Business and Financial Consultant

Who we are

Advance Consulting is a business and investment advisory firm operating in Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. We drive impact through private sector development by supporting the sustainable growth of SMEs in the AgriFood, Renewable Energy and Circular Economy sectors.

By 2050, the number of people who live on our planet will have doubled. We believe that SMEs in AgriFood have a key role in feeding this population, as they hold critical positions along the value chains as producers, input suppliers, off-takers, processors, and distributors. SMEs in the renewable energy sector are pivotal in assuring that 900 million people, who currently do not have electricity, will gain access to affordable energy by 2030. At the same time, we need to transition to a Circular Economy as we cannot sustainably continue extracting the earth’s limited resources.

Our team of 34 dedicated professionals are based at our offices in the Netherlands, Kenya, and Jordan. In addition, 9 passionate consultants from our sister company Advance Insight support high-impact SMEs with their digital transformation from our shared offices in Kenya and the Netherlands.

Our work in Jordan

In Jordan, we support the development of a sustainable and competitive agriculture sector through an increasing number of programs and partnerships. Amongst others, we aim to improve the income opportunities and longer-term resilience of horticulture smallholder farmers, cooperatives and SMEs in Jordan via tailor-made business development support. We also improve access to finance for SMEs and smallholder farmers by developing, piloting and scaling financial products in close collaboration with the Agricultural Credit Cooperative and mobile money platforms. In addition, we will develop viable business cases to improve product and service provision to smallholder farmers and SMEs.

The position

To support our growing team and project portfolio in Jordan, we are recruiting a Business and Financial Consultant. He/she will be based in our office in Amman, and will report to the Country Director. Tasks and responsibilities of the Business and Financial Consultant may be adjusted to some extent depending on the background and technical expertise of the applicant, but will at least include:

• Support the development of loan products for horticulture smallholder farmers and SMEs in partnership with the ACC and mobile money platforms;
• Business plan development and finance acquisition for agribusinesses and renewable energy companies aiming to start or expand operations to the Middle East.
• Support in evaluation and management of credit risk, provide advice on potential cost reductions and potential for scaling of financial products;
• Provide tailored training support and advice to ACC employees with regards to piloting, evaluating and scaling of financial products;
• Advise on agribusinesses and renewable energy companies on improvement of business operations.
• Support in the identification and development of viable business cases of chain actors with the goal to improve product and service provision to SMEs and smallholder farmers;
• Facilitate commercial linkages between smallholder farmers, SMEs, input suppliers and financial institutions;
• Create and maintain a good working relationship with relevant actors in the sector, such as financial institutions, the government and donors;

Your profile

As we strive to deliver excellence to our clients, we are on the lookout for outstanding candidates. You may be just who we are looking for if you share our passion for vibrant, green, and inclusive SMEs, and bring the following:

• A university degree in finance, (international) business, economics or another relevant discipline. A finance-related master’s degree/MBA or professional certification (e.g., CFA) is preferred;
• At least 5 years of relevant work experience in Jordan or elsewhere in the Middle East;
• Demonstrated experience in raising finance for SMEs and/or financial product development.
• Deep understanding of the financial sector, agribusiness, private sector development and/or value chain development;
• A solid understanding of accounting and financial statement analysis, accompanied by strong Excel and financial modelling skills;
• Excellent customer relation and stakeholder management skills, highly service-oriented towards clients;
• Strong analytical, organizational and project management skills.
• Exceptional spoken and written communication skills in English and Arabic;
• Ability to work well under pressure, meeting occasionally conflicting deadlines;
• Full digital literacy and control of all main Microsoft Office applications;
• A sense of humour and a positive outlook on life and teamwork.

Do you meet most, but not all, of the above requirements? As we strive to create a diverse, inclusive and authentic work environment, we encourage you to apply anyway.

What we offer

At Advance Consulting you will become part of a dynamic and unique international team. We offer you a competitive salary and a variety of additional benefits, such as travel allowance, health insurance, retirement benefits, travel insurance and an end-of-year bonus for high-performers. We also offer opportunities to learn and develop on the job, and we pride ourselves in offering a healthy work-life balance.

How to apply

Are you the top candidate that we are looking for? Please send your CV and motivation letter to Willemijn Blokland before 3 December 2022: recruitment@advanceconsulting.nl. Please note that only complete applications with a cover letter and CV will be considered.

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