IGNITE Senior Communications Consultant Recruitment

Reference No.:
RQ8447

Date Published:**
09/19/2025

Due Date for Responses:
10/20/2025

Background

Everyone deserves the opportunity to build a better future. This simple idea has been at the heart of TechnoServe's work around the world for over 50 years. TechnoServe is a pioneer in leveraging the power of business and markets to create sustainable pathways out of poverty.

The low-income communities in which we work are full of enterprising people. Their small-scale farms and businesses are the keys to economic development. But they face many challenges: low literacy, lack of access to jobs and markets, unpredictable political dynamics and, increasingly, the effects of climate change. For many women and young people, the challenges are even more daunting. Working with TechnoServe staff, people around the world are lifting themselves out of poverty. The results are amazing, when incomes increase and living conditions for families get better, they are able to access health care and education previously out of reach. Communities and even whole countries are better off.

IGNITE Program Description

TechnoServe is leading the Inspiring Good Nutrition Initiatives Through Enterprise (IGNITE) Program, a Large-Scale Food Fortification (LSFF) initiative funded by the Gates Foundation. The program is designed to strengthen both the motivation and technical capacity of staple food processors -- specifically those producing edible oil, wheat flour, maize flour, and rice to fortify their products with essential vitamins and minerals. The ultimate goal is to expand consumer access to safe, nutritious, and adequately fortified staple foods.

A key objective of the program is to drive a critical mass of millers across eight focus countries — Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Tanzania — toward improved fortification practices. To support this, IGNITE is facilitating the activation and expansion of a catalytic collective impact initiative: the Millers for Nutrition coalition. This coalition aims to globally coordinate and locally implement a sustainable model for delivering targeted technical assistance to food processors.

Scope of Work

1. Role overview

TechnoServe is seeking an expert Strategic Communications consultant to revitalize and refocus Millers for Nutrition communications, ensuring it becomes a key driver of the initiative's strategic priorities through 2025 - June 2026. In line with available resources, the Strategic Communications Lead will refresh the communications strategy, drive its implementation and steer and support the existing team.

Deliverables

2. Scope of responsibilities

Working closely with the TechnoServe core team, the Strategic Communications consultant will be responsible for leading and delivering across the following workstreams:

2.1 Rapid refresh of communications strategy

Conduct a rapid review and refresh of the Millers for Nutrition communications strategy to ensure:

• Strategic Alignment: Communications activity is aligned with Miller's for Nutrition's strategic priorities in the 2025 - June 2026 time frame, considering available resources to ensure disciplined, focused delivery.

• Audience Prioritization: Key audiences are prioritized for engagement, including key influencers of millers and potential message carriers and amplifiers of Millers for Nutrition messages.

• Millers for Nutrition's audiences include:

  • Millers and representative industry associations

  • Strategic Fortification Partners (SfPs) and potential industry partners

• Donors and funders

• Nutrition ecosystem partners

• Policymakers and regulators

• Targeted Messaging: Messages are clear, consistent and targeted to ensure resonance with key audiences.

• Action Planning: A communications action plan and calendar with key milestones is actively managed internally and shared with key partners including SFPs.

• Performance Monitoring: Key communications KPIs for measuring progress and success are established with a results reporting process in place.

2.2 Strengthen communications infrastructure, coordination and capacity

Strengthen the communications function by establishing a unified, cohesive team, better processes for coordinating activities and mechanisms to support the cross-pollination of content ideas across teams and geographies, as appropriate, by:

• Improving Internal Coordination: Establish internal mechanisms (eg a cross-functional editorial board) to unlock stories and insights, facilitate content planning and cross-team coordination.

• Leveraging Technology: Introduce AI / machine learning (eg: ChatGPT Teams) to enable greater efficiency in comms delivery, for example generating and repurposing content and integrating with design platforms including Canva.

• Supporting Country Teams: Provide guidance and support to local teams to develop local communications strategies and localize activity and content to ensure resonance and relevance with local audiences.

• Improving Partner Coordination: Coordinating comms and outreach with key partners, including SFPs and nutrition ecosystem, to leverage channels and reach to amplify voice and reach.

• Team Structuring: Advising on comms team resourcing, roles and responsibilities to ensure right blend of capabilities in line with available budget and team bandwidth.

2.3 Lead Implementation, Content Development and Targeted Delivery

Drive the delivery of a proactive, integrated, evidence-based communications plan in line with agreed strategic priorities, emphasizing strong, relevant content / storytelling and targeted reach and visibility with key audiences.

Millers and industry associations: to attract members, encourage miller engagement with key issues (e.g.: quality and compliance) and build recognition of key role in nutrition, potential activities to include:

• Supporting the development and sharing of relevant, insightful and evidence-based content that leverages TechnoServe team's technical / industry experience and insights.

• Engaging key influences to help build recognition for millers, including public health advocates (e.g: spina bifida), industry, government and community leaders.

