Jobs at Tony Blair Institute for Global Change

Key Responsibilities
To support the CoG Secretariat in the establishment and utilisation of delivery structures to support delivery of its mandate.

The Consultant will perform the following duties and responsibilities:

• Lead a study of Service Delivery Units (SDUs) in 7 select counties (Nyandarua, Kwale, Isiolo, Makueni, Bomet, Kakamega and Siaya – representative of each of the Country’s economic regional blocs) to establish whether the SDUs in those counties were able to catalyze transformation or not; and provide recommendations
• Design, establish and operationalise a Delivery Unit for the Council of Governors Secretariat to include expert advice on how to operate delivery units, including organisational structures, relevant competency requirements, as well as relevant processes, tools and methodologies for tracking and advancing the delivery of specific priority projects
• Develop a strategic framework to support implementation of the counties development agenda through a structured delivery approach
• Develop and operationalise the approach to support identification and prioritization of the key focus areas
• Develop the strategic framework for alignment of the national and county government development priorities to enable coherence in the development agenda, collective impact, and overall transformation of the country’s economic development agenda to achieve the desired impact of the citizens
• Provide training and facilitate skills transfer to CoG and TBI colleagues on delivery tools and methodologies
• Drive the team’s internal knowledge management efforts on delivery and avail it for others

Person Specification

• Significant experience in a leadership role, cutting across centers of government, governance, delivery and management consulting in Africa
• Experience working with African governments, particularly Kenya; prior experience engaging with leaders at the devolved level would be an advantage
• The ability to work and interact at the highest levels of political decision-making structures in Government and to support emergence of trusted relationships
• Strong political acumen and judgment coupled with the ability to rapidly develop an understanding of the needs of senior officials in government
• Proven track record of delivery – whether policy, operational or functional – is essential, as is relevant experience of working in a project and programme management environment in devolved systems of governance
• Good understanding of the National and County Government levels of devolved structures in Kenya. Prior work with the Government of Kenya highly desirable.
• An ability to work independently, think strategically and translate strategies into concrete and implementable plans; strong attention to detail with excellent analytical, organizational, communication and presentation skills.
• Strong sense of ethics, resilience and excellent inter-personal skills
• Experience of living and working in developing countries is highly desirable
• Fluency in English is required. Swahili would be advantageous.
• Right to live and work in Kenya required

Functional Skills

• Sound devolution knowledge in line with the 2010 Constitution of Kenya and County Government Structures and functions
• Exceptional problem-solving and analytical skills and high-quality communication, drafting and presentational skills
• Excellent in building and managing effective relationships including the ability to navigate complex political environments
• Strong professional oral and writing skills, including the development of reports, oral presentations, and technical/persuasive documents for consideration at the highest levels of the governments and key partners and stakeholders
• Ability to work under pressure and to coordinate with multi-disciplinary stakeholders
• Ability to present information in a concise, insightful, and structured manner, written and oral

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Key Responsibilities

This is a senior role within TBI and will be held by an exceptional candidate with deep and extensive experience in digital infrastructure, consulting and/or government advisory work.

Key responsibilities will include:

Strategy and programme development

• Design and advance the NDI strategy, which defines our approach to supporting countries with digital infrastructure
• Develop a repository of NDI assets to implement and scale the programme across TBI’s growing Government Advisory presence in Africa, Eastern Europe, Asia, and the Americas
• Work closely with other Leads and the Global Innovation Unit team to enable the broader tech and cross-sector strategy (e.g. working with the investment practice to help governments secure funding for digital infra investment)
• Work closely with country-based Senior Tech Advisors, embedded government advisors, and relevant country team staff; provide technical expertise and thought partnership to scope and design opportunities in support of countries’ top challenges, leveraging disruptive technology, generating innovative solutions, and framing them in a compelling way
• Identify and apply emerging trends and opportunities for digital infrastructure and keep TBI on the cutting edge of technology innovation – including AI – drawing from the thought leadership of the Policy & Politics team

External engagement and partnerships

• Develop and enhance our relationships with leading innovators, technology companies, implementation partners, and thought leaders in the digital infrastructure space, deepening our understanding of emerging innovation and improving our offer to governments
• In line with TBI’s partnerships strategy and the Tomorrow Partnership platform, help to identify, curate, and secure technology partnerships
• With existing and future strategic infrastructure partners (and working closely with TBI Partnerships & Initiatives colleagues) collaborate with senior-level counterparts on the successful implementation of digital infrastructure solutions
• Provide senior-level representation and presentations for TBI at external fora and events
• Engage with relevant external stakeholders such as other not-for-profit organisations, donors, suppliers and agencies

Programmatic delivery

• Ensure the global portfolio of digital infrastructure initiatives form a cohesive programme; help foster a pipeline of new initiatives that leverage and build on previous learnings
• Support country teams to maintain effective and trusted government relationships which enable the successful delivery of our digital infrastructure initiatives. Where required develop relationships with relevant country counterparts and stakeholders (e.g. MinICT). Support teams to effectively manage expectations of government counterparts
• Work with Director for Digital and Tech Transformation and Advisory leadership to troubleshoot and ensure country teams can access the best of the Institute to support their work
• Lead the development of assessment frameworks, feasibility reviews, and financial and investment models TBI teams can use with government counterparts to inform decisions on the adoption of cloud, connectivity solutions, etc.

Enabling Systems

• Support the development of training materials and collateral to ensure TBI country teams and government counterparts understand the implications and added value of various digital infrastructure solutions and offers
• Work closely with the TBI Evidence and Impact teams to contribute to a learning culture which effectively captures and utilises lessons to continuously improve our work
• Support country and regional teams as needed to attract and hire, leading talent in support of our work, contributing to the recruit, induction and support for new hires and mentoring and coaching where needed
• Shape and embody a positive culture that drives innovation and delivery. Play a key role in the broader community at TBI, building strong working relationships across the Institute

Person Specification

We are looking for an experienced candidate:

• Considered an expert and thought leader in digital infrastructure, with a strong technical understanding of cloud, data centre, and the range of connectivity platforms (fixed, mobile, satellite etc.) and their respective strengths and weaknesses. In addition, an understanding of the policy & regulatory environment, financial models and technology partnerships needed to deliver and sustain the infrastructure
• Significant relevant experience in management consulting, government advisory, or technology consulting
• Understanding of government functional priorities and challenges in emerging economies, with experience in Africa, Eastern Europe, and/or Asia
• Demonstrable experience in technology enterprises or programmes
• Strategic, entrepreneurial, pragmatically optimistic and can challenge the status-quo and develop plans for successful delivery of challenging, ambitious objectives
• Outstanding management and strategy skills -- able to set strategic direction, inspire teams to collaboratively achieve exceptional objectives, and not afraid to be hands-on to achieve results
• Track record of cultivating and maintaining strategic alliances and partnerships across public, social, and private sector organisations
• Skilled communicator and influencer, from executive office level through to technical level, is adept at speaking to senior leadership
• Adept at navigating ambiguous environments and is comfortable at managing up and beyond hierarchy
• Comfortable speaking in public forums and representing the institute on the global stage
• Experience working internationally, within a diverse range of cultures, and fosters a positive spirit of collaboration
• Comfortable to travel about 20- 30% of the time to global locations across Africa, Eastern Europe, and Asia

The following is also desirable:

• Experience in the end-to-end delivery of digital/tech products or services within government or private sector
• Experience in financial models and investment for large-scale digital infrastructure projects
• Experience engaging or working on public policy as an enabler of digital transformation (e.g. data sovereignty and privacy)