Vault Guide to International Development

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VAULT CAREER GUIDE TO

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT CHRISTOPHER MILLER AND THE STAFF OF VAULT


Copyright © 2009 by Vault.com, Inc. All rights reserved.


All information in this book is subject to change without notice. Vault makes no claims as to the accuracy and reliability of the information contained within and disclaims all warranties. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, without the express written permission of Vault.com, Inc. Vault, the Vault logo, and “The Most Trusted Name in Career InformationTM” are trademarks of Vault.com, Inc. For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, contact Vault.com, Inc., 75 Varick Street, 8th Floor, New York, NY 10013, (212) 366-4212. Library of Congress CIP Data is available. ISBN 13 : 978-1-58131-621-6 ISBN 10 : 1-58131-621-6

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Acknowledgments We are extremely grateful to Vault’s entire staff for all their help in the editorial, production and marketing processes. Vault also would like to acknowledge the support of our investors, clients, employees, family and friends. Thank you!


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Table of Contents Key Terminology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

Chapter 1: Introducing the Industry

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Background and History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Practice Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Size of the Industry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Organization and Evolution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Industry Trends and What They Mean to a Job Hunter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Chapter 2: How It Works

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Funding Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 Implementing Agencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21 Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

Chapter 3: Types of Implementing Agencies

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Nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27 Intergovernmental Organizations (also known as multilateral organizations) . . . . . .29 Other Kinds of Implementing Agencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32

Chapter 4: Is It for You?

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Challenges and Rewards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35 Things to Think About . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36 ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Important Aptitudes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39 How to Find Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41

Chapter 5: Education and Experience

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Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49

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Chapter 6: Types of Employment and Job Search Strategies

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Types of Employment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 3 Preparing for the Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 4 Identifying Organizations That Match Your Interests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55 Getting to Know Your Shortlist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57 Networking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58 Applying . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61 Sample Cover Letters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63 Sample Resume and CV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67 Interviewing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69

Chapter 7: The Hiring Process

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Who Gets Hired? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73 The Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74 Negotiating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .75 Organization-Specific Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77

Chapter 8: Career Paths

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Career Roles in Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85 Administrative Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .86 Technical Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .88 Support Positions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90 Techniques for Career Advancement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92 Career Transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92 ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Days in the Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95

Chapter 9: Culture, Compensation and Benefits

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Intergovernmental (IGOs) and Government Organizations (Donors) . . . . . . . . . . .102 Implementing Agencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .107

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Resources for Job Seekers

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Job Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115 Professional Organizations and Industry Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117

Employer Profiles

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Intergovernmental Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119 Volunteer Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122 Other Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125


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Introduction International development is a profession unlike any other. Although modern international development has more than half a century of history, the practice of development is constantly evolving and the industry is currently in the midst of major changes that have the potential to improve the lives of billions of people. Development professionals are working in every country in the world to address issues including human rights, health, economic growth, environment conservation and many others. As a profession, few career choices can match international development for the sheer range of the industry, challenge of the work or relevancy to the world’s population. In recent years the need for coordinated and comprehensive sustainable development has been center-stage in world politics due to increasing awareness of both the issues and the consequences. Development champions including academics such as Jeffrey Sachs, businesspeople like Bill Gates, politicians and celebrities have helped bring international development to the forefront of policy and economic discussion. At the same time, the world has become more globalized, with constant reminders that the problems of the developing world can and do affect the entire world. Yet despite the rapid growth of funding for international development and the increasing understanding of the need for sustainable development, the industry and even the term “international development” remain poorly understood. There is no universally agreed-upon definition of international development. The term has evolved over time and there is no single industry group that holds responsibility for determining what is and what isn’t development. Likewise, there are no certification or accreditation bodies that delegate organizations as practitioners of development. Although there is not a universal definition, there are a number of characteristics that are widely accepted to describe international development. In general, international development:


International development generally utilizes resources from developed countries to fund projects in developing countries. This idea is being challenged, however, by the increasing amount of money for development being provided by developing countries. • International development has an underlying goal of improving living standards in developing countries. Development projects may work with the public, civil and private sectors, but the end goal is to foster development, not to make money. • International development is not about giving money, supplies, and equipment, it is about building the capacity for people to provide these things for their own communities.

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Introduction

• As international development becomes a bigger and more professional industry, there is a greater expectation that development agencies adopt modern methods of management and evaluation. Most professional development practitioners now have full time staff focused exclusively on these issues. • Donors rarely have the capacity to actually implement and manage development projects, so they depend upon professional organizations that specialize in development. These organizations include non-governmental organizations, civil society organizations, private voluntary organizations and some private companies.

Key Terminology To get you started, below are some key terms in international development. Additional terms are highlighted throughout the book. • Developed countries are the world’s wealthier nations. There are many formal definitions used to determine which nations are developed, including measurements based on economic and social indicators. The World Bank uses the term “high income economy” to describe countries with a gross national income per capita of $11,456 or more. The United Nations uses the Human Development Index, which estimates how income is turned into education andhealth opportunities. Regardless of the definition, developed countries are the main funders of international development.


• Developing countries are, conversely, those nations that don’t meet the requirements of a developed country according to these various scales. Developing countries may also be known as low-income countries or emerging economies according to economic indicators. The United Nations uses the term “least developed countries” for nations with the lowest scores on the Human Development Index. Developing countries are the recipients of development assistance, although some developing countries give development assistance in addition to receiving it. • Official development assistance (ODA) is the money that governments spend on international development. There is a very specific definition of ODA and strict rules about what spending can be counted as ODA. More information on this is provided in Chapter 2. • Donor community is a general term to describe the organizations that fund international development. These include government development agencies such as USAID and DFID, foundations, intergovernmental organizations and other funders of development work. Donors are covered in more detail in Chapter 3.

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THE

SCOOP

Vault Guide to International Development

Introducing the Industry How it Works Types of Implementing Agencies Is It for You?



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Introducing the Industry Chapter 1

The modern institutions that comprise the development industry mostly came into existence in the mid- 20th century, largely in response to major geo-political events, including World War II and the Cold War. In particular, the Marshall Plan to rebuild Western Europe after the physical, social and economic devastation of World War II is widely considered the catalyst for organized international development led by wealthy donor countries. Similarly, the Cold War served to raise the visibility of developing countries and contributed to idea of global stability through development. The fear that developing countries in Asia and the Americas were being influenced politically by financial and policy support from the USSR directly contributed to increased spending on development assistance from the United States. Clearly much of this money was not supporting international development as we understand it today, but it did have the effect of showing the links between the welfare of developing and developed countries. Globalization has been another significant force in international development. Greater interconnectivity among world populations and economies has strengthened relationships among countries and raised awareness of development issues. It has also contributed greatly to economic development through foreign direct investment and remittances. Many additional trends have also helped promote the ideals of international development. The advent of mass media and the incredible improvements in global travel, in particular, have made it possible for citizens of developed countries to see, firsthand or through their TVs and newspapers, the conditions that people in poorer countries live in every day. This not only raises money for development, but also galvanizes public support for government spending on international development assistance. For example, in the week following the December 26, 2004 Asian Tsunami, the United Nations received an unprecedented $1.5 billion in relief donations. The massive coverage of the event, including everything from traditional media to blogs and camera-phone videos, helped spread awareness of the disaster and make it easy for people, organizations, and governments to donate to the relief efforts. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Key dates in the recent history of international development The Bretton Woods Agreement is signed, setting the foundation for an international financial system. The agreement establishes the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), now part of the World Bank Group. The Charter of the United Nations is drafted and ratified by 51 original member states. The role of international nongovernmental organizations in development is enshrined by the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.

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Introducing the Industry

The Inter-American Development Bank is established. President John F. Kennedy establishes the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), explicitly separating international economic and social development from military and political activities. The African Development Bank is established. The Asian Development Bank is Establishedestablished. In a General Assembly Resolution, the world’s wealthy countries agree to set a target of 0.7 percent of each country’s GNP for official development assistance. Sixteen countries have agreed to meet this goal by 2015. The European Management Symposium invites political leaders to its annual meeting for the first time. In 1987, the EMS becomes the World Economic Forum, and the organization’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, attracts leading social, business, and political leaders from around the world. Official development assistance (ODA) surpasses $20 billion to reach $23.1 billion. ODA surpasses $50 billion to reach $57.2 billion. The first meeting of the World Social Forum is held to coincide with the World Economic Forum, highlighting the need for social development in addition to economic growth. The Millennium Development Goals are adopted by the United Nations, targeting eight specific goals for international development. ODA surpasses $100 billion to reach $119.8 billion.


The following are the eight principles of the Millennium Development Goals, along with select targets for each. For complete targets and more information, refer to www.un.org/millenniumgoals.

Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people whose income is less than $1 a day. Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger.

Ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling.

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Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education, preferably by 2005, and at all levels by 2015.

Reduce by two-thirds, between 1990 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate.

Reduce by three-quarters, between 1990 and 2015, the maternal mortality ratio.

Have halted by 2015, and begin to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS. Have halted by 2015, and begin to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases.

Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programs; reverse loss of environmental resources. Halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation (for more information see the entry on water supply).


While virtually every industry has areas related to international development, there are a handful of practice areas accounting for the majority of development projects. These are the areas that developed countries support through ODA. Practice areas in development are commonly split between economic development and social development, with an understanding that nearly every area of development is highly interdisciplinary, and most projects address both economic and social issues. In addition, health and environmental projects are sometimes included in a third category in recognition of their importance as a foundation for all social and economic development. The most common practice areas in development include:

Economic development • Private sector development is a general term for a wide range of activities focused on strengthening the private sector of developing countries. These projects may include improving access to finance, basic business training, improving the business environment, supporting business associations, and strengthening export industries. • Agriculture is the main livelihood for approximately 2.5 billion people in the world, making it a critical area for economic and social development. NGOs work in agriculture to improve technologies, increase sales, improve environmental Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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conditions, increase access to finance for agriculture, promote workers’ rights, and diversify family income sources. • Finance remains a key constraint to entrepreneurial activity in much of the world. In most places, small business owners have very limited access to loans from traditional sources of finance and are forced to borrow money from family members or get loans at very high interest rates. Microfinance is the flagship product of this practice area, but other projects are focusing on housing finance, educational finance, and agricultural finance.

Social development • Education is a component of nearly all development projects, but also a unique practice area. Most development projects in the education field are focused on improving the human and physical infrastructure of education. Key project activities include teacher training, curriculum development, financing for educational institutions, and upgrades to schools and classrooms. • Governance is another large area of international development that deals with the rule of law, transparency and corruption, democracy, civil society and media. Governance projects work to make governments more transparent and accountable, while ensuring that laws are upheld in a fair and consistent manner, and that citizens have a voice in government. These projects utilize outreach and awareness, legal reforms, and capacity-building to strengthen the quality of governance. • Human rights projects address fundamental issues of equality under the law and adherence to international standards of human rights. Some common areas within human rights include gender equality, displaced populations, post-conflict development and governmental abuses of power.

Interdisciplinary ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

• Health is one of the largest practice areas within international development, and one of the most interdisciplinary since health is so strongly correlated to education, environmental, and economic issues. As a result, virtually every large donor funds health projects and many foundations, most notably the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, have large health portfolios. There are many different kinds of health projects, ranging from community education to modernization of hospitals. Most projects focus on raising the awareness of safe practices, such as washing hands or wearing condoms or using a mosquito net, building the capacity of local health care providers, and improving access to health care through public and private sector initiatives. Currently one of the main areas of interdisciplinary focus is water. Access to clean water is one of the leading indicators of development and without access to clean water, health and economic development are much harder to accomplish.

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• Environment, like health, is a key interdisciplinary area, and a prerequisite to most economic and social development. Environmental projects focus on management of natural resources, conservation, access to resources, city planning, and preservation of protected areas and species. Some environmental projects also focus on disaster preparedness by helping communities plan for disasters and develop strategies to mitigate the consequences when they do happen. International development is a highly interconnected field, and all of these practice areas overlap each other. When an issue is included across several practice areas, it is referred to as a “cross cutting theme.” Common examples of cross cutting themes include rule of law, gender, environment, transparency and education. For example, an economic development project focused on training entrepreneurs in basic business skills might include a gender component to train a certain percentage of woman-headed businesses or to develop a training module focused on specific business issues that more commonly affect women.

Other types of international development While the most inclusive definition of international development would contain any activities that contributed to the economic or social advancement of a community, this definition is so broad that it becomes impossible to talk about an industry, or even a unifying body of knowledge. For that reason, most definitions of international development distinguish between direct assistance and development, and between activities carried out explicitly for development and those carried out primarily for other reasons. Because of this, certain activities are not universally considered to be international development. Some of these include:


• Humanitarian assistance and disaster relief are often considered a unique subset of international development or a related field. They are unique from standard international development because the focus of the activities is on direct assistance rather than long-term sustainable development. However, it is important to note that many organizations that carry out humanitarian assistance are also heavily engaged in international development, and even link the two areas. For example, a humanitarian assistance project to deliver food supplies to drought-stricken regions of Africa might also use its project resources to provide training and supplies for small-plot farming. This project would thus have both humanitarian relief and development components. • Development assistance provided by a religious organization is a highly debated topic. There are thousands of NGOs that were founded as religious charities and retain their religious foundations, but don’t include religion in their development activities. Most people would consider these true development organizations. There are also many NGOs that have an explicate goal of spreading a religious message with their international development activities. An inclusive definition of international development would “count” these organizations within international development but their activities generally remain controversial.


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• Development assistance provided by multinational corporations is similarly controversial because the assistance usually relates to company’s activities, raising potential conflict of interest issues. For example, a mining company that builds a new road and funds water sanitation projects in the community near its mine has clearly contributed to development, but might not meet the goals of long-term sustainable development. Some likely concerns would be whether the company used the assistance as a marketing tool or if there was an implicit agreement that the community support the mining activities. Finally, the long-term sustainability of the activities would also be an issue, particularly weighed against the environmental damage likely caused by the mining.

It is difficult to estimate the real size of the international development industry because statistical data is only available in a few areas. The most comprehensive data is on the size of official development assistance (ODA), which is tracked by the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD). There is a very specific definition for ODA, and, as a result, some sources of funding are not included in these data. ODA includes money given or lent to developing countries for the promotion of economic development and welfare. Loans must be concessional, meaning at least 25 percent of the value is provided as a grant and not repaid. In addition, funds for certain activities, such as military aid, are not included. For more information, and a detailed description of ODA, refer to the OECD website. Other types of development assistance from governments includes other official flows (OOF) for funds that don’t meet the requirements of ODA but are still focused on development, and private flows, containing funds from private sector sources rather than governments. The following figure depicts the annual flows of ODA from 1960 to 2007. As this figure shows, funds for international development have risen significantly in the past 15 years, although very few developed countries are currently meeting internationally agreed targets to donate 0.7 percent of GNP to economic development. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

ODA Disbursements 1960 - 2007

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As a measurement of the size of the international development industry, this data has become less reliable in recent years than in earlier periods. The reason can be traced to the increasing amount of money for international development coming from nonODA sources, such as foundations, civil society organizations, and the private sector. While these sources of funding are not as significant as ODA, they are growing rapidly and changing the face of the industry. A few examples from recent years include: • The funds that NGOs receive from governments are incorporated in the OECD’s ODA calculations, but funds received from the private sector are not. In 2006, these contributions were estimated at $11 billion, or more than 13 percent of ODA. • There are more than 100,000 private sector sources around the world, many of which provide funding for international development projects. Although there is no statistical data on these funds, they amount to a huge source of money for development. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation alone, the largest charitable foundation in the world, disbursed more than $2 billion in 2007, or 3 percent of ODA. The figure below shows a more complete perspective on funding for international development work in 2007, but still underestimates the contributions of civil society organizations and private sector flows.

Composition of Select Sources of Development Funds in 2007 - $13.38 billion total


South-South cooperation Historically, most funds for development went from developed countries in the northern hemisphere to developing countries in the southern hemisphere. In recent years however, some of these “southern” countries have began to provide development funds in addition to receiving them. Among the leaders in south-south cooperation are the Arab countries, which provided over $2.5 billion in ODA in 2006. China has also announced a south-south strategy of ODA support for Africa. Although these flows are still small relative to other ODA, they are a growing force and a positive indication of the importance all nations place on global development. For Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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more information on this topic, refer the UNDP’s Special Unit for South-South Cooperation: tcdc.undp.org/. Beyond these donor statistics, there is very little data available on international development as an industry. Employment figures, for example, are difficult to estimate because there is no definition of which organizations are engaged in international development. Most countries have an official non-governmental sector (like the nonprofit sector in the United States), but there is no data on which of these organizations focus on international development rather than on domestic issues. In addition, there are no industry-wide groups that estimate employment or growth.

Most of the industry-based support for international development has been, and continues to be, within focus areas rather than across the development field. For example, people working on the prevention of transmissible diseases in developing countries are more likely to utilize the resources of the health care industry than the international development industry, whether attending professional conferences, publishing in industry journals or pursuing continuing education. The same is true of other focus areas including economic, environmental and social. International development has only recently begun to take on the characteristics of a single industry, and it is still only certain aspects of international development that are shared across focus areas. Fortunately, the job hunting process and many issues of career management are some of the similarities among all types of development, so the concept of a development industry is useful for this book. What unites the world of international development is:


International development currently has very few industry groups shared across different practice areas. There are many such groups within economic and social development, but these tend to focus exclusively on single areas. Some industrywide groups are beginning to grow, mostly related to job hunting or education and research. • There are now many university programs at the undergraduate and graduate level to study international development. Most of these include a strong technical component in a specific practice area, but also industry-wide courses on the history of development, key skills in development and area studies. These programs are also actively creating new knowledge in international development and contributing to the advancement of the supporting foundations of the industry. There are an increasing number of specializations within development that are required in all focus areas. These include business development, monitoring and 12




evaluation, project management and, of course, all the administrative functions of development organizations such as HR, accounting and IT. All industries are shaped by their clients, but in development, the number of sources for funds is much smaller than most other industries. As a result, a wide range of administrative and operational processes are shared among all types of development organizations because they are required by donors. For example, the semi-annual donor reports that a human rights NGO completes for its donors are very similar, if not identical, to those completed by a microfinance NGO. Donors are also more actively shaping the monitoring and evaluation of development projects, which is another major area of similarity among NGOs. As the industry continues to evolve and adapt to new trends, it is likely to become both more dependent upon specialized knowledge, and also more uniform in the implementation of projects with donor funds. Due to this, the industry-wide foundation of development will become stronger and it will take on more of the characteristics of a united industry.

Why do developed countries spend money on international development? It is often assumed that development assistance is wholly altruistic but, in fact, governments get a number of benefits from their development spending. There is a fine line between capturing the auxiliary benefits of development assistance and spending on development for explicitly political purposes. In practice, this distinction is never clear, and there is constant debate about the appropriateness of certain countries’ development spending or policies related to their spending. Some of the benefits that come from development spending include:


Development assistance is an effective way for a government to build relationships with other countries. In many cases, international development assistance is also less political than other forms of cooperation between countries, and can be used to slowly build better relationships between governments. There is, however, a fine line and there are many examples of international development assistance being traded for political favors. For example, a donor country might agree to spend tens or hundreds of millions of dollars in a developing country in exchange for mining rights, or an agreement to support a vote in the United Nations, or even in exchange for the government limiting its relationship with another government. Similarly, major donors of development assistance earn goodwill from recipient countries and other nations for their generosity. This has many benefits for governments. A particularly generous sponsor of development assistance in a specific area would earn some leadership status within that field. In addition, development assistance goodwill can be used to offset negative impressions of a donor country in the region of the assistance. Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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One of the major justifications for development spending is global stability. This idea of stability, often associated only with political upheaval, illicit goods trade and terrorism, applies to a much wider range of activities. Indeed, the importance of stability applies to nearly every sphere of development, from finance to health to the environment. For example, the case of the SARS outbreak in China in 2002, demonstrated the importance for every country, rich or poor, having a modern health screening and diagnostic infrastructure along with the capacity to manage it. It is simply too easy in today’s interconnected world for a sick person, collapsing economy or ecological disaster to threaten the stability of worldwide social and economic systems. Therefore, wealthy countries are more willing to spend on development assistance to limit the potential consequences of such an event. International development is also good for the private sector of donor countries. As developing countries grow economically, they become potential consumers for goods and services exported by donor countries. In addition, government development spending usually comes with requirements that equipment and employees used to implement projects with the funding are from the donor country. Therefore, citizens and businesses of the donor country are direct recipients of some of the development spending.

Monitoring and evaluation


One of the key challenges of international development is assessing its effectiveness, evaluating development projects and learning from mistakes. As an industry, international development seeks to improve economic, social and environmental conditions in places that are, by definition, among the world’s most challenging environments in which to work. In addition, the impact of many development projects takes years to materialize, and during that time any number of external factors can and do affect the development project. Imagine a rural economic development project to teach accounting and marketing to tourism companies. The project should result in more employment and economic growth for the companies and the region, but these results may take a few years before the companies can apply what they have learned and reach potential tourists with their message. If those results materialize, the reason could be that the project made a positive contribution or it could be due to wider economic and travel trends. If the tourism industry does not expand, the project might not have been well-designed or was poorly implemented, or maybe there was an internal or international conflict that discouraged tourism, or a neighboring country may have launched a reform to its own tourism industry, increasing competition. There is simply no reliable method to show a causation relationship between a development project and the long-run impact.

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The field of international development is constantly changing in response to internal and external forces. Thus, planning a career in the field requires continuous learning and close attention to the changing trends. Some of these trends currently shaping future career opportunities include:

Growth As we examined earlier, the funds for international development have been growing rapidly in recent years. The average growth since 1985 in ODA has been 6.8 percent, and this does not include foundation and private money. Due to increased funding, there has been a tremendous growth in the number and kinds of organizations implementing development projects. Traditionally, large NGOs and intergovernmental organizations provided most of the jobs in development, but today there are opportunities with local NGOs, small development organizations, for-profit companies, multinational corporations, volunteer organizations and more. This can make career planning and job hunting a more time-intensive activity since it takes time to sort through all of the opportunities, but in the end it also means more available jobs.

Greater local capacity


One effect of the economic growth experienced by many developing regions in the last 20 years has been an increase in the capacity of the local labor force. In many places it is now possible to find local applicants for development positions with international education and experience, in addition to an obvious advantage in local knowledge and languages. Also, locally hired employees are usually less costly because salary and benefits are based on local market conditions. Utilizing these skilled professionals in the development of their home country is an excellent trend in the industry, and one with significant implications for development jobs. One consequence is that there will likely be increasingly fewer project-based positions for international hires. For example, a three- to five-year project may have traditionally included three or more international staff, but, with a more qualified local candidate, it may reduce the international positions to a single project manager. Beyond jobs, this trend also has implications for the skills that are needed by development professionals. Communications, language skills, human resource management and strong functional concentration will all become even more important for international professionals to be productive in this new environment.


