BUSINESS FINANCE SPECIALIST

CALL FOR BUSINESS FINANCE SPECIALIST

1. Background of the Organization

CARE is an international humanitarian and development organization without religious, political or government affiliation. CARE is committed to protecting and promoting the rights of vulnerable girls and boys, women and men and improving the lives of refugees and host communities alike.

CARE works at national, municipality and at the community level to develop customized solutions and ensure long-term sustainability as well as respond to basic needs. We design projects that fall into alignment with national priorities and be owned by communities. Our interventions range across clean water, affordable sanitation and community healthcare and sexual and reproductive health rights programs, economic opportunities, and protection.  Across program areas, CARE’s activities are guided by a rights-based, holistic, gender-sensitive/transformative, and inclusive approach.

CARE International has been operational in Lebanon since 2013 and works across the country.

2. Terms of Reference

CARE is seeking a Business Finance specialist to conduct a customized BDS support to start up and micro enterprises suffering from accounting / financial issues.  These nascent and micro entities will be supported to become more viable and sustainable through coaching support that addresses the main obstacles to their growth. For example, Business finance support could aim to improve the cost structure, and the profitability of target enterprises and to support them in the access to finance.

Following the profiling and selection stages, tailored financial and accounting coaching and capacity building schemes will be available to the entities and optimized for each enterprise depending on identified needs.

By the end of the coaching process, the Consortium will have developed a relationship of trust with entrepreneurs. Sufficient information to evaluate their sustainability and capacity to spend them in a profitable way will be collected and assessed.

CARE is aiming to provide individualized Coaching to pre-identified entities in Tripoli and Mount Lebanon. The Coaching program’s objective is focused on providing tangible customized business service support to enterprises. The program entails conducting a needs assessment of the business areas of development for the enterprise. In collaboration with CARE Project Manager, Business finance specialist will design and implement a tailored Coaching program for the enterprise to address their identified needs for the prioritized challenges at the level of financial and accounting levels.

The support can address many areas, including:

• Strategic financial planning
• Financial management
• Feasibility study / business plan
• Financial and tax advice
• Cost Analysis
• Setting up a financial and accounting system
• Developing accounting and financial templates and dashboards
• Review the business model to ensure financial viability and sustainability
• Alternative financing mechanisms (helping them apply for a loan, subsidized loan, target potential investors, etc.)

3. Deliverables

• Initial BDS training outline for Nano and self-employed entities
• Assessment report of the selected enterprises containing a list of the intervention / support areas (scope) along with the final list of documents to be delivered (related to the intervention / support areas)
• Business development plan (PIP), detailing identified needs and the content of coaching sessions and tools, as well as the delivery timeline
• Development of progress monitoring forms and tools
• Delivery of coaching sessions
• Development of a business strategy plan or the document (s) identified in the assessment report for the enterprise (feasibility study, cost analysis, etc.).
• Evaluation report detailing the progress of the enterprises and outlining steps for future improvement (this document could include an updated business plan) and the implementation steps
• Provision of the implementation support and follow up coaching sessions
• Final Report of the enterprise that includes: the design of the coaching, the coaching templates, the challenges, lesson learnt, the targets achieved, analysis of the data collected (segregation of the beneficiaries based on gender, age, and nationality)

4. Qualifications:

• 5-10 years of proven work experience in business management and BDS support
• Demonstrated experience in providing mentorship and/or coaching and business development support to enterprises (particularly to Micro enterprises and startups); entrepreneurship and vocational training is a plus
• Proven training experience
• Master’s Degree in a business or related field
• Familiarity with the Lebanese economy, market, and job market
• Proven facilitation and coaching skills
• Experience in working with enterprises in similar contexts
• Diversified technical and administrative backgrounds
• Very good communication, coordination and diplomacy.
• Integrity, fairness and impartiality.
• Ability to manage sensitive cases and confidential information.
• Ability to work under pressure

Desirable

• Experience in local livelihoods and economic development programmes
• Knowledge of the socio-economic circumstances in urban Tripoli. 
• Strong capacity to interface with local communities and with beneficiary groups.
• Social entrepreneurship knowledge

5. Timeframe

The BDS support will take place from July 2018 till March 2020