Manager, Programme Design and Development in Essex

About MSI

MSI Reproductive Choices is one of the world’s leading providers of sexual and reproductive healthcare. We believe that everyone should have the right to choose. From contraception to safe abortion and life‑saving post‑abortion care, we are committed to delivering compassionate, affordable, high‑quality services for all. Today, our organisation has around 10,000 team members working in 36 countries across the world. Our success lies in the fact that MSI teams are locally led, entrepreneurial and results‑driven, and are passionate about delivering high quality, client‑centred care in their own communities. As a social business, we focus on sustainable delivery, efficiency, and funding models that are built to last, so that the women and girls we serve today will have a choice in the future too. We know that access to reproductive choice is life changing. For some, it can mean the ability to complete an education or start a career. For others, it means being able to look after the family they already have. For everyone, it means the freedom to decide their own future, creating a fairer, more equal world.

About The Role

The Programme Design and Development (PDD) team, as part of MSI’s Global Funding, Innovation and Impact department, plays a critical role in securing new donor funding to drive the strategic growth of our global partnership. PDD works with MSI’s country programmes, donor leads, and technical teams to design programmes and develop winning proposals. The PDD team plays a pivotal role in supporting country programmes with strategic fundraising efforts and diversification of MSI’s institutional funding base. As a part of MSI’s PDD team, you will independently lead the development of dynamic and successful programmes and proposals for institutional donors, including bilateral and multilateral donors, private foundations, charitable trusts, and host country governments. Working closely with in-country and technical teams across the organisation you confidently handle single- and multi-country proposals processes, including bid writing and coordination. You will also own the country fundraising action plans process, facilitate programme design processes, negotiate partnerships, and build the capacity of MSI country programmes to effectively conduct local donor engagement.

About You

For us, it’s vital that every MSI team member believes in and is committed to our organisational mission, vision and values. This means that we will only accept applications from candidates who are unequivocally pro-choice. Our values act as guiding principles, providing us with a clear direction. They set the tone for how we approach our work, interact with others and align ourselves as ‘One MSI’. It’s important that our team members truly resonate with our values and demonstrate them consistently, in all that they do. We recruit talented, dynamic individuals with diverse backgrounds who share our mission and are focused on delivering measurable results. As an equal opportunity employer, we are committed to fostering an inclusive workplace where everyone can participate and contribute meaningfully. We value open‑mindedness, curiosity, resilience, and a solutions‑oriented mindset, alongside a commitment to promoting equality and safeguarding the welfare of both team members and clients. We seek exceptional communicators who are self‑motivated, solutions‑driven, and aligned with MSI’s mission and entrepreneurial mindset. You should be dedicated to driving social change in an environment focused on sustainable impact, both locally and globally, and comfortable working with diverse teams in an ambiguous setting.

To perform this role, you’ll need the following skills:

• Proven track record of writing and managing complex, high-value, and/or multi-country proposals and securing grants and contracts from donors, foundations, and trusts;
• Proven relationship building skills and ability to work jointly and effectively in cross-cultural settings and with a wide variety of stakeholders;
• Fluent in French and English;
• Demonstrate confidence in handling difficult situations;
• Solid analytical skills and ability to present complex concepts in clear and concise formats;
• Exceptional problem solving abilities and ability to perform confidently under pressure;
• Ability to take initiative and achieve results with limited supervision;
• Strong attention to detail and follow‑up;
• Excellent people and negotiation skills.

To perform this role, you’ll need the following experience:

• Demonstrated experience working in business development in international development or the humanitarian sector.
• Experience in proposal writing and development for institutional donors, including demonstrated experience with USAID;
• Proven experience in managing complex proposal processes with multiple stakeholders under tight deadlines;
• Proven experience in strategic planning and programmatic design;
• Experience developing and reviewing budgets;
• Experience and demonstrated ability to manage a heavy and fluctuating workload;
• Experience in working with statistical and financial data;
• Proven experience in representing the organisation with donors or other stakeholders;
• Proven experience leading partnership discussions and negotiations.

Formal education/qualification:

• Relevant Master’s Degree (MPH, MA, MBA) or equivalent;
• Outstanding English writing skills. All applicants will be required to undergo a written evaluation as part of the recruitment process.

Location: London, UK (minimum of 2 days per week in the office) or any country programme where MSI operates in.

Full-time: 35 hours a week, Monday to Friday.

Contract type: 12 month FTC.

Salary: £48,000 - £53,000 (MP) for UK candidates. For other MSI country programmes, the salary will be strictly banded within the local national context.

Closing date: 3rd August (midnight BST). Interviews may take place before this date for exceptional candidates.