Project Development Specialist (ICT)

The purpose of this role is to build a robust pipeline of projects through origination of innovative programmes in key infrastructure sectors in South Africa, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and selected African Countries to provide a standardised programme design and approach in relation to governance, procurement and funding.
The role is sector-specific and will be allocated to ICT, ensuring specialised expertise and tailored programme development within the sector.

Job Profile (Downloadable)

Expertise & Technical Competencies

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE

Minimum Qualifications

• A Bachelors Degree in Finance, Business, Legal, Accounting, Engineering or Economics.

Minimum Requirements

• A minimum of 8 years’ experience in infrastructure project development and financing with a proven track record in deal origination, sourcing viable and bankable projects, structuring and closing investments in SA and the rest of Africa.
• Demonstrated excellence in the field of business origination and development.
• Experience in engaging with high-level politicians, dignitaries and stakeholders in South Africa and the rest of Africa.
• Experience in project development in the specific allocated sector (Energy, Transport & Logistics, ICT or Social Infrastructure)

Desirable Requirements

• A postgraduate qualification, preferably a CA or CFA or MBA, would be advantageous.
• Project finance experience.
• Private equity and/or venture capital experience and track record.

TECHNICAL COMPETENCIES

Sector Expertise

• Demonstrates global thought leadership, including speaking at international conferences, sharing work via knowledge management, documenting business cases, white papers, and articles.
• Understands dynamics of other sectors and uses that knowledge to draw comparisons and insights about the given sector.
• Foresees trends in the given sector industry at a global level and actively communicates/publishes opinions and insights.
• Understands sector industry dynamics, trends and key players at the global level and uses that knowledge to position DBSA as an economic policies authority of repute within the global market.

Deal Origination

• Utilises extensive networks with developers, sponsors and consultants in DBSA-mandated sectors to identify project preparation opportunities.
• Conducts project identification, conceptualisation and preliminary structuring of projects structuring and value preposition for DBSA.
• Applies analytical skills to understand the technical, environmental, institutional, financial and legal components of projects to present a structure to prepare the project.
• Understands the regulatory and policy environments and offers advice in preparing/structuring of projects.
• Conducts market research, business analysis and profiling to identify opportunities for infrastructure development in SA, SADC and selected African countries.
• Provides and grows the opportunity for DBSA equity investments.
• Independently structures and negotiates and concludes engagement letters, term sheets and facility agreements.

Business Acumen

• Takes actions to fit business strategy.
• Assesses and links short-term tasks in the context of long-term business strategies or perspectives.
• Reviews own actions against the organisation's strategic plan; includes the big picture when considering possible opportunities or projects or thinks about long-term applications of current activities.
• Anticipates possible responses to different initiatives.
• Understands the projected direction of the industry and how changes might impact the organisation.

Project Management

• Seasoned ability to plan, initiate, execute, control and close projects aligned to DBSA sustainable infrastructure investment mandate.
• Translates business objectives into practical, prioritised and organised action plans; ensures plans are safely and successfully implemented.
• Makes effective use of resources when executing; ensures processes are in place to achieve outcomes aligned to operational excellence standards.

Risk Identification & Assessment skills

• Advises on applicable aspects of risk identification and assessments
• Assesses and links short-term tasks in the context of long-term business strategies or perspectives

Financial Acumen

• Makes sound financial decisions after having analysed their impacts on the organisation, partner agencies, and community.
• Knows the internal and external factors that impact on resource and asset availability.
• Is able to interpret management account reports in an operational/commercial context and take action as appropriate to maximise sustainable development outcomes, revenues, and control costs.

Analytical Ability

• Ability to propose solutions to support investment through analysis and solutioning.
• Thorough and in-depth understanding of the business environment, reviews outputs of analysis to identify anomalies and draw conclusions, and able to relate these to operational circumstances.
• High level of skill in the use of advanced/complex analytical techniques and able to use judgement to decide upon the most appropriate analytical techniques to solution according to the situation.
• Proven ability to apply relevant estimating techniques, tools and models covering all potential business circumstances (such as cost benefit analysis) and highlight potential risks/opportunities.
• Able to translate findings into reports and present findings to key stakeholders.

Required Personal Attributes

BEHAVIOURAL COMPETENCIES

Customer Service Orientation

• Tries to understand the underlying needs of customers and matches these needs to available or customised products and services.
• Adapts processes and procedures to meet ongoing customer needs.
• Utilises the feedback received by customers, in order to develop new and/or improve existing services/ products that relate to their on-going needs.
• Thinks of new ways to align DBSA’s offerings with future customer needs.

