CAWST Job Vacancy: International Technical Advisor - Calgary, Canada

The International Technical Advisor position at CAWST is at the forefront of CAWST’s programs and global service delivery. You need to be enterprising and motivated with strong technical water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) skills and experience. You also need to love training and supporting others to build their skills in WASH.

The Position: International Technical Advisor

Reports to: Director, Training and Consulting

Type: Full Time. Permanent position.

Position start date: As soon as possible.

Application due date: Open until filled.

Context
CAWST has been growing its global impact for the last 15 years. CAWST provides training and consulting support services to client organizations. We have a broad suite of professional services to offer the water, sanitation and hygiene sector. In 2016-2017, we plan to further strengthen our technical expertise and continue to offer the highest possible quality of service to our clients.

Position Summary
The International Technical Advisor plays a key role in CAWST’s global service delivery. You will be assigned to countries and/or a region of the developing world and will be responsible for formulating strategies, conducting business development to identify clients (NGOs, CBOs, Governments, UN Agencies), and delivering professional training and consulting services. You will build clients’ capacity, and motivate and inspire client organizations to implement independent water and sanitation programs in their communities.

You need to be driven to build the knowledge and skills of WASH practitioners, help them start, improve and scale-up their WASH programmes. You will constantly assess, experiment and learn from those with whom you work.

CAWST’s area of WASH expertise and services are in non-networked systems: Household Water Treatment and Safe Storage (HWTS), Sanitation, Rainwater Harvesting, WASH & Health, Community Health and Hygiene Promotion.

This is a demanding cross-functional role that requires a considerable amount of travel to developing countries. International travel will be typically 4 trips per year, with up to 50% of time spent overseas.

The position is permanent, full time, and based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Responsibilities
  1. Training
    • Prepare and deliver training workshops, seminars and planning sessions
    • Manage and supervise others who assist in the preparation or delivery of training workshops
    • Ensure technical competency and knowledge is up-to-date as new information is learned by CAWST
    • Apprentice and train others, in various capacities, including clients, staff of Water Expertise and Training Centres, new CAWST staff, and volunteer assistant trainers
  2. Consulting Support
    • Provide ongoing consulting support to clients via phone, email or field visits
    • Provide support and troubleshooting to clients’ projects and initiatives
    • Help identify barriers to implementation and ways to overcome them
    • Contribute to the maintenance and updating of training and support materials, and other CAWST documents.
    • Contribute to clients’ web-based discussion forums
  3. Water Expertise and Training (WET) Centres
    • Identify potential WET Centres within the region or countries of responsibility. Develop relationships and explore potential opportunity to partner in the development of a WET Centre
    • Work together with local partner to develop strategy, plans and seek funding for the development of the WET Centre
    • Assume role of project manager, where appropriate, taking responsibility for the capacity building process through the phases of exploration, start-up, growth, strengthening to independence
  4. Business & Client Development
    • Research and prepare country and regional strategies
    • Develop strong understanding of country contexts, client organizations, key water & sanitation issues
    • Identify potential training, networking and client support opportunities
    • Build and sustain credibility with clients and potential clients
    • Develop and maintain strong client relationships
  5. Education Program Development, Research Learning, Communications
    • Gather information and share insights with other CAWST departments to guide the development of appropriate training, consulting services and tools for CAWST’s clients.
    • Collect images, case studies, stories and testimonies from CAWST’s work overseas for the purposes of Education Program Development and Communications.
    • Support research projects in which CAWST may become involved.
  6. Fund Development
    • Collaborate in the preparation of funding proposals and presentations
    • Seek opportunities, and develop relationships with potential funders in countries for which the ITA is responsible.
  7. Governance
    • Participate in the development of CAWST’s strategic plans including development of short and long-range performance objectives.
    • Assist in the distribution and collection of CAWST’s annual client survey; and contribute as needed to the analysis of results
    • At all times maintain a conscious awareness of CAWST’s dual objectives of technology transfer for the benefit of the poor and the functioning of a professional, not-for-profit organization
  8. Operations Planning and Reporting
    • Develop and execute country and regional strategies and plans, including activities, targets and budgets
    • Understand and contribute as appropriate to CAWST’s operations and business services cycle (e.g. monthly operations reports, budget reconciliations, timesheets, trip reports)
  9. Other
    • Participate actively in personal and organizational Professional Development; in particular in CAWST’s semi-annual Learning Exchanges (January and June)
    • Other duties as required.
Education
Bachelor’s degree in relevant discipline (engineering, sciences).

