BD Associate - Partnerships & Advocacy (6 Months Fixed-Term/Remote)

ABOUT GENERATION

At Generation, we believe in the power of employment to change lives. We are a global nonprofit organization that supports adults to achieve economic mobility through employment. Generation trains and places adult learners of all ages into careers that are otherwise inaccessible, working in partnership with governments, employers, and other system actors. We also conduct original research and share data insights on high-priority global workforce transition topics to inform decision-making by workforce system stakeholders. Launched in 2015, Generation comprises a global hub (Generation You Employed, or GYE) and a network of in-country affiliates. To date, the network has 150,000+ graduates and 23,000+ employers across 50 professions and 17 countries.

When learners join Generation, 91% are unemployed, of which nearly half are long-term unemployed.  Three months after completing our program, graduates have a 78% job placement rate, rising to 88% within six months. Of our employed graduates, 79% are hired by repeat employers who have previously hired Generation graduates, and 89% are in jobs directly related to the profession for which we have trained them. Employed graduates immediately earn an average of 3-4X their previous earnings.  Two to five years after graduation, 77% of our alumni from upper-middle income countries continue to meet their daily financial needs and 63% can save for the future. To date, Generation’s global graduates have earned more than $1.9 billion in wages. Generation graduates typically have a secondary school background, 52% are female, 28% have dependents, and the majority identify with underrepresented communities in their country.

JOB OBJECTIVES

The BD Associate - Partnerships & Advocacy is responsible for strengthening Generation Ghana's employer ecosystem, strategic partnerships, and market presence to increase employment opportunities and drive graduate outcomes across both Permanent and Freelance programmes.

The role is responsible for the development and management of relationships with aggregators, employers, industry bodies, government agencies, and other strategic stakeholders that contribute to Generation's impact and growth.

Reporting to the Employer Engagement Manager, the BD Associate - Partnerships & Advocacy drives employer acquisition, partnership expansion, stakeholder engagement, employer advocacy, ecosystem visibility, and thought leadership efforts that contribute to Generation Ghana's placement outcomes and long-term sustainability.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Strategic Partnership Development & Management

• Identify, develop, and manage strategic relationships with employers, aggregators, industry associations, government institutions, ecosystem actors, and workforce development stakeholders.
• Build and maintain a diversified partnership pipeline that drives Generation's placement, programme and growth objectives.
• Develop partnership engagement plans and maintain consistent communication with strategic stakeholders.
• Identify opportunities for collaboration, co-delivery, referrals, sponsorship, and ecosystem partnerships.
• Support the development, implementation, and monitoring of partnership agreements and engagement frameworks.
• Maintain accurate records of partnership engagements and opportunities within Salesforce and other designated system.

2. Employer Engagement & Employer Advocacy

• Strengthen Generation Ghana's reputation as a trusted workforce development partner within the labour market ecosystem.
• Engage employers to better understand hiring needs, workforce challenges, and sector-specific demand trends.
• Facilitate employer participation in graduate engagement activities, networking events, mock interviews, employer panels, workshops, and programme-related initiatives.
• Develop and maintain employer advocacy initiatives that promote graduate success stories and positive employer experiences.
• Gather employer feedback and insights to support continuous programme improvement and graduate employability outcomes.
• Support the Employer Engagement team in deepening relationships with existing employers and identifying opportunities for repeat engagement

3. Ecosystem Development & Stakeholder Engagement

• Build and maintain productive relationships across the employment, technology, education, entrepreneurship, and workforce development ecosystems.
• Represent Generation Ghana at industry events, conferences, networking sessions, ecosystem engagements, and stakeholder forums.
• Identify opportunities for Generation's increased visibility and influence within relevant sectors and communities.
• Coordinate stakeholder engagement activities that strengthen Generation's partnerships and market positioning.
• Support the development and management of engagement initiatives with coalition partners, programme partners, and strategic ecosystem stakeholders.

4. Market Positioning, Events & B2B Marketing

• Support the implementation of employer engagement campaigns that increase awareness of Generation's programmes, graduates, and employer value proposition.
• Coordinate employer-focused events, industry roundtables, networking forums, employer showcases, and ecosystem engagement activities.
• Contribute to the development of employer-facing materials including presentations, partnership decks, case studies, success stories, impact reports, and marketing collateral.
• Support the utilisation of allocated employer engagement marketing and events budgets in line with agreed objectives.
• Promote Generation's impact and employer successes through strategic stakeholder engagement opportunities.

 5. Labour Market Intelligence & Sector Insights

• Monitor labour market trends, industry developments, hiring patterns, and workforce needs across priority sectors.
• Conduct stakeholder and sector mapping exercises to identify emerging partnership and employment opportunities.
• Gather and analyse market intelligence that informs employer engagement strategies, programme expansion, and curriculum reviews.
• Share employer and industry insights with programme delivery, placement, and leadership teams to support strategic decision-making.
• Identify emerging sectors and ecosystem opportunities relevant to Generation's future growth and graduate outcomes.

 6. Programme, Partner & Ecosystem Support

• Support employer and stakeholder engagement activities across Generation's Permanent and Freelance programmes.
• Collaborate with programme teams, coalition partners, Training Service Providers (TSPs), delivery partners, and other stakeholders to support employment outcome objectives.
• Support onboarding, orientation, and relationship management activities for new partners and stakeholders where required.
• Contribute to cross-functional projects, programme launches, employer initiatives, and partnership development activities.
• Support partner engagement and communication efforts across multi-country and multi-location programmes.

