Program Officer, Partnerships at CARE

Program Officer, Partnerships at CARE | Iko Kazi

JOB SUMMARY:

The Program Officer, Partnerships is the operational engine of CARE USA's global partnership function within the Program Strategy & Innovation (PSI) division, supporting both the AVP, Program Strategy & Partnerships and the Director of Partnerships. This role is responsible for managing CARE's strategic partnership pipeline, coordinating due diligence and agreement processes, maintaining partnership knowledge systems, and ensuring that all active partnership tracks progress on schedule and to a high standard.
Beyond the partnerships portfolio, the Program Coordinator maintains and manages the workflow processes and tracking systems used across the wider Program Strategy & Partnerships function — including the Bid Pipeline Management tracker, the IPO/PSI tracker, and other trackers as they arise. Partnerships remain the role's primary focus, with broader workflow support as a secondary but ongoing responsibility.
Working closely with the Director of Partnerships and the AVP of Program Strategy & Partnerships, the Program Coordinator ensures that CARE's global partner engagements — spanning corporate foundations, development finance institutions, social impact investors, and private sector alliances — are well-managed, well-documented, and move efficiently from identification through to signed agreement and active implementation.
The ideal candidate is highly organized, proactive, and skilled at managing complex multi-stakeholder workflows. They produce high-quality written materials and are comfortable working across functions and time zones to keep fast-moving partnership tracks on track.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

Partnership Pipeline and Cross-Functional Workflow Management

Own and maintain CARE's global partnership tracker as the primary focus of this role, ensuring all active tracks are up to date on status, outstanding actions, and ownership across the full portfolio.
Support the AVP, Program Strategy & Partnerships and the Director of Partnerships by maintaining and managing workflow processes and tracking systems across the wider Program Strategy & Partnerships function, including the Bid Pipeline Management tracker, the IPO/PSI tracker, and other trackers as they arise.
Provide a weekly pipeline status summary to the Director of Partnerships and AVP, clearly flagging risks, blockers, and time-sensitive items requiring escalation.
Coordinate follow-up actions, meeting logistics, and documentation across all active partnership and workflow tracks, ensuring continuity between engagements.
Maintain a consolidated portfolio view across partner type, stage of engagement, and alignment to PSI signature programs, enabling informed decision-making by the Director and AVP.
Conduct targeted desk research to support partner identification, landscape mapping, and opportunity assessment as directed by the Director of Partnerships.

Due Diligence and Agreement Coordination

Drive the MOU, partnership framework, and agreement tracking process — monitoring status, flagging outstanding legal or signature items, and escalating to the Director within 24 hours of identification.
Coordinate with CARE's Legal and Compliance teams to support due diligence workflows, compile required documentation, and manage review timelines to ensure submissions are complete and on schedule.
Manage review cycles for concept notes and partnership proposals — consolidating inputs from PSI technical leads, managing timelines, and ensuring documents are finalized ahead of agreed deadlines.
Maintain a coordination log for all active concept notes, proposals, and agreements, documenting outstanding decisions, approvals, and next steps.
Support budget development and MEL framework processes related to partnerships by tracking inputs, consolidating versions, and managing review and approval workflows.

Partnership Materials and External Communications

Coordinate the development of partnership-facing materials including pitch decks, one-pagers, briefing notes, and talking points — managing timelines, routing for review, and ensuring final versions are delivered at least 48 hours ahead of partner meetings or events.
Prepare and circulate pre-meeting briefings and post-meeting action logs for all partnership engagements involving the Director or AVP.
Support the drafting of partner communications, progress reports, and proposal narratives as directed by the Director of Partnerships.
Contribute to the development of communication materials, case studies, and success stories highlighting the impact of CARE's strategic partnerships for internal and external audiences.

Partnership Knowledge Management and Internal Capacity

Establish and manage a Partnership Learning Hub to organize, document, and share best practices, tools, templates, and lessons learned across PSI and with key stakeholders, including Resource Development and Advocacy.
Design and maintain partnership tools and templates that strengthen the partnership management capabilities of PSI technical teams, enabling them to engage more effectively with strategic partners.
Disseminate key findings and learning from partnership activities via presentations and written summaries at relevant internal CARE forums and communities of practice.
Analyze partnership portfolio data to identify patterns, surface insights, and support adaptive management by the Director and AVP.

Required Qualifications:

Bachelor's degree in International Development, Business, Public Policy, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and work experience.
Minimum 5–7 years of experience in partnership coordination, program management, or external relations in the international development or social impact sector.
Demonstrated experience managing complex multi-stakeholder workflows, timelines, and deliverables across multiple concurrent workstreams.
Experience coordinating legal or compliance review processes, including MOUs, partnership frameworks, or grant agreements.
Strong proficiency in partnership or project tracking systems, document management platforms, and productivity tools (e.g. Salesforce, Asana, SharePoint, or similar).
Excellent written communication skills, with demonstrated ability to produce high-quality materials for external audiences including briefings, one-pagers, and proposals.
Demonstrated ability to build and manage relationships with diverse actors across the international development sector.
Ability to prioritise and manage diverse tasks across multiple projects to meet competing time and resource constraints with minimal supervision.

Preferred Qualifications:

Master's degree in a relevant field.
Familiarity with CARE's technical focus areas (gender equality, climate, food systems, women's economic empowerment).
Experience supporting fundraising, proposal development, or resource mobilisation processes.
Knowledge of blended finance, ESG-aligned partnerships, or private-sector engagement models.
Experience maintaining workflow or tracking systems on behalf of a broader team or function, beyond a single portfolio.
French and/or Spanish language skills are a plus.

Program Officer, Partnerships at CARE

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Program Officer, Partnerships at CARE

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