Country Head Cote d'Ivoire

Job Introduction

TBI has been supporting the Government of Côte d’Ivoire since January 2019 to achieve its economic transformation goals through value addition to its primary products, focusing on cashew processing and reviving textile and apparel manufacturing.

Upon President Ouattara’s re-election in October 2020, TBI is looking to continue supporting the Government of Côte d’Ivoire on delivering key priorities, including sector development, investment facilitation as well as implementing technological solutions to improve public services. 

TBI’s work will centre on supporting the Government of Côte d’Ivoire adopt evidence-based strategies that are pragmatic and provide tangible results in the near term while building momentum for longer-term economic transformation. A strong focus of our work is to support the Government of Côte d’Ivoire strengthen its delivery and implementation mechanisms to drive results, including through coordination with internal and external stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­The Country Head role is an important role in the TBI Government Advisory Division.

The Country Head provides leadership and management to the project, sets and delivers project goals, maintains relations with the Heads of State as well as senior government counterparts, manages the project budget and impact of work, drives in-country fundraising, ensures a successful technology for development programme, and provides the link between the Côte d’Ivoire project team and the rest of the organisation.

The Country Head is ultimately accountable for project success and delivery as per agreed upon mandate between the Government of Côte d’Ivoire and TBI. This is a demanding role, which calls for strategic leadership, innovative thinking, management skills and diplomacy.

The key competencies that we look for in our Country Heads are set out within the duties below:

Understand and engage with principal stakeholders

• Build relationships with the President and the Prime Minister, their direct teams and advisors as well as key officials in charge of priority sectors TBI is involved in, with a view to enhancing delivery as well as converting emerging opportunities that are beneficial for the country
• Be propositional and support the development of transformational technology solutions that are at the core of the President’s development vision, particularly in the areas of digital services, healthtech, agtech, manufacturing and industrialisation, among others 
• Build a clear understanding of the wider country context, including the role of development partners, local and international private sector and other key players
• Deploy resources outside of the team –  including TBI’s leadership, sector practices, relevant central teams and strategic partnerships within TBI’s network – to support partner governments where appropriate

Set the strategic direction of the project and, together with the executive management, lead the annual project strategy setting, quarterly performance reviews and measurement of impact

• Develop a strategic direction for the project based on TBI’s mission and approach within the particular country context
• Look at how the wider TBI model can be applied in the Côte d’Ivoire context using an agile methodology to test, learn and iterate quickly to meet government needs
• Lead the annual strategy setting process for the country project and the quarterly review process to assess whether the strategy is ‘working’ and to adapt rapidly in response to new challenges and opportunities
• Using the organisational Theory of Change and impact tools to ensure the project has a clear measurement framework

Contribute to wider leadership and development of TBI

• Contribute to the wider leadership and development of TBI as an organisation by engaging in corporate decisions both within the Governance pillar and the wider organisation
• Contribute to organisational learning by identifying innovations and factors which contribute to or inhibit success and impact

Build and maintain a license to operate

• Ensure that risks to the project and staff are identified and managed adequately and emergency protocols are in place to maximise the safety and well-being of their team, including ensuring all security and safety protocols are upheld and kept up to date
• Ensure timely completion of financial processes e.g. invoices and country tracker, and review and approve all services and suppliers relating to the project
• Set and manage the project budget, including putting in place appropriate financial controls
• Ensure that all legal requirements are met for operating in country, including initiating and supporting all legal status activities relating to the project and TBI staff in country
• Ensure policies, procedures and the Code of Conduct are adhered to at all times

Delivering through your team

• Build and lead a high caliber advisory team that is bought into the shared strategy, is aligned across workstreams, solves problems together and holds each other accountable for impact
• Supervise TBI staff, including participating in the hiring, professional development and evaluation process, setting specific goals and providing ongoing performance feedback.
• Performance manage staff effectively, including building a culture of feedback and nurturing the next generation of TBI leaders
• Ensure strong teamwork across the team at all times and provide support as needed to team members

Person Specification

We are looking for outstanding individuals with a proven track record of leadership and delivery in the public or private sectors. All candidates will be required to have at least 10 years of experience in a leadership role, managing medium to large teams and project budgets.

Above all, we are looking for individuals with high levels of enthusiasm, resilience, adaptability and a can-do attitude. We seek to create international and multi-disciplinary teams and are looking for individuals with a solid background in public/civil services worldwide, strategy consulting, finance or international development.

• The ability to work and interact at the highest levels of political life in Côte d’Ivoire; have strong political acumen; being able to develop an understanding of the needs of senior officials
• An ability to work independently, think strategically and translate strategies into concrete and implementable plans; an acute attention to detail with excellent analytical, organisational, and communication skills
• Excellent inter-personal skills and ability to work both independently and as part of a wider team
• Proven strong abilities and experience leading and managing people and teams
• Experience with project development and project management
• Ability to liaise with partner governments, the private sector, and key stakeholders (e.g. donors) to deliver the requirements of the role, including a realistic fundraising strategy for the project
• A strong understanding of deliverology
• Willingness to travel, sometimes at short notice
• Experience of identifying and resolving project bottlenecks by thinking creatively
• Strong sense of ethics, discretion and perseverance required
• Experience of living and working in developing countries is strongly desirable
• Fluency in English and French is required

About The Institute

The Tony Blair Institute (TBI) is a mission-driven not for profit organisation. We exist to equip political leaders and governments to build open, inclusive and prosperous societies. We work hard, every day, to make a difference. When governments work well they are able to create economic and social change in a way that promotes fairness, social justice and opportunity. We work relentlessly to support leader and governments with the challenges they face. Giving them practical solutions and actionable insights, that once implemented, can be transformative for their people  

We do this within two connected divisions: 

 Government Advisory 

Our Advisory Practice works directly with political leaders and governments around the world to implement reforms that improve the lives of their citizens. It has both non-profit partners and a client base and its outputs cover a range of disciplines and projects across countries in Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and South Asia. We are currently in a rapid expansion phase from c. 18 countries at present, to 30 by December 2022.

 Policy Futures 

Our Policy Futures work encompasses three broad areas: 

• Renewing the Centre: developing a bold and innovative domestic policy programme to help renew the centre ground of British politics; 
• Tech and Public Policy: exploring the policy challenges and opportunities presented by the technological revolution; and 
• Extremism Policy Unit: creating solutions designed to tackle the threat of extremist ideologies in the UK and around the world. 

As an organisation, the core beliefs we all embrace are: 

• Open and Progressive: you’ll believe in the value of teamwork 
• Bold and Pragmatic: you’ll approach everything you do with integrity and authenticity 
• Optimistic Changemaker: you’ll be focused on results 

TBI believes embracing diversity and inclusion make us a better place to work.  It’s our goal to reflect everyone in society and we actively welcome applications from individuals and groups who are under-represented in the workplace. We celebrate difference be it ethnicity, religion, age, gender or gender identity, sexual orientation or disability. We will only ever assess you on your abilities and fit for a role. We’re happy to discuss any adjustments you need to ensure a level playing field during recruitment and, if you\'re successful, discuss any adjustments you might need to thrive in your role.