Junior Consultant

Background

There is broad agreement that micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) are vital to achieving decent and productive employment as they globally account for more than two-thirds of all jobs and also create the majority of new jobs. The ILO MSME Branch seeks to unlock the potential of creating more and better jobs in small businesses together with governments, social partners, the private sector as well as other relevant partners in line with the decent work agenda of the ILO.

While many women run successful enterprises, persistent gendered inequalities continue to create major disparities in opportunities to start and grow a business. The MSME branch seeks to redress existing gender imbalances in enterprise development through approaches aimed specifically at women, while working with constituents and other key stakeholders to ensure that enterprise initiatives consider gender dynamics and inequalities in their formulation and roll-out. Applying a set of tested tools and approaches, the Branch seeks to support and create gender-inclusive ecosystems where aspiring and existing women entrepreneurs can start and grow their business.

Informal enterprises are highly prevalent in developing countries and often serve as an important livelihood option for those excluded from the formal economy. These enterprises are often characterised by low productivity and decent work deficits, do not generate public revenues and tend to engage in unfair competition with formal enterprises. The ILO MSME Branch facilitates enterprise formalization through research, advisory services on policy measures to constituents and through measures such as business development services and other initiatives that make business registration cheaper, easier and more attractive.

The ILO MSME Branch is now engaging a junior consultant to support their HQ team working on women’s entrepreneurship development and enterprise formalization. The team based in ILO HQ coordinates and provides support to projects, programmes and specific activities around the world while documenting and disseminating good practices and lessons learnt.

Scope of work

In the framework of this assignment, the junior consultant will provide support to the women’s entrepreneurship development and enterprise formalization team of the MSME Branch (see expected outputs below) by bringing in a technically informed, critical and innovative mindset, to support the preparation of various written outputs and activities.

The Consultant will report to the Specialist on Enterprise Formalization and Women’s Entrepreneurship Development, Judith Van Doorn, while working closely with the rest of the team.

Expected outputs

As part of the assignment, the consultant is expected to undertake the following:

• Preparation of written outputs including at least 3 case studies, briefs and training materials pertaining to women’s entrepreneurship development, women’s economic empowerment and gender equality.
• Conduct desk research and support drafting a thematic brief on data collection methodologies on enterprise informality (4 to 5 pages).
• Assist resource mobilization efforts by contributing to the development of at least one concept note.
• Undertake research on thematic areas related to women’s entrepreneurship development.
• Prepare and execute a plan to support the deployment of tools and approaches to support women’s entrepreneurship development initiatives and projects in various countries.
• Provide technical support for the development and drafting of training materials on enterprise formalization for entrepreneurs.
• Carry out a range of activities to support the outreach and communications efforts of the team, including the documentation and dissemination of achievements, innovations, organization of webinars and capacity building workshops.

Timeframe and Payment

The duration of the contract is initially over a period of 4 months with 15-20 working days/month (to be agreed) from April 2024 onwards. The assignment requires the completion of a set of deliverables within a maximum of 80 working days (with a possibility of having new products added for an extension).

The ILO will not reimburse the consultant for additional workdays if this has not been agreed beforehand and the contract between the consultant and ILO has been updated to reflect agreed edits.

The total fee for the assignment will be based on consultants’ experience and profile. The daily fee proposed by the consultant is estimated to be between 150 and 200 US$/day.

A first payment will be transferred upon submission of completed deliverables to the satisfaction of the ILO by 14th June.

A second payment of the remaining fee will be transferred at the end of the agreed period upon submission of remaining completed deliverables to the satisfaction of the ILO.

Key competencies/experience

The expected level of experience is at the level of a junior consultant that has recently graduated with a masters (or equivalent) in a relevant field of study and should offer the following competencies and experiences:

• Solid understanding of support to small enterprise development in practical terms. This means an economics and/or social sciences background with some initial work experience in organizations that promote enterprise development
• Good knowledge of gender issues and women’s empowerment, preferably with a focus on women in developing countries
• Good initial understanding of the ILO and its decent work mandate
• Excellent writing and text skills
• Good interpersonal and communication skills
• Ability to work on own initiative as well as a member of a team
• Ability to carry out assignments in accordance with instructions and guidelines
• Excellent command of English and preferably also French.

Original call for application may be found here.