Social Development Specialist (12 months engagement)

About Palladium: Palladium is a leading international consulting firm with a regional headquarter in Saudi Arabia, committed to creating a positive impact on social and economic development. Through strategic partnerships with public and private sector entities, Palladium KSA plays a key role in supporting Vision 2030's transformative social development goals. By addressing critical areas such as community development, education, healthcare, employment, and third sector development, Palladium KSA drives sustainable and inclusive growth across the Kingdom. This mission-driven approach leverages local insights and global expertise to foster resilient systems and empower communities, positioning Palladium KSA as a trusted advisor in Saudi Arabia's ongoing journey toward a vibrant and diversified society.

1- Purpose of position:

The Social Development Specialist will provide consulting and coordination services for social development initiatives across socioeconomic development, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and strategic philanthropy. This role focuses on delivering high-quality insights, analytics, and research to support government entities, nonprofits, and corporate clients in achieving meaningful social outcomes. The Specialist will bring expertise in coordinating stakeholder engagement, conducting social assessments, and performing impact evaluations to inform sustainable project design.

2- Primary responsibilities:

The Social Development Specialist responsibilities will include but are not limited to:

• Consulting and Strategy Development: Coordinate with clients to design social development strategies that align with their mission, goals, and community needs. Support clients in strategic planning for CSR, philanthropy, and community engagement.
• Stakeholder Coordination: Serve as a key liaison for diverse stakeholders, including community organizations, government agencies, and corporate partners, ensuring that project objectives align with stakeholder expectations.
• Research and Social Analytics: Conduct research and social analytics to inform project strategies, performing needs assessments, benchmarking, and best practice analysis. Translate findings into actionable insights to guide program design and decision-making.
• Strategic Philanthropy: Coordinate the planning and implementation of philanthropic initiatives for clients, ensuring alignment with social objectives and measurable impact on communities.
• Impact Assessment: Facilitate social assessments and impact evaluations to gauge project effectiveness and sustainability. Synthesize data into meaningful insights that optimize social outcomes.
• Monitoring and Evaluation: Develop and coordinate the implementation of monitoring frameworks to track and report project milestones, KPIs, and impact metrics, aligning with socioeconomic development goals.
• Client and Project Coordination: Maintain and manage client relationships throughout the project lifecycle, including needs assessment, progress updates, and post-project evaluations. Ensure consistent communication and coordination to meet client expectations and foster positive partnerships.
• Report Writing and Presentation Development: Prepare clear, impactful reports and presentations that communicate project outcomes, analytical findings, and strategic recommendations. Develop presentation materials that are visually compelling and effectively convey key messages.
• Capacity Building and Advocacy: Coordinate and facilitate training sessions, workshops, and knowledge-sharing activities that empower clients and communities to sustain and expand their social impact efforts.

3- Reporting Requirements:

The role reports to the Manager or above. Reporting requirements include:

• Attend all weekly meetings and other meetings as required
• Participate in regular project status updates with the project manager on client engagements
• Regular updates with line manager
• Timely submission of assigned reports/deliverables

4- Relationships:

• Key relationships will be with manager, clients as well as the wider Consulting team
• When working on a particular client project, there will be a designated client relationship manager who the Social Development Specialist will be required to liaise closely with throughout the duration of the project

5- Authority Levels:

The role carries a degree of autonomy with appropriate consultation. The role is required to:

• Analyze and make sound recommendations to the line manager
• Review and enhance client deliverables under the guidance of the Project Manager
• Take full ownership of work streams on project delivery base
• Design sound approaches and solutions for technical proposals
• Contribute to process improvement through innovative and cost-effective proposals/ideas/suggestions

6- Minimum education and experience required:

• Bachelor's degree in social sciences, public policy, sociology, or a related field. A Master's degree is preferred.
• Substantial 4-8 years experience in consulting for social development projects, with a strong focus on CSR, strategic philanthropy, and social impact. Previous experience in a multi-stakeholder or advisory environment is beneficial.
• Proficiency in written and spoken English and Arabic.

7- Key skills required:

• Analytical and Research Skills: Strong research abilities, with experience in social data collection, high-quality analytics, and insight generation for social program development.
• Project Coordination: Proficient in managing complex projects from inception to completion, with a focus on coordinating deliverables, timelines, and client engagement activities.
• Client Relations: Demonstrated ability to build and maintain productive client relationships, balancing stakeholder needs and expectations while ensuring project success.
• Report and Presentation Skills: Excellent writing and presentation skills, with the ability to produce clear, insightful reports and create visually impactful presentations for client audiences.
• Results-Oriented: Demonstrated ability to achieve impactful results within set deadlines and budgets.
• Self-Starter: Independent and proactive, with strong problem-solving abilities and an entrepreneurial approach to social development consulting.

8- Key competencies required:

• Adaptability: Supports change process, promotes change agenda, supports others to adapt, supports others in new ways of working, applies learning.
• Critical Thinking: Challenges own ideas, investigate issues, identifies trends and underlying connections, identifies and analyses relationships between situations, applies information outside the immediate.
• People and Relationships: Encourages others understand value of diversity and inclusion, understands others position and adapts personal style, encourages others to acknowledge team members contribution, encourages self-development with team members, seeks participation and contribution from direct working relationships.
• Self-development and Adaptability: Seeks and applied development opportunities relevant to team, probes understanding of feedback, evaluates quality of work, delivers on commitments outside the team, recognizes and identifies opportunities.
• Business Acumen: Align work focus with organization objectives, recognizes market impacts and business drivers, consults to understand client needs, optimizes resources, applies principles of stewardship.