GAVI
Position title: Senior Manager, Innovative Finance
Location: Geneva
Purpose of the position:
•Support the development and execution of strategic approaches that drive sovereign and corporate resource mobilisation through innovative finance mechanisms in selected markets.
•Conceive, design, structure and implement innovative finance mechanisms with particular focus on assigned markets or targeted investors groups.
•Make a significant contribution to the development and implementation of Gavi’s innovative finance strategy to help secure funds in response to the COVID-19 crisis.
•Significantly contribute to the achievement of Gavi’s resource mobilisation objectives.
Department: Resource Mobilisation, Private Sector Partnerships & Innovative Finance (RMPSPIF)
Team: New Investors hub
Reports to: Director, New Investors, Private Sector Partnerships and Innovation with cross-reporting to Director, Innovative Finance
N° of positions supervised (if applicable): 0
Career step level: 4
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance is a public-private partnership committed to saving children’s lives and protecting people’s health by increasing equitable use of vaccines in lower-income countries. The Vaccine Alliance brings together implementing country and donor governments, the World Health Organisation, UNICEF, the World Bank, the vaccine industry, technical agencies, civil society, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other private sector partners. Gavi uses innovative finance mechanisms, including co-financing by recipient countries, to secure sustainable funding and adequate supply of quality vaccines. Since 2000, Gavi has contributed to the immunisation of more than 888 million children and the prevention of more than 15 million future deaths. At the Global Vaccine Summit in June 2020, world leaders pledged more than $8.8bn to ensure Gavi can continue to amplify this work and immunise another 300 million children by 2025.
Over the past year and half, the crisis created by the COVID-19 pandemic has taken hold. In countries with already fragile health systems, this is likely to have a catastrophic impact. Through the ground-breaking COVAX Facility and the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC), Gavi is working with the international community to take urgent action in accelerating a COVID-19 vaccine and ensure it becomes available to populations no matter where they live. This is the moment where more resources from diverse and sustainable sources are required, and that available financing must be leveraged strategically and efficiently to unlock the greatest level of impact possible. What is needed now is a comprehensive approach to attract, retain, and multiply the financial and business resources of sovereign donors, the private sector, and other development institutions to strategically support countries, partners, and the Gavi secretariat as it seeks to ensure sustainability in its ambitious immunisation programmes and safeguard global health security through helping put together the world’s response to the global COVID-19 crisis.
THE ROLE
The Resource Mobilisation, Private Sector Partnerships & Innovative Finance (RMPSPIF) department supports the Alliance by ensuring sustainable donor financing and enhanced resource innovation. This includes (i) securing pledges for the 2021-2025 period and new additional fundraising efforts to deploy the covid-19 response; (ii) diversifying Gavi’s financing base to include new and emerging donors, development institutions, regional banks, and the private sector (iii) bringing to bear the innovation and resources of the private sector through new and expanded partnerships, innovative financing, and other initiatives; and (iv) leading key fundraising and reporting exercises.
Within RMPSPIF, the New Investors Hub (NIH) is in charge of strategy development and deal structuring with traditional Gavi donors and new investors from emerging economies from Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America. The innovative finance team is providing strategic thinking and support to Gavi’s vaccine bonds through IFFIm (the International Finance Facility for Immunisation) and other innovative mechanisms. Both teams collaborate in implementing Gavi’s resource mobilisation strategy.
MAIN DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES
The Senior Innovative Finance Manager reports to the Director, New Investors Hub with cross-reporting to the Director, Innovative Finance.
Innovative & Development Finance product development
• Proactively generate ideas for innovative and development finance mechanisms suitable to Gavi’s needs and to assigned donor markets and refine these ideas in collaboration with donor managers, the broader Innovative Finance team and external partners;
• Contribute to the development of innovative and blended finance products for the respective donor markets and potential investors;
• Identify and engage upfront with governments, multilateral development banks (MDBs), regional institutions, High-net-worth Individuals (HNWI), private foundations and corporations;
• Structure all the details of innovative and development finance mechanisms and negotiate them with relevant counterparts, including donors, private investors, rating agencies, regional multilateral development banks and others as may be needed.
Innovative & Development Finance business development
• Support in planning, preparation and execution of innovative and development finance business development activities;
• Lead the development of Gavi’s engagement with key platforms in promoting Gavi’s innovative finance strategy in the region and donor markets;
• Help design and drive pitching strategies and elaborate detailed supporting documentation for pitch meetings. Market Gavi’s current and new innovative finance and development mechanisms in order to generate additional resources and investor support for Gavi;
• Achieve closing of innovative and development finance mechanisms, including by actively managing external consultants and working closely with the legal team and external lawyers as may be needed;
• Serve as an innovative finance spokesperson and resource to stakeholders.
