Company Description

Education Development Center (EDC) is a global nonprofit that advances lasting solutions to improve education, promote health, and expand economic opportunity, with a focus on vulnerable and under-served populations.  Since 1958, we have been a leader in designing, implementing, and evaluating powerful and innovative programs in more than 80 countries around the world.

EDC promotes equity and access to high quality education and health services and products that contribute to thriving communities where people from diverse backgrounds learn, live, and work together. We support an inclusive workplace culture that embraces many perspectives and broadens our understanding of the communities we serve, enhancing and enriching our work.

EDC is committed to equity, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace.

We are looking for candidates who share EDC’s commitment and understand the importance of cultural responsiveness in today’s context.

The primary purpose of the 3-year, USAID-funded Ibitabo Kuri Twese ( IKT) Project is to strengthen the market system for teaching and learning materials and increase the quantity, quality, affordability, and accessibility of books and other reading materials (physical and digital) in schools, homes, and communities, contributing to improved reading outcomes.

Job Description

The TLM Market Innovation Coordinator directly reports to the TLM Market Facilitation Specialist and will provide technical leadership on market innovation strategies to stimulate demand for books and other Teaching and Learning Materials (TLMs) and provide support and capacity strengthening to enhance the book chain sector’s ability to set 300 selling and distribution locations in Rwanda.

Essential functions include [but are not limited to]:

• Provide assistance to the TLM Market Facilitation Specialist to identify market segments and map out both the existing points of sales and establish new selling locations.
• Provide assistance to the Business Development Service specialist to support research to define customer targets and marketing mix for the publishing sector.
• Provide assistance to publishers to support the development of digital marketing products (online ads, emails, websites, graphics, memes) for internal and external email lists, blogs, affiliates, paid search, and social media marketing.
• Support publishers and Business Development advising on new product development in the publishing space, ideally with exposure to both the commercial and technology development functions of the book sector.
• Analyze book markets and categorize data and information to support the development of a 5-10-year innovation pipeline for the Publishing sector.
• Support the development of marketing and advertising plans for booksellers in the bid to establish 300 selling points.
• Support financial institutions to facilitate the development of financing plans for publishers/Booksellers and aid publishers and booksellers to establish price points.
• Provide assistance to private sector federation to develop strategies and identify retail locations and mechanism of their establishment and strengthening of existing and/or lead the formation of new retail locations
• Provide assistance to capacity building specialist to support coaching/training of publishers as they implement marketing strategies.

This position reports to the TLM Market Systems Facilitation Specialist.

Qualifications

The candidate for the position of TLM Market Innovation Specialist shall have at a minimum the following qualifications:

Education:

• Secondary education required
• Bachelor Degree in Marketing, Business Technology or Management, strongly preferred

Skills and experience:

• 4 to 5 years of directly relevant experience, with 5 years of experience in facilitating business development support activities within the book supply chain in Rwanda or other educational systems, including:
  • Developing market innovation strategies and systems in any field.
  • Digital/integrated marketing or other highly relevant field
  • Developing real innovative strategic marketing solutions across the core business and the development of emerging opportunities and markets in Rwanda.
  • Leading Voice of Customer input into the development and integration of new products and systems.
• Proven skills in strategic planning, management, supervision, and budgeting.
• Ability to develop and communicate a common vision among diverse partners and the ability to lead multi-disciplinary teams.
• Adept at facilitating relationships amongst sector actors (Publishers, booksellers, and Printers).
• Prior experience working in African book/publishing sector and educational systems.
• Experience in managing book supply or value chains in Rwanda, preferred.
• Event and experiential marketing experience is a plus.