Business Development Specialist

Location

Location negotiable within the United States.

About Us

Since 1951, The Nature Conservancy has been doing work you can believe in protecting the lands and waters that all life depends on. As a science-based organization, we create innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that we can create a world in which people and nature thrive.

 We’re rooted in our Mission and guided by our Values, which includes a Commitment to Diversity and Respect for People, Communities, and Cultures. We know we’ll only achieve our Mission by hiring and engaging a diverse workforce that reflects the communities in which we work. Whether it’s career development, work/life balance, or a rewarding mission, there’s lots of reasons to love life #insideTNC. Our goal is to cultivate an inclusive work environment so that all of our colleagues around the globe feel a sense of belonging, and that their unique contributions to our mission are valued.

Position Summary

The Business Development Specialist II is a member of the Worldwide Office External Affairs team. They coordinate creation of grant proposals and act as a lead or supporting writer for cross-cutting, cross-geography public funding proposals.

The Business Development Specialist serves as writer/editor with responsibility for writing and editing a variety of public funding proposals that make a strong connection with The Nature Conservancy’s key audiences, and persuasively communicate TNC’s mission and programs to potential public funders to bring in public funds in support of our conservation mission. The Specialist utilizes their excellent writing, analytical, and research skills to craft public funding proposals in a clear and compelling manner. They will utilize their experience preparing public funding proposals, including technical text, budget and log frame to help TNC achieve our conservation goals. The Specialist will provide coordination support to keep multiple projects moving in a timely manner, meet deadlines, and manage supplemental materials required for proposals in consultation with budget and finance staff and other internal stakeholders. They will seek and synthesize information and communicate in a convincing and succinct form to all stakeholders. They participate in strategy and proposal development in collaboration with internal departments and teams to meet specific goals and funding targets. The Specialist supports the management and maintenance of a system to identify and prioritize funding proposal support requests. They support the development and management of internal proposal writing processes. They will support the maintenance of TNC’s information database for public funding proposals.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in related field and a minimum 7 years’ related experience or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Experience with competitive proposal processes and the role of a proposal writer in those processes.
• Experience managing multiple complex proposal development projects.
• Experience in understanding of budgets as they relate to grant proposals.
• Experience presenting to diverse audiences including some or all of the following: internal and external executives, donors, members, board members, and the public or equivalent.
• Experience manipulating, analyzing and interpreting data.
• Experience with US-based and/or multilateral public funding agencies.
• Experience with analytical and research skills.
• Experience with communication skills, spoken and written, in English.

Desired Qualifications  

• Demonstrated experience writing, editing and proofreading public funding proposals, including technical text.
• Demonstrated experience writing successful large-scale (> USD 1mil) public funding proposals, especially proposals to United Stated Agency for international Development (USAID), Global Environment Facility (GEF), and Green Climate Fund (GCF), and/or other major public donors.
• Multi-lingual skills and multi-cultural or cross-cultural experiences are appreciated.
• Self-motivated, detail-oriented, and highly organized.
• Experience developing and managing cross-team client relationships.
• Experience in leading or managing proposal development team.
• Experience working effectively in a matrixed organization.
• Strong interpersonal skills, including ability to negotiate, influence, and persuade.
• Familiarity with public grant best practices and/or technologies.
• Knowledge and application of current and evolving trends in public funding.