Innovative & Development Finance strategy implementation
• Oversee the running of innovative and development finance mechanisms, including by setting up and monitoring relevant systems and controls;
• Track pledges and contributions, acknowledge when necessary, and ensure compliance with grant management system;
• Working closely with donor managers, support grant agreement engagement and renewals with donor governments, foundations, corporations and other players;
• Respond to donor requests in a timely manner and communicate issues to Gavi’s management and across the Gavi Secretariat;
• Fulfil donor reporting requirements included in legal agreements with donors;
• Help build and manage relations with in-market stakeholders, including government, parliamentarians, private sector representatives, civil society partners and other key influencers;
• Serve as the focal point with specific teams (COVAX Facility, legal, finance, and others) whose inputs are critical.
Broader teamwork
• With other team members, contribute to a range of tasks and projects, in accordance with the team objectives.
Note: The essential functions listed in this section are not exhaustive of the job responsibilities; other duties may be assigned consistently with the department needs.
QUALIFICATIONS
ACADEMIC
• Master’s degree or equivalent in business administration, finance, law, engineering, mathematics, economics, or another relevant field.
WORK EXPERIENCE
Essential
• Minimum of 8 years of experience in designing and implementing innovative financial solutions with an international financial institution (IFI), multilateral organisation, or major bank / investment bank in a corporate finance or structured finance environment;
• Experience pitching and presenting to clients;
• Familiarity with political and technical governmental decision-making processes;
• Experience identifying and articulating strategic issues, trade-offs and priorities to provide sound advice;
• Excellent analytical skills;
• Established operational track record of excellence in achieving results.
Desirable
• Experience in the management of a portfolio of donors;
• Familiarity with/understanding of global health and development issues.
SKILLS/COMPETENCIES
• Recognised as a financial innovator;
• Exceptional financial structuring and engineering skills;
• Demonstrated capacity to be conversant with the practical workings of the finance industry, such as international capital markets and private equity sector;
• High performer with a proven track record of operating in a high-pressure environment with tight timelines and often under extreme confidentiality;
• Ability to make decisions and operate independently, as well as judgement to know when to seek guidance;
• Ability to multitask, tracking and managing many active priorities in parallel. Judgement to prioritise between multiple important tasks but not drop other tasks;
• Very highly organised and structured, good planner, with a high level of attention to detail;
• Excellent interpersonal and diplomatic skills and cultural sensitivity to engage with various stakeholders;
• Openness to share openly when appropriate but discretion to protect sensitive information;
• Pro-active, with an ability to anticipate and address needs;
• A good sense of humour;
• A team player, collaborative style, creative and innovative with an engaging personality;
• Travel requirements: 20%.
LANGUAGES
• Fluency in written and spoken English;
• Additional languages an asset.
CONTACTS
• Gavi Secretariat;
• Gavi Board members;
• Developing and donor country governments;
• Financial institutions, private sector corporations, foundations, and high net-worth individuals;
• International financial institutions, multilateral development banks, UN, multilateral & bilateral agencies, civil society organisations.
If you wish to apply, please provide a cover letter and resume through our Careers webpage and apply by clicking on “Senior Manager, Innovative Finance”. Deadline for applications is 1 March 2022.
Please note that as a vaccine organisation and in order to provide duty of care towards its employees, Gavi is requiring its new employees to confirm that they are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 as a condition for pursuing employment with us. You can find out more by visiting this link.
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Gavi brings together the public and private sectors to save lives and protect people’s health by increasing equitable and sustainable use of vaccines against 18 infectious diseases. You will be joining an organisation at the centre of the international COVID-19 response, at the most critical time in global health in a lifetime. You will work in a culturally diverse environment with over 70 nationalities. You will collaborate with partners such as WHO, UNICEF, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the World Bank – and from business, civil society and government.
And you will work in the first global health organisation to receive equal gender salary certification. Your unique experience, skills and talents can help us achieve our vision of leaving no one behind without the life-saving power of vaccines.
In support of Gavi’s commitment to diversity, equality and inclusion, we hire globally and welcome applications regardless of age, disability, ethnicity, national origin, family status, sex, gender identity or expression, physical characteristics, race, religion, spirituality or sexual orientation.