• Securing thought leadership opportunities to position Millers for Nutrition on key fortification issues and demonstrate leadership, including opinion pieces and blogs.

• Supporting and integrating with other miller recognition building activities as they are developed.

• SFP and potential partners: to strengthen breadth and depth of SFP engagement and attract new partners from across the food fortification ecosystem, potential activities to include:

  • Managing and coordinating SFP participants in relevant events and other activities.

  • Identifying and creating materials for SFP focal points to share with colleagues to build understanding, buy-in and engagement with Millers for Nutrition activities.

  • Targeting industry trade media and creating social media share kits for SFPs to amplify content through own channels.

  • Refining Millers for Nutrition value proposition and marketing material to attract new partners.

  • Donors and funders: to build a climate of support and trust in an industry-led approach to improving fortification practice, identify strategic / programmatic linkages and attract new funding, potential activities to include:

  • Sharing Millers for Nutrition model, insights, impacts and learning with key donors and funders in variety of engagement formats spanning 1-1 meetings and events at key fora including UNGA, WEF and food system / nutrition-focused events, eg: UNFSS.

  • Publishing thought leadership pieces and impact data - working closely with impact team.

  • Nutrition ecosystem: to build trust in an industry-led approach, identify synergies, align programmatic activities and advocacy goals, potential activities to include:

    • Aligning and coordinating on advocacy activity.

    • Creating social media share kits for SFPs to amplify content through own channels.

2.4 Optimize Core Millers for Nutrition Communications Channels

Lead a refresh of the Millers for Nutrition website and LinkedIn presence to ensure they become more integral to comms activity to increase reach, engagement and influence by:

• Enhancing content management processes to ensure easier and more regular content updates.

• Improving functionality, interactivity and user experience.

• Improving brand / design coherence.

Anticipated Start Date

10/13/2025

Performance Location

Remote

Additional Information

1. Financial Proposal indicating daily rate and total cost.

2. CV outlining relevant experience.

3. Samples of similar work (links or attachments).

4. References from at least three recent clients.

The successful consultant will demonstrate:

• Minimum 10 years of senior-level strategic communications experience, preferably in international development, nutrition, or public health.

• Proven ability to develop and implement communications strategies with measurable impact.

• Strong stakeholder engagement skills, including work with industry, donors, and policymakers.

• Exceptional writing and storytelling skills for multiple audiences.

• Experience in digital communications, website management, and social media.

• Strong project management skills, including ability to manage multiple workstreams.

• Experience in multi-country, cross-cultural settings.

• Previous experience with coalitions, industry associations, or multi-stakeholder initiatives is an advantage.

Response Instructions

To ensure consideration, all responses must be submitted no later than 10/20/2025, written in English with prices stated in USD.

All responses must:

• Contain a detailed cost with applicable taxes and other charges clearly identified.

• Provide requested payment terms and conditions.

• Include a contact name, email address, and telephone number.

• For quotes from a firm, provide a brief outline of the company and services offered, including the company's full legal name and address, the jurisdiction of incorporation, the full legal name and country of citizenship of the company's owners/principal officers, and the year the business was established.

• If a consortium of firms or a team of consultants submits a quote jointly, the above information should be provided for each member of the team.

• Only include attached files that are 10 MB or smaller in size. Do not include compressed (ZIP, RAR), executable, or other unusual file formats as these will be rejected.

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Note: Do NOT email your response to any employee of TechnoServe or deliver your response in hard copy to a TechnoServe office. Failing to adhere to these instructions may make your response ineligible for consideration.

Terms and Conditions

• This solicitation shall not be construed as an offer by TechnoServe.

• Responses must be submitted on or before the date indicated.

• Any quotes that are unresponsive will be summarily rejected.

• Responses to this solicitation shall be deemed binding offers and must remain valid for acceptance for no less than 90 days from the closing date of this solicitation.

• Any purchases resulting from this solicitation will be governed by TechnoServe's contractual terms and conditions, and may be subject to additional terms as required by donors funding the purchase.

• TechnoServe expressly reserves the right to accept or reject any quote or to cancel the solicitation process at any time without explanation, with no liability to any respondent.

• TechnoServe may, at its discretion, accept all or part of a respondent's offer.

• All information provided by TechnoServe in this solicitation is given in good faith; however, details are subject to change.

• TechnoServe may require respondents to enter into a non-disclosure agreement as a prerequisite for consideration.

• Respondents bear sole responsibility for all costs incurred in connection with the preparation of their response, including any third-party expenses.

• All responses shall become the property of TechnoServe.

• Respondents must fully disclose any conflicts of interest pertaining to this solicitation. Failure to comply may result in disqualification.

Request Files

The following attached files, if any, represent an important part of this solicitation.

No Request Files Found

Selection Criteria

Submissions will be evaluated based on the following criteria and rating methodology.

Selection Criteria