demonstrate;

• Minimum 7 years’ progressively responsible professional experience in programme operations, private sector development, enterprise development, stakeholder engagement, investment facilitation or related roles.
• Strong established professional networks and demonstrated ability to engage effectively with stakeholders.
• Demonstrated experience engaging donors, development partners, financial institutions and private sector actors in Somalia.
• Practical experience in Business Development Services, enterprise diagnostics, business improvement or SME advisory.
• Experience supporting investment readiness, access-to-finance processes, financial institution engagement or investor/enterprise linkages.
• Experience coordinating multi-stakeholder programmes and following implementation actions across technical teams and external partners.
• Good understanding of Somalia’s institutional, private sector and financial-sector landscape.
• Experience in water, WASH, infrastructure, climate resilience, market systems or related sectors is highly desirable.
• Previous experience working on donor-funded assignments in fragile or conflict-affected environments is highly desirable.

Core Competencies

The successful candidate should demonstrate;

• Excellent relationship-building, diplomacy and stakeholder-management skills, including confidence engaging authorities, donor, financial-sector and private-sector stakeholders.
• Strong understanding of programme operations and ability to convert meetings and relationships into clear actions and implementation follow-through.
• Practical understanding of Business Development Services, enterprise strengthening and private sector development.
• Working knowledge of investment readiness, SME finance and financial institution requirements.
• Strong commercial awareness and ability to identify programme-relevant partnerships and market opportunities.
• Sound political and institutional judgement, discretion and ability to navigate complex stakeholder environments.
• Strong written and verbal communication, presentation, negotiation and facilitation skills.
• Ability to work across technical disciplines and coordinate effectively with BDS, finance, technical, data and field teams.
• Strong organisation, documentation and follow-up discipline.
• High standards of integrity, professionalism, confidentiality and accountability.
• Fluency in Somali and English; strong professional communication capability in both languages.
• Commitment to inclusive development, gender equality and climate resilience.

Why Join Braintec

Joining Braintec offers the opportunity to play a central role in connecting programme implementation with the institutions, enterprises, financial actors and partnerships that shape sustainable development outcomes in Somalia.

The position offers significant exposure to Federal-level stakeholders, development partners, financial institutions and the private sector, while remaining closely involved in practical enterprise development, investment readiness and programme delivery.

How to Apply

Interested candidates are invited to submit;

• A cover letter outlining their suitability for the position.
• An updated Curriculum Vitae (maximum four pages).
• Contact details of three professional referees.

Applications should be submitted in English and sent to jobs@braintecconsult.com. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Braintec Consulting Limited is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering a diverse, inclusive and respectful workplace. We encourage applications from qualified women and men and are committed to safeguarding against all forms of discrimination, exploitation, abuse and harassment in the workplace.