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Accountability Widespread lack of accountability is commonly seen as one of the great failings of international development. Because of this, large donors, who fund much of the work carried out by implementing organizations, are increasingly focused on cost-efficiency and accountability in the projects they fund. So a greater focus will be placed on monitoring and evaluation with more jobs for specialists in these areas, and a greater expectation of understanding these systems for all development workers. The trend also puts more responsibility on individual professionals to manage their careers with a focus on results and stewardship of donor funds.

Professionalizing of the industry Many of the elements that exist in traditional industries to support professional development, share knowledge and drive new innovations have no counterpart in the development industry. This is partly due to the incredibly diverse nature of the field— for example, it is not immediately clear how a single industry organization can be a useful resource to practitioners of environmental development, HIV/AIDS awareness and rural agriculture. However, many organizations are starting to challenge this assumption and are focusing on the areas of similarity within the industry. Some areas where these efforts are most active include educational programs, jobs websites, research centers and industry publications. All of these resources are covered in more detail in this guidebook. This trend is excellent from a career perspective because the number of resources for learning about the industry, managing a career, and finding jobs has never been greater.

Coordination among donors and governments


With the rapid increases in donor funding for international development and the subsequent growth in the number of organizations implementing development projects, it is more important than ever to coordinate assistance. Historically this was done among donors and project implementers, but this role is increasingly shared or shifted to the governments of developing countries. These governments work together with large organizations, such as intergovernmental organizations, to develop long-term strategic plans focusing on key priorities. This planning helps focus development assistance around key needs and ensures that projects do not duplicate efforts. There is still a lot of effort needed in this area, but it is becoming more common to see good examples of coordination rather than duplicated efforts.

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How It Works Chapter 2 When most people imagine international development, they think of a group of dedicated people working on the ground in a remote developing country to address a social problem such as poverty or public health. These individual projects often provide the public face of international development, and much of the appeal of the industry to job seekers, but in reality, it takes several types of organizations to carry out the process of international development. Supporting these projects on the ground are implementing agencies that provide management and a wide range of administration functions from fund raising to budgeting to monitoring and evaluation. Sometimes these implementing agencies run projects with their own staff, and sometimes they outsource the projects to third parties. Most jobs in international development are with these implementing agencies and much of the focus of this guide will be on them. Finally, implementing agencies pay for their projects mainly by raising money from funding organizations (commonly called donors). These funding organizations include government aid agencies, foundations, wealthy individuals, educational institutions and many other smaller donors.

An example of a typical project design - An NGO currently working in a developing community on a microfinance project identifies a widespread need for small business training and some basic accounting software for businesses. The NGO conducts a needs assessment with relevant community organizations to clearly identify the context for the project including the needs, resources, constraints, and risks to a potential project. - The NGO writes a project proposal based on the needs assessment for capacitybuilding with local government officials, training for business associations, and an assessment of low-cost accounting software. - Once the proposal is complete, the NGO reviews it with its principle donors. One of these donors is active in SME projects and shows an interest in funding the project. The donor gives detailed feedback and recommends several changes to the project based on his international experience in similar projects. He also works with the NGO to develop a framework for measuring the results of the project. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

- The NGO returns to the community and works with the potential project clients to revise the proposal. The NGO also advertises a few key positions on the project, including an international project manager and several local staff. - The donor grants approval to the project pending his review of the staffing. The NGO selects a project manager from one of the applicants who currently works at its headquarters. The project is formally approved and the NGO sets up an office in the community.

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How It Works

- The new PM hires local staff and begins the project. This is a common way for projects to be developed, but certainly not the only way. Indeed, the interaction among these levels has been the focus of decades of debate and experimentation in international development. Traditional top-down development refers to projects that are centrally planned at the level of funding organizations and then implemented in the field. This model of project design has largely been replaced by bottom-up development, which starts in the field with the needs of a community or developing country and then seeks funding to meet these needs. Most implementing organizations now use a hybrid model that calls for project planning and design at the local level but also allows for the experiences and best practices of high-level organizations to help refine project design.

As an example of the hybrid approach, consider an NGO working on women’s rights issues in North Africa. The NGO develops a project idea by working together with the community to identify the specific needs in this area. This might result in a project to train police officers on the legal rights of women, and to launch a media campaign to educate women about their rights. Now the NGO identifies potential funding organizations for the project based on the concept outlined above. When an interested donor—USAID, for example—is found, the project works together with the donor to refine the proposal based on the broad experience of the funding organization. For instance, the donor might provide feedback on the lessons learned by other projects with a similar topic, evaluation frameworks, or even materials that might be available to use on the project. The combination of local knowledge and international best practices is the hybrid approach and an effective way to write strong proposals.


Funding organizations, or donors, provide the money to carry out development projects. Most of them have specific areas that they fund and certain geographic priorities. It is the responsibility of business development staff within implementing organizations to research which donors are potential funders for their projects. Funding organizations vary widely in their approach to funding and also in their level of involvement with project implementation. For example, some donors identify their funding strategies at the beginning of the year and then only fund projects that match their topic and geographic focus. Other donors have strict guidelines on which organizations may apply for funding, but then offer these organizations more flexible funding opportunities. The largest funding organizations are comprised of government aid agencies and foundations. These sources provide the money that most larger NGOs, and even many multilateral agencies, use to implement development projects. In addition to being the largest sources of money, they are also usually among the most professional, with strong 18



How It Works

systems used to assess projects, monitor implementation, and evaluate results. Because they get so many proposals, these donors usually have specific timelines and regulations for submitting project proposals, and only fund NGOs with a strong track record of achievement. Large funding organizations very rarely implement projects with their own funds, because the skills needed to wisely allocate money are entirely different than the skills needed to implement development projects. For this reason, most funding organizations utilize sophisticated tools for monitoring and evaluating projects in order to determine which implementing organizations achieve the best results. In doing so, they provide a valuable contribution to the industry, and pressure implementing organizations to always perform better and be responsible stewards of their budgets.

Government aid agencies Most developed nations have official government agencies that are responsible for distributing and monitoring the national aid budget and supporting the national strategy for international development. Many NGOs depend upon government donors for the vast majority of their budgets and develop very close working relationships with them. Government aid agencies receive their budgets from taxpayers and fund projects that match the strategic goals of the aid program. They are also usually the most diversified of the funding organizations, providing funds for all major areas of international development and most geographic areas. Because they are funded by governments, the budgets of aid agencies tend to change more slowly than other organizations, making them fairly consistent. Government aid agencies are usually very involved with their projects. They approve high-level staff decisions, such as the project manager, and carry out project reviews several times a year. While designing new projects is the responsibility of implementing organizations, government donors usually work closely with them to design projects adhering to their standards for project quality, particularly in the areas of monitoring and evaluation. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

As employers, government aid agencies provide some of the industry’s best jobs with lots of benefits and better than usual levels of job security. They usually have positions in the home office and in the field, focusing on project monitoring and evaluation. Citizenship is a prerequisite for most jobs, except local consultant positions. It is not only the official aid agencies that work in international development. Often there are many other government agencies doing similar work, including the departments of agriculture, science, and natural resources. More information on getting a job with an aid agency is provided throughout this guidebook.

Foundations The other main pool of funds available for implementing agencies comes from foundations and charities. There are thousands of these organizations, but the majority either do not fund international projects or only provide limited and irregular Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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How It Works

funds. The remaining small percentage of foundations is responsible for significant funding in key areas. The foundations’ level of involvement with projects varies greatly by foundation. Some major funders, such as The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, are active in shaping the direction of development in their areas of interest, while other foundations expect little more than an annual summary of the project’s activities. Employment opportunities with foundations are much more limited than either government aid agencies or implementing organizations. International development is often a small component of the activities of a single foundation and there may only be one or two dedicated employees. Large foundations with a major focus on international development will hire more frequently but these still represent a small number of the jobs in international development. More information on foundations is provided throughout this guidebook.

Other donors There are many other organizations and groups that serve as donors to development projects. • Religious organizations fund some of the largest NGOs in the world, either through donations from large churches or from individual donations. All those commercials you see to adopt a child in the third world fund the activities of several large NGOs. • Wealthy individuals (or high- net-worth individuals) usually fund projects through their charities and foundations, but sometimes provide direct funding to projects. Many implementing organizations seek out wealthy donors to diversify their funding. As a related category, celebrities sometimes lend their names to projects to support awareness and fund raising. • Academic institutions support projects in many ways, sometimes providing funding but more often technical expertise. Many universities also have student clubs that contribute volunteers to development projects. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

• Corporations fund international development through sponsorship of projects or organizations and support for local initiatives. Multinational corporations, in particular, often fund social development projects in the countries they work in as a way to build better relationships with the local community. Still other implementing agencies are funded through their membership fees or by charging for project activities. Some international financial institutions (IFI), for example, fund part of their activities with their earnings from investments. Numerous private sector companies are also starting to engage in development projects, supplementing donor money with fees they earn from clients for their work.

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How It Works

The bottom of the pyramid The bottom of the pyramid is a concept that refers to the potential impact of the world’s estimated two billion poor as consumers. Some corporations have embraced this idea by working to find innovative ways to shape their products for this market. One example is Tata Motors of India, which is working to develop a self-assembly automobile for $1,500, cheap enough to be within reach of a huge consumer market throughout Asia. This is just one example of the many ways that the private sector is helping to redefine the field of international development. For more information, refer to CK Prahalad’s book, The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid.

Implementing agencies make up the majority of organizations in international development. They come in every shape and size, and range from academic institutions to multinational corporations. NGOs and multilateral agencies are the most common of these organizations, but even within the subset of NGOs, there are all sizes and types of organizations from small operations focused on a single topic in one country to major organizations managing hundreds of projects across the world. Just as funding organizations specialize in particular aspects of managing a development project, implementing organizations specialize in project design and day -to -day project management. They are responsible for setting up projects, hiring key staff, and then providing the support to ensure the project is successfully carried out. Most implementing organizations manage numerous projects simultaneously, so administrative functions like IT, fund raising (or business development), HR, and project monitoring are managed centrally by the headquarters or regional offices.


In addition to their project support and management capabilities, many implementing organizations also have technical expertise in certain focus areas. For example, an NGO working primarily on health projects may have several experts in this field helping the NGO write proposals and monitor projects. Implementing agencies provide the most jobs in international development, and are the main focus of this guidebook. The following chapter covers these agencies in more detail, with extensive focus on jobs with development agencies.


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How It Works

Projects can be thought of as the individual unit of international development. They utilize money from funding organizations and administrative support from implementing agencies to carry out development work. They have a specific start and end date, a budget, and an action plan that describes what they hope to accomplish. Beyond these key aspects, projects encompass a very wide range of possible sizes and lengths. For example, a school might get a donation from the local Rotary Club to send their health teacher to a training session on tuberculosis. This could be considered a development project that might last a weekend with only one staff member and a budget of $100. This project would meet our definition of international development because it utilizes international resources and addresses a social need. At the other end of the spectrum are major projects by multilateral agencies that can work for a decade under a single project with dozens of staff and millions of dollars in their budgets. Average projects implemented by international NGOs range from two to five years and with anywhere from five to 20 staff members. The projects themselves are usually staffed with employees of the implementing agencies, often hired as consultants for the life of the project. These may be local or internationally hired employees. In some cases the project, or portions of the project, are carried out by independent organizations hired by the implementing agency. As noted, this guidebook is mostly focused on jobs at the level of implementation agencies for the simple reason that most of the positions are at that level. Jobs on individual projects are fiercely competitive, and the percentage of these jobs going to international candidates is decreasing as the quality of local candidates improves over time. That is not to discourage potential job seekers who want to work on the project level (indeed, most people enter the industry because they specifically want to work on the project level). More information on getting a job on a project is provided in the guidebook, along with strategies for increasing your odds of landing one of these positions.


Projects vary widely in how they are monitored and evaluated, but most professional organizations use a tool known as the logical framework or log-frame. Using this tool, the project develops a logical set of indicators that measure what the project does and what impact this work should have on the target community. The first step is to write an action plan that includes specific outputs such as the number of people trained, the number of materials produced, the amount of materials purchased, etc. The point is to set quantitative targets that can be measured to determine how well the project is completing its goals. From these outputs, outcomes are designed. Outcomes measure the effect of that project’s activities. For example, a project activity might be training teachers to use

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How It Works

an HIV/ AIDS awareness curriculum. One output would be, “Number of teachers trained,” with a target of 300 teachers. The outcome from this activity would then be “Percentage of teachers that actually use the curriculum in the classroom.” So perhaps six months after the training, the project would verify if the participants were using the curriculum or not, and this would be recorded as the outcome. Finally, impact indicators measure the long-term effects of the project’s activities. In our previous example, the impact might be, “Percentage of 10th grade students that have learned about HIV/AIDS.” The impacts usually cannot be directly attributed to the project because they are long term and, as a result, are affected by other events. There is a lot of debate around how to appropriately structure monitoring and evaluation systems. It’s an important question because the success or failure of projects is judged by the system used to measure their results. Many of the past development failures have been attributed to the poor systems used to monitor their results. A very simple example is provided below of a log-frame for a rural tourism development project. Most log-frames include more detail and a dozen or more indicators.

Output

Baseline

Target

0

150

Number of recommended changes to tourism policies and laws

AA

Aa

Number of local members of tourism association

6

20

Number of advertisements produced

0

3

Baseline

Target

Distribution reach of project materials (number of magazines, websites, bookstores, etc.)

0

35


0

2


55

300

Impact

Baseline

Target

% of provincial GDP coming from tourism

13

25

Employment in tourism sector

750

2,000

Number of guides trained

Outcome



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Types of Implementing Agencies Chapter 3 The focus of this chapter is on the various types of organizations that implement development projects. This guidebook uses the term “implementing organization” to emphasize the distinctions between donors, implementers and actual projects. As described in the previous chapter, donors are responsible for improving project design and ensuring that the monitoring and evaluation are effectively and thoroughly managed. Individual projects are responsible for carrying out the daily activities that are described in the project description. That leaves implementing organizations between donors and projects with the responsibility for making sure projects are able to complete what donors pay for. There are several common competencies or responsibilities that are shared among the different kinds of implementing organizations. When we use the term “international development industry,” it is these key skills that differentiate the daily work of development from other industries. These responsibilities include: Implementing organizations are responsible for designing new projects, which is often a lengthy and expensive process. A typical project design requires an experienced technical specialist to travel to the site of the potential project and complete an assessment, followed by an actual proposal. Both these steps require the participation and support of many stakeholders, including local government, civil society and the project’s clients. The proposal will undergo several revisions within the implementing agency, then it must be funded. Often donors will need changes to the proposal, requiring additional consultation with local stakeholders.


Implementing agencies are usually dependent upon donor money to carry out their projects and fund the permanent staff of the organization. As a result, business development is a constant need that involves researching potential donors and ensuring that project proposals meet the requirements of the donors. A similar responsibility is known as donor relations. This simply refers to managing the working relationship with key donors and other activities, such as inviting donors to big events, notifying donors when projects are in the news, or serving as a point of contact when donors have questions or requests. Even before a project has been funded, the implementing organization starts to think about staffing. Most large donors insist on approving the choice for project manager so recruiting for this, and other key positions, often starts before funding has been secured. Staffing requirements also include determining how many people will work on a project, which positions will be locally hired rather than internationally hired and how the contracts will be structured. Some organizations hire permanent project staff and rotate them between projects, while other organizations hire staff only for a single project. Another,

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Types of Implementing Agencies

less common practice is to subcontract projects out to international or local consulting firms. These are the administrative functions that the implementing organization carries out so that project staff can focus on their individual projects. It is also more efficient and cost-effective for an organization with several projects to centrally manage administrative functions. These duties include human resources, IT, communications, accounting, procurement and similar administration duties. Most projects share some responsibility for these functions, but the majority of the work is done by specialized staff working for the implementing organization. Some implementing organizations, mostly larger ones, also have permanent technical experts that focus on designing projects, supporting existing projects and building the organization’s technical skills in specific areas. For example, a large NGO with a focus on microfinance would probably have one or two microfinance experts as part of the permanent staff that would support project development but also research, write case studies, develop best practices and ensure the organization stays at the forefront of microfinance. M&E responsibilities are shared among donors, implementing organizations and projects, but it is the implementing organizations that are ultimately responsible for ensuring that projects are tracking their activities and accurately evaluating their results. Most implementing organizations have a team specialized in M&E to fulfill these responsibilities.


Most projects are required to complete regular reports for their donors, host governments and/or implementing organizations. These are usually either annual or semiannual, and cover project activities, budget updates and project monitoring. Although the project teams are responsible for the content of the reports, it is the implementing organization that ensures that reports are completed on time and to the standards of the donors.

Harmonizing donor reports Reporting requirements for projects are improving due to better coordination among donors. In the past, a project with three different donors would most likely be required to complete three different donor reports once or twice a year, reducing the amount of project time spent on actual implementation. Most major donors now attempt to standardize their reporting requirements with other donors. This allows projects to spend more time (and money) on achieving development results and demonstrates the kind of positive change that is happening in the field.

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The term “implementing organization” is very broad, and covers organizations of all types that manage international development projects from small community NGOs to major multinational firms. Understanding the differences between these types of organizations is critical to effective career planning because opportunities and benefits vary widely depending on the type of organization. Most of the jobs in international development are concentrated among a few types of organizations. These include nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and intergovernmental organizations (IGOs).

Nongovernmental organizations or NGOs are probably the most common association people have with international development, yet the term has an unclear definition and no legal meaning in most countries. Simply put, NGOs work in the civil sector as opposed to the public (government) or private sector. In the United States, the civil sector is comprised mostly of nonprofit organizations. Some other names for these organizations around the world include charities and civil society organizations (CSOs).

Modern origins The modern origin of the idea of a nongovernmental organization came into existence with the United Nations. It was recognized that nongovernment participation in the United Nations was critical to making it a truly global organization, so a mechanism for recognizing these nongovernmental, international organizations was written into the charter for the Economic and Social Council. The specific definition of what constitutes an NGO is provided in the Economic and Social Council Resolution 288. “The Economic and Social Council may make suitable arrangements for consultation with nongovernmental organizations, which are concerned with matters within its competence.” – United Nations Charter, Chapter X, Article 71 ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Nonprofits and for-profits NGOs have traditionally been defined as exclusively not for profit due to the civil society orientation of their work and the fact they usually deal with clients who cannot pay for their services. In practice, however, there are numerous for-profit companies that carry out the same work as nonprofit NGOs but retain for-profit status for a number of reasons. This change has been possible, in part, because donors are increasingly willing to fund projects implemented by for-profit organizations. There is even an argument that for-profit implementing agencies have a market-driven incentive to achieve results that nonprofits do not. This is a topic of much debate, but as a trend, the number of for-profit implementing agencies is likely to grow.


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For the purposes of this career guide, the term NGO will be used for both for-profit and nonprofit organizations that have their primary operational focus in international development. The inclusion of for-profit NGOs is reflective of the reality of the industry from a career perspective. In most cases, the distinction between for profit and not for profit is more of a legal issue than operational. For-profit NGOs, by virtue of their work in the civil sector, almost always rely heavily or entirely on donor funding just as nonprofit NGOs do. Because of this, they are subject to the same donor requirements and, consequently, evolve a similar organizational structure as well as job descriptions, and compensation and benefits. The term “multinational corporation” is used throughout this guidebook to refer to for-profit companies that are not primarily focused on implementing international development projects.

Geographic distinctions Another important distinction among NGOs is their focus either domestically or internationally. NGOs are traditionally thought of as international organizations, but this is not always the case. And, indeed, the United Nations changed the formal definition of NGOs to allow national nongovernmental organizations in 1996. Most people are interested in international development for the international component; there are an increasing number of opportunities in development with domestic NGOs. In the United States, the great majority of domestic NGOs are nonprofit organizations working for similar social and economic development goals as international NGOs. Many developing countries also have very active civil societies comprised of domestic NGOs. In international development, these are commonly referred to as local NGOs. Although local NGOs are not the focus of this guide, they are an important segment of the development industry and can be a source of jobs, networking and skills development. Many people working professionally in development have worked for a local NGO in the past. In addition, most implementing organizations work closely with the domestic civil sector and partner with local NGOs on project implementation.

Areas of focus ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Finally, there is a distinction among NGOs based on the focus of their activities. The major types of activities that NGOs engage in include advocacy, the direct provision of services, training and outreach, research/knowledge management and project implementation. For example, a disaster relief organization might focus mainly on directly providing relief services but also on advocating for better emergency services in risk-prone areas. A Washington, D.C.-based contractor with several USAID projects would focus primarily on project implementation but might also engage in some research or knowledge management. A Christian charity, on the other hand, might engage in a lot of outreach and advocacy along with the direct provision of services. Most jobs in international development are with organizations that focus on project implementation simply because most of the money to hire employees is tied to project funding. Larger NGOs, and those with secure funding, often engage in other areas in addition to project implementation.

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Direct implementation Most NGOs are direct implementers of development projects, meaning they hire and manage the employees that carry out the project. These may be either consultants who are hired for some portion of a single project, or permanent employees who work on multiple projects. In addition, NGOs support their projects with backstopping, which allows the project team to focus more on implementation. Some NGOs do not directly implement projects. Instead they subcontract implementation to another firm, often a local company or NGO.

The importance of donor funding Most NGOs are constrained by donor funding in how large their permanent, nonproject staff can be. For example, some donors stipulate that only 10 percent of their funds can be used for administrative purposes. This 10 percent must then cover the costs for the headquarters office and all the permanent employees of the NGO. Thus, larger NGOs that are implementing more projects and have more diversified sources of funding usually have more opportunities for entry-level professionals to learn the skills of the industry. Smaller NGOs may only be able to hire a few permanent employees so they only consider experienced professionals. Part II of the guidebook covers jobs with NGOs in more detail.


