Senior Operations Officer

Job #:	130335
Title:	Senior Operations Officer
Job Stream:	Technical Assistance & Advisory Services
Location:	To Be Determined
Closing Date:	09/25/2013
Background / General description:
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, promotes sustainable private sector investment in developing countries as a way to reduce poverty and improve people’s lives. In addition to its investment work, IFC provides advisory services to a number of its clients to support them in meeting specific development goals. IFC’s support to the financial sector is implemented via its Access to Finance Business (A2F) Line and is organized around the following main themes: • Retail/Household Finance: Microfinance, Mobile Financial Services, Housing Finance, Rural Finance, Responsible Finance. • MSME Finance: SME Finance, Sustainable Energy Finance, Insurance, Agrifinance, Leasing, Trade Finance, Gender, Risk Management and Corporate Governance. • Financial Infrastructure: Credit Reporting, Collateral Registries and Secured Transactions, Securities Markets  These services are delivered through regional Advisory Services (AS) teams, with support from global product specialists, and in partnership with IFC’s Investment Services (IS) teams. Access to Finance in South Asia IFC defines the South Asia region as India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. The A2F business line includes projects in microfinance, payments and payments regulations, affordable housing finance, SME finance, agrifinance, sustainable energy finance, insurance, credit bureaus, and capital markets. The A2F program has grown significantly over the past three years, and the team is actively engaged with more than 55 projects across the region. The existing SME finance portfolio includes multiple banks across the region, with several large and/or innovative projects, and SME finance is a growth area for the region. The team is already working with several banks and MFIs on risk management, and this is a priority focus. SME Banking Advisory Services SMEs are a primary driver of job creation and economic growth. SMEs greatly contribute to economic diversification and social stability and they play an important role for private sector development. However, SME development also represents a significant challenge. SMEs typically face more severe constraints to growth than large companies, with their lack of critical mass resulting in reduced access to markets, skills and capital. SMEs, particularly in developing countries, have historically lacked access to financial products and services. Microfinance institutions have emerged to serve the smallest of these enterprises, while banking institutions have typically concentrated on large corporations. SMEs fall between these two markets where there is a finance gap commonly described as the “missing middle”. IFC provides advisory services to financial institutions around the world, with a large focus on helping banks develop and improve their SME banking operations. The objective of such advisory services is to increase SMEs’ access to financing in the developing world, bridging the SME finance gap by fostering emerging markets financial institutions’ appetite and ability to efficiently target the SME segment. The work leverages IFC’s long track record of investment and advisory services in commercial and retail financial institutions, and has a strong developmental impact, namely by: (1) addressing the SME finance gap; (2) helping to develop a sustainable SME banking sector through capacity-building; (3) deepening financial markets and stimulating competition in the SME banking sector; (4) disseminating SME banking best practices and skills in developing markets; and (5) supporting employment generation through the resultant growth of SMEs. IFC’s work in risk management is well established both globally and in South Asia, with several projects underway. The risk management program includes risk assessments such as risk diagnostics, and contributing to projects with risk management components focusing mostly on credit risk for retail and SME lending.
Duties and Accountabilities:
IFC is seeking to recruit a highly-motivated regional SME finance and Risk Management (SME/RM) specialist for South Asia. The Specialist should have extensive hands-on experience in designing and managing projects related to the implementation of SME/RM operations globally, and ideally in South Asia. The Specialist will be responsible for developing a strategy and leading the delivery of the South Asia SME banking and RM program. He/she will be part of the regional Access to Finance (A2F) advisory services team and will coordinate with Investment Services teams and global SME/RM specialists. He/ she will work with A2F colleagues to expand the portfolio of client projects in the region. He/she will also support a substantial knowledge and learning agenda for SME banking and RM in partnership with the global SME banking team and the global RM specialist, and will be expected to contribute to tools and standards that are disseminated globally. The position could be based in New Delhi or Mumbai depending on the business needs. The Specialist will be expected to spend the bulk of his/her time working on project implementation in South Asia but should plan on contributing some of his/her time (10%) to the global learning agenda and supporting projects in other regions, so that knowledge and learning from South Asia can be transferred out and lessons learned in other regions transferred into South Asia.  