Full-Time Agora Partnerships Consultant Fellow
Job Description
ABOUT AGORA PARTNERSHIPS
Agora Partnerships’ purpose is to accelerate the shift to a sustainable economy by unleashing the potential of entrepreneurs who are building purpose-driven companies that create social and environmental impact throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. Agora Partnerships accomplishes this through the Agora Accelerator, a four-month program designed to provide entrepreneurs with access to the knowledge, networks, and capital they need to grow their businesses and their impact. Since 2011, the Agora Accelerator has served 125 companies working in 18 countries across Latin America and the Caribbean and catalysed more than US$45 million in investment into these companies. Learn more at www.agorapartnerships.org.
We believe in the power of entrepreneurship to solve the world’s greatest challenges, such as climate change, poverty, inequality, and others as outlined in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Yet too many entrepreneurs face nearly insurmountable odds. We are committed to levelling the playing field for entrepreneurs by finding innovative ways to drive investment and support into the people and ideas that will make our world a better place. Agora has partnered with the Inter-American Development Bank and other funders to support 140 high-potential companies over the next three years (2016-2018).
THE POSITION
The Consulting Fellow will serve as an integral member of Agora’s Accelerator Team and is critical to ensuring that a consistent and quality consulting experience is delivered to all Accelerator participants. Agora Partnerships´ Consultants act as advisors, strategists, connectors, community builders, and executors to help purpose-driven entrepreneurs access the knowledge, networks, and capital they need to grow their businesses. The work of Agora Consultants is critical to building efficient early-stage capital markets and to helping impact investors address their barriers to investment including under-prepared deal flow, high transaction costs, and few co-investment opportunities.
Consultants form the core of the Agora Accelerator program, typically working with four to six companies on their growth and investment plans. Consultants work under the direction of the Accelerator Manager and have significant responsibility, autonomy, and opportunity to consult with entrepreneurs in the Agora community and to collaborate with mentors and investors in the Agora Network.
Consultants will be based in hub cities throughout Central and South America.
TIMELINE
This is a seven or eleven-month contract position, starting January 23, 2017, with potential for extension and promotional opportunities within Agora.
Starting in 2017, the Accelerator program will be delivered across two cycles annually, each cycle serving approximately 25 companies. The first cycle occurs February to June and the second occurs July to November each year.
Consulting Fellows will be expected to be in Nicaragua for four weeks from late January to late February for orientation, training, and the first cycle’s Entrepreneur Retreat. After the Entrepreneur Retreat, Fellows will move to their base location and oversee consulting with a sub-set of companies during the first four-month consulting phase (March-June), wrapping up engagements in July.
Consulting Fellows may then have the opportunity to continue in the second Accelerator cycle, which will begin similarly with an Entrepreneur Retreat in July followed by the second four-month consulting phase (August-November) with a new sub-set of companies from their base location.
The Consulting Fellow will directly consult four to six companies per cycle during their contract period.
KEY ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Consulting Fellows work closely with the leadership teams of approximately four to six companies in the Agora Accelerator each cycle, helping them to develop their strategy, refine their business models, prepare for growth, and raise outside capital. The role is designed for passionate leaders who want to provide strategic consulting to growing social businesses and are interested in co-creating investable opportunities throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.
Consultants work with the companies in their client portfolio to create a customized consulting approach, founded on Agora’s consulting methodology, that addresses the specific challenges of each company. While the consulting is a mix of virtual and in-person interaction, a major effort is made to match Consultants to companies that are located relatively closely to them. Each Consultant has a modest travel stipend that will allow them to visit each company in their portfolio.
Major Consultant responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
Entrepreneur Retreat: This is an event held at the beginning of each Accelerator cycle in the beautiful colonial city of Granada, Nicaragua. The Entrepreneur Retreat brings together the current class of entrepreneurs to learn and collaborate alongside the Agora team, investors, mentors, and other industry experts. Consultants are responsible for developing content for and supporting the execution of the Entrepreneur Retreat. Consultants lead components of the retreat and focus on building deep relationships with their portfolio companies through workshops and activities throughout the week.
Diagnostic: Consultants begin consulting with a diagnostic phase to understand the company history, current state, business model, and key challenges. This allows the Consultant to customize and structure the consulting process to meet the specific needs of each company and maximizes their success in the Accelerator. The diagnostic process combines an initial series of diagnostic tools and in-person consulting at the Agora Entreprenueur Retreat.
Business Model Refinement: Consultants work with entrepreneurs through the consulting process to analyze key aspects of the company’s business model, impact metrics, operational strategy, and financial results with the aim of creating solutions to identified barriers and forming a strategic growth plan.
Investment Preparedness: The ultimate goal of the Accelerator is to facilitate investment into Accelerator companies, which requires a clear and convincing communication of each company’s value proposition, impact, growth strategy, and capital needs to investors. The Consultant will work with each company to create professional, investor-facing materials that may include a one-page investment summary, strategic growth plan, financial model, investment memo, investment pitch deck, and/or due diligence folder. Selected Consultants may also facilitate investor matchmaking introductions and/or Investment Roundtables for Accelerator companies at industry conferences such as SOCAP.
Strategic Initiatives within Agora: Consultants will have significant opportunities to take on leadership roles and contribute to strategic initiatives within Agora. Each Consultant will work with the Accelerator Manager to identify special projects during their tenure. Strategic initiatives vary greatly in nature, and may include:
Partnerships: Supporting new country-level partnerships with government institutions, investors, funders, or accelerators to expand the reach of Agora and solidify its field office presence
Consulting: Supporting new consulting services and improving quality of consulting approaches for past, current and future Agora Accelerator cycles;
Funding initiatives: Reporting on company status as needed for funders, investor/mentor matchmaking for portfolio companies, and providing general support for Agora investment initiatives;
Recruiting and Selection: Select Consultants will have the opportunity to participate in identifying and recruiting top entrepreneurs from across Latin America and the Caribbean and to participate in the interview and judging process, helping to select exceptional companies for future Accelerator cycles;
Additional projects may include financial innovation, Investor Network engagement, marketing and communications, impact measurement, or alumni services
QUALIFICATIONS
We seek outstanding candidates with the strategic business and problem-solving skills necessary to help high-potential companies throughout Latin America to grow their businesses. The following qualifications are required:
Approximately 3 to 5 years of work experience related to management consulting, capital advisory or investment, venture capital, financial management, and/or business strategy;
Postgraduate degree in business, economics, international development or other related degree or equivalent professional experience;
Experience building strategic business plans, financial modeling, or creating investor communications;
Experience managing projects and working with clients;
Experience working with start-up businesses in emerging markets;
Experience working in social entrepreneurship or impact investing a plus;
International work experience; and,
Fluency in English or Spanish, with professional working capacity in both.