Intergovernmental organizations are like exclusive clubs that countries can join to get access to finance, technical expertise, policy advice and more. These organizations range from the United Nations, which has agencies in almost every area of the public sphere, to regional banks that provide loans and grants to governments in the region. Governments derive many benefits from joining an IGO but the process is long and requires significant commitment from the government. First, an officially recognized sovereign entity (in most cases, this long term just means a country) must be accepted by the organization and then ratify the organization’s charter by vote of its government. This vote is a treaty that gives the IGO a similar status to a foreign country and many of the same rights, including, in many cases, diplomatic status for employees, tax exempt status and access to the highest levels of government. These organizations were once considered the elite members of the development world due to their high-level government access, huge budgets and great influence over policy development. In addition, they are fiercely competitive, attract highly educated and accomplished employees, and provide excellent pay and benefits packages. This perspective still holds much truth but the balance of power in the industry is constantly changing due to the many factors we examined in Chapter 1. In particular, the well-publicized failures of the policy advice given by IGOs, and the sometimes glacial pace of their administrative policies, have created many


29



opportunities for younger and more creative development agencies to compete for top professionals and donor dollars.

NGOs vs. IGOs One of the key differences between NGOs and IGOs is that, unlike most NGOs, which are primarily focused on implementing development projects, IGOs serve many roles, including advising governments on policy, compiling official statistics and reports, and distributing and monitoring loans and grants. In addition, IGOs charge dues to their members each year, and use these dues to fund their activities. Therefore, most IGOs are not dependent upon donor funding – although many IGOs compete for, and receive, donor funds for specific projects.

Dues The dues each member pays depends upon many factors, but mostly the GDP of the member country. For example, the United States pays about 22 percent of the overall United Nations Regular Budget every year, or nearly $500 million, while the least developed members each contribute 0.001 percent or $20,000. Some IGOs generate revenue from their activities as well. For example, the International Finance Corporation, part of the World Bank Group, earns money from its investment activities around the world. This money supports the operation of the organization and also goes to fund technical assistance.

What they do Most IGOs are not primarily concerned with implementing development projects. The division of IGOs that do implement projects is usually referred to as technical assistance, development assistance or advisory services. IGOs vary in their level of management of development projects. Some IGOs hire full teams to carry out the projects, while others outsource or subcontract the entire implementation. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Examples of IGOs The most well-known IGO is the United Nations, which consists of 192 member states, five primary bodies and 16 specialized agencies. Of all of the IGOs, the United Nations is most global, with agencies working in every policy area and nearly every country. Beyond the United Nations, most IGOs are concentrated in areas of finance and economics. These organizations are sometimes referred to as the International Financial Institutions or IFIs. The best-known of these organizations are the World Bank Group and the regional development banks. There are many other kinds of IGOs, covering military, regional and cultural affairs, but these have limited involvement with international development.

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UNITED NATIONS ORGINIZATIONS Name

Members

Budget

Employees

UNDP

166 country offices

~$5 billion in 2007

More than 7,000

WHO

193 members

~$3.3 billion in 2007

More than 8,000

UNICEF

120 country offices

~$3 billion in 2007

INTER-AMERICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK Members

Budget

Employees

48 states – 26 that can receive loans

$10 billion in loans in 2007

~2,000

ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK Members

Budget

Employees

67 members – 48 in the region

$10.1 billion in loans in 2007

~2,400

WORLD BANK GROUP


Name

Members

Budget

Employees

IBRD

181 member countries

$12.8 billion in committed lending in 2007 on 112 projects

~2,300

IFC

185 member countries

$9.96 billion in committed lending in 2007 on 299 projects

~3,100

Intergovernmental organizations are owned by governments, funded by governments and work every day with governments, so it is no surprise that they also share an organizational culture common to governments. This has positive and negative aspects from an employment perspective. On the positive side, intergovernmental agencies provide the most generous pay and benefits in the industry, in addition to better job security and perks such as diplomatic status. On the negative side, these organizations tend to be top-down, bureaucratic and resistant to change. Some other aspects of IGO culture that differ from NGOs include:


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IGOs are owned by their member states and have a permanent presence in the country, known in development as a resident mission. They usually have a policy mandate as well, and are closely involved in the development of national policy. As a result, IGOs work closely with high-level government counterparts as opposed to the local, community-level counterparts most NGOs work with. NGOs generally design projects on the timeline of funding availability, which is usually two to five years. Because NGOs are dependent upon this donor funding, they will only maintain a presence in the country as long as they are implementing a project there. IGOs, on the other hand, have a permanent presence in most countries they work in, so their time frame is much longer. Nearly all IGOs are self-sufficient, meaning their annual operating expenses are covered by the dues of their member states and additional regular donations. As a result, these organizations are less dependent upon donor funds, and maintain larger staffs of permanent employees, including specialists in their key technical areas. More information on jobs with IGOs is covered in the Getting Hired section of this guide.

Although governmental and nongovernmental organizations are the main implementers of development projects, there are many other types of organizations that engage in development work. The difference is that most of these organizations are not solely focused on development, and usually don’t have the same range of competencies and responsibilities as dedicated implementing agencies. Some of these agencies include:


Multinational corporations You should recall the distinction that was previously mentioned between for-profit NGOs and multinational corporations. For the purposes of this guide, MNCs are organizations without a primary operational focus on implementing international development projects. Many MNCs, however, do engage in some development work for many different reasons. One industry increasingly working in development is consulting. There are hundreds of for-profit consulting firms around the world that compete with NGOs for development contracts, particularly in fields of policy, institution reform and public awareness or outreach. In addition, some of the world’s biggest consulting firms are expanding their work with governments of developing countries. Another broad category of MNCs active in development is companies either producing or selling goods in developing countries. For example, a consumer goods company that sells health products might spend a few million dollars on training clinical workers or 32




doctors on the importance of basic sanitation. This has health benefits for the local community and develops a market for the company’s products. These kinds of projects are often controversial, with critics arguing that these projects are more about marketing or buying off opposition to the corporation than achieving sustainable development. Another common example is the extractive industry. Mining and lumber companies very often provide generous support for community development initiatives in the areas where the company is active.

Institutions In most cases, institutions, such as universities, hospitals or religious organizations engage in development through a donor role. The institution decides on a development goal in a specific place then gives the money to an implementing organization. In some cases, however, institutions like these may choose to implement the project themselves. As we have seen, the skills needed to implement development projects are very different than the skills needed to run an institution, so there are a limited number of projects that can be responsibly implemented by these institutions. Some examples include donation projects to provide some material goods, such as books, medicine or clothing, exchange projects, or limited technical assistance projects. For example, several large universities have international development clubs that carry out development projects every year as a way for their students to get field experience. These clubs serve as implementing organizations by providing the administration and securing the funding for the projects to be implemented.

Volunteer organizations


Instead of implementing development projects, volunteer organizations place volunteers in the field. The bigger and more developed volunteer organizations put the same support into placing a volunteer that NGOs put into designing and implementing a project. In fact, the process is very similar. For example, the United States Peace Corps works with governments in developing countries to identify priority development needs that Peace Corps can respond to, and then designs placements for volunteers to work in these priority areas. Once the volunteer is put in place the Peace Corps conducts regular monitoring and evaluation. In this way, the daily work of a volunteer organization utilizes the same administrative and technical skills as an NGO.


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Is It for You? Chapter 4 The rewards of working in international development tend to be better understood than the challenges. Indeed, most young professionals and volunteers are attracted to the field for the glamorized benefits of world travel, learning about new cultures, and making a difference in the world. These are great aspects of the field, but it is equally important to understand the many challenges and long-term issues of a career in development. Particularly for professionals (e.g., full -time employees and not volunteers) the field has a number of aspects that can make career management, advancement, and life balance a challenge. These issues will be examined in the following chapter.

Most of the rewards in international development are directly linked to the challenges, because the work is so closely tied to dealing with these challenges.

Fund raising is a collaborative but constant need No profession is without the need to generate revenue. Private sector firms needs their customers, governments need taxpayers, and development agencies need donors. To be fair, the donor/development agency relationship is far more cooperative than these others but it is also more concentrated. Most development agencies depend upon two to five sources for the majority of their funds, making these relationships very important and the overall organization highly susceptible to fluctuations in funding. The result is that fund raising and donor relations can sometimes seem like the main focus of development agencies.

The work is meaningful but it is rare to see the results


One of the most rewarding aspects of the field is the opportunity to do meaningful work that focuses on improving living conditions in developing countries. Even the most cynical development workers generally share a sense of idealism for the changes that can, and do, come from the work. However, it is every easy to lose sight of the long-term results of the work, especially when faced with daily reminders of the overwhelming nature of the challenges. In addition, the results often take years to materialize, and even then, there is rarely a major change in conditions. The results of development work are much more gradual.

It is a learning-oriented field, but deals with the world’s worst problems As an industry, international development offers an environment of constant learning. This includes not only new technical skills and knowledge areas but also learning about new cultures and languages. While these are positive aspects of the learning, there are also

35


Is It for You?

social issues that international development deals with. For example, domestic abuse, corruption, poverty, and human trafficking, to name a few. It requires a lot of fortitude to be exposed to these problems on a daily basis.

The lifestyle can be fulfilling but also very challenging There are many positive aspects of the lifestyle for development workers, both in the field and at headquarter offices. These include the opportunity to travel, good benefits, and working in incredibly diverse surroundings. In field offices, the lifestyle also includes the fun and challenge of living in a foreign environment and learning about a new country. Some field office staffers are also compensated at an international level, allowing them to live a very comfortable local lifestyle. However, there are many challenges to living abroad, in a developing country. Some of these include the difficulty managing daily chores like laundry, paying bills and using the internet; increased visibility as a foreigner makes crime a bigger risk; and the lack of services, such as reliable health care or international schools for children.

The field is constantly changing Development is a dynamic industry that is evolving rapidly and, as a result, jobs in development are also changing constantly. Most people working in the field rotate to new positions every two to three years, and many people working in headquarters change positions almost as frequently. In addition to physical job changes, the focus of projects changes over time to meet the needs of the developing communities where an organization works, as well as the availability of funding. This change has an added benefit: work is seldom boring or repetitive, but it can also be stressful, especially for people who value job security or have families that need some stability.


International development is an industry unlike any other. By definition, the work deals with some of the world’s most pressing problems in some the most challenging environments. Travel, language study and the constant need to secure funding often make international development more of a lifestyle than a career, and it is important to think carefully and objectively about the industry as part of your career planning. Some key issues that can affect career development are highlighted below.

The value of private sector experience in the nonprofit sector One very common question among people just starting their careers is whether or not to get private sector work experience before finding a job in development. There are many opinions on this topic, and no single right answer. As a general rule, private sector experience is an advantage when applying for a job in development as long as it has some relevance to the position. That is certainly not to say that it should be seen

36



Is It for You?

as a prerequisite, and more and more professionals enter development from the beginning of their career. There are many benefits to working in the private sector before development. Salaries in the private sector are usually higher so many people work until they pay off their student loans or other debt and then find a job in development. In addition, a private sector background can sometimes make a candidate more competitive in international development, particularly for management positions or technical areas focused on private sector development. Obviously if you are going to advise governments in developing countries on reforms to their manufacturing industry, you will need experience in this industry. Finally, a private sector background is also helpful for people who want to transition out of development and into the private sector. Historically, there were fewer non-volunteer positions in development for younger professionals, so the private sector was a common way to enter the field. As the industry becomes more professional (often by mirroring the practices of the private sector), there are an increasing number of opportunities for young professionals as well as more appreciation for the unique skills that come from development work. For example, the skills that a volunteer attains through her work are often considered as important to success in a development job as the skills that might come from a similar path in the private sector. These include abilities such as communications skills, first hand knowledge of developing communities and the ability to live and work in challenging environments.

Private sector experience is important to get before starting a career in international development.their research needs. It is not necessary to have a background in the private sector before working in international development. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Family and lifestyle considerations International development tends to be a young field, dominated by people in their 20s to 40s. This is due to many factors that make the industry more appealing to younger professionals, but some issues also make it harder to stay in development later in a career. Some of these include: • Even the largest development agencies are prone to changes in staffing. As one area of development becomes a greater priority (for example, public health in Southeast Asia), another area usually suffers in donor attention (e.g., environmental conservation in Southeast Asia). Organizations and, as a consequence, development workers who specialize in the former area will find it harder to fund Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

37


Is It for You?

their work and either shift in focus or pursue increasingly limited opportunities. As a result, long-term employment with a single organization is more the exception than the norm in development. This is less of a problem for younger professionals early in their careers who can afford to spend a few months finding a new position, but for more experienced professionals the lack of job security is a significant drawback. Some areas of the field with better job security are donor agencies and multilateral organizations. Many people enter the field in order to experience firsthand the process of working in developing communities. Living abroad, particularly in these environments, is incredibly rewarding but also very demanding. Because of this, many international development professionals spend several years abroad but then transition back to their home countries. With their field experience, it is usually possible to find jobs in development in home offices of development organizations, but only in major cities like Washington, D.C., or London. For people who want to live in other locations, it is often hard to find a suitable position. Marriage and children can significantly change the prospect of working in international development, primarily for field-based positions. Families living abroad, usually in developing countries, face many challenges from finding employment for a spouse to finding schools for children. In addition there are the very real concerns about the quality of health care, possibility for an active social life, and availability of family or grandparents. Of course, none of these challenges makes it impossible to have a family and work abroad, and indeed hundreds of families do so, even in the most challenging environments. Most development agencies also provide some benefits for families, such as increased cost of living adjustments, insurance and health care, while larger organizations often fund a portion of the costs for education.


Some areas of the field less prone to these problems include home office positions with larger organizations, government development agencies, and multilateral organizations. Despite these family and lifestyle considerations, many experienced professionals do remain in the industry later in their careers and it is likely to become easier to do so in the future as development organizations become more professional.

Languages, travel, etc. Many positions in international development include aspects of work that require greater levels of personal commitment than other industries. These may include frequent travel, working in challenging environments, learning new languages and frequent long hours of work. While positions in home offices may involve one or two of these challenges on occasion, they are normal conditions for field-based positions. Even for people who enjoy business travel and relish in the opportunity to challenge themselves, these conditions can become tiring over time.

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Is It for You?

Transitioning out of international development All these considerations make it important, even when starting a career in international development, to think carefully about your options for finding employment outside of the industry as well. Entering the traditional private sector, say finance, marketing or management, with a background in international development is harder because there are fewer opportunities to get the skills needed by those fields. As an applicant, you would have to clearly demonstrate how your international development experience has prepared you for the positions. This is one reason that some people choose to get private sector experience before entering development. More information on this is covered in Chapter 10. Some common industries to enter following international development include: • • • • • •

Domestic non-profit Government Academia Consulting Think tanks Entrepreneurship

Of course, going back to school for another degree is an excellent way to transition from international development into another industry, and almost any graduate program will look favorably on the diversity of experience that comes with international development.


The following list describes some of the personal and professional aptitudes common to most jobs in international development. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list but rather to provide an idea of the various characteristics demanded in the field. If you share many of these qualities, then international development is likely to be a good match for you; if you do not, then you should look for specific opportunities within the industry that are the best match for your aptitudes. International development is well suited for people who can: Most development organizations are chronically understaffed with management support in short supply. Employees are expected to work with little direction and take initiative to help the organization accomplish its goals.


39


Is It for You?

While the ability to work independently is important in development, so is the ability to work on small teams of highly diverse staff. Almost all tasks have team components, and the ability to complete group deliverables either working in person with teams or remotely via email and phone is important. Development professionals are constantly communicating. Project clients, staff, donors, media, and managers all require a constant stream of information, and, in many cases, do not always speak a common language. Clear communication is a vital component of the work, and one that is constantly inhibited by poor or non-existent telecommunications and the distances involved. Almost all work in international development is on a strict timeline. Individual projects have their own specific timelines and donors operate according to deadlines for project proposals and reporting. Regardless of where one works in development, deadlines are a constant aspect of the job. Many jobs require a great deal of writing in various formats from technical documents to media stories to proposals. Often these are structured documents that require editing a great deal of information to find the key points and present them in clear, simple writing. Audiences are often extremely busy and unlikely to forgive poor writing, whether they are donors or government counterparts. International development requires constant learning. Every new proposal includes the need to develop technical knowledge in a specific area and geography. Many positions also require learning a new city, culture and language.


International development professionals work in some of the most challenging environments in the world. It is crucial that things like a week with no electricity, lack of email and telephone contact with loved ones, working in conditions of extreme poverty and taking a high level of responsibility for personal safety don’t inhibit the ability to complete daily work. Due to the range and nature of the challenges in the industry, problem solving is a regular need - and in most cases, traditional solutions don’t work. As a result, development professionals need to be efficient in assessing a problem and developing possible solutions that fit the unique context.

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Is It for You?

Reading this career guide is an excellent first step in deciding if you want to want to work in development but there is no substitute for firsthand experience. Fortunately development offers a number of ways to get short- or long-term experience, and, unlike many other industries, even volunteers have an opportunity to do professionallevel work. Some ways to get this experience are covered in Chapter 5. It is very valuable to get work experience at several different levels of development, not only on an actual project. While working on the ground with a project is a wonderful and life-altering experience, it is not the easiest way to enter the field as a paid professional. In addition to the project experience that many volunteer programs provide, it is worthwhile to get some administrative experience as well by working or volunteering with a headquarters office. This experience will often provide a better overall view of the industry and the types of work that are key to any development career. Beyond work experience, you can learn a lot about the industry by talking to current employees of development agencies. Many people working in development are very receptive to speaking with potential development workers and will share their experiences openly and honestly. If you don’t know a lot of people working in development, expanding your network into the industry should be a priority. There are many networking strategies covered in Chapter 6 showing how to make these connections. Finally, you can discover more about international development by immersing yourself in the industry and learning as much as possible. There are many books about it and a number of small trade magazines. In addition there are an increasing number of formal events for international development, including conferences, job fairs, debates and lectures. Universities are also good sources of information and events focused on international development, many of which are available to the public. For more information on these resources, see the appendix. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C


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GETTING

HIRED


Education and Experience Types of Employment and Job Search Strategies The Hiring Process



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Education and Experience Chapter 5 One of the challenges in navigating a career in a complex field like international development is making good education and work experience decisions. The educational and experience requirements for jobs in international development vary greatly by position but are often more flexible than jobs in the private sector due to the broad nature of the work. For instance, you might be applying for a project administrator position on a rural health care project that includes teacher education, nurse training, health policy and a media campaign. This project utilizes dozens of different industry and functional skills that no single applicant is likely to have. The successful candidate for the position may have a master’s degree in public health, international affairs, international development, or even political science.

Most entry-level and volunteer positions only require a bachelor’s degree, although it is not uncommon for even these jobs to go to applicants with graduate degrees. Beyond entrylevel positions, a master’s degree is the industry standard. It may be possible to turn a volunteer position into a professional position without a master’s degree but without postgraduate qualifications, career advancement is difficult, even within an organization for which you are already working. If you are just starting out with a bachelor’s degree, you can find many entry-level opportunities that will help you decide if a career in international development is for you before you commit to specialized graduate education. Undergraduate degrees with some international component are helpful, although almost any degree can be suitable for international development if it is balanced with volunteer experience or extracurricular activities.


For administrative positions the choice of degree is very flexible. A master’s in international affairs (MIA) or a master’s in public administration (MPA) are standard choices, but there are several alternatives. Even for administrative positions, it may be beneficial to earn a more technical degree, such as a master’s in business administration (MBA) or a master’s in public health (MPH). These degrees will give you more flexibility to take on technical work in the future, and may help distinguish yourself from other applicants. In addition, many universities are starting to offer specialized programs in international development, and it is very common for international development to be offered as a concentration within a technical degree, such as an MBA, MPH or MIA. The benefit of studying in a specialized program in international development really depends on your own unique background. A returned Peace Corps volunteer, for example, might benefit more from an administrative degree like an MPA or MBA rather than a master’s in international development. Someone with no work experience in international development may choose a specialized program to make up for his or her lack of work experience. Another common option is to earn dual degrees in international development and a more technical field, such as an MPA, MPH or MBA.

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Vault Career Guide to International Development Education and Experience

Choosing to earn a master’s degree that is specialized to international development has several important pros and cons to consider. Programs in international development provide an excellent introduction to the industry, including both theory and practice. If you are passionate about development, you will certainly appreciate being in an environment devoted to the industry with other likeminded students. The focus of these programs also contributes to benefits like career services, alumni networks at development organizations, faculty with industry contacts and opportunities to get work experience in development during your studies. In addition, most of these programs offer several concentrations, allowing students to specialize in particular areas. The disadvantages of specializing in international development are the limitations it may place on your career. Most for-profit consultancies and many NGOs are focused almost exclusively on implementing projects and, thus, look more favorably on a technical degree than a general degree in international development. In addition, these degrees will offer less flexibility in pursuing work outside of international development. Students with prior work experience in international development may benefit more by complementing their experience with a technical degree.

For technical positions, your education should reflect your chosen specialty. If you want to work in private sector development, get an MBA. If you want to work in health policy, get an MPH. A master’s degree in international affairs with a concentration in private sector development or public health may be enough to get you a job but it will not match a technical degree. That it is becoming more common to see international development- focused students in MBA courses is indicative of the trend toward increasing specialization and professionalization in the industry. This is an important trend to be aware of when considering your educational goals. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Weighing your academic options Things to consider include: Almost all colleges and universities offer several courses focused on international development. These may be offered through any number of schools depending on the focus of the course. For example, a school of medicine might have a course on preventative approaches to public health in developing countries, while a business school would have specialized economic development courses. Many of these courses are at the graduate level, but larger universities or those more focused on international issues should have a wide range of courses for undergraduates as well.

