Source: Women's World Banking (WWB)
Women's World Banking (WWB) is the only microfinance network explicitly focused on supporting women. Headquartered in New York City, WWB supports the needs of 26 million clients, 80% of whom are women, through a network partnership of 39 microfinance institutions in 27 countries across Asia, Africa and Latin America.

WWB works with these institutions to design financial products and services that fulfill the needs of our clients. The mission of WWB is to expand the economic assets, participation and power of low-income women and their households by helping them access financial services, knowledge and markets.

 

The WWB Fellowship Program enables future global leaders in microfinance and women’s economic empowerment to experience the challenges and rewards of contributing to an organization that works diligently to create financial opportunities for low income women. Over a 2-year period, Fellows will deliver solutions for our organization and our network member institutions concerning an array of microfinance initiatives including: credit, savings, youth products, financial education and microinsurance.

Fellows will be based in our New York City office starting in June 2012. Travel in the field may be required. WWB will give preference to those with demonstrated abilities to tackle the type of work required to best support the needs of our clients in developing countries.

 

Fellows will have the opportunity to rotate throughout different departments, which may include:

• Development – raising the necessary financial support to ensure competitive and effective program delivery. The team manages all donor relations and major fundraising events. The donors represent a global footprint of support for WWB.
• Programs
  • Research – performs market research to identify the needs of our clients and measure the impact of our products and services. Much of the research is done in the field.
  • Microfinance Products – based on the findings of Research, this team designs products and services to serve the needs of our clients, expanding financial opportunities to women. The team deploys the products and services to network members through various testing, training, and scaling efforts.
  • Network Engagement – ensures the coordination and sharing of information amongst network members through global meetings, exchanges, and major conferences.
• Center for Microfinance Leadership – offers competitive, industry leading management training and mentorship to network member CEOs and top management.
• Branding and Communications – positions WWB as the leading global NGO serving the economic interests of women. The team disseminates information through various medias, including publications, social media, press, and major events.
• Finance – ensures financial sustainability and growth through financial management, reporting and investing. Partners with Development and Programs to structure various initiatives and project coordination.
• Special Projects – WWB is always looking forward and manages multiple special projects at any given time. These projects are typically priority initiatives run out of the president’s office.

 

Examples of current WWB initiatives:

• Working with network institutions in Latin America on a 3-year project to expand access to credit for rural women. Project entails market research, product design, institutional implementation, rollout to clients, and monitoring and evaluation.
• Making the business case that women are better borrowers through the development and global application of gender performance indicators.
• Partnering with a top-tier branding firm to further establish WWB as the leader in women’s economic empowerment.

 

WWB welcomes applicants who:

• Are independent, open minded, intuitive, and eager to contribute to an innovative microfinance network organization.
• Have experience with and a level of comfort in working across departments.
• Possess skilled written and verbal communications skills.
• Can demonstrate empathy towards and commitment to changing the lives of those in low-income communities around the world through a dedication to microfinance, economic development, project management, banking, or development.
• Have applied their passion for microfinance beyond academic projects.
• Demonstrate competency in understanding both macro and micro components of microfinance, from policy and regulation to the needs of a mother and entrepreneur in Asia, Africa or Latin America.
• Have participated in microfinance industry events, conferences, social media, blogs, or program design.

 

Additional requirements:

• We seek candidates with minimum of 2-years work experience or a relevant graduate degree in business administration, international development, finance or economics.
• Fluency in written and spoken English/Spanish or English/French is required.
• Ability to legally work in the United States for a minimum of 2-years; no visa sponsorship available.

How to Apply:

Our application process is highly competitive and open to interested candidates from across the globe. Please submit your application by February 24, 2012 via e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Please find details regarding the application process below:

Submission requirements

Please include the following items in your submission:

• A current resume
• A one-page cover letter articulating why you will succeed at WWB
• An essay of 500 words (or less) telling us about an experience you’ve had with a culture other than your own that changed your perspective in some way. Different cultural experiences are up to you to define. It can be a different city, village or country.
• Three professional references. Please provide name, title and telephone number.

For more information, please visit WWB website   Women's World Banking (WWB)