7. Data Management & Reporting

• Maintain accurate and timely records of stakeholder engagements, employer interactions, partnership activities, event participation, and opportunities within Salesforce and other systems.
• Track and report on partnership performance, employer engagement activities, stakeholder engagement outcomes, and ecosystem initiatives.
• Prepare periodic reports, presentations, and insights that support Employer Engagement planning and decision-making.
• Ensure stakeholder data quality, completeness, and compliance with organisational standards.

 8. Other Responsibilities

• Undertake any other duties reasonably assigned by the Employer Engagement Manager to support graduate outcomes, partnership growth, employer engagement objectives, and Generation Ghana's broader strategic priorities.

QUALIFICATIONS

Desired Experience & Qualifications

• Minimum of 4 years' professional experience in business development, partnerships, stakeholder engagement, account management, B2B sales, client relationship management, advocacy, ecosystem development, consulting, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience in B2B sales or business development within a consulting, professional services, training, workforce development, technology, or advisory environment.
• Proven track record of developing, managing, and growing external stakeholder relationships that contribute to business growth, partnership outcomes, or organizational impact.
• Experience engaging with employers, aggregators, industry associations, government agencies, donor-funded programmes, ecosystem actors, or strategic partners.
• Experience working in high-pressure, agile, and fast-paced environments, balancing multiple priorities, stakeholders, and deadlines simultaneously.
• Minimum of 1 year of experience working remotely in an Associate, Coordinator, Account Management, Business Development, Customer Success, Partnerships, or equivalent role.
• Experience planning and coordinating events, networking sessions, stakeholder forums, employer engagement activities, or ecosystem-building initiatives.
• Experience in workforce development, education, youth employment, technology, entrepreneurship, training, consulting, recruitment, or social impact sectors is highly desirable.
• Experience managing stakeholder pipelines, CRM systems, reporting tools, or relationship management platforms.
• A university degree is not required. Equivalent professional experience, demonstrated performance, and relevant achievements will be given equal consideration.

Knowledge, Skills & Competencies

Business Development & Commercial Acumen

• Strong understanding of B2B business development, stakeholder engagement, account management, and relationship-building principles.
• Ability to identify and develop opportunities that create value for both Generation and its external stakeholders.
• Strong commercial awareness with the ability to understand employer needs, workforce challenges, and market dynamics.
• Ability to leverage data to influence decision-making and build credibility across a variety of stakeholder groups.

Partnerships & Stakeholder Engagement

• Exceptional relationship-building and networking skills.
• Ability to engage confidently with senior leaders, employers, government representatives, industry bodies, partner organizations, and ecosystem stakeholders.
• Strong negotiation, influencing, and stakeholder management capabilities.
• Ability to cultivate long-term strategic relationships rather than transactional engagements.

Communication & Advocacy

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong presentation and facilitation capabilities.
• Ability to represent Generation professionally in external engagements, events, meetings, and ecosystem forums.
• Strong storytelling and advocacy skills, with the ability to communicate impact and value propositions effectively.

Technology, AI & Digital Literacy

• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft 365 including Teams, Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, Word, SharePoint, and Forms.
• Strong working knowledge of Google Workspace, including Google Docs, Sheets, Drive, Meet, Slides, and collaborative work tools.
• Demonstrated experience using AI tools and platforms to improve productivity, research, stakeholder engagement, business development, communication, analysis, content generation, or workflow management.
• Comfortable learning and adopting emerging technologies and digital collaboration tools.
• Experience using Salesforce or other CRM platforms is highly desirable.

Strategic Thinking & Problem Solving

• Strong analytical and critical-thinking skills.
• Ability to identify trends, opportunities, risks, and stakeholder needs.
• Comfortable operating in ambiguity and building structure where processes are still evolving.
• Demonstrates initiative, sound judgement, and a solutions-oriented approach to challenges.

Project & Event Management

• Strong organizational and project coordination skills.
• Ability to manage multiple workstreams and competing priorities effectively.
• Experience coordinating stakeholder engagements, events, employer activities, and partnership initiatives.

Working Style & Personal Attributes

• Highly self-motivated and comfortable working independently.
• Strong sense of ownership, accountability, and follow-through.
• Adaptable and resilient in dynamic and evolving environments.
• Collaborative team player who actively contributes to shared goals.
• Comfortable working across countries, cultures, teams, and stakeholder groups.
• Passionate about employment, skills development, workforce readiness, and creating opportunities for young people.

Preferred Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate is a highly data and relationship-driven business development and partnerships professional who excels at building trust, creating connections, and identifying opportunities that drive impact and growth.

They are confident engaging with employers, aggregators, industry leaders, government stakeholders, and ecosystem partners, and are equally comfortable representing Generation in boardrooms, networking events, stakeholder meetings, and strategic discussions.

They thrive in high-pressure, agile environments, embrace technology and AI tools to improve efficiency, and have a proven ability to turn relationships into meaningful opportunities. They are commercially minded, naturally curious, highly organized, and motivated by creating sustainable pathways to employment and economic opportunity.

Most importantly, they combine strong execution skills with strategic thinking and are passionate about helping Generation expand its influence, strengthen its employer ecosystem, and improve graduate outcomes across Ghana and beyond.