Self-Awareness and Self-Control

• Withholds effects of strong emotions in difficult situations.
• Keeps functioning or responds constructively despite stress.
• May apply special techniques or plan ahead of time to manage emotions or stress.

Strategic and Innovative Thinking

• Experiments with new approaches, tests scenarios, questions assumptions and challenges conventional thinking.
• Creates new concepts that are not obvious to others, leveraging internal and external sources of information, to build incremental revenue and growth opportunities.

Driving Delivery of Results

• Sets challenging goals that will have a significant impact on the business or support the organisational strategy.
• Commits significant resources and/or time to ensure that challenging goals are achieved, while also taking action to mitigate risk.

Organisational Awareness

• Recognises unspoken organisational limitations, what is and is not possible at certain times or in certain positions.
• Recognises and/or uses the corporate culture (language, etc.) that will produce the best response.
• Recognises and/or uses ongoing power and political relationships within the organisation (alliances, rivalries) with a clear sense of organisational impact.

Impact and Influence

• Adapts a presentation or discussion to appeal to the interest and level of others.
• Anticipates and prepares for others’ reactions.

Teamwork and Cooperation

• Acts to promote a friendly climate and good morale and resolves conflicts.
• Creates opportunities for cross-functional working.
• Encourages others to network outside of their own team/department and learn from their experience.

*The KPA’s, competencies and relationships listed in this document are not exhaustive, and the incumbent will be expected to undertake additional duties within their capacity to meet the needs of business and/or the business unit.

Project Development

• Participate in the development of programme origination strategies to unlock infrastructure projects in South Africa, SADC and select African Countries through project preparation.
• Support the development of sector-specific strategies to promote the development of projects aligned to the development priorities of the DBSA:
  
  • Conduct market research and needs analysis to ascertain the gaps and requirements;
  • Follow sector trends;
  • Understand legislation impacting infrastructure development, e.g., the Division of Revenue Act, conditional infrastructure grant guidelines, sector governance frameworks, etc;
  • Profiling and identifying the gaps for infrastructure development for South Africa, SADC and select African countries;
  • Comprehensively map industry or sector opportunities to generate a list of potential programmes to be developed;
• Conduct in-depth macro-level feasibility assessments to provide insight into the programmes:
  
  • National, Provincial and Local landscape sector-specific challenges;
  • Environmental and regulatory assessments;
  • Community structures and needs;
• Identify, originate and design projects/programmes at a macro level that support the annual disbursement target and the division's strategic objectives.
• Support the development of pilot projects to test the design, measure the success of the programmes and review the design for final development and execution handover.
• Support with the preparation and presentation of programme development proposals for approval by various governance committees.
• Support efficient risk management of projects (programmes), provide opportunities for equity investments in projects and improve the quality of the loan book by:
  
  • De-risk the technical and commercial risk aspects of projects
  • Facilitate a better understanding, assessment and pricing of project risk
  • Ensure DBSA has the right of first refusal to finance projects that are prepared through the programmes developed
• Actively manage programmes developed:
  
  • Manage pilot projects for the programme and initiate the preparation thereof
  • Identify service providers required to undertake project preparation on projects developed
  • Appraise projects and programmes (prepare proposals for DBSA’s governing structures for approval)
  • Structure the PMO governance and structure
  • Negotiate MoA with programme owner
  • Develop profiles for PMO resources and initiate the recruitment process
• Provide comprehensive reporting on expenditure and progress on all programme management offices (PMO)

Stakeholder Management

• Build and maintain strong relationships with clients at global, regional, and local levels, including businesses, banking and multilateral partners and government officials to further develop specific project preparation opportunities.
• Manage expectations from programme owners and ensure third-party programme mandates are understood by the DBSA teams
• Liaise with Investment divisions peers to develop a pipeline for the DBSA market at large.
• Contribute to the development of the DBSA’s brand and reputation through positioning the bank as a partner of choice for end-to-end infrastructure development and financing across Africa.

Key Measurement of Outputs

• Number of programmes developed.
• Fee income generated.
• Value of funds committed and disbursed towards programme preparation.
• Value of infrastructure catalysed.
• Successful development and implementation of sector strategies.
• Value and number of projects approved and committed by the Bank.
• Value of funds mobilised towards projects developed and programme preparation.
• Management of client relationships and key stakeholders
• Team behavioural KPI’s.
• Clean audits of programmes.