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Another growing trend is for graduate schools to offer international development as a track (also known as a concentration or focus) within their existing degrees. For example, a master’s in pubic administration with a concentration on international development or a master’s of business administration with a focus on emerging markets development. These programs offer the professional training associated with the degree but with course work tailored to the context of development work. Some schools offer master’s degrees in international development or specific areas of development. The most common pure development degree is the master’s of development studies, which is offered through many universities, more commonly in the U.K. The primary difference between a professional track in international development and a degree in development studies is that a professional track will generally not include courses on the theory or basic skills of international development. Rather, professional concentrations will focus on applying the skills of the program to the context of international development. This distinction is not always clear, as some schools offering a master’s degree in international development may, in practice, relate more closely to professional programs. The easiest way to assess potential schools is to refer to their required courses. The following courses would be common to a degree in international development:


• Theory, History and Policy of Development • Civil Society and the Development Process • Development Practice • Globalization and Development • Research Methods in Development Studies • NGOs as Development Agencies • Political Economy of Development • Project and Program Management • Fieldwork Methods

Notable programs The following universities offer a wide range of well-respected degrees and/or concentrations in international development. This is by no means an exhaustive list; it is intended simply to demonstrate the range of degrees currently available to those wishing to pursue international development careers. Department of Development Studies www.soas.ac.uk/development


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John F. Kennedy School of Government www.hks.harvard.edu The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) www.sais-jhu.edu School of International and Public Affairs www.sipa.columbia.edu Development Studies Institute www.lse.ac.uk/collections/DESTIN Oxford Department of International Development www.qeh.ox.ac.uk Watson Institute for International Studies www.watsoninstitute.org/ds/grad.cfm The Elliott School of International Affairs www.gwu.edu/~elliott International Programs of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences ip.cals.cornell.edu/academics Graduate School of Public and International Affairs www.gspia.pitt.edu ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Duke Center for International Development www.pubpol.duke.edu/centers/dcid

Other things to look for in a program Whether you are looking for administrative or technical positions, there are some important characteristics to consider when evaluating educational programs. In many cases, one of the most valuable components of your education will be the network of contacts you will be able to access. Most schools provide lists of employers that hire their graduates, which should give you a sense of what kinds of

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opportunities you may have. You might also be able to go beyond this and have an admissions representative give you a tour of the alumni website where you should be able to search for graduates working in specific organizations. Even if you are pursuing a primarily administrative career, you will want to develop some technical concentration. Look for a master’s degree program that offers courses within that concentration then check out those courses to learn more about the reading lists, instructors and any other information that will help you determine if it matches your interests. Graduate school is an excellent time to get practical work experience in international development. Most schools will offer some kind of international development club and many schools will even fund travel for members of the club to work on pro-bono development projects. Graduate school can be a major financial undertaking and you will likely have lower earning power after school than students entering the private sector. Some schools offer limited forms of loan assistance for graduates who work for nonprofit organizations. Research this carefully if it is an important factor in your decision because these programs often have very specific rules and regulations.

What to do if you don’t have the necessary education


A weakness in education can be offset through several factors, most primarily of which is your relevant work experience. However, if the position requires a master’s degree and you have a bachelor’s degree, or the position requires a PhD and you have a master’s degree, there may not be a lot you can do. There will simply be too many other applicants meeting the educational threshold required. If you have the level of education required, but not the exact degree specified, there is often more flexibility as long as you can still fit your qualifications to the position. Liberal arts degrees like political science or anthropology often contain many courses, if not specializations, that relate to international development. Emphasize these courses and any relevant experience you have in your cover letter.

Experience requirements vary greatly by position, but most entry-level opportunities will require less than two years of work experience and many are available to recent graduates. Spending six months or a year volunteering after you graduate is an excellent way to get practical work experience while you build your professional network. Mid-career positions tend to require three to five years of experience and commonly expect some or most of it to be in international development. The Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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relevancy of your work experience is usually more important than the length, so your focus should be on finding positions that match your professional background rather than just looking for any openings for which you meet the minimum requirements. A common debate in international development is the relative value of private-sector experience versus development experience: having only one or the other isn’t ideal, although not having any development experience is probably a more serious problem.

Development experience Most jobs require some international experience or prior development experience. Even for those jobs that don’t explicitly require prior experience, it will most likely be a component of the evaluation process. Development organizations value prior experience because, like any other industry, it will make training much easier if you already know the ins and outs of the work. In addition, prior experience shows that you have an understanding of the challenges of the industry and have most likely worked in diverse, international environments. The fact that you want to stay in the industry despite knowing the challenges also means that you are less likely to quit after an organization invests in training. This requirement can be frustrating for those without international development experience but the good news is that industry experience is relatively easy to come by, especially if you are a student. Some ways to get international development experience include: Most universities and larger cities have clubs focused on international development. They do everything from discussing development literature, to engaging politically in international issues, to raising money for development projects, to actually travelling to work on projects.


If you are still a student, take an elective course or two in international development or related issues. This will give you several points you can raise in cover letters and interviews to demonstrate your interest in the field. If you are not a student, look into courses you can take as a non-degree student or through a community college. Even something like an international business course can help meet the requirements for some positions. Anyone interested in international development should follow the industry by reading development literature and staying up to date on related international issues. Your ability to speak intelligently about development can go a long way toward covering for a lack of experience. While spendFing your summer vacation teaching marketing to rural businesspeople in Africa or training community leaders in preventative health in Southeast Asia may not seem like extensive industry experience, it will show that you care about development, have spent time abroad and worked in the context of a developing 50



community. There are thousands of volunteer opportunities ranging from the very short term to multiyear engagements. Some people volunteer throughout their entire career, earning enough to live comfortably in whatever country they find themselves in. If you are already working for a large company, it may be possible to relocate to a developing country. While field postings are almost always more competitive in international development, the opposite is true for many private-sector companies. Working out of a developing country for a year will show that you have the ability to work and live internationally and that you have developed intercultural communication skills.

Private sector experience There are many advantages to having private sector, or non-development, work experience in your career history. International development organizations are often criticized as inefficient and lacking in high- quality management systems. There is certainly some truth in this perception and, as a result, private sector work experience is often valued for providing more rigorous professional tools. If you have strong private sector experience, you should certainly highlight these skills in your application materials. In addition, many areas of international development are focused on strengthening the private sector of developing nations. Having worked in a well-functioning private sector, you will have a better idea of the missing components as well as a certain level of professional authority to work on implementation. Finally, certain kinds of technical work may require a private sector background due to the nature of the work. For example, investment officers with the IFC have all worked as investment bankers in the private sector.


If you are transitioning to international development from the private sector your main task will be to show that you understand and are committed to the field. Many hiring managers have experienced new employees from the private sector who quickly become frustrated by the nature of the work and leave after a few months. You may need to overcome this attitude by showing that you know what you are getting into.


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Types of Employment and Job Search Strategies Chapter 6

International development as an industry is unique in the sheer variety of positions. The type of work, compensation, benefits, and work environment cover the entire spectrum of possibilities from volunteering in a remote developing country to negotiating international agreements in London. Some of the most common distinctions that you should consider when thinking about a career include: An obvious, but important, distinction is between paid employment and volunteer work. Unlike many other industries, volunteers in international development are involved in high-level work with demanding responsibilities. In addition, volunteerism is widely accepted as “real” work experience that can lead directly to paid employment. Volunteer positions come in many varieties with widely differing benefits. The most reputable organizations will have lengthy application procedures but provide good benefits, such as travel and health care. Other volunteer organizations don’t provide any financial benefits but may still be valuable career experience. Finally, there are volunteer positions that come with a price tag, and you will be expected to pay for your work.


Not all paid positions are equal. Most organizations, particularly larger ones, differentiate between locally hired staff and internationally hired staff. This is especially true for field positions. The main difference is that locally hired positions are paid at local wages, and a strong preference is given to citizens of the country. Foreign residents can sometimes get these positions if they are willing to work for the local wage. Although the pay and benefits are not as good, these are excellent opportunities to get experience with an international development organization provided you have the relevant country experience. Some organizations even have a hybrid position sometimes called a “halfpat” hire, which offers a salary higher than the local wage, but not internationally competitive. It is usually clear from the job description if the position is local or international, but if you are uncertain be sure to ask. A permanent position is open-ended without a fixed contract length. These jobs may also be referred to as staff positions because they generally aren’t associated with a single project. Most entry-level opportunities fall into this category. Fixed-term contracts may last for any period of time from a few weeks to several years. These types of contracts are commonly used to staff projects, and are limited to the

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Vault Career Guide to International Development Types of Employment and Job Search Strategies

length of the project. Some organizations encourage their project staff to move to another project when one is complete while others hire entirely new staff for each contract. Fixed-term staffers are commonly referred to as consultants. An important part of the application process is determining where you want to live and how often you are willing to travel. The majority of permanent positions are based in the organizations’ home offices in cities such as Washington, D.C., or London, and may involve frequent travel to field offices. Field office positions are generally more competitive, and many organizations give preferential consideration to current employees when a field position becomes available. In fact, if you want a paid, field-based position in international development, you may get there faster by spending a year or two working in a home office. This career guide is focused on permanent positions rather than fixed-term consulting positions because permanent jobs offer by far the best opportunities for entry-level positions. In addition, more development organizations are moving toward staffing projects with full-time employees rather than consultants for many reasons. Full-time staffers are usually less expensive than consultants, and they already have a track record inside the organization so management is less uncertaint about their ability to do the work. In addition, more development organizations are achieving enough financial sustainability and a large enough operational footprint that they can retain staff between contracts. The final reason this guidebook focuses on long-term positions rather than consulting jobs is simply that positions hired out to consultants tend to be fiercely competitive and require significant professional expertise in addition to experience local to the contract. The average technical consultant position in a field office would require at least 10 years of relevant professional experience, post-graduate education, and language and regional knowledge. If you have a lot of relevant professional experience, most development organizations keep a database of potential consultants. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

For many reasons, getting a job in international development is more challenging than many other industries, particularly for entry-level professional positions. Most of the resources geared to helping job seekers in other industries, such as trade fairs and professional organizations, don’t yet have a corresponding entity in international development. In addition, organizations doing development work tend to be smaller with less regular hiring practices, and the competition for these jobs is often surprisingly high. Because of this, you should be prepared for a longer job search than might be expected in other industries.

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Fortunately there are a number of steps you can take to significantly improve your experience. Following the strategies outlined in the next chapters will ensure that your search is targeted to the organizations most likely to offer you a position. In general, you should be prepared to submit a lot of applications. Every background is different but you will probably find that you get one interview for every 10 to 20 applications you submit, and it may take several interviews to get an offer. It is not uncommon, even for experienced applicants, for a job search to involve 50 to 100 applications! This may seem like a lot of work, but if you follow a good strategy you can greatly reduce the amount of searching you do and increase your chances for getting hired.

Developing your strategy A successful job search begins with intensive preparation. This is true of any industry, but particularly so in international development where the sheer number of applicants for open positions means that only the highly qualified will make the shortlist. With a carefully developed job search strategy you can dramatically increase your chances of being considered for the positions for which you apply. The components that should be included in your job search strategy are outlined below.

The first, and often overlooked, component of a successful job search is focusing your search on those organizations that match your qualifications and interests. With thousands of organizations working in international development, you should be able to create your own shortlist that will help provide focus to your applications and networking. Your goal in this step is to create a list of 25 to 50 organizations for which you would like to work. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Finding a subset of development organizations that matches your needs can seem like a daunting task, but once you learn to navigate the world of international development it can actually be very rewarding. You can begin by identifying what characteristics you are looking for in an organization. In particular, you should decide in what kind of work you are interested. The more specific your answer, the easier it will be to find relevant organizations, but you don’t want to limit your choices too much. For example, you might be interested in public health policy for communicable diseases. That is an excellent and very specific focus area, which will yield a handful of organizations working on that exact issue. However you may also find it useful to consider organizations doing more general public health issues or others working in capacity-building in rural hospitals. These different focus areas will obviously overlap but should result in a greater number of organizations that might be matches for you job search.


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Other characteristics that might help with your shortlist include a geographic focus, size, status as a nonprofit or for-profit organization, major funding sources and potential network of co-workers. For example, you may want to work for a large nonprofit in economic development that has projects in north Africa and the Middle East. This would be a good starting place to find the hundreds of organizations meeting these criteria. Once you have developed your criteria, you can find organizations that meet them through several strategies. Some useful strategies include: Because most international development organizations depend on donor funding, you can often get a quick list of implementing organizations by researching funding. For example, USAID is a major funder of economic and social development projects around the world. If you are interested in promoting democracy abroad, you can check out USAID’s website to see which organizations they fund in the regions you are focused on. This information is usually easy to find online. Other major donors exist for virtually any career focus. For example, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is a major funder of health projects. You should get a good idea of the main donor organizations for your professional focus through the process of your research. If location is the key requirement for your job search because you want to be based in a specific country or city, then start from there. If you want to work out of London or Washington, D.C., that may not help refine your job search too much, but if you have a random language skill or want to work in a particular country, you can focus easily on the development organizations that work in the country. The easiest way to do this is to simply search the internet for NGOs active in the country or, even better, speak to someone in the international development industry in the country. He or she should be able to identify many of the other main NGOs.


The value of effective networking can be tremendous in international development. The development community within a specific focus area is often well connected, so a project manager with one NGO working in environmental conservation is very likely to know many of the other conservation-focused organizations in the area. Talk to your colleagues, friends and teachers to get names of organizations in which you might be interested. Universities are an especially useful resource, as they tend to collaborate with a wide number of organizations. Although job sites devoted to international development are becoming more common, there are still only a handful of them out there. Fortunately more employers are beginning to utilize these sites and the number of resources is steadily growing. In addition to finding potential jobs, these sites are useful for identifying organizations to include in your shortlist. Finally, some sites that offer memberships may have tools to help with networking.

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Mona wanted to spend her summer vacation getting field experience in post-conflict reconstruction and development in Afghanistan. She started by making a list of all the organizations she could find carrying out reconstruction projects in Kabul. To find these organizations, she looked on USAID’s website to get a list of contractors having received funds to work in Afghanistan. This single list gave her more than 50 organizations, including local NGOs, international NGOs, engineering firms, consulting companies and educational institutions that had active projects. Next, Mona researched each organization and narrowed down the list to 15 candidates matching her work interests. She got in touch with each of these organizations through their websites or her professional network, and eventually had two offers for a summer internship.

Developing your own list of organizations to focus on has additional benefits as well. The process of finding these organizations should greatly increase your knowledge of the industry and give you a good idea of what kinds of projects on which different organizations are working. This will make you well informed during your interviews. You also may be asked about other organizations you are looking at for employment and having a good list of peer organizations will show hiring managers that you have done your research.


Now that you have a list of organizations to focus on, get to know each of them. You don’t need to devote a great deal of time to this, but you should have enough knowledge to effectively pursue employment. Go beyond their website’s job page and research what projects they are working on, who is on their executive board, what professional conferences or career events they attend and how they got started. One purpose of this research is to identify opportunities for networking. You may find that the organization is about to start a project in a remote province in which you happened to volunteer for a summer or that they have a board member who teaches at your university. Any of these connections will give you a good reason to contact someone inside the organization and start to build your network. During this step you should also make sure that you know where the organization posts its available positions. Besides their own websites’ job sections, most organizations advertise openings on one or more job clearinghouses. You should regularly check all these sites to stay informed of openings, and also to find ad ditional organizations to add to your shortlist.


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Once you have a good idea of which organizations you might want to work for and some familiarity with each, you can begin building your network. Anyone scared of the word “networking” should get a copy of the Vault Guide to Schmoozing, which will help you become comfortable with responsibly building your peer network. The goal of this step is to develop contacts inside the organizations in which you are most interested that you can email with a question or submit your resume for an opening. It is not necessary to have a contact within every organization on your shortlist but the more you have, the better your chances of getting a job. Remember, the purpose of networking is to ensure that your application passes the screening phase and will be reviewed by someone who can make a hiring decision. If you are fortunate enough and have a great network, you might even be considered for an unadvertised job. In some ways, networking in international development is easier than other industries. Most people in the field will readily acknowledge the challenges of navigating the uncertainties of the industry and are willing to share their own advice with you. It is one positive aspect of the industry that most people share a genuine passion for the work and even high-level managers are often willing to spend time with volunteers or entrylevel professionals to offer advice. This will be particularly true if you have done your preparation and can speak intelligently about the field. Always take advantage of these opportunities and treat them as job interviews by coming fully prepared, asking good questions and not pushing for a job. For such a large industry, international development is a surprisingly small world, and you are very likely to encounter many of the same people throughout your career.

The informational interview


The basic tool of networking is the informational discussion, sometimes also called an informational interview. This is really nothing more than an informal conversation that you arrange with someone working for an organization you are interested in who agrees to speak with you as a professional courtesy. Mostly these are phone calls but personal meetings are also possible, as are email exchanges. The difference between an informational discussion and a formal interview is that the discussion is not tied to a specific job. Rather an informational interview is simply a way for you to get more information about a prospective employer while demonstrating your interest in working there. In fact, you should not spend much time discussing jobs at all. Setting up an informational interview generally requires more than a basic interest in the organization. You should have a specific purpose for the conversation, such as an interest in a recent project they have completed, questions about an article they published, or a follow- up email from a previous encounter. The easiest way to get an informational interview is to share a professional or educational connection with someone in the organization. Being alumni from the same university or both being returned Peace Corps volunteers is often enough reason to get an informational meeting.

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E-mail examples When you set up an informational interview, state the purpose of your request in your e-mail and don’t ask for more than 10 to 15 minutes. Also, specify how you got the person’s contact information. Here is an example:.

Dear Ms. Holt, I got your email address from James Wasserman, who I worked with in Mexico last summer on a microfinance evaluation. I am in my final year of my MPA and I am focusing on small business finance. I read your article on finance for rural agriculture in last month’s Rural Development Newsletter and I was hoping that I might be able to ask you a few questions about it. I would be happy to give you a brief call at any time or even send my questions by email. Thanks.

Here is an example of an e-mail to send to a school alumni:

Dear Mr. Wai, I found your contact information while browsing the UW alumni database for graduates working in economic development in Africa. I will be graduating this spring and I am currently researching opportunities to get field experience in business enabling environment projects. I would really appreciate getting your perspective on the field. If you have 15 minutes anytime in the next couple of weeks, I would be glad to give you a call. Thanks.



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Remember that your contacts are probably extremely busy and may travel regularly. Respect their time because a poorly managed informational interview can end your career opportunities with their organization as easily as a well-managed informational discussion can boost them. Some general etiquette tips include: • Don’t arrange a discussion unless you are serious about the organization’s work and will be able to use the information you get. • Avoid e-mailing to ask questions about job openings unless the advertisement specifically lists and email contact for questions. • Don’t be pushy. If you don’t get a prompt response or you have trouble setting up a discussion, send a respectful note thanking your contact for trying to make time and ask him to contact you when his schedule clears.

• Don’t focus on job possibilities. The person you are speaking with will understand that you are interested in jobs in the field without you telling him or her. You will make a much better impression by asking thoughtful, insightful questions than by pressing for information about upcoming job openings. • Always thank your contacts through e-mail for their time after the discussion.

After your informational interview, send a thank you e-mail to the person and mention that you will keep an eye on opportunities with his or her organization. If you came well prepared for your informational discussion, the contact will likely offer to speak with you again about job openings in the future. When you do find an opening for which you want to apply, copy your contact on the e-mail you send to submit your resume and add a short note thanking them again for speaking with you. This is usually enough for your contact to steer your resume to the hiring officer, bypassing the screening stage. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

There are many strategies to creating a contact for informational discussions. Some of the best include: Always check your educational contacts to see if there are any alumni in the organizations you are targeting. Most schools, particularly graduate programs, have online databases for alumni to connect. If you have any alumni in an organization you are targeting, they are usually very receptive to arranging a phone call to discuss their work. Another random possibility is that an organization you are targeting has a project area that you have worked in or a project in a region that you know well. This can provide an opportunity to e-mail the project manager to ask a few questions based on your local or professional experience. Again, don’t bother a busy project manager to 60



recommend a great noodle place in the town, but if you have some insightful thoughts about their project based on your experience it can lead to a good contact. Some areas of international development host more of these events than others, and it will be a matter of your preparation to find them. Similarly, you can also look for professional organizations that exist for some areas. For example, the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association is a great resource for job seekers interested in financial markets development. You can also check online job websites for upcoming career fairs. Most organizations advertise on their websites any upcoming events they are participating in so be sure to check these websites frequently. If you don’t have a direct connection to anyone in the organization, perhaps your friends, teachers or colleagues do. Only utilize these connections if you are sure your colleagues are comfortable with you making use of their network, and be extra careful to make a good impression on your contact. If you are unable to generate any contact through the methods listed above, you can always e-mail their jobs email or HR department. Mention that you have been interested in their organization for a while and that you would like to ask a few questions about working there. Most organizations get too many requests to respond to these e-mails, but if you are sincere and have done your preparation, you may get to speak with someone. You can also ask if they attend any career fairs or have any informational materials about working for the organization.


With your shortlist and network in place, you should be ready to submit applications. The good news is that by doing your research and building your network you have already taken more steps to stand out than most candidates. The bad news is that you are not done yet. The goal of research and networking is to ensure that your application will make it through the screening process and be seriously considered by someone with the authority to make a hiring decision. With hundreds of applicants for most jobs, this is an essential step. Once you have made the second round of reviews, it is up to your cover letter and resume to finish the job. Applying to most jobs in international development is a simple matter of e-mailing your resume and cover letter to the contact address provided in the job description. If you have done your networking, you should have another contact e-mail inside the organization that you can also copy on your e-mail or even submit your resume through. Some organizations use an online application process that may ask you to Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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create an application profile by entering information about your education and experience. In these cases you will have an opportunity to upload your resume and cover letter before submitting your application. If you are applying through e-mail, keep your cover letter and resume in a single file with your name as the filename. This will help ensure that your materials are not separated or misplaced.

Cover letters The cover letter is one of most important pieces of your application. It is your chance, often your only chance, to make the case for why you are the best fit for the position. Always submit a cover letter even if it is optional or not specified. Your cover letter should complement your resume, drawing attention to the key items and filling in additional relevant details that don’t fit into the format of a resume. Keep the following guidelines in mind when writing your cover letter:


•

Your letter will probably be skimmed quickly so it is essential to highlight only key experiences that relate directly to the position.

•

Try to use keywords in your cover letter that are mentioned in the job description or terms of reference.

•

You have very limited space in a cover letter to make your case for the position, so don’t waste it repeating items that appear on your resume. When you refer to your work experience or education, be sure to make a point relevant to the position. For example, your resume may show your graduate degree in city planning but your cover letter can include a sentence or two about your thesis paper on sanitation planning and how it qualifies you to be a consultant for a neighborhood health program.

•

You will likely be competing for jobs with above average difficulty and responsibility along with below average compensation. You need to show that you have the dedication to stick with the work.

You should spend a lot of time to create a very strong cover letter. Have friends review your letter for grammatical mistakes and get someone in the international development industry to read it for content. If you have access to career services through your university, use them! Once you have a good cover letter, you can use it as a basis for each job you apply to but you will have to change the specific examples you use to match the unique job requirements. The Vault Guide to Resumes, Cover Letters and Interviews is a good resource for learning the stylistic and formatting guidelines for effective application materials. Two sample cover letters are provided at the end of the chapter, including one that could be used by applicants with little experience.

