Artisan Development Director

Length of Contract: 1 year (extendable)

Starting Date: December 2022

Salary: Commensurate with experience and qualifications

Base: Kabul, Afghanistan full-time

Background

Turquoise Mountain is a non-profit, non-governmental organization specializing in urban regeneration, business development, and education in traditional arts and architecture. We provide training, jobs, and sustainable skills to Afghan men and women. Since 2006 Turquoise Mountain has cleared 36,000 cubic meters of rubbish from the streets, restored 150 historic and community buildings, created a primary school and a clinic, and installed water, electricity and sanitation through the historic neighborhood of Murad Khani in the old city of Kabul. It has created the internationally accredited Institute for Afghan Arts & Architecture, training the next generation of craftsmen and women in woodwork, jewelry and gem cutting, calligraphy and miniature painting, and ceramics. Finally, it has facilitated the sale of millions of dollars of Afghan artisan products internationally.

Context

With support from donors such as USAID and the Government of Qatar, Turquoise Mountain plans to build upon and expand livelihood and sustainable income generating programs in the carpet, jewellery and traditional craft value chains. The program will increase the technical capacity of those active in these value-chains, improve working conditions and ensure environmental standards, raise awareness about production abilities in Afghanistan, improve order fulfilment, and increase exports of higher-margin carpet, jewellery and traditional craft products, thereby increasing income-generating opportunities for thousands of Afghans.

Need

We are looking for an experienced director to lead our current livelihood projects in the Afghan carpet, jewellery and traditional craft sector to support livelihood development, market linkages and capacity building. The Artisan Development Director will be the organisation’s commercial lead in the country, overseeing the successful production and delivery of high quality artisanal products to international customers as part of the project deliverables.

The successful candidate will be a strong leader with excellent communication and project management skills, detail orientated and preferably have experience of both donor funded development and the commercial sector as well as an understanding of the Afghan carpet and craft industries and an appreciation of the needs and requirements of international commercial clients.

Key Roles and Responsibilities

Reporting to the Country Director and working closely with the internationally-based Commercial Director, the Artisan Development Director will be responsible for leading the key components of this new program, setting up and managing a team to work in each of the following areas:

Project and Commercial Management

1. Manage and supervise the performance of the Turquoise Mountain carpet, jewelry, and traditional craft production teams, coordinating closely with the sales teams and technical experts as well as the project’s supported businesses to ensure the timeliness of artisan production and that the quality meets international standards and individual customer requirements.
2. Visit supported businesses to identify capacity needs, develop training plans, negotiate pricing and ensure compliance with project deliverables.
3. Supervise the Business Mentoring team to ensure that all supported businesses and partners receive sector-specific business skills mentoring and management trainings in Kabul, Mazar-e Sharif and Bamiyan and other provinces.
4. Be responsible for the financial, administrative, operational, logistical and human resource management of the project.
5. Work closely with the Commercial Director, international sales team, and production teams to drive the growth of international and domestic sales of high-quality Afghan carpets and artisanal products and ensure that customers receive an excellent level of service from the Kabul team.
6. Support the local and UK-based finance teams to ensure accurate financial reporting and management of all Turquoise Mountain sales of artisan products.
7. Manage and coordinate project activities and work closely with the Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) Manager to ensure objectives and deliverables are met on time and on-budget and are reported to the donor in a timely and accurate manner. This will include monitoring the performance of sub-grantees under the project, notably our international fair-trade partner who is responsible for improving the welfare of carpet weavers and to support best practice in both carpet and jewellery sectors in Afghanistan.
8. Work closely with senior management and M&E manager to help develop new project proposals for submission to donors, as required.

Required Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in development studies, project management, economics, business administration or other relevant discipline. Master’s degree preferred.
• Programme / project management certifications such as PRINCE2, PMP, CAPM or other highly preferred
• Minimum 5 years of Experience in international development programmes, including demonstrable success in managing complex programmes. Experience of working in a private sector business, preferred
• Previous work experience in the Middle East, Central Asia or South Asia, preferably Afghanistan.
• Fluent in English and competency in Dari or Pashto, or a proven record in fast language acquisition, is a significant advantage.
• Experience of building, leading and developing a team with different backgrounds and expertise.
• Experience of building personal networks at a senior level, resulting in securing new opportunities for the organization
• Strong understanding of program, financial and operational management processes.