Experience
  • Minimum 5 years’ work experience implementing WASH programs in the international development context.
  • Minimum 3 years’ experience delivering WASH training and WASH related capacity building.
  • Demonstrated track-record of commitment to poverty alleviation through water, sanitation and hygiene.
Skills and Attributes
  • Excellent WASH Technical knowledge and significant experience implementing projects in the following:
  • Household water treatment
  • Sanitation and excreta management
  • Hygiene promotion and behaviour change
  • Water supply and treatment
  • Excellent written and verbal communications, with the ability to target different and cross-cultural audiences to build rapport, engage and motivate individuals.
  • Able to create a participatory learning environment and use a range of cross-cultural, participatory training and facilitation methods.
  • Entrepreneurial character who enjoys working in a dynamic, constantly changing environment.
  • Strategic and proactive in coordination and project management.
  • Service-oriented and consistently seeks to provide a high level of professional service to clients and other CAWST departments.
  • Analytical and able to troubleshoot technical problems quickly and effectively, often with limited resources.
  • Able to handle multiple tasks and balance priorities with various projects and stakeholders.
  • Easily and quickly establishes credibility with clients and other stakeholders.
  • Team player and accomplished professional who works well both independently and within a team.
  • Enjoys international travel, able to work in challenging situations in different cultures, and easily adapts to different contexts.
  • Fluent in written and spoken English, other languages an asset in particular French and Spanish.
  • Proficient with Windows-based computer programs (e.g. Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
  • Vision and values aligned with CAWST
Compensation
Will be discussed in personal interview. Please include salary expectations in your cover letter.

Eligibility
You must be legally able to work in Canada.


Organizational Background
CAWST is a Canadian charity that focuses on the principle that clean water changes lives. Safe water and basic sanitation are fundamentals necessary to empower the world’s poorest people and break the cycle of poverty. CAWST believes that the place to start is to teach people the skills they need to have safe water in their homes. CAWST transfers knowledge and skills to organizations and individuals in developing countries through education, training and consulting services. This ever-expanding network can motivate individual households to take action to meet their own water and sanitation needs. Since 2001, CAWST’s client network has helped 11.4 million people get better water or sanitation.

Our vision is a world where people have the opportunity to succeed because their basic water and sanitation needs have been met.

Our mission is to provide technical training and consulting, and to act as a centre of expertise in water and sanitation for the poor in developing countries.

CAWST values equitable opportunities, sustainable solutions and collaborative and inclusive processes. We recognise and accept differences in cultural, religious and political processes.

How to apply:

To Apply
Please send your cover letter, resume, and answers to the below questionnaire to cawstHR@cawst.org. Position will be open until filled. No phone calls please. Only those granted an interview will be contacted.


Closing Date: 30 June 2016

Questionnaire
Max. 1/2 page per answer.
  1. What has motivated you to consider this position? (Please be specific to the responsibilities of the job.)
  2. What is your philosophy on education and training? Please support with an example of experience you have had in training delivery and your role in the delivery.
  3. What is your approach to building capacity and working with partners and client organizations? Please support with an example of experience you have had in an international setting.
  4. What was one of the most difficult problems you have faced in an international development context, how did you handle it, and what was the outcome?
  5. Of your technical experience, what do you believe is most relevant to the International Technical Advisor role with CAWST?
  6. What do you think is the most sustainable way to carry out international development work?
  7. What are your long-term career goals and aspirations? Where do you see yourself in five years?

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