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Cover Letter Sample—Experienced

1111 1st Street #1A New York, NY 10007 [email protected] June 15, 2008 International Relief Attn: Kathleen Romero 115 Arbor Drive Arlington, VA 22201 Dear Ms. Romero, I enjoyed speaking with you during the International Careers Fair at the University of Virginia last month. I have been following opportunities with International Relief since our conversation and I would like to apply for the startup specialist position. I will complete my MPA at the University of Virginia in May and I am looking for an opportunity to expand my experience in the operations of a development organization while utilizing my management education. I believe that I have the qualifications to be successful in the startup specialist position. I have several years of work experience with international organizations, including one year prior to graduate school as a project manager for the Red Cross. During this time, I have participated in field office startup trips, planned budgets and conducted regular project evaluations. I have also worked with the financial and reporting standards of major donors, including USAID and DFID. This experience has taught me the importance of diligent monitoring, and helped me become a more effective communicator.


As a student, I have continued to gain practical experience. In my first year, I served as vice-president of our school’s International Development Club and helped organize a speaker series on post-conflict relief operations. My course work has been focused on general management for public institutions but I have taken several courses on finance, accounting and project management. Finally, as my background indicates, I am fully devoted to the field of international development. I look forward to discussing my qualifications in more detail in the coming weeks. Kind regards, Applicant University of Virginia | MPA 2008


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1111 1st Street #1A New York, NY 10007 [email protected] June 15, 2008 Development Associates Attn: Business Development Group 115 Arbor Drive Arlington, VA 22201 To Whom It May Concern: I am writing to express my interest in the business development coordinator position with Development Associates. I completed my bachelor’s degree in political science in May and, since then, I have spent the summer in Kazakhstan, volunteering with a local community development NGO. I am interested in working in international development and I think the Business Development position is a good place to learn more about the industry while improving my professional skills. My background in political science has allowed me to develop strong writing skills and a good understanding of international development issues. In my senior year, I took a graduate-level course in international aid and wrote a term paper about USAID. I think this familiarity will be an asset because USAID funding accounts for over 50 percent of Development Associates’ budget.


During my volunteer experience this summer, I have helped write several proposals and developed a fund raising strategy for a local NGO. The first proposal I worked on has already received funding from the International Rotary Club. Being part of this organization has inspired me to look for more opportunities in international development and I think I can make a valuable contribution to your business development team. I look forward to discussing my qualifications in more detail at your convenience. Kind regards, Applicant

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Resumes and CVs Your resume or Curriculum Vitae (CV) is other component of your application. There is a lot of confusion about the merits of a CV versus a resume, and when is appropriate to use each. A resume is simply briefer than a CV, and focused almost exclusively on your education and experience. A CV includes more detail of your experience and additional information, such as publications, industry affiliations, awards, etc. Many industries have strict standards about which format to use but both are common in international development. The decision on whether to submit a resume or CV is based both on your personal preferences and the expectations of employers. For most positions, you will be applying based on the merits of your education and experience, so a resume is sufficient. Senior positions, research positions or highly technical positions may require a resume, particularly if the job description requests a publication history. Most U.S.-based organizations will expect to see a resume, but will accept your CV. While a CV allows more space to document your experience and achievements, there is a real danger in providing too much information. For either format, it is always more professional and reflects better writing ability to provide a succinct summary of your experience in one or two pages rather than trying to include everything you have ever worked on in three or more pages. As a rule of thumb, use a resume early in your career before you have a long work history, professional associations and publications. Also, go with a resume for jobs with U.S.-based organizations. You might switch to a CV once you begin to look at mid-career positions and, in rare cases, an entry-level position with an internationally based organization may request a CV rather than a resume. A sample resume and CV are included at the end of the chapter.

Resume and CV guidelines


• If you have less than five years of work experience, keep your resume to a single page. Every word and every bullet point on your resume should be there for a reason that helps you get the current position to which you are applying. • Create several versions of your resume or CV to highlight different skill sets that relate to the positions you are pursuing. For example, if you are looking at business development positions and project assistant positions, have two versions of your resume or CV that focus on the respective skills needed for each job. • Use keywords from the job advertisement in your resume. This is particularly important to clearing the screening stage if you do not have a contact inside the organization. • Describe what you were specifically responsible for and what you achieved using active verbs and quantifiable measurements whenever possible. “Implemented a new grant management system that reduced administrative costs by 3 percent,” sounds much better than “Worked on grant management software project.” Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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Many jobs in international development will have some desired qualifications that most job seekers will not have. The following items are common shortcomings that you may face and suggestions on how to overcome them.


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•

– It is often not an absolute requirement to have experience in international development, but it is certainly something that will stand out and that you should try to address. If you haven’t worked in international development, the best option is to get some short-term volunteer experience. Even taking a spring break trip to build houses or teach basic health care will show that you have the passion to take initiative and engage in development. If you don’t have time to volunteer, then you can talk about any travel experience you have in developing countries. Vacationing on a beach in Thailand is no substitute for experience, but if you can use it as an opportunity to show how you have become engaged in development, that is better than nothing. You might include in a cover letter something close to this: “I became interested in international development while I was traveling in SE Asia and, since returning, I have followed economic development issues closely, particularly the microfinance projects in Cambodia that your organization is currently engaged in.” If you have no work or travel experience in developing countries, mention why you are interested in development and how you have tried to learn more about it.

•

– It is common for administrative positions to list specific donor experience in job advertisements. Many organizations are funded almost entirely by a single donor agency, particularly USAID. Because their funding comes from a single source, they want new employees who are already familiar with the reporting requirements and protocols of that funder. If you don’t have any experience with donors, you can consider attending one of the seminars that most large donors provide to explain their regulations. If that is not feasible, you can simply do the research on your own to learn about their regulations. It will not be the most interesting part of your week, but then you can tell employers that you don’t have any direct work experience with the donor, however, you are familiar with their reporting regulations.

•

– If your experience is mostly in South and Central America but you find a great opportunity in Asia, you should explain why your experience is still valuable. There are many aspects of development experience that “travel-well” so you can talk about best practices that are transferable to a new geography.

•

– If you haven’t done any administrative support work in international development, you can substitute similar experience in the private sector or even administrative components of your prior work experience. Focus particularly on detail-oriented and project management tasks as well as any experience you have implementing administrative systems.



Resume Sample—Entry- to Midlevel Joseph Applicant

1111 1st Street #1A | New York, NY 10007 [email protected] +1-555-555-5555 EDUCATION

2006 – 2008 ELLIOTT SCHOOL OF INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS Washington DC MPA - May 2008; Concentration in international non-profit management • Served as co-organizer of International Non-Profit Management Workshop • Recipient of Non-Profit Fellow Award • Part-time teaching assistant for graduate management course 2000 – 2004 NEW YORK UNIVERSITY New York, NY BA Political Science • Thesis on US Economic Policy toward South America • Graduated with Dean’s List honors EXPERIENCE

Summer 2006 US-BRAZIL ECONOMIC COOPERATION ASSOCIATION Washington D.C Summer Associate

• Led in-country research team to study the legal environment for FDI in the tech sector in Brazil • Developed research into detailed presentation for US businesses • Received recognition from Brazil’s FDI promotion board for quality of presentation 2005 – 2006 INTER-AMERICAN POLICY CENTER Boston, MA Project Coordinator


• Provided administrative support including HR and finance for two field projects with 12 staff • Led final project evaluation team and documented best practices 2004 – 2005 RURAL FINANCE ASSOCIATION Santiago, Chile Small Business Development Volunteer

• Wrote three training modules for rural entrepreneurs on getting loans, bookkeeping and financial math • Delivered modules in 10 training sessions to over 200 entrepreneurs in rural villages ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE

• Designed informational brochures on legal and financial rights for Puerto Rican community house in Brooklyn, NY • Languages: Spanish – Fluent, French – Intermediate • Hobbies: Nature photography, Spanish cooking, ecotourism


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Curriculum Vitae (CV) Sample - Midlevel *This sample has been abbreviated to show only the content and style. An actual CV would be two or more pages.

PERSONAL DETAILS

Name: Joseph A. Applicant Address: 1111 1st Street #1A, New York, NY 10027 Contact: Tel: +1-555-555-5555/+1-555-555-5556 Email: [email protected] Nationality/Work Authorization: USA, work authorization in USA and UK PROFILE

I have amassed over eight years of experience as a project leader for social and environmental impact assessments for large-scale infrastructure and energy projects throughout the Middle East and North Africa, with specific expertise in extractive industry operations, waste treatment plants, power generation facilities (coal and nuclear), and SEZs. My experience covers private and public investments of up to $1.8 billion USD. PROFESSIONAL CAREER

Middle East and North Africa Regional Director Barrett, Fabir, and Abbas Associates, 2008 – Present Responsibilities: As MENA regional director, I am responsible for managing a team of 25

analysts and engineers working on three to five projects at a time. In this capacity, I oversee the design of new assessments, monitor data collection and ensure data quality, and write the final assessment reports. Key Achievements:

• During my tenure, the region has cut its average completion time by 30 percent • 80 percent of the reports I have managed have received the highest possible evaluation ranking by the Independent Evaluation Group EDUCATION


University of Colorado, Boulder, CO Ph.D. in Environmental Science (1996) Dissertation: "Standardization of Environmental Impact Assessments for Infrastructure Investment in the Middle East" Advisor: Dr. Joseph Miles PUBLICATIONS

Handbook for Environmental Impact Assessments on Waste Treatment Projects. Washington D.C.: George Washington University Press, 2003. "Social Impact and the Provision of Public Goods." Journal of Applied Economics, Summer, 2004 PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

• Member, American Academy of Environmental Engineers • Member and registered expert, Association of Consulting Engineers ADDITIONAL

• Fluent speaker of French, Arabic, English and Italian

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By following a job search strategy you have greatly improved your chances to make the shortlist. When you do, you’ll need to prepare for the final stage of the hiring process, which consists of one or more interviews. You can expect, on average, to have two or three interviews, often with more than one person interviewing you. Just as with your applications, the key to successfully interviewing is preparation. Make sure you are very familiar with the organization, including its mission, current projects, geographic focus, and major donors. If you have phone interviews, take advantage of the opportunity to make note cards ahead of time with answers to common questions. Some tips for giving excellent interviews include: • Make a list of likely questions. Practice your answers until you are comfortable and sound natural. Practice in front of the mirror or with friends. If at all possible, record yourself answering the questions and review the tape. Many university career centers offer these services. • Keep your answers brief and be sure you are answering the specific question that was asked. If your interviewers want more information, they will ask for it. • It is good to use examples from your field experience because it can break the ice, show your worldly experience, and stand out in the minds of your interviewers. However, be aware that these stories have a tendency to become long-winded. Practice ahead of time to make sure you get to a meaningful point quickly without giving unnecessary background information. • It is common for interviews to begin with a very general, life-story question along the lines of, “So, tell me about your background,” or, “Walk me through your resume.”. Always have a strong, concise answer to this question ready. It should be no longer than two or three minutes, hit the key points of your resume and end with a statement about why you are interested in the position for which you are being interviewed. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

• Be formal and professional, but also remember that the interview is about more than your experience. These are your future potential co-workers trying to determine if they would want to work with you. This is sometimes called the “airplane test,” meaning your interviewer should be willing to sit next to you on a six- hour flight based on your interview. You can make a positive impression by demonstrating good communications skills. Listen carefully, ask thoughtful questions and address your interviewers by name. • Be ready with one or two insightful questions to ask your interviewers about the position or their organization. These questions should be specific enough to demonstrate that you know the organization but not so specific that your interviewer might not know the answer. For example, the question, “How did you decide to use local taxis as information distribution sources for your HIV/AIDS project in


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Malaysia?” would be too specific because your interviewer may not have any relationship to that project. A better question would be, “Your organization has started several new projects in public health in the last two years. Are you looking for synergies in public health with your economic development projects, or is it an evolution based on funding availability?” Most people enjoy talking about their workplace, and your interviewer will appreciate your attempt to understand the growth of the organization.

Sample interview questions Most interviews include two types of questions. “Fit” questions address your compatibility with the organization, your knowledge of the industry, and your passion for the work. “Technical” questions seek to determine your ability to handle to work. Some key questions you will likely be asked are listed below with guidelines for answering.

You should practice answering this question until you can give a two- to three-minute response focusing on your key accomplishments and ending with a statement on why you are considering the current job

This question is giving you an opportunity to show off your networking and industry knowledge. Impress your interviewer by giving some current facts about the organization. For example, “I took a course last semester on emerging markets finance and, as part of my research paper, I studied the financial performance of microfinance institutions. I found that the three leading MFIs in Ecuador are all clients of Women’s World Banking, and that led me to find out more about the organization.”


This is a good time to give a short anecdote of some experience you have had in international development that made you want to work in the industry. Prepare a couple of examples ahead of time and make sure they are easy to understand, short and impactful.

If you have done your homework and prepared for the job hunting process, this question will be no problem. If you haven’t taken the time to read the organization’s mission statement, then use the question as a learning experience to be better prepared in the future.

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Your research into the industry should give you some idea of evaluation methodologies. Qualitative methods are used to understand, on an individual basis, a project outcome. For example, how did clinical workers in these two rural hospitals change their patient interactions as a result of the training? These methods are used most often to determine the needs of a target population and evaluate the effectiveness of a project on individual beneficiaries. Common qualitative methods include focus groups, interview panels, and case studies. Quantitative methods are data -driven and attempt to determine the overall impact of a project. For example, how much did personal expenditure on health care change in this town as a result of the school outreach program? Quantitative methods utilize statistical analysis on data that either pre-exists or is created for the evaluation. Pre-existing data can include anything from national tax records to World Bank data on pollution levels to customs data on imports. New data is created through methods such as baseline studies, surveys and direct observation.

These kinds of questions are testing your ability to solve problems in difficult situations. You should demonstrate the ability to think of numerous ways to accomplish your goals and to communicate effectively. For example, in the case of the bribery question you might suggest finding a higher-level counterpart to write a letter of support that you could give to the official, making your request in a formal letter that would require a written response, hiring a lawyer or simply inviting the official to your office where you could explain the project and gently indicate that you can only authorize money to be spent for approved purposes.


Spending on international assistance has many benefits to the home country. Better relationships with foreign governments are helpful politically. Economic development means more markets for home country exports. Better management of health care means better controls over disease outbreaks.

Most volunteer agencies want to place people with a good idea of what they want to accomplish from the experience both personally and professionally. When you explain why you want to be a volunteer, describe your interest in the position and how it relates to your long-term career goals. Also be sure that you express a commitment to the work. Many volunteer organizations are concerned with people quitting at the first signs of difficulty because they didn’t think through what they were getting into.


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Some other common questions that you may encounter include: • • • • • •


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Where do you see yourself professionally in five years? What is your biggest professional accomplishment? What is your biggest professional failure? What unique skills will you bring to the position? How did you select your graduate degree? Do you work more comfortably alone or in teamwork situations?


The Hiring Process Chapter 7

As stated earlier, international development positions are almost always very competitive. The most attractive positions, including some prestigious fellowships and Young Professionals programs with intergovernmental organizations such as the IFC or UN, regularly receive more than a thousand applications for a dozen positions. Given the competition, it can be daunting to even apply to widely advertised positions, but getting a job is really just about doing your homework, finding opportunities you are qualified for and standing out from the crowd. Some common ways people get hired are listed below.

Applicants already inside the organization The best way to get jobs in a particular organization is to already be working there. It is common in many organizations for jobs be offered to current employees or through an informal network of candidates. Current employees have several advantages that can make the difference between being the only applicant and being one of hundreds of applicants. First, current employees are often aware of upcoming openings and have plenty of time to talk with the project team about filling the position. Managers also like to promote from within because they are familiar with the candidates and can shift training needs to more entry-level positions. You do not need professional, paid experience in an organization. Volunteering can serve the same function by allowing you to build a strong network of contacts within an organization and show off your skills to potential co-workers. As a jobhunt strategy, this may not be feasible for everyone, but it is certainly a good approach to consider.


After four interviews and being one of the final three candidates for a position, Patrick didn’t get the job. He was disappointed but followed up with the HR department of the organization a few days later, thanking them for the interviews, expressing how much he had learned throughout the application process and asking for his resume to be kept on file. Three weeks later he got an email inviting him to apply for a position that had suddenly become available and, after one interview, was offered the position.

Applicants connected to the organization The next best thing to getting a job before it is advertised is submitting an application through someone inside the organization. This is particularly effective in international development due to the small and informal nature of most hiring decisions. Having

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Vault Career Guide to International Development The Hiring Process

someone inside the organization mention your application or forward your resume to the project manager usually means you’ll at least pass through the screening phase. Networking, which is covered in Chapter 6, is the key to getting this advantage.

Applicants with highly applicable experience and education With careful preparation, you should reduce the number of jobs you apply to “cold” or with nothing but your resume and cover letter. It is certainly possible to get offers from these cold submissions, but you will be relying entirely on your resume and cover letter so it is important to demonstrate that you are a clear fit for the specific needs of the position. One difficult aspect of international development is that many jobs have an unusual requirement or two that might disqualify many applicants. For instance, there may be a great children’s health position that you are qualified for except that it is in West Africa and requires French fluency, a language you don’t speak. If your background is a very strong fit to the job except for this one issue, it may be worth your time to go ahead and apply. However, given the competitive nature of the industry there will likely be someone with a similar background that happened to study French in high school rather than Spanish.

Unlike many other industries, there are few standards in international development around the hiring process. It varies a great deal by organization and differences also depend on the type of position.


For the most part, the hiring process in international development is slower than in the private sector. This is due to many factors, including the large number of applicants and the project-based nature of many positions. In addition, a lot of development organizations have either very small or nonexistent HR departments, so candidates are reviewed by the already overworked project staff. Another common aspect of the hiring process is the unfortunate lack of feedback. Be prepared to submit many carefully crafted applications only to never hear anything back. There are simply too many applicants for most positions to allow for individual feedback. Basically, the hiring process will consist of a screening phase, a review period and interviews. • The screening phase is where most job hunters are eliminated. It usually consists of a project assistant or HR associate or administrative assistant looking at every resume submission and eliminating the applications that don’t meet the requirements of the position. This phase is all about matching your skills and background to the needs of the position. If the job description says, “USAID experience required,” and your resume doesn’t have the word USAID on it, you are probably not making it through screening, regardless of your other relevant experience. A significant portion of your

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job search strategy, which is discussed in Chapter 6, is dedicated to getting past the screening process so your resume and cover letter are given serious consideration. • The review period is a more careful review of the applicants who make it through screening, usually conducted by more senior staff. The best of these applicants then make the shortlist of candidates who will be interviewed. This phase still depends on your match to the needs of the position but allows you to make a case for your candidacy through your cover letter, which can address some limitations or shortcomings you may have. Chapter 6 covers resumes and cover letters in detail. • The interview phase involves one or more conversations with people responsible for making the hiring decision. It can be a stressful time, but once you have made it this far, you are at least a competitive applicant. More information on the hiring process specific to various kinds of development organizations is covered in later in this chapter.

One common question is the value of negotiation in the hiring process. Many people assume that salaries are firmly set by donor agreement or internal regulation but, in fact, there is almost always a great deal of leeway in compensation. Intergovernmental organizations, for example, have salary ranges with a maximum and minimum for each grade level that can differ by more than $10,000. A salary offer can be anywhere in this range. Benefits are often more difficult to negotiate because they are usually set by contract type, but there is still room for negotiation. The most flexibility is usually in relocation, although some organizations offer adjusted levels of housing or cost of living stipends. Some negotiation tips to keep in mind include:


The best time to negotiate either salary or benefits is after you have an offer. At that point the organization has invested in the interview process, selected you as their best candidate, and is more likely to negotiate. If you are asked about salary expectation or benefits during the interview process, you can be up front about your expectations without limiting your ability to negotiate. For example, if you need relocation and housing benefits, then you might respond to a question about salary expectation by saying, “I am looking at positions that provide competitive international packages.” This will clearly signal that you expect a high-end compensation package without being dishonest or limiting your options to negotiate if you get an offer. Another common answer to the question is to say that you are looking at comparable positions with other industry leaders for international contracts.


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Many people feel very uncomfortable negotiating their job offer. You may fear that your employer will withdraw their offer when you don’t immediately accept, or that it makes you appear arrogant, or that you don’t want to start a new relationship with a future boss by driving a hard bargain. Rest assured, all of these outcomes are extremely uncommon, and you wouldn’t want to work for an organization that reacted in this way. In fact, appropriate negotiation is expected and will demonstrate your professionalism. Just remember that the hiring process is as long for employers as job hunters, and once you have an offer the employer is very likely to try and find a way to make you say yes. Anticipate questions about compensation and be prepared with your answers. Practice them ahead of time with a friend or in front of a mirror. Know some industry information, such as general pay scales available online or even general statistics for non-profit industry wages (but be careful—international development is not always compatible with job data for the nonprofit sector. It should only be used when there is no better information available). Other data you should have includes salary ranges for people with your educational background (many universities have this for students), cost of living information and your salary history. If HR tells you that new hires with your contract type can’t receive relocation compensation, then negotiate for a signing bonus, a temporary salary increase or anything else that will get you the benefits you need.


Most negotiations will take a few rounds to be resolved and you should maintain a consistent stance during this time. Justify why you need the item under negotiation and be clear that it is a priority. This will shift the negotiation from a question of whether or not to provide the benefit to a question of how much of a benefit to provide. While you should be firm, you should also have a carefully calculated number that you will accept as a compromise. This number should be relative to your opportunity cost, or the value of the next best alternative to the job you are negotiating. If you have another offer that you are interested in, you can negotiate more strongly than if your alternative is sticking with your restaurant job.

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The following sections identify unique aspects of the hiring process for different types of international development organizations.

Government Agencies and Donors Almost all industrial nations have government-run international assistance programs that distribute Official Development Assistance (ODA) and many have governmentsponsored volunteer programs. For example, the U.S. government has USAID and the Peace Corps. These programs are some of largest employers of international development professionals and offer good salaries plus excellent benefits. They are almost always easier to get started in than the multilaterals and offer similar benefits plus the opportunity to work abroad.

Like multilateral organizations, government agencies have strict administrative policies covering the hiring process. Start by consulting the government’s job website, which should allow you to search for positions within a specific agency. The website will list the application requirements in detail. Government positions often have more detailed applications that may require you to prepare narrative responses to questions. The hiring timeline can be slow, with average times from posting a job to making an offer ranging from several weeks to several months.

Most educational backgrounds will be suitable for these positions. Some prior international development experience will be very helpful. The ranks of many national development agencies are filled with former volunteers from that country’s volunteer program.


• Most of these jobs, both professional and volunteer positions, require citizenship in the country. They may offer consultant positions that can go to non-citizens but these will be highly competitive and require extensive technical experience. • Many governments offer preferential hiring to candidates who currently work for the federal government. Sometimes this even applies to volunteers. For example, Peace Corps volunteers get one year of preferential hiring for federal government jobs after completing their service.


