Background

Small and Medium Enterprise Activity (SMEA) will increase incomes and employment in project-assisted economic sectors and improve the enabling environment for private sector led growth in Pakistan. This activity will be focused on developing the following sectors: 1) information, communication and technology (ICT); 2) light engineering;3) textile (minus spinning);4) hospitality; 5) minerals (marble, granite and gems); 6) logistics and packaging; and 7) leather (minus tanning).

Position Summary

This position will be based in Islamabad and is open to Pakistani nationals only. The Competitiveness Enhancement (CE) Component Lead will be responsible for leading the enterprise development component of the project focused on strategic interventions to improve economic performance in select sectors. He/she will oversee a team of specialists working to improve productivity of firms in the select sectors, coordinate closely with the policy work to remove business enabling environment barriers and enhance competitiveness of target sectors. The CE Component Lead will manage interventions to improve technological readiness and innovation of firms, increase access to markets, and improve access to finance for firms in target sectors. S/he will also be responsible for helping to upgrade product quality and value added activities in select sectors, and identify strategic opportunities for private sector investment.

The CE lead will also help to promote women entrepreneurship by supervising technical assistance to increase women’s participation in business ownership and management.

Minimum Qualifications

• Pakistani national;
• Master’s degree or higher in Economics, Business, or Finance.
• At least ten years of experience in leading and managing complex project(s) in activities related to economic growth; projects enhancing competitiveness will be highly preferred;
• Demonstrated ability to interact and communicate with a wide range of stakeholders both verbally and in writing;
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate, willingness to innovate and ability to think systematically;
• Proven experience in leading the teams focused on achieving complex goals while maintaining quality of deliverables within deadlines;
• Experience developing female entrepreneurship is preferred but not required;
• Fluency in English required;
• Fluency in Urdu preferred.

Women are strongly encouraged to apply.

All applicants should submit their CVs to recruitmentpakistan@jeaustin.com, with the words “Competitiveness Enhancement Lead- SMEA” in the subject line.

POSITION DESCRIPTION

USAID Small and Medium Enterprise Activity (SMEA)’s development hypothesis is that SME-led economic growth will result in poverty reduction, job creation, and entrepreneurship development contributing to increased GDP. SMEA will increase incomes and employment in project-assisted economic sectors and improve the enabling environment for private sector led growth in Pakistan. This activity will contribute to achieving USAID/Pakistan’s “Development Objective: “Improving economic status of focus populations.” SMEA will achieve the following objectives and sub-objectives:

Objective 1: Improved Business Enabling Environment (BEE)

• Improved Government of Pakistan (GOP) ability to develop and implement reforms of policies, laws and regulations
• Strengthened private sector and civil society engagement in policy-making

Objective 2: Improved economic performance of focus enterprises

• Improved economic performance in select sectors
• Improved technological readiness and innovation
• Increased access to markets
• Increased access to finance
• Enabled women SMEs run profitable business

Sub-objective 3.2.2B: Improved technological readiness and innovations (Pakistan Challenge Fund for Technology and Innovation)

• Technical assistance to ICT firms to develop and market new technologies to enhance competitiveness in selected sectors
• Creation and diffusion of innovative, sustainable, and scalable ICT and business solutions to improve the competitiveness of Pakistani SMEs
• Collaboration between industry and academia addressing supply side constraints in terms of trained labor
• Commercialization of ICT research
• Increased technology literacy

SMEA will focus on the following manufacturing, industrial and service sectors:

1. Information, communication and technology (ICT)
2. Light engineering
3. Textile (minus spinning)
4. Minerals (marble, granite and gems)
5. Logistics and packaging
6. Leather (minus tanning)
7. Hospitality

Position Title. Sector Specialist

The Sector Specialist will assist individual and group of SMEs in targeted sector(s) to identify and develop most appropriate, viable and logical working strategies to address key productivity issues within the sector at collective and at individual basis. The specialist will act as a process manager to identify the possible set of bottlenecks, opportunities and capacities that exists at demand and supply sides, and how the project can assist the identified issues by providing workable and logical facilitation in terms of strategy development, capacity building, business development services integration, marketing and business development to support SME clients into assigned sector(s).

1. Objective and specific tasks.

The specialist will be responsible to manage the assigned sector(s) by designing and executing a comprehensive working strategy, business model with financials and technical and financial analysis of value chain(s) in sector to identify and address the key factors affecting/contributing behind the low productivity and less profitability of SMEs. The sector specialist will be responsible to support the position’s supervisor and fellow project colleagues in the successful implementation of all aspects of the project’s work plan and achievement of the project objective.

