Senior Advisor – Market Systems

Full-time / Regular / Exempt / Preferred locations – Washington DC, London, Nairobi or Amman

Requires approximately 30% international travel, including to fragile contexts

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions
into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within. Now, and for the future.

Program / Department Summary

Our Program Department supports field-led work that delivers measurable impact, and Mercy Corps’ Technical Support Unit (TSU) is a key part of the Program Department. TSU subject-matter experts help set agency strategy and provide consultation – from assessment and design through project implementation and results measurement – to country offices worldwide, in some of the world’s toughest places. TSU team members lead research, foster organizational learning, represent Mercy Corps to external audiences, and develop partnerships. The TSU is also integral to global business development and revenue. Market systems principles are a key underpinning of many Mercy Corps programs, and the TSU plays a key role in strengthening their application in crisis-affected settings as well as in the integration of market systems and resilience thinking.

General Position Summary

The senior advisor position focuses on providing expert technical support and capacity strengthening to Mercy Corps program teams in market systems development (MSD) and applying market systems principles in fragile contexts. Mercy Corps’ MSD programs span a range of sectors including Agriculture, Livestock, Employment, Financial Inclusion, and Energy, and are implemented in a variety of contexts that include fragile and conflict-affected areas, emergency responses, and more stable developed settings.

The Senior Advisor is a key member of the TSU team focused on MSD. Because this role focuses on MSD as a cross-cutting approach, it involves partnering closely with technical advisors across the Economic Growth team and other TSU teams. They will help us design and implement context-relevant market systems programming, generate evidence of our approach, support and mentor program teams to strengthen skills in this area, and develop externally facing thought leadership to raise the agency’s profile. The senior advisor will also support and drive research efforts toward understanding best practices for market systems approaches including support to the agency’s research and action-learning initiative.

Essential Job Responsibilities

program and proposal development

• Write/review proposals and concept notes for funding from donors including foundations, corporations and US, European, and UN agencies to support market systems programming.
• Gather/analyze data and mentor program teams to conduct market systems assessments that improve program design, influence strategy, and Mercy Corps’ competitive advantage for funding.
• Work with programs, country/regional teams, and technical support units on prepositioning and development of strategies related to market systems approaches.
• Keep up to date on relevant strategies being developed or applied by significant governmental, academic, private sector, and non-profit groups. Work with Mercy Corps to determine how the agency can best work with and/or influence such materials.
• Cultivate and nurture donor relationships and strategic partnerships that positively impact Mercy Corps ability to influence program strategies and proposal design, as well as strategic partnerships that result in stronger and impactful program development efforts that leverage market systems principles.

Program quality

• Provide technical support to a portfolio of programs including those in complex crisis environments, including supporting effective interventions in MSD and market-driven crisis response, applying expertise in market facilitation, using integrated approaches, and applying systems thinking.
• Help maintain standards of program delivery that apply agency priorities and comply with relevant regulations and requirements.
• Strengthen the capacity of Mercy Corps team members and partners to better design and implement programs that use market systems analysis and facilitation-based interventions to reach scale and improve program sustainability.

learning and impact

• Work with the Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) team and program teams to ensure that MSD measurement reflects best practices on topics such as results chains, systemic change monitoring, and market system resilience, and impact measurement.
• Contribute to agency-wide initiatives such as the research agenda around market systems resilience and markets in crisis.
• Support and lead market systems analyses; write case studies, learning documents, short articles, and blogs; and develop internal and external disseminate plan for all products.

policy, advocacy, Representation

• Represent Mercy Corps at academic events, conferences, media forums, and other events; contribute to thought leadership in MSD and market systems approaches in crises.
• Identify and nurture strategic partnerships with other organizations and institutions.
• Contribute to a strong and regularly updated network of technical experts and consultants that can serve as an additional resource to be deployed for program support.

Supervisory Responsibility

The position has supervisory responsibility over interns, volunteers, and/or consultants.

Knowledge and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree required; Advanced degree or equivalent relevant experience, technical certifications or courses in Market Systems Development preferred.

• 5 to 7 years of experience providing increasingly proficient technical support in Market Systems Development that includes:

• Producing and publishing influential articles and blogs related to market systems approaches.

• Leading all aspects of large and complex proposals and managing integrated proposal teams.

• Demonstrating strong theoretical and applied knowledge of market systems thinking, market facilitation, and private sector dynamics.

• Working in partnership with, or for, private sector entities in fragile and/or thin markets.

• Practical field experience of at least 3 years that includes:

• Experience in fragile contexts or working on crisis response that demonstrates the ability to successfully adapt support and assistance methodologies to real-world complexities.

• Managing and implementing successful programs in the field.

• Supporting skills building and mentorship through workshops, coaching, and other means.

• Willingness and ability to travel frequently to Mercy Corps project sites and field locations, including traveling to insecure environments, is required.

• Familiarity with major donors such as USAID, DFID, the EC and relevant foundations and corporations.

• Fluency in English is required; fluency in French a strong plus.

Success Factors

The senior advisor will demonstrate significant experience managing programs in the field, further enhancing their ability to adjust technical theories to meet real world complexities. The individual should have the proven ability to influence donors, partners, and peer organizations toward innovative programs and best practices. Through significant experience managing all aspects of large or complex proposals, the individual will be able to advise and coach other Mercy Corps staff on how to adjust their methodology. The senior advisor must take a lead role in building and maintaining external relationships as well as demonstrating the drive and initiative to contribute to internal team efforts. All TSU positions require strong interpersonal and cross-cultural communication skills, and a level of emotional intelligence proficiency that quickly builds and maintains productive relationships across teams. Being aware and sensitive to international development issues and diverse cultures is critical.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

The position requires travel at least 30% time to the field where living conditions may be exceptionally rugged or be in volatile environments where security protocols will need to be followed. Team members must be ready to deploy to field environments on short notice in response to any emergency or crisis. When in the field the team member must able to work in remote settings, over weekends and/or evening as required by the schedule, and in settings with limited infrastructure, food options, and living conditions.

Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside work hours when deployed in a field posting or on a visit/TDY to a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC’s policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.

We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct elearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.