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Jobs with government agencies will be posted online through the government’s job site. Think outside the box and consider government agencies besides the designated international development agency. In the United States, there are dozens of government agencies that participate in international development and many of them may offer unique opportunities that other job seekers don’t think to pursue. You can also look for agencies that match your functional interest. For example, if you are interested in environmental conservation you can be sure that there are several government agencies involved with this work that have some budget devoted to international issues. Often these are capacity-building or training projects.

Many of these agencies offer entry-level positions that have regular advancement opportunities. Volunteer service is also useful because returned volunteers regularly enter these government agencies and you will have a ready network to help identify opportunities.

NGOs and Implementing Agencies International development work is carried out by implementing organizations, the most common of which are known as NGOs. Other types of implementing organizations include nonprofits, private voluntary organizations, civil sector organizations, development consultancies, think tanks, and private sector companies. There are differences between each of these that are covered in Part I, but, for the purposes of the hiring process, they operate in largely the same manner.


The hiring process for these organizations follows the basic outline already covered. There will be a screening phase, review period and interviews. The average time from posting a job to making an offer can range from several weeks to several months. Larger organizations will have detailed job pages on their websites that will allow you to apply directly online. Smaller organizations still post their openings online but may make more use of informal networks and internal hiring to fill vacancies.

Qualifications vary widely depending on the size and focus of the organization, but you should have some international development experience and appropriate educational qualifications.

Jobs with these organizations may be posted on their website, internet job sites, university job sites, industry publications, or not posted at all. Many of these organizations also keep databases of resumes. You should be able to post your resume

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in their databases through their websites. The best way to find opportunities is to use your network to find a contact within the organization.

Many of these organizations will have entry-level positions suitable for recent graduates. In addition, larger organizations will provide structured volunteer opportunities that will often lead to full-time work. Even smaller organizations without formal internship programs may be receptive to your offer to volunteer.

Intergovernmental Organizations

Multilateral organizations are known for their bureaucratic administrative procedures and, unfortunately, hiring policies are no exception. The strict procedures are wellintended efforts to ensure transparency and prevent corruption, but they make the application process very slow. The average time from posting a job to making an offer can range from one to six months and up to a year for special programs, such as Young Professionals. Applications are submitted online through the organization’s website and the hiring process usually involves several rounds of interviewing. It is not uncommon for a successful applicant to go through five or more interviews before being offered a position. The United Nations has several hiring processes, including a competitive exam.


Due to the highly competitive nature of these jobs, you will need top-notch educational and work experience qualifications. These should include postgraduate education from an excellent university and high-level work experience with respected public or private sector organizations. For regionally focused organizations, such as the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) or the Asian Development Bank (ADB), you should have extensive regional experience and relevant language fluency. Due to the high level of requirements, the average starting age for these organizations is usually in the early to mid-30s.

• Most IGOs have several grades of employees, with certain grades considered professional and lower grades non-professional. The distinction is important because only professional employees qualify for most benefits. • IGOs are “owned” by the countries that provide their operating budgets. If you are not a citizen of a member country, you are probably not eligible to work for the organization. • Some IGOs, particularly the United Nations, have a mandate to hire employees from member countries in proportion to their funding. Therefore, citizens from certain countries are given high priority for some jobs. Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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All IGOs have career pages on their websites where they post open jobs. Be aware that any position you see here will receive hundreds, if not thousands, of applications, but also don’t let that discourage you if you have a very strong fit for the position.

Most IGOs offer management training or rotational programs targeted at recent graduates called Young Professionals programs. These programs are good opportunities to get in the door with a multilateral agency but they are extremely competitive. Thousands of people apply every year for 10 to 20 positions. At a minimum you will need a master’s degree and some international development experience. Having a master’s degree from a prestigious university or strong work experience with a well-known company can improve your chances. Applications for these programs are generally accepted in the fall with final decisions made the following spring. Refer to each organization’s website for more information on these programs.

Many IGOs offer internship programs that are extremely competitive. Often these internships are targeted at experienced development workers who are earning master’s or PhD degrees. However check with their websites to see if you meet the requirements for a volunteer position. The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) runs the United Nations Volunteer program, which is covered in more detail below.


There are really no easy ways to get in the door with an IGO. Any position listed on the website, including unpaid internships, will attract too many applicants to be a good possibility. One strategy that can be effective is to build strong professional skills in a field environment and then try to get a short-term contract with an IGO’s field office. For instance, you might work with local NGOs in Bolivia on designing community surveys to assess the quality of social services. If you get really experienced at this you might be able to get a short-term contract from the local IADB office to conduct a similar survey for one of their projects. This requires a very strong network within the multilateral agency and an excellent reputation for the quality of your work.

Volunteer Positions Volunteer positions come in all shapes and sizes, from multiyear programs with benefits and living stipends to short-term positions that don’t cover any expenses. Volunteering is also the most common way to get started in international development and should be seriously considered, even for more experienced job seekers.

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The hiring process varies greatly by organization. More formal programs, such as VSO and the Peace Corps, have very lengthy selection processes that can last up to a year and involve medical and background screening. Less formal programs and those that aren’t run by governments or large international agencies are usually faster but offer fewer benefits. Volunteer positions aren’t as competitive as professional positions, but you should still expect some rigorous interviewing and be prepared to explain your interest in the position.

With so many volunteer programs out there, it can be hard to determine which will provide the best experience. For any program you consider, always speak to someone who has gone through it, preferably several people. Ask how well structured the program was, how much support they had in the field and what kind of benefits were provided to the volunteers. Good programs will offer benefits even if they are not paid. Some common benefits to look for include: If you will have to travel for the position, be sure to determine if the costs are covered. Larger volunteer organizations will almost always cover these costs but less formal and smaller programs may not. You should always have insurance when working abroad. This will often be covered by your volunteer organization, but, if not, many insurance companies offer low cost, short-term travel insurance. Find out how your living expenses will be paid. These vary widely depending on where the position is located and can add up to a large amount in some cases. Many volunteer organizations will provide a per-diem stipend to cover room and board. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Formal volunteer programs should offer strong alumni networks that you can use to help with networking. Many volunteer programs are targeted at recent graduates so better programs will offer some kind of loan deferral for the period of your service. These deferrals have to be individually negotiated so the volunteer program may not offer deferrals for your specific loan. Be sure to ask. There are some reputable organizations that will charge a fee to place volunteers and many more that are not reputable. Always be extra cautious of volunteer opportunities that require payment, and thoroughly investigate the position before pursuing it.


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Refer to the appendix for a list of major volunteer organizations and their entrance requirements.

If you plan ahead, you might consider doing three months of volunteer service before you begin your job search. This will allow you to get direct experience targeted at the kind of jobs for which you want to apply. Creating your own volunteer opportunity requires extensive preparation. Be prepared to write your own job description, then sell it to prospective host organizations. It is much easier to create these opportunities in field offices or with local NGOs than with international organizations.


Linda was in her first year of a two-year master’s degree in environmental science. She wanted to get a job after graduating in environmental conservation in Southeast Asia but didn’t have any international development experience. It was nearly the start of the summer vacation and she hadn’t found a summer job in environmental conservation, so she decided to create her own position to get work experience and build her network. She started by developing a short proposal of projects she could complete as a volunteer that would be useful professional skills for her full-time job search. Then she contacted local NGOs in several Southeast Asian countries through their websites, offering to work with them free of charge on any of the projects she had developed. Several of the organizations were interested in getting free assistance and she ended up spending the summer with a local NGO in Cambodia, training national park staff in conservation and wildlife surveying. Her school funded half of her travel costs and the local NGO arranged for her to stay in a spare bedroom with one the national park staff. She had to borrow money from her parents to fund the summer, but she got highly applicable work experience and met several employees of the World Wildlife Fund while she was in Cambodia that she can use as contacts for her full-time job search.

Having a successful volunteer experience is as much your responsibility as the volunteer agency’s. Remember, one of most important personal characteristics to succeed in development is initiative. This applies even more in volunteer positions. You should have a very clear idea, before you even begin, of what you want to accomplish personally and professionally from your volunteer work. Make sure you are getting this when you start working, and if you are not, find a way to make the situation better.

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ON THE

JOB


Career Paths Culture, Compensation and Benefits



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Career Paths Chapter 8

There are three broad categories of positions within every development organization. These include administrative, technical, and support positions. Although some organizations combine these roles, you should be aware of the differences because they can have major implications on your daily work and career opportunities. Some organizations also use the terms ‘project position’ and ’non-project position’ instead of ‘technical’ and ‘administrative’ but the distinction is the same. Administrative roles are responsible for ensuring the organization has the resources and support, including leadership, to fulfill its mission. These are the program managers, grant writers, coordinators, and many others who handle everything besides project implementation. The technical staff is responsible for carrying out the actual projects that the organization runs, and positions include project managers, technical consultants and advisors. Very few positions will be entirely focused in only one of these areas, so if you want to develop technical skills, you should not overlook administrative positions and if you land a technical job you should still expect to do regular administrative tasks. Support positions are distinct in that they involve very specific duties similar to corresponding positions in the private sector. These jobs include accountants, IT specialists, HR officers, and other professional support positions needed to keep an organization running.

The distinction between administrative and technical roles varies by organization. For example, in a small NGO devoted to rural health care, the managers are likely to have a strong technical background in addition to managerial experience. Organizations with many local offices around the world are more likely to have specialized management roles. A current trend in larger organizations is to place administrative positions within a ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

technical functional area. For instance, one leading development consultancy is split into three practice areas covering economic development, water and sanitation, and governance. Administrative positions, such as project coordinators, are hired into one of these practice areas where they get technical skills in addition to administrative skills. You should also be aware that terminology, qualifications and duties vary greatly by organization, even for roles with similar or identical titles. One organization might require three to five years of experience for an “associate” position while another organization’s “associates” may need five to seven years of experience.

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Career Paths

Description Administrators are the nuts and bolts of a development organization. They keep things running smoothly and ensure there are enough resources to fulfill the organization’s mission. In addition to management and leadership, they are responsible for fund raising, designing projects, reporting results, and overseeing the operations of the organization’s field offices. The successful administrator is a self-starter with good communication skills, attention to detail and a strong ability to multitask.

Career path Career paths vary greatly by organization, but administrative roles generally lead to management positions, such as departmental heads in the home office or country director positions in the field. For example, a common entry-level position in the administrative track is business development associate. After one or two years in that position, you would advance to business development manager and then to senior business development manager. Depending on the size of the organization, there may be another level as vice president or director of business development.


Susan’s example is one common to international development. She started as a Peace Corps volunteer working on a teacher-training project in West Africa. Following her two-year contract, she remained in the country to work with a local NGO on capacity-building in the education sector. This position paid a local salary of less than $200 per month, requiring Susan to use her savings on student loan repayment. When a large, multinational NGO started a similar project in the country, she used her language skills and cultural knowledge to get a position as an assistant project manager with an international salary and benefits. After the project ended, she was offered a position with the NGO in its headquarters office in Washington, D.C., where she now lives. “It was a hard choice to stay in the country after I finished my work with the Peace Corps, especially because of my student loans, but I knew I wanted to work in international development and the experience would be valuable. I’m really glad I stuck with it.

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Career Paths

General qualifications for entry-level The entry-level requirements for administrative positions are often less demanding than those for technical positions. Although these vary significantly by organization, you will need a minimum of a bachelor’s degree and some exposure to international issues. As the industry becomes more competitive, a master’s degree and some volunteer or work experience in international development will probably become necessary for entry-level administrative positions. These qualifications are covered in more detail in Chapter 5.

Home or field Administrative positions are usually based at a home office with some travel to the field. A program coordinator, for example, may travel once or twice per year to different field offices to help write a grant proposal, evaluate a project or get a new field office started. These trips may last anywhere from a few days to several weeks, depending on the needs of the organization. Some organizations may require significantly more travel, so you should have a good idea of how much time you are comfortable spending in the field. Most field offices will also have one senior administrator, such as a country director or country representative, which is generally the highest field-based administrative position.

Skills needed


Smaller organizations will really be looking for a jack-of-all-trades background for administrative positions. They want someone who can proofread a grant application, summarize a recent article on new trends in economic development, file a spending approval and check the status of a new field office all in the same day. And then remember to get up at 1:30 a.m. to call the country director of the Uzbekistan office. Any experience in project management will be very helpful, as will writing skills, computer software knowledge and fund-raising experience. Even for administrative roles, you should demonstrate some understanding of the technical work the organization focuses on. Larger organizations will have more specialized administrative roles, often with several levels in each role. These kinds of roles are covered below. You should be sure to ask, when pursuing an administrative job, what kind of mobility it provides to other administrative or technical areas.

Common positions This position is responsible for finding funding and maintaining good relationships with donors. These jobs involve a great deal of writing and careful attention to detail. In addition, you will become an expert in the reporting and grant submission guidelines of major donors. Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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These positions involve helping with tracking and managing projects, often referred to as backstopping. Daily tasks involve writing project reports, monitoring budgets, coordinating with donors and assisting with grant writing. • Project coordinators or assistants may take on more responsibility and become project managers, who handle similar duties but for multiple projects. Project managers also assist with the organization’s strategic planning and business development. • Larger organizations have many specialized administrative roles, many of which fall into the support category, but some involve more project-related work. Communications staff, for example, may focus on a single type of project, such as agricultural work and travel to field sites to write about projects and document success stories.

Sankar worked as a manager in a department store before returning to school to earn his MBA. He wanted to work in microfinance but had a hard time finding a position due to his lack of experience. Sankar eventually accepted a position in business development with an international NGO working in economic development. After several months of good performance, he requested permission to find funding for a small microfinance project and took on the responsibility of writing the project proposal. When he found a donor to fund the project’s feasibility study, he was assigned to manage the study and eventually became the full-time project manager for a major microfinance project.


Description Technical specialists are responsible for delivering the results that an organization promises in its funding proposals. These are the economists, engineers, policy experts, doctors, bankers and lawyers who utilize their professional talents in the realm of development. The full spectrum of technical positions in international development is virtually unlimited since almost any specialty can be applied to the needs of a developing country. Successful technical specialists are excellent communicators, highly adaptable and highly knowledgeable in their professional area.

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Many technical roles are hired through short-term contracts and go to highly qualified and very specialized consultants. Though more development organizations are starting to keep technical specialists on staff as regular employees, and some even offer entry-level or mid-career positions in technical areas.

Career path For technical positions, the traditional career path is more a matter of jumping from one contract to another, with one or more organizations while building regional experience or expertise in a particular type of project. However, some organizations are beginning to hire technical specialists and are offering a regular career path. Although these organizations are in the minority, there is a growing trend to build strong technical skills even among administrative staff. Thus, it would be possible, for example, to get a position as a program assistant for health projects and then advance to program manager, and finally be offered a field assignment as deputy chief of party for a health policy project based on the strength of your technical knowledge. As technical experts take on more are more responsibility, they assume greater management duties. The highest position for technical experts in the field is the chief of party or project director position, which comes with a great deal of administrative duties.

General qualifications The qualifications needed for technical positions vary greatly by organization and the level of responsibility associated with the role. At a minimum, you can expect to need postgraduate education in the relevant field, a few years of experience and some exposure to international development. Many organizations also prefer technical staff that have worked within the organization or that have some experience with the administrative side of international development. Many technical positions are filled internally by administrative staff with the required education and experience.


Due to the heavy competition for these jobs, most people specialize in a single aspect of their industry. For example, if you are interested in economic development, you might pursue an MBA with a concentration in finance or an MPA with a concentration in economic policy. Beyond that you might even focus more specifically on microfinance or rural economic development.

Home or field There are opportunities for technical jobs at headquarters and field offices. Headquarters-based positions help design projects, write proposals, carry out research and assist field projects. Field-based positions are responsible for one or more projects being implemented. Just as with the administrative positions, it is usually easier to get a field posting after you are already inside an organization.


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Skills needed The skills required for technical positions depend heavily on the nature of the position, but a solid educational and technical background will be a necessity for any position. Beyond that, experience working in a developing country, managing diverse teams and completing complex tasks under tight deadlines will be helpful. Writing and communication skills are also critical for higher-level technical positions.

Common positions • Many organizations employ permanent technical specialists to assist with project design, grant writing and troubleshooting. These are permanent staff, meaning they work from the main office and are not assigned to a single project. These are very technical positions and usually require five to 10 years of professional experience. • Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) is a career function that splits administrative and technical functions. There are many technical skills required for the work, but these professionals are usually based out of a home or regional office and spend a lot of time on administrative issues. Many graduate programs offer course work or even concentrations in monitoring and evaluation.

Description


Support positions cover the operational needs of the organization from HR to IT to accounting. These jobs tend to closely match their private sector counterparts with a few additional duties, such as contract and grant management. Most organizations employ minimal support staff due to the limited nature of their funding, and the positions are generally less competitive because they typically don’t offer career mobility into either administrative or technical positions. Successful support staff are selfdirected, detail-oriented and able to work on several project simultaneously.

Career path Support staff advance within their functional department. For example, an entry-level HR assistant role might lead eventually to regional HR manager and then to director of HR. Larger organizations will have more defined career paths and more opportunities for employment. It is uncommon, but not unheard of, for support staff to cross over to fill an administrative or technical role, so check with a potential employer if you are looking for that kind of career progression.

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General qualifications for entry-level Qualifications generally include a university degree, some private-sector work experience and a commitment to the organization’s mission. Smaller organizations have higher qualifications for work experience and education. Some exposure to the unique aspects of non-profit or international organizations will also be an asset for these positions.

Home or field Most support positions are in main offices, but larger organizations often have support personnel in the field, especially when opening or closing a field office. It is becoming more common for organizations to staff their field office support positions with local hires in-country rather than international staff.

Skills needed Support staff will be expected to have a working knowledge of their functional role, evidenced by prior experience. In addition, international experience or past work with diverse teams will be helpful.

Common positions Most international development organizations rely heavily on IT and information management systems. These organizations always need skilled IT technicians to keep their networks running. Financial management is also critical to the operations of international development agencies. These positions offer an excellent way to use your accounting skills in a rewarding and challenging field. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C


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Career advancement in international development is less routine than other industries. With the possible exception of intergovernmental and government agencies, you will rarely advance up a well-defined career ladder, being promoted every few years. • There are generally a lot of opportunities in international development for people at the very beginning of their careers. As we have discussed, these are often either volunteer positions or low-paid, entry-level jobs. For those at the start of their career, these are great opportunities to get some practical work experience and explore the field. • The number of positions in the industry greatly constricts for mid-level positions. In general, these are positions requiring more than three years of experience. One reason is that many organizations prefer to recruit from within and mid-level positions usually go to current employees. In addition, there are simply fewer real mid-level positions in the industry. The funding constraints that nearly every development organization faces results in a streamlined organizational structure with few nonproject mid-level positions. • While there are a limited number of senior level positions in international development, they are often more numerous than mid-level positions. The main reason is that these positions often have some requirements that are hard to fill. For example, it is often difficult to find someone with 20 years of experience to live in a remote developing country because professionals with this many years of experience will usually have families and less flexibility on lifestyle considerations. In addition, the natural attrition of the industry means that few people stay in development long enough to make it to senior levels, thus there are often vacant positions. Some techniques that are common in the industry to advance a career include: ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

• • • •

Going regional Shopping around Going back to school Gaining unique skills

It is much less common in international development for professionals to spend their entire careers with the same organization and consequently, career transitions are an important component of overall career management in the industry. Multilateral and government agencies are the general exception as they can provide the stability, and the compensation and benefits to keep long-term employees. As a result, most people

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transition from one NGO to another, taking advantage of hiring for new projects. Despite the rapid growth in development agencies, it is still a relatively close-knit industry, and informal networking is usually enough to keep abreast of opportunities with peer organizations. In addition, the professional competencies gained with any particular NGO are highly transferable to other NGOs, particularly within the same focus area. For example, once you acquire backstopping experience with one of the many NGOs that gets most of its funding from USAID, you will have the professional skills necessary to work for many other similar organizations. For many reasons, you may choose, at some point, to switch to one of these other organizations. Perhaps your company is experiencing a slowdown in business, or you want to work closer to home, or you hear another NGO is paying more money for project assistants.

Transitions within international development One common career path is for young professionals to start their careers out of university at a large headquarters office of a development agency in a city such as Washington, D.C., or London. After a few years with the organization, it is often possible to transfer to a field office to work on project implementation. This is an exciting and challenging period. After several years abroad, however, many considerations make it desirable to move back to the headquarters office. These factors might include an upcoming childbirth, wanting to be closer to family, missing a home culture, or seeking a more traditional lifestyle. With prior headquarters experience and an understanding of field operations, it is usually easy to transition back to a home office.


It can be very challenging to make a career transition from NGOs to multilateral agencies. Usually this shift will require the intervention of graduate study or the acquisition of highly specific experience. For example, someone working with an NGO on community-based tourism in Brazil might acquire enough expertise to be competitive for a position with the Inter-American Development Bank on a similar project in Brazil. However this is more the exception than the norm and in general it is hard to move from NGOs to multilateral agencies. It is easier to move from an NGO to a government agency. USAID, for example, hires many U.S. citizens that have worked for NGOs. It is easier to move from intergovernmental or government agencies to NGOs because the professional skills and knowledge that comes with jobs at these organizations. This is also a less common transition because most people are unwilling to take a cut in their salary and benefits.


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Transitions out of international development While this guide is focused on people who want to enter the field of international development, it would be incomplete without noting that many people who enter the field eventually opt to leave it for a different career. Even if you are sure this is the job for you, it is important to consider these issues of transitioning out of the industry. • International development is closely related to the domestic nonprofit industry. In some cases, NGO and nonprofits may perform the same activities with the only difference being their geographic focus. Additionally, the two industries share many characteristics, such as fund raising, project evaluations and staffing challenges. For these reasons, international development experience is generally transferable to the nonprofit sector, as long as the specific focus is related. In general, international development is a good foundation to transition to academia, provided your specific experience in development and educational background are related to your goals in academia. This transition is most commonly facilitated by returning to school to earn a PhD, then joining the faculty of a university. Partly because the industry addresses such a wide range of topics from anthropology to economics to engineering, many graduate programs look favorably on development experience. One of the most common concerns for young professionals in development is their ability to get a job in the private sector if they want to leave the industry. In general, international development experience is not as directly transferable to the private sector as it is to the public or nonprofit sectors. Making a successful transition depends on your ability to highlight the skills you have gained through international development that are relevant to the needs of the private sector field you are targeting.