Specific tasks: As directed by the supervisor for this position, or by the Chief of Party or the Chief of Party‘s designee, the individual holding this position shall perform and support the performance of the following specific tasks:

• Design and develop sector strategy, business model with financials, implementation work plan and budget for the assigned sector(s).The work plan, budget and strategy should reflects the overall requirements of anticipated activities.
• Design and develop sector and sub-sector operational and financial analysis to assess the return on investment (ROI) and to analyze the opportunity cost of sector based investments.
• Conduct BDS gap analysis through a robust consultation process to identify and develop “most appropriate and doable” set of BD services for assigned sector. Also develop the cost-value and return on investment (ROI) analysis to calculate financial impact of investment.
• Conduct value chain mapping exercise identify the most appropriate areas, players, sub-sector(s) and develop a comparative analysis matrix for each value chain to select SMEs having financial and operation capacities to acquire BD services.
• Develop. Coordinate and record day-to-day field work activities e.g. marketing and promotional activities, liaisoning with sector stakeholders, individual meetings, presentation, and potential areas of working within the sector to achieve assigned targets.
• The specialist will be responsible for raising awareness, knowledge and compatibility of potential SME clients and BD service providers to strengthen the outreach and to achieve the project targets.
• Improve access of BD services into assigned sector(s) through advising, assisting and promoting SMEs and work closely with BDSPs to address the required services within a sector.
• Assist the women entrepreneurs specialist to design and develop a separate working strategy for women owned businesses (if applicable) and support them through matchmaking with relevant BDSP(s).
• Assist the training specialist through identifying the potential areas of capacity building and trainings to strengthen the capacity of SMEs (clients) to become more competent and efficient in business practices.
• Assist the access to finance specialist through identifying the potential opportunities related to financial needs in the sector and work with program beneficiaries to identify and facilitate access to finance opportunities.
• Establish strong relationships and work closely with the network partners e.g. academia, associations, business chambers and clubs, community clubs and government to strengthen the business development and programmatic activities within the sector.
• Identify and collaborate with potential BDS providers, consultants and training institutes at national and international level to increase the program outreach and to link these service providers with SMEs in the designated sector(s) for workable solutions pertaining to increase in profitability, jobs and sales.
• Design and develop innovative and effective marketing, product and service improvisation initiatives to support the interested BDSPs to improve their service delivery and products for increased profitability.
• Create Linkage between BD service providers and SMEs achieve the project goals and objectives.
• Facilitate the overall processing of grant cases by assisting SMEs and BDSPs, at later stage; present the cases in front of appraisal panel/committee for approval and disbursement of grant.
• The specialist is responsible to achieve monthly, quarterly and annual targets of under the below given categories to achieve and accomplish project’s goals and objectives;
  • No. of grant cases
  • Enrollment/ registration of BDSPs
  • Project management of approved cases for timely completion
  • Project marketing event(s)
  • Training events/seminars/workshops
  • MoUs, Strategic alliances, collaborations with stakeholders.
• Support cross cutting project activities related to competitive enhancement fund, challenge fund and business enabling environment work plans.
• Develop exit strategy for the assigned sector and identify the appropriate stakeholders to hand over the project technical assets, publications, success stories and database after project closure.
• All component actions and activities as may be added to the USAID SMEA Project work plan from time to time
• Assist in implementing the strategic direction, work plan, and resource (technical assistance, training, commodity, and other) allocations necessary for the timely and successful completion of the USAID SMEA Project work plan tasks and the achievement of component goals and objectives.
• Ensure that the scheduling, budgeting, technical, and documentary attributes of Access to finance component actions and related data are fully up to date in the USAID SMEA Project work plan, including but not limited to updates no less frequently than weekly
• Any other special assignments/ tasks assigned by the COP/CE component lead or his designee.
• Assist in developing reports, presentations, and any other information gathering/ analysis that may be required by supervisor, COP, or AOR.
• Develop Scope of Work (SOW), Request for Proposal (RFQ), and Request for Proposal (RFP) and Technical Purchase Action Request (TPAR) for specific work plan activities.
• Ensure close inter-component and inter-office communication, coordination and cooperation with other project components and sub-components.
• Ensure that the technical work of all local and expatriate consultants fielded under the component and ensure that all end-of-assignment deliverables and other consultant and subcontractor performance results are a) consistent with and compliant with the consultant’s scope of work, b) are of high technical quality and good overall readability, and c) are acceptable to USAID and other component counterparts and beneficiaries
• Ensure the ethical and professional transparency during assisting the BDSPs and SMEs to promote and assure fair and clean competition and selection.

III. Position Classification. Long-Term Local Professional Staff, located in Islamabad and Lahore, Pakistan

1. Estimated Duration of Assignment. Duration of SMEA contract.
2. Ultimate Authority and Chain of Command. Ultimate day to day field supervision and authority for all project personnel and all aspects of project activities rests with the Chief of Party or his/her designee, and in the Chemonics home office, with the project management unit (PMU) Director. The individual holding this position shall take no managerial or technical direction from any individual who is not formally employed in the chain of command between the individual and the Chief of Party, the Chief of Party’s designee, or the PMU Director.
3. Reporting Responsibilities. For all routine responsibilities and duties, either directly or indirectly related to this position description, the individual holding this position shall report directly to, and be supervised by, the CE Component Lead, or his/her designee.

Women are strongly encouraged to apply.

All applicants should submit their CVs to recruitmentpakistan@jeaustin.com, with the words “Sector Specialist- SMEA” in the subject line.