Context & Mission

The Philanthropy Unit is one of the teams within the Communications & Fundraising Department of Doctors Without Borders / Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Switzerland.

This position support MSF fundraising efforts by ensuring that Philanthropy Advisors have at their disposal high-quality proposals, reports and grant applications in order to generate substantive and multi-year donations from major donors.

The team of three Writing Officers function as content managers, developing in coordination with the Philanthropy Advisors the standard proposals and reports based on donor interests and efficiency considerations. They manage among themselves the incoming ad-hoc requests from Philanthropy Advisors according to priorities. They are also in charge of mandating translations and ensuring quality control through a peer-editing system.

Responsibilities

• Writing of funding applications / proposals (including cover letters and thank-you letters) in English and/or German or French, based on internal operational documents (such as project document, mission strategy paper, log frame, budgets, etc.).
• Writing of interim and final reports (including cover letters) based on internal operational documents (such as activity report, situational reports, quarterly/mid-year report).
• Coordinate within the Writing Officer team treatment given to ad-hoc requests and plan according to deadlines.
• Writing of donor specific content and updates on ad hoc basis.
• Proof-reading and editing of writing material created by other team members in (incl. thank you letters drafted by the interns) on ad hoc basis.
• Proof-reading and editing of writing materials from other teams of the department on ad hoc basis.
• Controlling the quality of created documents (peer-editing).
• Keep informed about MSF topics and projects of interest to donors and proactively inform Philanthropy Advisors of relevant developments

Your Profile

Education

• University degree, Business Administration, marketing, translation, journalism, communication or similar education

Experience

• Working experience in fundraising, marketing, communication or journalism.
• Proven track record in writing official documents, such as proposals, grant application or reports in an NGO context.
• Understanding of humanitarian contexts is a strong advantage.
• Work experience with MSF is a strong advantage.

Skills/ Technical competencies

• Proven sense of analysis, strong conceptual and research skills
• Excellent writing and synthesis skills & good communicator
• Solid computer skills including MS Office & database management are a must

Languages

• Native German or French speaker
• High written proficiency in English
• Italian and French/German knowledge is an asset

Personal Abilities

• Accurate & structured working style
• Efficiency and respect of deadlines
• Rigour and service mentality
• Flexibility, ability to multitask
• Stress-resistance
• Team player

Terms of Employment

• Part-time position 60% (24h/week, Monday to Wednesday)
• Open-ended contract
• Working place: Geneva or Zurich
• Ideal start date: January 2024
• Gross annual salary (for 60%): from CHF 51’904,80.- to CHF 59’767,20.- (salary commensurate with equivalent experience and internal salary grid)
• Paid vacation: 25 days per year, prorate temporis, plus any Swiss public holidays falling within the contract period.
• Pension plan: pension contribution covered 3/4 by MSF, 1/4 by staff member
• Relocation package if moving from a different country to Switzerland.

How to apply

Candidates submit their application following the requirements:  CV 2 p. max. – letter of motivation 1p. max. – in French or English.

Deadline for application is September 24^th, 2023.

We reserve the right to close the position early if we consider the number and quality of applications received to be sufficient.

APPLY HERE

The applications will be treated confidentially.

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Only applications submitted on our recruitment platforms will be considered.

Please note that we do not wish to use the services of recruitment or placement agencies.

At MSF, we are committed to an inclusive culture that encourages and supports the diverse voices of our staff members. We strive to create workplaces where teams of people with diverse backgrounds, characteristics, perspectives, ideas and experiences work together for the social mission of MSF to create better outcomes for our patients and the communities we work with.

We welcome applications from individuals of all genders, ages, sexual orientations, ethnicities, background, religions, beliefs, ability status, and all other diversity characteristics.

MSF does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of discrimination or harassment, including sexual harassment. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo reference checks.