Although less common, many people in international development find a passion for entrepreneurship, starting for-profit companies, nonprofits or NGOs. The resourcefulness and communications skills that are crucial to international development are useful to these entrepreneurs, as are fund-raising experience and international exposure.

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Eric earned a master’s degree in international development then worked for six years with a large, international NGO on economic development projects in the Middle East and North Africa. After spending the last four of those six years living abroad, Eric was hoping to transition to a job in the private sector in London, where his elderly mother lived. He was interested in a job in finance but had a difficult time finding one initially, given his unorthodox background for the field. Eric thought about going back to school to earn another master’s degree in finance but he would have to get a loan to pay for school. Instead, he started focusing on positions where his background would be valuable. He applied to several small boutique firms that were investing in the Middle East, highlighting his fluency in Arabic, professional network and familiarity with the region’s finance regulations. Although it took nearly six months, he was able to get a position with one of these firms.

Project monitoring specialist, Washington, D.C. Abby works for a medium-sized NGO implementing public health projects in South Asia and Central America. You set the alarm early because you have to be to the office by 7 to participate on a teleconference with your project team in New Delhi, where it will be 5:30 p.m. The call will focus on logistics for your upcoming trip to India to carry out the project’s annual evaluation. You usually manage to schedule these conferences for the end of the day in D.C., but on this occasion you have to suck it up and catch the early train to work. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Following your phone call, you spend the rest of the morning editing the final draft of an evaluation report on your organization’s work in Asia. The report has to be finalized by Friday and, as usual, you are just receiving the rough draft on Tuesday. Fortunately you have been with the organization long enough that these reports are becoming routine and you complete more than half the editing with the help of several cups of coffee. At noon you decide to take an early lunch since you got up early, and head next door to a cafeteria popular with the employees of D.C.’s many NGOs. Back from lunch, you turn your attention to the new water sanitation project your NGO is proposing in Bangladesh. As a monitoring specialist, you are responsible for developing the indicators to be used to measure the progress of the project. You’ve worked on a couple of similar projects, but developing the indicators still requires a lot of learning. You spend the next few hours reviewing data on Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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Bangladesh from various UN and World Bank reports, then read through some best practices on water sanitation projects that you find through an industry website. It’s only a small fraction of what you’ll need to learn, but it’s a start. After a couple of espressos to keep yourself awake, you head to the conference room for a staff meeting. Your boss, the director of monitoring and evaluation, has just returned from an evaluation mission in Central America. Unfortunately, your projects there are significantly behind schedule, and your team will spend the next few hours exploring the situation and brainstorming possible solutions. After a long session of brainstorming, you are ready to call it a day. Some friends from work are going to a lecture on microfinance at George Washington University but you are exhausted from your long day. You head home. Finally home. Due to the high cost of living in Washington, D.C., and your modest salary, you have over an hour commute each way. Before bed, you do some online research about travel in India. Your monitoring trip will be your first visit to the region, and you are planning to take a week of vacation to explore the country after finishing the mission.

Project manager, West Africa Gérard works on an economic development project with a private consulting company implementing a USAID contract. You start the day early enough to review emails from headquarters that have come in overnight. There is a lot of email traffic about your upcoming budget review process. You are dreading the process this year because your project is understaffed and overworked already. There is no way you will be able to devote enough attention to the task. You forward the emails to your deputy director, along with an email congratulating her on being ready to assume the responsibility of managing the review.


Time for the weekly staff meeting. You manage eight people, six of them local hires, and these meetings allow everyone to stay updated on the status of the project. You have asked the outreach team to give a brief presentation on their upcoming press conference to announce the drafting of a new law on small business taxation. It is a major accomplishment for the project, and you make a mental note to personally invite the USAID country representative to the event. You have a meeting planned with the Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade to discuss an upcoming study tour. You have reviewed the budget for this year and will not be able to fund the trip – news that will certainly disappoint the deputy minister. Not only do you have to deliver the bad news, you also need to ask the deputy to introduce the new tax bill to the Minister for his support.

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The meeting was better than you expected but also longer. longer. No time for lunch today. today. You grab a local dish of fried fish wrapped in sticky rice and eat in the car on your way way to meet with the local Chamber of Commerce. You are giving a speech to their members on the best practices of countries in the region on reforming land registration. Back in the office, your project’s main lawyer is waiting to meet with you. He has finalized a shortlist of three candidates to interview for an assistant legal specialist position. You have reviewed their resumes and don’t think any of them will meet the requirements of the position. Still, you will interview the three finalists, but you also ask your project assistant to t o re-advertise the opening in the local newspaper. You are already several days late on preparing a presentation of the project results for your main donor, so you lock your door, unplug the phone and spend the next few hours updating the presentation you used last time with your newest results. You usually spend an hour at the end of the day sending out emails you’ve been neglecting during the day. day. Today is no exception, but you have to cut it short after half an hour. You call your driver to pick up your wife and meet you at an expensive French restaurant for dinner dinner.. Working on such a busy project, you are constantly challenged to maintain a good work/life balance.



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Culture, Compensation and Benefits Chapter 9 Overall compensation in the field in international development is extremely wide-ranging, even when considering only professional positions and not volunteer employment. Part of the reason for this range is the nature of benefits and the number of field-based positions. A single development worker might spend a year in London making barely enough to pay rent and food, then move to West Africa where the same salary, plus housing and tax benefits and the lower cost of living, mean that his or her entire salary goes into the bank. The following chapter will examine the culture, compensation and benefits of various organizations in the industry, and try to provide a realistic impression of the daily life of a development worker worker..

Compensation While compensation for jobs in international development ranges widely, it generally remains below the level of comparable positions in the private sector. sector. There are many reasons for the lower salary levels, from donor restrictions to high competition for most positions. In addition, most development organizations have a mission-oriented culture that traditionally means employees sacrifice some financial compensation for meaningful work and a connection to the mission of the organization. General salary ranges for the industry are much more competitive to other sectors at entry level. For example, a new program coordinator with a bachelor’s degree and a year of volunteer experience can earn roughly as much with a Washington, D.C.-based NGO as with a typical entry-level job in the service or retail sector sector.. Mid-career positions, in contrast, are often paid below comparable positions in the private sector and upper management positions are even further behind. This trend is beginning to change, as the industry becomes more professional, and highly qualified development experts are more in demand. Donors are also beginning to realize the importance of attracting the most qualified people possible and the need to encourage people with a few years of experience to remain in the industry by providing progressively better wages.

Benefits ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

While salaries in international development tend to be low relative to other industries, the benefits are often better. better. Health care, generous paid leave, educational and training benefits and the opportunity for international travel are common to most employers and many government or intergovernmental agencies offer benefits packages that can almost equal the base salary. salary. When these benefits are calculated into salary, salary, overall compensation becomes much more attractive. Benefits often depend on the assignment location. Field office employees receive any housing or cost of living adjustments the organization offers, while headquarters employees generally do not. In addition, most countries do not collect national income tax on income earned out of the country, country, so field office assignments provide tax-free income. The rationale

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behind this system is to encourage qualified staff to work in the field and to ensure consistency in the lifestyle of any employee of the organization. In many cases, a lifestyle consistent with the headquarters office is much more expensive in field sites. For example, safe and comfortable housing and international quality schools are usually in short supply in developing countries, so the costs for these items represents a much larger share of income abroad than it does in Washington, D.C., or London. Without some basic standards of living such as a safe residence, highly experienced project managers, and particularly those with families, will not be able to effectively serve in challenging field posts. The following is a broad list of benefits that may be offered by international development organizations. Keep in mind that many of these benefits are only offered by a very small segment of the industry. In addition, positions filled locally or filled as short-term consultancies may offer very few benefits. People working in international development never stop learning. There are constant needs for new technical or regional knowledge, not to mention work in virtually every language in the world. Employers are usually more than willing to help with professional development through educational courses, language training or workshop participation. However, it is very rare to find an organization that will cover formal university education beyond a few courses or perhaps a certificate. Also referred to as a COLA, this benefit helps normalize the salaries of employees living in different countries and cities around the world. It is usually paid to employees working in field offices in developing countries that have higher costs of living than the organization’s headquarters. For negotiating purposes, you can find cost of living calculations online and determine how a field posting relates to the main office. •


Larger organizations may offer an education benefit for the children of their employees. This is intended to make it possible for employees to work in developing countries without sacrificing the quality of their children’s education. In many countries, internationally accredited primary and secondary education is extremely limited and very expensive. International high schools in many countries are more than $10,000 per year. The education benefit covers all, or part, of this cost for dependents. • Medical insurance comes in many forms, with differing levels of coverage, but should be standard for any benefits package. Some important considerations are the availability of international coverage, prescription drug benefits, and vaccinations. Health benefits are particularly important for field-based positions where health care may be limited or almost entirely unavailable. In these cases, medical evacuation is a key issue to verify with the health care plan. Related to health benefits are life and

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accident insurance and dental care. These are mostly standardized, but some employers offer the extra benefit of travel insurance. Some organizations, particularly government agencies and intergovernmental organizations, offer home leave to employees and their dependents. Usually this benefit is provided every two or three years and covers the airfare (and possibly other costs) of traveling back to the employee’s home city. For a family working in a field office, this can add up to a lot of money. Many employers offer to field-based employees a housing stipend that subsidizes the cost of their local housing. This can range from a small monthly cash stipend to full coverage of rental and utility costs. This is an important benefit for field -staff and one that can often be negotiated. Many of the most expensive cities in the world are in developing countries and without a housing benefit you may find most of your salary going to rental payments. Maternity leave can be dictated by the rules of an organization or by the relevant law in the country of assignment. Industry averages for paid maternity leave are generally between three and nine months. Most employers offer additional flextime or part-time packages to support employees with young children. International development organizations are very generous in annual leave benefits. This is a reflection both of the stress of the work and the need for much of the staff to travel internationally for leave. Most organizations offer two to four weeks of paid leave per year. An additional benefit of paid sick leave is commonly provided for one week per year.


Many new employees, particularly those hired internationally, receive relocation benefits. These commonly include airfare for the employee and their dependents, and a stipend to cover the costs of shipping their household goods. The specific benefit varies widely and many smaller organizations may not offer any relocation. In addition, employees recruited as local hires often do not receive relocation benefits but may be able to negotiate for a stipend. • Government and intergovernmental agencies offer various retirement packages for employees, usually consisting of a mandatory employee payment and a matching contribution by the employer. In rare cases, new employees may receive signing bonuses for entering into a contract. This applies mostly to senior-level positions or to cases when a signing bonus is used to make up for some other benefit, such as relocation. For example,


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an NGO that doesn’t provide relocation benefits may offer a signing bonus to a particularly qualified employee in order to cover the cost of his or her move. Most countries do not impose income tax on citizens living abroad, so field-based employees have a tax-free salary. For staff working in their home country and for staff from the few countries that assess tax on their citizens while living abroad, some organizations provide a rebate of this tax. This is a rare benefit that only a few large employers will provide. For example, U.S. citizens working abroad (and spending at least 330 days of the year abroad) are exempt for income tax on their first $82,000 of income. A U.S. citizen working in Mexico earning $60,000 in salary and another $40,000 in benefits would be required to pay income tax on about $18,000 of income. If this payment is $3,000 then some organizations might refund this money. These organizations would also refund the tax payment on the full salary if the employee was based in Washington, D.C.

A note on culture Many people working in development consider the culture of the industry to be another informal benefit, and one of the best aspects of the field. The types of people who are drawn to the industry tend to be well-traveled and diverse, with many similar interests. As a result, and also because of the strong mission-oriented nature of the work, workplaces tend to be collaborative, informal and close-knit. It is also a generally helpful field where it is not uncommon for senior executives to spend time with volunteers to discuss career management, provide a recommendation, or review a proposal. A large number of highly experienced professionals in the field got their start as volunteers and that mindset remains firmly entrenched throughout the industry.


There is no shortage of opinions on IGOs and government agencies. Most people consider them the elite employers in international development and certainly their ranks tend to be filled by former top-tier consultants and private sector professionals. They also offer the best salaries and benefits in the industry, in addition to perks like diplomatic credentials, business class travel and worldwide exposure. On the other hand, the heavy bureaucracy, distance from project implementation and a mixed history of results turn off many people, even their own employees. Most industrial nations have official state development agencies to disburse and manage official development assistance. The larger of these organizations, such as USAID, JICA or DFID, have thousands of employees engaged in all aspects of international development. These jobs come with great government benefits, job security and higher than average industry salaries.

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Culture The organizational culture of IGOs and government agencies is very similar, for reasons both practical and principled. These organizations are owned by national governments, staffed in part by former civil servants, and in many cases perform similar duties. They also share a mutual commitment to transparency and equal opportunity that informs many of the administrative structures. Finally, IGOs and government agencies share a culture common to large, complex organizations, such as national governments or even international firms. The culture of IGOs and government agencies is very professional. Walk into a regional or field-based office of the UN or World Bank anywhere in the world and you will see a very similar sight—a diverse group of professionally attired men and women working at computers in a modern office space. The average age of employees in these organizations is higher than the development world as a whole and it is more common for employees to have families. Offices observe normal working hours, although it is very common for employees to put in much more than 40 hours a week to complete their work. Both IGOs and government agencies have a tendency common to large bureaucratic organizations of being poor at information-sharing between departments and projects. This has been changing rapidly due to increasing professionalism in organizational structures, and today most of these organizations have adopted a matrix model that encourages information sharing both within and between individual teams. However, these initiatives still have a long way to go and relationships outside of project teams are usually much less cooperative.


IGOs and government agencies are also regularly undergoing organizational reforms as they try to adopt more efficient operational models based on the private sector. It is not uncommon to join an IGO or government agency in the midst of a major organizational overhaul and leave several years later in the midst of another major organizational overhaul. Because of the continuous process of change, an emphasis is placed on personal relationships. In many cases these personal relationships are critical to learning how to navigate within an organization and even to career advancement. This can be challenging to new employees who don’t yet “know the ropes” and to people naturally not inclined to network within their organization.

Pros IGOs and government agencies are among the most professional of development agencies, with well-defined internal structures and procedures (the flip side of this is excessive bureaucracy which is covered below). In addition, they provide specialized back-office support, meaning offices for accounting, HR, legal, IT, etc. These structures allow employees to spend more time on their jobs and less time dealing with administrative problems.


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• Another benefit of these organizations is simply their huge resource base. Anyone who has worked for a small NGO will appreciate professional conference facilities, well-functioning telecommunications, drivers, translators, and funds for printing, training and travel. Many employees of IGOs or government agencies feel like they are able to be more effective in their work because of the professional environment these resources provide. Although international development still lags behind the private sector in terms of professional development, IGOs and government agencies are beginning to close the gap. Many of these organizations offer professional career training in topics from writing proposals to management to technical skills. In addition, they offer a range of programs, such as mentorships, short-term exchanges and externships, to ensure that staffers build their professional careers. IGOs and government agencies are among the most stable employers in international development. This is particularly true of government aid agencies because they have mostly full-time, permanent employees, not ties to specific project timelines. In several countries, the national development agency is an official part of the Foreign Service, and employees are competitively selected from national exams, with guaranteed jobs for those who make it through the selection process. Even intergovernmental agencies, which hire many employees for the life of specific projects, have above-average job security and lots of opportunity for employees to move between projects.

Cons


The highly structured nature of most IGOs and government agencies also produces the unfortunate byproduct of excessive bureaucracy. Some routine issues can require inordinate amounts of paperwork and many simple processes end up taking more time because of the layers of administration. More worrying, employees may even develop their own systems designed to bypass the bureaucratic nature of the organization. Similar to bureaucracy, large organizations such as these are very slow to change or incorporate new ideas. If you come up with a great idea for a new project or better way to implement an existing project, it can be an agonizing process to actually see it through. • Many people get into the field of international development so they can interact with project beneficiaries in developing countries and see how their work impacts people’s lives. IGOs and government agencies offer far less of this interaction than NGOs.

10 4




Indeed, the professional offices of these organizations can seem completely removed from field-based development. The issue of impact can be both a pro and a con. In many ways, IGOs and government agencies have the greatest potential impact in international development because they work mainly with government counterparts. A single project to reform health policy might result in a new law or better implementation of an existing law that reaches thousands or even millions of people. This level of impact would be extremely rare from any development agency other than an IGO or government agency. On the other hand, the true impact of these organizations is very hard to determine, and the subject of much controversy. The World Bank, for example, might make a loan to a country to improve its foreign investment environment, attracting billions of dollars in investment and generating thousands of new jobs. Yet that new investment also carries social costs in migration, pollution, corruption, and many other issues (all of which have IGO and NGO projects devoted to fighting) and the loan creates a repayment burden for the government. Many people are turned off by the ambiguity of the IGO or government agency impact, and prefer to work on small, but highly focused projects through other development organizations. The impact of government organizations and donors is twofold. The direct impact is the provision of funding, without which nothing would be done. As a result, donors can claim a significant impact to encompass all the results that implementing organizations achieve with their funds. Donors have an additional impact, which is less direct but no less important. This impact is on implementing organizations themselves. Good donors maximize their impact on the field by steering funds to responsible and effective implementing organizations and pushing these organizations to perform even better.

Salary


Salary ranges for IGOs and government agencies are generally the highest in the industry. All IGOs and government agencies have internal salary tables that provide a maximum and minimum salary at each grade, and many subdivide each grade into several steps. Some of these are publicly available, such as the United States’ General Schedule, which determines salaries for some USAID employees. Most of these tables are based on peer institutions, so there is not a lot of difference among these organizations. Also note that these figures are only for salary and do not include benefits, which can add significantly to a total compensation package. The following salary figures are reflective of internationally hired professional positions.

The United Nations and many other intergovernmental organizations set their pay scales in reference to the wages of civil servants in their developed member nations. The idea is that the most qualified civil servants in developed countries should be able to apply their skills internationally without taking a pay cut. This is known as the Noblemaire Principle.


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There are very few opportunities with IGOs or government agencies for candidates without prior experience. Some government aid agencies offer entry-level programs for recent grads, and it may be possible for inexperienced candidates to get local positions or volunteer jobs. In general, these kinds of entry-level programs pay anywhere from $16,000 to $30,000 USD per year. Many government agencies have entry-level positions requiring less experience but with less compensation. These positions range from $48,000 to $75,000 USD per year.

Keep in mind that entry-level positions with these organizations generally require three to five years of experience, so these are not representative of salaries right out of school without prior experience. In addition, these are representative of positions that would require a master’s degree. Entry-level opportunities, such as Young Professionals programs, generally pay in the range of $60,000 to $75,000 USD per year. Many government agencies have entry-level positions requiring less experience but with less compensation. These positions range from $48,000 to $75,000 USD per year.

Mid-career positions typically require five to eight years with an organization and one or two promotions above entry-level positions. Getting to the mid-career level is generally a routine matter of seniority and regular advancement, so these salaries are reasonable expectations for employees with the requisite experience. Again, keep in mind five to eight years with an IGO or government agency plus three to five to get hired in the first place means eight to 13 years of total experience and a graduate degree. Salaries in this range vary more widely between $80,000 to $100,000 USD per year.


Reaching senior management level within an IGO or government agency generally takes a significant number of years in addition to the technical and social skills to navigate the organizational career ladder. These are the positions below VP level and include titles such as regional director, senior operations officer, product line director, etc. Most people who reach this level have invested more than 10 or 15 years in the organization, and achieved significant results in that time. Salaries for senior management range from $110,000 to $130,000+ USD per year.

• The United Nations Department of Human Resources Management maintains salary tables for professional positions. Entry-level professionals who pass the competitive exam start out as P-2 level. The salary table can be viewed online at www.un.org/Depts/OHRM/salaries_allowances/salary.htm • The U.S. Office of Personnel Management published the General Schedule pay tables, which govern wages for many U.S. government employees. This is not the same pay table as the U.S. Foreign Service and does not govern all positions 10 6




within USAID. The salary table www.opm.gov/oca/08tables/indexGS.asp

is

available

online

at:

Benefits IGOs and government agencies offer the best benefits packages in the industry but only to internationally hired, full-time employees. Most offer the bulk of the benefits listed at the beginning of this chapter, although their specific amounts and availability vary by organization. It is always a good idea to try to get a sense of the benefits associated with an organization in which you are interested, but this should be done through networking rather than asking about benefit details early in the interview process. Most IGOs and government agencies provide some basic information on their benefits through their websites.

Contract type and benefits Unlike salary and culture, benefits vary widely by contract type within an organization. In general, only international, full-time, permanent term employees receive a full benefits package. Local hires usually receive a reduced benefits package that includes health care but excludes housing and cost of living adjustment benefits. Short-term consultants may not even receive health benefits. Because these benefits often contribute significantly to the overall remuneration of jobs in international development, it is important to clearly understand the benefits of a specific position when evaluating an offer.


While there are many types of implementing agencies, from NGOs to think tanks to multinational corporations, this section will focus on the culture and compensation most representative of implementing agencies. However, this information is only a guide, and you should always find out these details during your job hunting process. Nongovernmental organizations come in all shapes and sizes, and cover the entire range of international development work. There is so much diversity among these organizations that it is hard to define a single culture. The common perception of NGOs as small, mission-oriented organizations staffed by idealistic young people is giving way to a more realistic view that encompasses the growing number of highly sophisticated NGOs modeled on the private sector and attracting students from top graduate programs. Both these views are representative of at least some segment of the NGO world.


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Culture For the majority of NGOs, mostly smaller organizations with one or two project areas, the culture is informal, cooperative and mission-oriented. Like other development organizations, NGOs are chronically understaffed and, as a result, employees, even junior staff, are often given high-level responsibility. The organizations themselves tend to evolve organically as funding opportunities arise, and formal management systems are often lacking. For self-starters who enjoy taking initiative and being active in their own career development, this environment can be thrilling, but for those more comfortable in a structured environment, NGO jobs are less likely to provide it. Because budget limitations are a constant issue, many NGOs don’t offer the same professional systems and supporting structure of government and intergovernmental agencies. This means perks like structured mentoring programs, staff training, and continuing education opportunities are more the exception than the norm. Another frequent characteristic of NGOs is high staff -turnover. This is a result of many factors, including the lower salaries and undeveloped career paths. One effect of this turnover is that institutional knowledge is frequently lost, leading to some inefficiency in management. In addition, most NGOs have a youthful organization both in the average age of employees and the amount of time employees have been with the organization. Some important distinctions among NGOs include size, funding source, and focus.

