NGOs and Non-Profits: The Career Landscape

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International Development:
The Career Landscape
featuring:
Kami Dar
Managing Partner and Global
Head of Development Innovation at
Hosted by:
LeeAnn Mutchler
Evisors Director of European Business Development

What is international
development?
• Alleviating poverty and improving living conditions in developing and
emerging economies
• Includes governance, healthcare, education, gender equality,
disaster preparedness, agriculture, infrastructure, economics,
human rights, environment
• Humanitarian relief vs. International Development
• Money mostly comes from governments and multi-lateral
organizations and to a lesser but increasing extent, private
companies
• Projects typically implemented by NGOs and consulting firms

About Devex
• Social enterprise founded in 2000 with mission to
make aid more efficient  greater impact
• 100 staff in 4 offices worldwide and growing
• 500,000 professionals and 1,000 organizations
• Recruitment, business development, news & analysis
• Connect and network

Employment Landscape

Hiring Trends
• Follow the money
• What are the hot sectors and regions in foreign aid & development?
-Countries: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sudan
-Sectors: Global health, Infrastructure/Engineering, Economic
development, Climate Change
• Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E)
• Private sector engagement

Hiring Trends:
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Public
Private Partnerships (PPPs)
• Business meets aid
• CSR: Shared mission targeting communities
• PPPs: Two-fold objective to better lives and business
• Devex Impact: “Business Transforming Development”

Types of Jobs
• Technical Experts
• Program Management
• Research
• Fundraising
• Business Development
• HR/Recruiting
• Logistics/Operations
• Communications/Advocacy
• Finance/Budget/Contracting
• Grants Management

Types of Employers
• Consulting Firms & Implementing NGOs
• Donor Agencies & IFIs
• Advocacy NGOs
• Private Foundations
• Corporate/CSR
• Suppliers
• Think Tanks/Institutes

Reality Check
• The image of humanitarian relief workers doling out food and medicines in
refugee camps is for the most part inaccurate. Most entry-level and even
mid-senior level positions are quite administrative in nature.
• Your first position will most likely entail a lot of desk work and minimal to no
travel.
• More and more positions in the field are being filled by locals. Hiring locals is
less expensive and is better for development. It creates jobs in the local
economy and builds the capacity of the workforce. Additionally, more money
stays in country and locals can navigate complex cultural and political
climates.
• The field is extremely competitive, you may be one of hundreds of qualified
applicants applying to one job.

Finding and Getting the Job
Hosted by:See the rest at evisors.com/webinars/webinar/70

Transitioning to your next job
• Transitioning from another field to development
• Transitioning jobs within the development industry

Examples of
Transferable Professions
• Engineering
• Banking/Finance
• Health Care
• Education
• Communications
• Human Resources
• Accounting
• Management
• Training
• ICT
• Project Management
• Contract Administration
• Business Development
• Proposal Writing
• Law

Making the transition
• Often takes multiple strategic job changes to get to the job you ultimately
want
• Focus on the gaining transferable skills to leverage experience from first job
to land the second
Examples:
• You have experience in business development with a government contractor
but ultimately want to work on SME programs in Africa.
• You are a corporate attorney and want to work on rule of law programs in
Asia
• You are currently a program coordinator for an NGO that does global health
but you ultimately want to work on education programs in the field

Should I go back to school?
• Have a few years work experience before getting a graduate degree
• Without a masters level degree you will quickly plateau and not be able to
advance
• If possible, try getting a degree while working to not take yourself out of the
workforce
• When deciding between a general or technical degree, it is usually best to go
for the more specific degree.
• For some positions like economists, M&E specialists or those closely
involved with research a PhD is advisable but in most cases a Masters is
sufficient
• Once you have a graduate level degree, experience will trump additional
degrees (with the exception of a few very specific degrees like JD or MD)

Do Your Homework
• Research the key employers and players in the field. Know what kind of positions are
available.
• Attend seminars, conferences, other events for the industry.
• Try asking for an informational interview.
• Try to volunteer with an organization – let’s you test the waters and helps you build
your resume at the same time.
• Use social networking platforms, like Devex , to find people currently in a the
position you seek – reach out to them.
• Volunteer for overseas assignments in your current position.
• Attend relevant training or certification courses.
• Get familiar with the donor funding cycles/proposal process.

Learn the Language
• Learn the language of the industry
For example, if you want to transition from the corporate world to the non-
profit. Instead of using terms like sales, clients and revenues you might use
terms like program development, stakeholders and funding
• Translate your resume
Be sure to focus on keywords
• Market to your audience
• Become comfortable with the acronyms and insider vernacular.

Learning the Language
Why?
• Make it easy for recruiters to pick you out of the crowd.
• Most employers use keyword search engine technology to sift through
resumes.
• Demonstrates understanding of the industry. Makes you look like an
insider.
How?
• Job description
• Company and donor websites
• Industry journals and news publications

Quality over Quantity
• Focus your search
• Take your time to tailor each resume/CV
• Learn the donor formats – USAID vs. EU
• Take advantage of referral programs
• Only apply to jobs for which you are truly qualified – Use 80% rule
• Always proofread
• Localize your resume
TIP: Don’t become a serial applicant. Recruiters will get to know your name and
will take you less seriously as a candidate.

Network, Network, Network
• As in most industries, networking is crucial to the job search process.
• With the ease of applying online, and the current state of the economy, your
resume could be lost in a sea of hundreds of applicants.
• Recruiters are apt to pay attention to a referral more than they would an
unknown candidate.
• Leveraging connections is particularly important when you are transitioning
careers and might not be able to make it through the door on your resume
alone.
TIP: Now with social networking technology, it is easy to network anywhere in
the world. For example, on devex.com, you can build your own network of
international development professionals worldwide.

Resources on Devex.com
• Job board
• Online CV database
• Career advice articles and webinars
• CV Writing Service
• Industry news and events
To access all of these services and more, sign up for a career
account at http://www.devex.com/en/career-account

Take Away
• Focus on transferable skills
• Do your homework
• Learn the language
• Network
• Be patient and persistent
And visit Devex.com!

To Join Devex
Log in or create your account at devex.com to apply for jobs,
search career advice, create your own webpage and more:
www.devex.com/login
Questions about your membership? Contact our Member Support Team at
info@devex.com

Connect
Book your one-on-one session with Kami at
www.evisors.com/expert/2274
Kami Dar
Managing Partner and Global
Head of Development Innovation at

Questions & Answers

Questions & Answers
Question 1:
Is there a degree or specific work experience
required to work at a non-profit
organization?
Hosted by:See the answer at evisors.com/webinars/webinar/70

Questions & Answers
Question 2:
In what scenarios do corporates work with
NGOs?

Questions & Answers
Question 3:
How to be a good leader in a non-
governmental organization?

Questions & Answers
Question 4:
Discuss the financial impact in the investing
sector (specific skills/requirements)?

Questions & Answers
Question 5:
Does a career in the non-profit/NGO field
pay well?

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NGOs and Non-Profits: The Career Landscape

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