Community Experience Design Specialist

Organization: NEAR (Network for Empowered Aid Response), (Hosted by Adeso – African Development Solutions)

Reporting To: Director of Solutions

Duration: 12 months, with the possibility of extension

Level of effort: 10-15 Hours per Week

Starting Date: As soon as possible

ABOUT NEAR

NEAR (Network for Empowered Aid Response) is a movement of local organizations with a bold ambition – to reshape the top-down humanitarian and development system to one that is locally driven and owned, and is built around equitable, dignified and accountable partnerships. NEAR is a membership-based organization with members coming from four regions: Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Middle East.

ABOUT ADESO

NEAR is currently hosted by Adeso, an expanding and vibrant African based international development and humanitarian organization. Adeso and NEAR both aspire to prevent and overcome situations that adversely affect community well-being by: Influencing policy change and enacting systemic change through innovative solutions led by local and national actors.

SUMMARY

NEAR’s Strategic Plan for 2024-26 defines four strategic goals for the organization to work toward in

the three-year period: (1) to build and amplify a collective voice of diverse, local, and national organizations as the key lead actors in the global aid system; (2) to position local actors as primary decision-makers in the global aid system to influence the operationalisation of localisation commitments; (3) to co-create, uplift, and amplify local solutions that radically increase local and national actors’ leadership and ownership of systems change initiatives; and (4) to generate and promote learning between and beyond NEAR members and partners to drive systems change. The Community Experience Design Specialist leads on crafting human-centered approaches that advance Strategic Goal number 3, developing, testing, and scaling solutions that are locally led alongside NEAR secretariat, members and partners.

POSITION PURPOSE

The Community Experience Design Specialist is responsible for creating inclusive and impactful experiences for NEAR Secretariat, members, and partners. They are flexible, responsive and accountable for creating and advising on experiences that are grounded in member needs and priorities and the strategic solutions they seek to design and implement. The successful candidate will develop, frame and communicate strategies for community experience that will support colleagues to understand how to create and iterate on initiatives that support and add value to NEAR members.

This role requires a consultative and collaborative approach to experience design, working with secretariat colleagues and members across the network. The Community Experience Design Specialist incorporates member and partner feedback, provides ongoing advice and support to Secretariat and Solutions Hub colleagues. You’ll have the opportunity to co-create with a variety of colleagues, members and partners, bring creativity and focus, and see the impact created when designed experiences are implemented.

This is an exciting time of evolution for the Solutions work at NEAR as we transition to a hub model. The Innovative Solutions Hub leverages expertise and resources from across the network to assess, test, pilot, incubate and scale ideas that address challenges and contribute to a more locally-led and locally-owned aid system.

SPECIFIC ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Facilitate Experience Design workshops: Guide colleagues through experience design approaches, ensuring the purpose, objectives, and vision of impact and success are clear and shared across the team.
• Support Solution Design: Support global colleagues and members to ideate, design, and iterate on contextually relevant solutions providing guidance and active support as initiatives are developed to ensure community experience objectives are being met or exceeded.
• Learning + Community Advisory: Support colleagues to standardize facilitation models and training tools. Develop community building, facilitation, and learning by elevating Secretariat’s understanding of adult learning and core tenants of community building.
• Reflection, Evaluation + Iteration: Propose and track relevant objectives and metrics related to community experience, and proactively evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies implemented. Work closely with the Learning Team and engage members and Secretariat colleagues to gather insights and feedback relevant to continuous improvement to network community experiences.

EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS

• 8+ years’ experience in learning design, movement building, community organizing, or related fields;
• Extensive experience with human centered design and delivery of participatory training and community building experiences in person and virtual spaces
• Excellent communication skills to collaborate and coordinate with a global team and network of changemakers across different cultures and time zones;
• Initiative, enthusiasm, and a system-change approach to challenges;
• Demonstrated comfort using quantitative and qualitative data to understand root problems, ideate, design, and adapt solutions, and develop compelling narratives;
• Excellent organizational skills, creativity, and flexibility; ability to multi-task under a deadline, with great productivity and attention to detail;
• Dedication to contributing to an aid system centered on equity and solidarity.