Micro-Enterprise Sustainability Specialist (JHB Hybrid)
Media/Marketing/Sales ~ Product/Project management
Johannesburg – Gauteng
ENVIRONMENT:
DRIVE and enable appropriate sustainability-at-scale for existing and potential early learning micro-enterprises and/or practitioners amid informality as the next Micro-Enterprise Sustainability Specialist sought by Community Upliftment Programme in Joburg. You will collaborate with stakeholders to develop, realise, and manage a strategically coherent sustainability agenda while doing appropriate “market” segmentation as well as articulating registration pathways that unlock state funding. You must operate with an asset-based orientation to informality in general and the informal economy in particular — as opposed to either eradicating or formalising informality. Applicants must possess a Degree in Economics/Informality/Business/Entrepreneurship or related field with 5 years’ professional experience in informal economic contexts & 3 years’ relevant experience in realising (Micro-)enterprise Development across informal contexts.
DUTIES:
Drive and enable appropriate sustainability-at-scale for existing and potential early learning micro-enterprises and/or practitioners –
- Collaboratively define, learn about, prioritise, and realise appropriate practitioner and/or micro-enterprise sustainability-at-scale for the diverse current and future / potential network, including but not limited to:
- Understanding early learning micro-enterprise and/or practitioner operating dynamics, income, and expenditure by segment, including diverse income streams and cost structures and/or drivers.
- Proposing, securing agreement on, and realising key sustainability initiatives and/or interventions.
- Empowering early learning practitioners in their contexts across segments to access and/or leverage resources that contribute towards their sustainability.
- Managing relevant collaborative and/or (team)work for appropriate sustainability-at-scale amid informality.
Build productive collaborations in service of appropriate sustainability-at-scale amid informality –
- Identifying, cultivating, and maintaining productive collaborative relationships with and/or networks of Hub teams, network partners, investors, governments, and other stakeholders in service of appropriate sustainability-at-scale.
- Framing coherence-building and problem-solving conversations enabling learning as well as sensemaking, decision-making, and action-taking regarding appropriate sustainability-at-scale.
- Collaboratively developing, deepening, and realising a strategically coherent agenda for sustainability-at-scale amid informality.
- Guiding and managing collaborations in service of realising appropriate sustainability-at-scale.
Learn about, understanding, and tracking sustainability dynamics, situations, and interventions –
- Building and/or integrating systems for early learning practitioners to make informed judgements about and track:
- Their own sustainability over time.
- The effects of sustainability initiatives and/or interventions over time.
- Building a database of sustainability-enhancing opportunities across the state and other relevant actors (potentially) available to early learning micro-enterprises and/or practitioners as well as any associated Compliance requirements — especially regarding: Growth, Income & Costs.
- Co-conceptualising and framing appropriate learning questions and/or research (e.g., terms of reference) about sustainability factors and (potential) interventions.
- Scoping, understanding, analysing and/or estimating the impacts and/or other effects in context(s) as well as the suitability at scale of potential interventions including but not limited to:
- Previous and/or existing initiatives.
- Compliance Support.
- Financial Literacy Support.
- Micro-enterprise Management.
- Understanding key sustainability risks and potential mitigating actions.
REQUIREMENTS:
Qualifications –
- Minimum Degree in Economics, Informality, Business, Entrepreneurship, or related field or equivalent evidence of learning & capabilities.
Experience/Skills –
- Minimum 5 years professional experience in informal economic contexts.
- Minimum 3 years relevant experience in realising (Micro-)enterprise Development across informal contexts.
- An asset-based orientation to informality in general and the informal economy in particular (as opposed to either eradicating or formalising informality).
- Strong knowledge and/or understanding of Sustainability and/or Enterprise Development and/or Entrepreneurship dynamics across informal sectors and/or contexts.
- Strong understanding of business finance in informal economic contexts.
- Track record of innovating including but not limited to leveraging information and technology creatively.
Advantageous –
- Experience of and/or familiarity with Compliance and/or Licensing in an informal context.
ATTRIBUTES:
- Ability to work at scale across diverse contexts.
- Demonstrated ability to see & realise the big picture while attending to details.
- Demonstrated ability to work independently and collaborate and build partnerships and/or networks across diverse contexts.
- Excellent creative problem-solving capability including Asking questions; Questioning assumptions; Analysing, triangulate, and synthesising quantitative and qualitative assumptions and information; Integrating information for insights; Generating and/or assessing multiple options and provide reasoned recommendations or proposals.
- Excellent professional communication and interpersonal skills.
- Strong drive to succeed.
- Clear curiosity and track record of learning, including openness to and appetite for feedback.