Specific tasks include: Strategy and Innovation: • Help to develop the SME Banking Advisory Services strategy in South Asia, with a focus on achieving high developmental impact (defined as expanding access to finance for SMEs) and ensure alignment with IFC’s strategic objectives in South Asia more generally;  • Ensure innovative approaches are developed/ imported, tailored and applied in relevant markets in South Asia;  • Contribute to a global strategy for SME banking, based on best practices and learning in South Asia;  Business Development: • Lead the development of a project portfolio in SME banking in South Asia, identifying and vetting prospective clients in partnership with other SME banking and regional IFC AS operational staff, the global specialist team and investment teams; • Develop partnership proposals for prospective clients on the basis of appraisals of their operations and on-going business development discussions;  • Guide projects through IFC’s internal approval process, ensuring that lessons learned world-wide are appropriately taken into account in the design of new projects; Project Implementation and Technical Support: • Manage implementation of the South Asia SME banking activities, under the supervision of the A2F Regional Business Line Manager and in coordination with the Global SME Product Leader;  • Monitor implementation and progress of SME banking projects and recommend corrective actions where/if necessary; • Supervise consultant work to ensure high quality and on-time delivery of work program; • Support IFC SME banking investment efforts, by interacting closely with the Global Financial Markets industry department; this will include supporting the vetting of potential investment clients, pipeline identification and participation in joint investment-advisory appraisals, where appropriate;  Results Measurement and Learning: • Collaborate closely with the South Asia Monitoring & Evaluation Officer, to ensure that evaluation activities are embedded into project design and implementation;  • Oversee development of necessary approval documents, supervision and completion reports, and review for quality control; Knowledge Management: • Contribute to the design and development of internal and external knowledge management events to share product lessons and experience, and to learn from others; • Support global dissemination of knowledge through participation in regular practice group meetings with peer specialists, conducting appraisal missions in other regions and on-going contribution of client-tested SME banking tools; • Contribute regularly towards IFC’s knowledge management initiatives through participation in knowledge platforms and through contributions in discussion boards, blogs and posts.  Resource Management: • Provide technical mentoring to the South Asia team working on IFC’s SME banking client engagements;  • As required, provide feedback on performance of specific regional staff; • Support the identification and selection of short-term consultants/firms to deliver agreed programs of work with clients;  • Help raise additional donor funding for the SME banking program in the region; • Ensure appropriate utilization of budgeted resources for SME banking. Relationship Management • Support the South Asia SME+RM team to develop new initiatives/projects, leading innovation and keeping abreast/influencing industry developments; • Develop and maintain relationships with key South Asia players in the SME/RM area, in coordination with other areas of IFC and with the global product specialists for SME and RM; • Maintain strong relationships with relevant IFC Managers in the region so that the product strategy is well aligned and projects can be deployed and executed efficiently;  • Foster strong relationships with counterparts in the World Bank Group, as well as in other private and public financial institutions to identify collaboration opportunities and to enhance client and business delivery; • Work collaboratively within the matrix to deliver impact for clients and IFC. Reporting Line  This position reports directly to the South Asia Regional Business Line Manager for Access to Finance, with a secondary reporting line to the Global SME Finance Lead.
Selection Criteria:
• Earned MBA, Master of Finance, Master of Public Policy or other relevant qualification; • At least 12 years of operational banking and consulting experience in financial services internationally in developed and emerging markets, with direct experience in SME banking to expand access to financial services to SMEs.  • Experience in risk management, especially in credit risk for retail and SME lending. • Experience in designing SME banking advisory programs in South Asia is a plus. • Recognized leadership in the banking, consulting or development finance communities, particularly in access to finance. • Strong familiarity with international best market practices and global trends in SME banking. Experience in due diligence exercises for advisory or investments engagements in emerging market financial institutions, with a demonstrated ability to identify problems and propose solutions to clients.  • Strong client relationship management skills and ability to establish credibility among clients.  • Ability to work effectively in teams, communicate ideas clearly and confidently, articulate issues and recommend solutions.  • Proven project management and leadership skills. Ability to manage IFC staff and consultants to deliver high quality results. • Commitment to quality service and drive to exceed expectations. • Ability to work independently and to lead and motivate teams to multi-task, deal with conflicting priorities, and deliver high quality work on schedule • Strong analytical skills, including ability to review and evaluate projects and business operations on technical, commercial, managerial, and financial grounds. • Advanced interpersonal skills and demonstrated capacity to network and work with a wide range of stakeholders within and outside IFC / the World Bank Group, including financial institutions, businesses, international organizations, support institutions (such as associations) and government authorities. • Excellent communication skills in English; fluency in a South Asian language a plus.  • Willingness to travel regularly within South Asia.

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