Senior Income Generation Specialist in Turkey at Adventist Development and Relief Agency International

EXPECTED DEPLOYMENT DATES

Start of deployment: 15/03/2022
End of deployment: 30/11/2022
Duration of deployment: 8 months

EU AID VOLUNTEERS PROGRAMME

We are a part of the EU Aid Volunteers initiative, which brings together volunteers and organisations from different countries, providing practical support to humanitarian aid projects and contributing to strengthening the local capacity and resilience of disaster-affected communities. Participants in the EU Aid Volunteers initiative must be:

• over 18 years of age
• citizen of an EU Member State or a long-term resident in the EU.

HOSTING ORGANISATION

Small Projects Istanbul – SPI, (Registered name: “ZEYTİN AĞACI DERNEĞİ”) is a local NGO operating in Olive Tree Community Center in Istanbul, Turkey, dedicated to helping those who have been displaced by conflicts in the MENA region, rebuild their lives; through supporting community development, education and empowerment. Our Community Centre is a place of safety and belonging; within this space we are committed to working with the community to create the best opportunities for families, students and individuals to reach their full potential in Istanbul and beyond. Within the Community Center, SPI strives to provide livelihood opportunities through the establishment of a Women’s Social Enterprise, enabling skills development, income generation and economic integration.

Within this project the volunteer will primarily be involved in developing the skills and capacity of the SPI Programming team, in order to improve the quality and impact of the social services and program delivery that SPI has on the refugee beneficiary community.

Fundamentally, the Women’s Social Enterprise was established as a means through which SPI can support and improve the financial security and economic integration of the beneficiaires into the Turkish economy.

Through their participation as a production team member, it is expected that beneficiaires can develop their own personal and professional skills, collectively and as individuals.

In order for the Social Enterprise to successfully support the beneficiaires involved, it is necessary that all business management and administration tasks are completed to a high professional standard.

EXPECTED TASKS

The main tasks and specific deliverable outcomes expected from this role include:

• Support the development and carry out the implementation of sales strategy: Through working closely with enterprise’s General Manager to reach sales targets for all product lines
• Sales platforms management: Oversee shopify and other potential e-commerce platforms, inform team about incoming orders, order-shipment related issues; coordinate orders with production team to manage orders on time, address issues with the team when arise
• Sales activities: Search and attend eligible sales events as assigned by management to meet the buyers in the market, carry out sales activities in the Muhra office shop and in external settings
• Webpage & Social media management: Keep Muhra webpage (through Shopify platform) and social media channels up-to-date with ongoing (sales, production, campaign etc.) activities, increase audience/customer engagement and followers
• Customer Relations: Enhancing positive and sustainable customer/ retailer and other partners relations, receive and respond inquiries through Muhra mail account and social media
• Strengthen brand development and marketing activities: Responsible for the development of pr materials and brand representation in line with Muhra brand identity and Social Enterprise and Small Projects Istanbul’s mandate
• Research and outreach: advise new and diverse sales channels, platforms, and products
• Market Research Support : Conduct market research to contribute to product design in line with marketing and textile trends.

REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor Degree in a relevant field, such as marketing and brand development and sales
• Professional or voluntary experience in the non-profit environment
• E-commerce and sales experience (experience in fashion industry is an asset)
• Advanced English both written and spoken, knowledge in Turkish is an asset
• Must be technically competent in Microsoft Office programs, and highly competent in the usage of other online communications platforms (e.g mailchimp, slack)
• Technical skills in visual content creation and creative design marketing softwares eg. Adobe, photoshop, canva
• Experienced in the technical management of social media and e-commerce online platforms
• Previous experience in carrying out unsupervised research work is an asset
• Excellent writing and presentation skills
• Strong interpersonal and networking skills
• Skilled at working in a diverse, multicultural environment, empathic and resilient
• Previous experience working or volunteering with vulnerable communities and/or in culturally diverse contexts

WORKING AND LIVING CONDITIONS

Appropriate accommodation will be arranged for the volunteer prior to the commencement of their placement free of charge. The living conditions will be conveniently close to the Community Center and located within a safe and comfortable neighbourhood. The living space may be a shared or individual environment and will be clean, comfortable and simple in standards.

Working time: The volunteer is expected to assist the hosting organisation in a full-time manner, approx. 5 days per week, 8 hours per day.

The programme covers the following costs:

• Pre-departure training organised by the European Commission in one of the EU countries: transport, food, accommodation and training materials
• Pre-departure training with the sending organisation (ADRA Slovakia): transport, food, accommodation and training materials
• Return ticket to Turkey
• Health insurance during the deployment
• Accommodation
• Monthly allowance 316.30 EUR (food, local SIM card, personal items) + local transportation 40 EUR
• Post-deployment resettlement allowance at the amount of 100 EUR/ each month of deployment
• Possibility to financially support Turkish/Arabic language courses up to 100 EUR/ each month of deployment