Size NGOs vary greatly by size, from thousands of NGOs with less than 10 people to some of the largest, like Save the Children, which employs more than 6,000 people worldwide. Like any industry, the size of the organization has a significant impact on its culture. Larger organizations have more developed organizational structures, more job security, and more bureaucracy. Larger NGOs also offer, on average, better compensation. This is not to say that smaller NGOs uniformly lack these qualities, just that there is less consistency among smaller organizations. Some small NGOs are highly focused in a specific area and outperform larger NGOs in professionalism, impact, and compensation. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Funding source A common joke in international development is that, over time, NGOs tend to become more and more like their funding organizations, just like old married couples. This may be an exaggeration, but there is some truth in the observation that an organization dependent for most of its budget on a single funder will tend to evolve an organizational culture closely aligned to the expectations of that funder. This is an important consideration since most NGOs rely on one or two funders for more than half of their funding, and many NGOs are entirely dependent on a single donor. In addition, staff tend often move between donors and implementers so the cultures of the two mesh even more.

10 8




Focus You can also anticipate some of the culture of an organization by its focus. For example, a religious charity may have a conservative organizational culture closely tied to the tenets of the religion, while an NGO promoting democratic governance is likely to mirror a Washington think-tank environment.

Pros • Along with the smaller staff size of most NGOs, comes an excellent opportunity to learn. Even new staff will be given opportunities to work in several areas, from project monitoring to business development. For employees that take the initiative, it is possible to experience many technical and administrative roles within a single NGO. • One of the main advantages of working for an NGO is the opportunity to have direct exposure to the projects and see the impact of the work. While headquarters-based staff have less of this exposure, there are almost always opportunities to travel to the field and see firsthand what the organization is accomplishing. Many people working for large multilateral organizations express the lack of this exposure as the biggest disadvantage of their work. Most NGOs are much more focused, both geographically and in their programming, than intergovernmental agencies. If you are really focused on rural health care or water conservation, an NGO is more likely to offer you an environment dedicated to that specific issue, with co-workers who share your focus. Similarly if you only want to work in India, you may not find a government or intergovernmental agency that can guarantee you this flexibility, while there are thousands of NGOs working exclusively in the country. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Cons The majority of NGOs are highly dependent upon their one or two biggest sources of funding. Often these sources of funding are government aid agencies, foundations, or wealthy donors, none of which are likely to remain regular funders indefinitely. Government aid agencies often undergo major changes in what and how much they fund with election cycles and foundations regularly broaden or narrow their focus. As a result, NGOs face a constant need to fund raise and diversify their funders. Organizations that can’t do that will not last, and as a result, there is less job security in the industry.


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One career issue with the international development industry in general is that the kinds of professional competencies that are built in the industry don’t always transfer to the private sector. That means that after spending five years in development, it may be more difficult to transition to the private sector. This problem is more acute for NGOs because they mostly lack the name recognition and professional structure that multilateral and government agencies have. • Although not always the case, many NGOs pay well below comparable positions in the private sector. Particularly by mid-career, this discrepancy can become very significant, especially for positions based in headquarters offices.

Salary Salary ranges for NGOs vary widely. In general, salaries in the field are increasing to attract higher- quality workers, but, for the most part, compensation still lags behind the private sector. There is a very wide range in compensation among NGOs. The following salary tables include “low-range,” “average” and “high-range” NGOs to capture this variance. “Low-range” refers to NGOs paying less than the industry average. As a rough estimate, this may include up to 30 percent of all NGOs. Similarly, high-range NGOs are those paying above average but, unfortunately, these are much more rare— perhaps 10 percent of all NGOs. You can determine which of these categories an NGO falls into by networking with current or former employees, asking someone during an informational interview, or researching online. If you don’t have a good networking source that can give you the information candidly, you can always ask during an interview how the organization’s compensation compares to similar organizations. Most people will honestly tell you that it is either similar to the industry average or slightly higher or lower. The following salary ranges refer to full-time, professional positions with international NGOs.


Many NGOs, particularly larger ones have entry-level positions that don’t require much, if any, previous experience. Recent graduates with a bachelor’s degree fill these positions along with people who have a few months or more of volunteer experience. Salaries at entry level are most comparable to the non-profit industry. In general, these kinds of entry-level programs pay anywhere from minimum wage (approximately $20,000) to $35,000.

Most NGOs do not have well-defined career tracks or many mid-career positions. Thus, compensation during the first three to five years of professional work with NGOs is often based on a low starting salary with annual adjustments. It is in this range that salaries for most NGOs really start to diverge from the private sector and even from the multilateral organizations. The following salary ranges reflect a traditional early-career progression. The low end would be for applicants with only one or two years of 110




experience and a bachelor’s degree, and the high end would be for candidates with five or more years of experience and, commonly, a master’s degree. Low-range

Average

High-range

$30,000 to

$36,000 to

$42,000 to

$50,000

$60,000

$70,000

Unlike multilateral organizations, most NGOs do not have clearly defined career paths that include mid-career positions. In reality, there are often few true mid-career positions that carry some management responsibility and a higher salary that recognizes the greater responsibility. There is also a trend for mid-career positions in the field to go to local candidates, so most of these positions are now based in headquarters offices. These can include both support and administrative roles, and, in larger organizations, headquarter-based technical specialists. The following salary ranges reflect the master’s degree that is required for nearly all mid-career positions.


Low-range

Average

High-range

$50,000 to

$60,000 to

$70,000 to

$65,000

$80,000

$85,000

Although there are senior management positions with NGOs in both administrative and technical roles, there are more opportunities at this level for administrative positions. On the technical side, senior-level positions include chief of party or staff technical experts. Senior-level administrative positions are more diverse and include country directors, senior managers, and department directors. Reaching senior management generally takes more than seniority because there are few such positions and many smaller NGOs are still run by the original founders. Except in rare cases, these positions will require a master’s degree or even PhD. Low-range

Average

High-range

$70,000 to

$80,000 to

$85,000 to

$85,000

$95,000

$110,000

The previous salary ranges are for internationally hired positions. However, it is increasingly common for NGOs to offer field-assignments as local or global-local contracts (“global-local” is often colloquially referred to as “half-pat,” meaning half local and half expatriate). There is no real standard for compensation or benefits at either of these levels, although salaries are almost always lower than comparable Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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international positions. A typical salary range for a local hire would likely be at the highend of local salary levels for skilled professionals, but could be higher. In addition, because they are considered local, relocation and home-leave benefits are usually not offered. There is often more discretion in creating local or global-local contracts so there is plenty of room for negotiation on salary and benefits.

Benefits NGOs typically offer fewer benefits than multilateral and government agencies but often are more flexible in negotiating benefits. Thus, employees may not receive formal education benefits but individual employees might be able to negotiate for reimbursement on continuing education if they could link it to the work of the organization. Typical benefits common to most NGOs include health care, paid leave and retirement. Field positions with NGOs often include a relocation stipend and possibly housing or a cost of living adjustment.

Luiza was considering two positions - one in Washington, D.C., and another in Lima. The Lima position came with $25,000 per year less salary but a housing benefit of $1,500 per month. Although there was no tax benefit offered, Luiza would be abroad long enough to qualify for the United States’ Foreign Earned Income Credit and her income would not be taxed. She calculated her expected tax liability as $15,000 so, combined with the housing benefit, she would actually earn more money with the smaller salary.


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APPENDIX Vault Guide to International Development

Resources for Job Seekers Employer Profiles About The Author



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Resources for Job Seekers Appendix

Finding openings for jobs in international development is often more challenging than other industries because there are still relatively few, industry-wide sources for job information. Even the most popular sites listed below cannot be considered comprehensive reflections of the industry. In addition to these websites, your online job search should include: • If you are following the job search strategy outlined in Chapter 6, you should have a shortlist of organizations that match your skills and career goals. You should be regularly checking the jobs section of all these organizations, as many positions are posted earlier or exclusively on these sites. • Relevant classified ads in regional newspapers can also be good sources of job lists and are easily accessible online. For international development, good newspapers to check include The Washington Post, the Economist (for more senior positions), and the Times Online. • Beyond the following specialized websites for jobs in international development, you may also find opportunities on traditional jobs websites, such as Monster.com or social networking sites like LinkedIn.com. In many of these cases, you will have to search through the listings for nonprofit or government jobs to uncover positions related to international development. Finally, use caution when job hunting online just as you would with anything else over the internet. Many websites sell their services or memberships, and you should always carefully consider the costs, even though they tend to be modest. Most paid services consist of memberships, resume distribution or job listings. • ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Avoid services that offer to post your resume directly to recruiters or development organizations. Unless you are a highly experienced professional or have some very rare skills, you are not likely to receive any response to a cold resume submission. In addition, most organizations will allow you to upload your resume from their website for free. • Many websites offer a service that delivers vacancies to your email daily. On the surface this sounds like a convenient way to job hunt but given the vast range of jobs that fit into the international development label, these services are rarely worth the money. You will have a much more successful job hunt by targeting the

115



organizations you want to work for rather than looking through hundreds of random postings. Some sites have membership sections that provide similar services to those described above. In some cases, the membership provides additional benefits, such as a subscription to the organizations’ publication or invitations to events. If the organization closely matches your interests, you might consider becoming a member. The following sites are good places to start your online job search:

DevNetJobs mostly offers paid services, including resume distribution and job listings delivered directly to your email daily daily.. However However,, the website lists a smaller number of positions free of charge. Eldis’ website includes a jobs section that lists a wide range of mostly midlevel positions. The website includes specific listings for research positions and volunteer or internship positions. The Foreign Policy Association lists several positions per day on their job board covering mostly NGOs and development consultancies working worldwide. Mainly a paid service delivering a weekly job announcement that includes both international development positions and international positions in the private sector. Daily positions are available for free. You can also download a recent newsletter to review the content and determine if you want to subscribe.


In addition, the following site offers resources for volunteers and online listings of volunteer opportunities:

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There are many ways to learn more about international development, and you should take advantage of as many as possible before launching your job search. The following lists provide many resources that can serve as a starting point for your education.

Books These books will provide a good foundation on international development, including both the positive and negative aspects. Making Development Work: Development Learning in a World of Poverty and Wealth

(World Bank Series on Evaluation & Development), Nagy Hanna, Robert Picciotto. Transaction Publishers, 2002. The White Man's Burden , William Easterly. The Penguin Press, 2006. The Bottom Billion: Why the Poorest Countries are Failing and What Can Be Done About It , Paul Collier. Oxford University Press, 2007. The Fortune At The Bottom Of The Pyramid: Eradicating Poverty Through Profits , C.K.

Prahalad. Wharton School of Publishing Paperbacks, 2004. Globalization and Its Discontents , Joseph Stiglitz. W.W. Norton & Company, 2002. Guns, Germs and Steel , Jared Diamond. W.W. Norton & Company, 1999. Rethinking Social Development: Theory, Research and Practice, David Booth.

Longman Publishing Group, 1994. Encountering Development: The Making and Unmaking of the Third World (Princeton

Studies in Culture/Power/History), Arturo Escobar. Princeton University Press, 1995. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

The End of Poverty, Jeffrey Sachs. Penguin Press, 2005. Henr ique Cardoso and F. Development and Dependency in Latin America , Fernando Henrique Enzo. University of California Press, 1979. Understanding Understandi ng Development: Theory and Practice in the Third World, Third Edition,

John Rapley. Lynne Reinner Publishers, 2007. Fifty Key Thinkers on Development , David Simon. Routledge, 2006. The Great Transformation , ZSecond Edition, Karl Polanyi. Beacon Press, 2001 Understanding Poverty , by Abhijit V. Banerjee and Dilip Mookherjee. Oxford

University Press, 2006. Assessing Aid: What Works, What Doesn’t, and Why, by World Bank Press, 1998. Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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Development as Freedom , Amartya Sen. Oxford University Press, 1998.

Journals There are not very many journals that are entirely devoted to international development and cover the broad industry. industry. Instead, there are a lot of professional journals that publish occasional research and writing on issues related to development. For example, there are hundreds of journals devoted to economics, and many of these publish a few articles every year related to economic development. Economica Journal of Economic Literature American Economic Review / European Economic Review Development Policy Review Journal of Development Studies Journal of Development Economics Journal of International Development Foreign Affairs

Centers for International Development One of the best resources to learn more about development is through international centers for development. These organizations have many resources available online, publish research, host events and sometimes sometimes offer job listings or career advice. The number of these centers is increasing every year year.. Most major universities have an international development center, and major cities for development, such as Washington, D.C., and London are home to scores of additional centers. The following list is just a sample of some of these organizations. International Development Research Center Harvard Center for International Development ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Center for Global Development

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Employer Profiles Appendix The following profiles are intended to provide a general snapshot of hiring practices with leading international development agencies. These opportunities change regularly, particularly the deadlines, so always verify the information.

United Nations

The United Nations is central to global efforts to solve problems that challenge humanity. Cooperating in this effort are more than 30 affiliated organizations, known together as the UN system. Website: www.un.org Employees: More than 14,000 Budget: $3.8 billion in 2006-2007 Membership: 192 member countries

Jobs website (UN only): jobs.un.orgJobs website (UN system): www.unsystem.org/jobs/job_opportunities.htm General Eligibility: Varies by position. See individual agencies for more information. Salary Tables: www.un.org/Depts/OHRM/salaries_allowances/index.html Volunteers: Yes. See description on volunteer programs.


Internships: Yes. There are separate internship programs for most UN agencies. The largest internship program is unfunded and for positions in NYC headquarters. Applicants must be pursuing graduate or higher degrees. For information on the NYC program refer to www.un.org/Depts/OHRM/sds/internsh/index.htm. For information on other agency internship programs, refer to www.un.org/esa/socdev/unyin/internships.htm. Young Professionals: Yes. National Competitive Recruitment Examination with age limit of 32. Exam is only offered to select nationalities each year. For more information refer to www.un.org/Depts/OHRM/examin/ncrepage.htm.

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Employer Profiles

January April August October

Summer internships Fall internships Spring internships National Competitive Recruitment Examination

Asian Development Bank

ADB is an international development finance institution whose mission is to help its developing member countries reduce poverty and improve the quality of life of their people. Website: www.adb.org Employees: More than 2,400 Budget: $332.7 million Membership: 67 member countries; 48 in the region, 19 elsewhere

Jobs websitewww.adb.org/Employment General Eligibility: See jobs website. Remuneration/ Benefits: www.adb.org/Employment/benefits.asp Volunteers: No. There is no formal program, but individual candidates may be able to volunteer through field offices or on specific projects. Internships: Yes. Internships are offered twice per year to students who are citizens of an ADB member country pursuing postgraduate study at an approved academic institution. Stipends vary by position, with most interns receiving some support, but often not travel costs. For more information, including eligibility requirements, refer to www.adb.org/Internship. Young Professionals: Yes. ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

January

Summer internships

October

Spring Internships

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Employer Profiles

Government Aid Agency Jobs

USAID accelerates human progress in developing countries by reducing poverty, advancing democracy, building market economies, promoting security, responding to crises and improving quality of life. Website: www.usaid.gov Employees: Over 2,000 civil service and foreign service officers plus more than 5,000 foreign service nationals Budget: $8.9 billion in 2008 expenditures

USAID recruits primarily in two categories. Foreign Service Officers comprise the primary core of development practitioners and spend most of their careers abroad. Civil Service positions are primarily support and administration. These are based in Washington, D.C. Jobs website: www.usaid.gov/careers General Eligibility: Both Foreign Service Officers and Civil Service positions require U.S. citizenship. FSOs generally hold advanced degrees and have some development experience. Volunteers: No. Internships: Yes. There is no formal internship program but many opportunities for internships are available throughout the year. Interns must be U.S. citizens currently enrolled in a college or university with a GPA of 3.0 or better. For more information, and the listing of current internship op enings, refer to www.usaid.gov/careers/studentprograms.html.


Young Professionals: Yes, although not a traditional Young Professionals program. The Junior Officers (JO) program is an entry-level career track for new Foreign Service Officers. Applicants are accepted from 18 to 59 years of age and generally need an advanced degree. For more information, refer to www.usaid.gov/careers/guidelinesforjop.html.


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Employer Profiles

Priority Program Areas (division by budget spending in 2008)

Peace and Security

Governing Justly and Democratically

Investing in People

Economic Growth

Humanitarian Assistance

Non-program Spending

9.5%

15.8%

41.1%

26.5%

6.5%

0.6%

Application Process: Applications are only accepted for specific vacancies which are advertised online at www.usajobs.opm.gov.

United States Peace Corps

Mission: To help the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women. To help promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served. To help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans. Website: www.peacecorps.gov Volunteers: More than 7,800 current volunteers, 195,000 since being established in 1961 Budget: $330.8 million for 2009 Destinations: 76 countries currently served, 139 throughout history


General Eligibility: The only requirements for Peace Corps service are U.S. citizenship and being at least 18 years old. However, applicants with no secondary education, certain medical conditions or legal issues may have difficulty being placed. Length of service: 27 months - shorter assignments are not available. Returned volunteers can apply for the Peace Corps Response program, which places former volunteers back in the field for three to six months.

12 2



Employer Profiles

Types of positions: The following table shows the breakdown by position for Peace Corps Volunteers in 2008.

Education

35%

Business Environment Health and HIV/AIDS Development

21%

15%

15%

Youth

Agriculture

Other

5%

5%

4%

Application procedure: It generally takes between nine months and a year from the time of application to starting service. Applications are accepted all year. After the long initial application, applicants are interviewed and then nominated to be volunteers based on their qualifications and interviews. After nomination, applicants must pass medical and legal clearances before receiving a placement offer. Compensation and Benefits: Peace Corps provides a full range of benefits including health care, volunteer stipend, loan deferment and resettlement allowance. In addition there are opportunities to earn credit for certain postgraduate degrees through Peace Corps service.

United Nations Volunteers

Mission: The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) program serves the causes of peace and development by enhancing opportunities for participation by all peoples. It is universal, inclusive and embraces volunteer action in all its diversity. It values free will, commitment, engagement and solidarity, which are the foundations of volunteerism.


Website: www.unvolunteers.org Volunteers: More than 7,500 current volunteers Budget: $192.5 million in 2007 Destinations: Assignment in 139 countries

General Eligibility: Volunteers are expected to have several years of professional working experience and must be at least 25 years old. Previous experience in development and foreign language fluency, while not required, is preferable. National UNV - In 2007, 77 percent of UN volunteers were nationals of developing countries. Nationals of developing countries that served in their home country comprised 33 percent of total volunteers in 2007. These volunteers are known as National UNVs. Length of service: Assignments are usually one or two years but some shorter assignments of six months are also possible. Visit Vault at www.vault.com for insider company profiles, expert advice, career message boards, expert resume reviews, the Vault Job Board and more.

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Employer Profiles

Types of positions: The following table shows the breakdown by position for United Nations Volunteers in 2008.

Crisis Prevention and Recovery

Health and HIV/AIDS

Energy and Environment

Democratic Governance

Poverty Reduction and MDGs

47%

5%

2%

14%

32%

Application procedure: Volunteers must first apply to join the roster of potential UN volunteers. Most volunteer positions are filled from this roster on a competitive basis. For this reason, there is no guaranteed progression from being accepted on the roster to being offered a position. In practice, placement offers can take anywhere from a few months to more than a year following acceptance on the roster. Some hard-to-fill positions are advertised on the website at this address: (Matt, where’s the URL?) Compensation and Benefits: Volunteers receive a settling in allowance, monthly living stipend, insurance and resettlement allowance. Travel and visa requirements are also provided by UNV.

Voluntary Service Overseas

Mission: Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) is an international development charity that works through volunteers and is the world’s largest independent volunteer-placement organization. Website: www.vso.org.uk Volunteers: More than 1,500 current volunteers Budget: £ 43.1 million in 2008 Destinations: Assignment in 42 countries, mostly in Africa and Asia ) u d e . d n . i n m u l a @ o r e r r a b d ( a n a i D : r o f d e z i m o t s u C

Volunteer Programs: VSO offers volunteer jobs, specialist assignments and youth programs. Volunteer jobs are the most common, with placements for experienced professionals of one to two years. Specialist assignments are short-term positions for highly experienced professionals and the two youth programs offer six-month and oneyear programs for volunteers aged 18-25. General Eligibility: Eligibility varies by program. For volunteer jobs, you’ll need two to five years of professional experience. In addition, applicants must be residents of a country where VSO has a recruitment office (currently these include the EU region, U.S., Canada, Kenya, Uganda, Philippines and India). Youth Programs require U.K. residency.

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Employer Profiles

Length of service: Volunteer jobs are one to two years in length. Specialist assignments and youth programs are generally six months to one year in length. Types of positions: VSO’s main focus areas include HIV and AIDS, education, health and social well-being, disability, participation and governance, and secure livelihoods. Other skills in high demand range from business management to IT to natural resources. Application procedure: After completing an initial application, qualified ap plicants will be invited to an in-person assessment consisting of group and individual activities. Candidates deemed qualified following this assessment are then matched to a specific position. This stage also includes medical and legal clearance. Once a match is identified, a formal placement offer is made. Compensation and Benefits: VSO volunteers receive a living stipend to cover accommodation and basic living expenses and insurance. Travel costs and visas visas are also covered by VSO.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Mission: “Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, we focus on improving people’s health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. poverty. In the United States, we seek to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life.”


Website: www.gatesfoundation.org Employees: More than 680 Endowment: $35.1 billion Grant Payments in 2007: $2.007 billion

Jobs website: www www.gatesfoundation.org/jobs/Pages/overview.aspx .gatesfoundation.org/jobs/Pages/overview.aspx Volunteers: No. The foundation lists some resources for potential volunteers. For more information, refer to www.gatesfoundation.org/jobs/Pages/volunteering.aspx. Internships: No. Young Professionals: No.


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Employer Profiles

Applying: Before applying to specific openings, you’ll need to create creat e an applicant profile on the website. Once you have a profile, you can apply directly to jobs advertised on the website. You can even search for jobs that you might fit by pasting the text of your your resume into the jobs search form.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation funds organizations in three areas: • The Global Development Program focuses on agricultural development, financial services for the poor, and policy and advocacy. • The Global Health Program supports efforts to target diseases and health h ealth conditions that affect primarily developing nations. • The United States Program works to promote secondary and postsecondary education through funding for libraries, scholarships, housing and homelessness, early learning and emergency relief.


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About the Author got his start in development as a Peace Corps volunteer in Mongolia teaching English and working with local tourism companies. He has since worked throughout Asia with local and international NGOs, the Asian Development Bank, and several social entrepreneurs. He currently works for the International Finance Corporation. Christopher holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and undergraduate degrees in Computer Science and English.


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