Advisor to the Director General

The International Water Management Institute (IWMI), a CGIAR Research Center is seeking for a multi skilled candidate to join its headquarters in Colombo, Sri Lanka as an Advisor to the Director General.

This is an internationally recruited position; therefore, individuals with relevant abilities from diverse locations around the world are encouraged to apply.

The Advisor will closely collaborate with the Director General (DG) to manage external engagements, internal coordination across IWMI, and liaison with CGIAR and special initiatives. The incumbent will play a lead role in preparing presentations, papers, and communication outputs by mobilizing and coordinating contributions from IWMI subject matter experts while building on their own knowledge and expertise in water management and policy.

The Advisor will also manage special initiatives led by the Director General’s Office (DGO) related to strategy, partnerships, communications, and research. Additionally, the Advisor will coordinate internal and external communications for the DG, working closely with the Communications and Knowledge Management unit. The successful candidate will coordinate diverse workstreams in the DGO, requiring substantive and timely inputs from the DG, often in consultation with senior managers and other Institute staff.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

External Engagement and Communications,

• Manage workflows to respond to invitations, plan and prepare for external events, speaking engagements, and other external requests, including liaison across departments and teams.
• Develop presentations and speaking points for the DG for conferences and panels through liaison with subject matter experts on content and in collaboration with the DG.
• Represent the DG in internal coordination mechanisms for IWMI engagement in international policy processes and platforms relating to water, environment, climate and food systems and, in collaboration with research and communications staff, contribute to drafting of related papers, messaging and DG-led communications outputs.
• Manage the DG’s communications, including liaison with the Communications unit and research units, ensuring that inputs are well coordinated and outputs, such as opinion pieces, blogs or video messages, are completed in a timely way.
• Manage the DG’s social media output in close liaison with the Communications unit.

Special Initiatives and Research,

• Advise on and facilitate the preparation and execution of DGO-led special initiatives relating to strategy, partnerships, communications and research, including liaison with external partners.
• Lead project management for DGO-led special initiatives, ensuring the required inputs and activities are well coordinated and the timely delivery of milestones.
• Assist with research for papers and presentations, including literature review, data collation and liaison with IWMI subject matter experts.

Internal Coordination,

• Coordinate the preparation of Management Team meetings, and track and coordinate follow up to agreed actions.
• Lead the planning and preparation of All-Staff Meetings, including coordination of inputs from across IWMI offices and teams.
• Advise the DG on internal communications and prepare internal messaging with relevant departments.
• Assist with preparing papers and presentations for IWMI Board meetings and CGIAR meetings.

CGIAR Liaison,

• Track CGIAR processes to ensure timely follow-up by the DG, including through liaison with staff engaged in One CGIAR activities and with the CGIAR System Office, the One CGIAR Integrated Structure, and other centres as needed.
• Manage inputs by the DGO to preparation of documents and strategies by CGIAR. This requires liaison and coordination with relevant IWMI departments and subject matter experts.

Requirements

EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE:

Essential:

• Master’s degree in subject area relevant to IWMI’s work.
• Minimum of five (5) years related experience, which includes knowledge management and managing internal and external stakeholders.
• Successful experience and proven skills in project management and implementation
• Demonstrated ability to collect and synthesize information from diverse sources and convey messages through clear and concise writing.
• Experience working in an international development-related field.

Desirable:

• Experience in both development-related and research organizations.
• Experience working with multilateral processes.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES:

Essential:

• Knowledge of water management and policy.
• Exceptional written, oral, interpersonal and presentation skills.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail and precision.
• Strategic thinking and strong analytical skills.
• Proven skills in project management and coordination
• Excellent inter-personal, relationship building and communications skills
• Proven ability to use research content to support strategy, initiatives and communications
• Proven ability to work independently, be flexible and meet deadlines
• Strong self-motivation whilst being a team player
• Entrepreneurial mindset with creative approaches to problem solving and achieving goals
• Proven ability to work across boundaries in a multi-disciplinary and multicultural setting.

Benefits

This is an internationally recruited position with a competitive salary, an attractive retirement plan, comprehensive international health insurance, life insurance accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance, and long-term disability coverage. Internationally recruited staff who are employed at a duty station outside of their home base/country of nationality will also receive relocation assistance, a housing allowance, home-leave plane tickets for self and eligible dependents and education assistance for eligible dependents. The duration of the contract will initially be for a period of three years.

HOW TO APPLY: Apply for the position by following the application instructions at www.iwmi.org/jobs. We will be accepting applications through 24:00 (IST) on September 21, 2024 (applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis). Your application must include a CV, cover letter, and three (3) references, which may be contacted if you are shortlisted. Receipt of all applications will be acknowledged, but only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

IWMI believes that diversity powers our innovation, contributes to our excellence, and is critical for our mission. We offer a multi-cultural, multi-color, multi-generational and multi-disciplinary working environment. We are consciously creating an inclusive organization that reflects our global character and our commitment to gender equity. We, therefore, encourage applicants from all cultures, races, ethnicities, religions, sexes, national or regional origins, ages, disability status, sexual orientations, and gender identities.