ChildFund Alliance is looking to review and further develop its corporate engagement guidelines to maximize results for all children around the world. We are seeking a consultant to first conduct an in-depth review of our existing Corporate Engagement Guidelines, and then develop an updated and enhanced version.
Terms of Reference
1. General Information
Title: Consultant – Corporate Engagement Guidelines
Application deadline: 30 November 2021
Location: Home-based
Contract: Consultancy, estimated 15 working days within 2 to 3 months
Expected start date: December 2021 – January 2022 (negotiable)
2. About ChildFund Alliance
ChildFund Alliance is a global network of 12 child-focused development organizations that help
children and their families overcome poverty and the underlying conditions that prevent children from
reaching their full potential. We reach nearly 23 million children and their family members in 70
countries around the world. Members work to end violence against children; provide expertise in
emergencies and disasters to ease the harmful impact on children and their communities; and engage
children and youth to create lasting change. Our commitment, resources, innovation, knowledge and
expertise serve as a powerful force to elevate the voices of children and transform their lives. For
more details, please see: www.childfundalliance.org.
3. Background
Members of ChildFund Alliance have strategically engaged over a period of years with corporations in
several countries. Engagement mechanisms are aligned with overall development cooperation
priorities in terms of themes, sectors and countries of focus.
Principles for effective development cooperation are integrated into private sector engagement
strategies and mechanisms to ensure country ownership, alignment, coordination, value for money,
transparency, accountability, and inclusive partnerships. Importantly, private sector engagements
must do no harm, and must work to maximise positive development results. As such, engagements
are informed by clear partnership criteria that consider responsible business conduct, due diligence
procedures, and consideration of economic, social and environmental impacts and risks.
In alignment with ChildFund Alliance members’ policies and practices, ChildFund Alliance is looking to
review and further develop its corporate engagement guidelines to maximize results for all children
around the world.
Corporate engagement and relevance to ChildFund Alliance
Vision — The vision of ChildFund’s corporate relations initiative is to build long-term, mutually
beneficial, integrated relationships with corporations and associations willing to provide funds, in-kind
resources, knowledge-sharing, employee and customer engagement, introductions and contacts, and
marketing resources to advance ChildFund’s mission.
Long-term Relationships — To maximize benefits for both the corporation and ChildFund, we seek
relationships with a long-term outlook and multi-year commitment (preferably a minimum of three
years).
Mutually Beneficial — By creating amutually beneficial relationship, both parties can advance their goals:
ChildFund receives support to advance its mission to help children in need and to transform their lives,
and the corporate partner advances its commitment to social responsibility, while also strengthening its
brand and engaging its employees and customers in important social issues. Mutual interests and goals
are identified; impact is measured. Both parties benefit from their investment of valuable time and
resources.
Integrated — The most successful corporate relationships are those that are authentic, organic and
woven into the fabric of each organization.
Mission-driven — ChildFund seeks partners committed to its mission to advance and protect the rights
of children, and to provide vulnerable children living in poverty with opportunities to reach their full
potential and contribute to lasting and positive change in their communities.
4. Scope of Work
ChildFund Alliance is seeking a consultant to conduct an in-depth review and update of the Corporate
Engagement Guidelines. The ChildFund Alliance Secretariat, in collaboration with the Alliance
Corporate Subcommittee, comprising technical representatives from all Alliance members, will
oversee the work.
Specific objectives are:
a) Analysis of current policies, practices and trends for corporate engagement within the
ChildFund Alliance
Recognizing that different Alliance members have distinct practices, objectives and policies for
corporate engagement, the consultant will identify both commonalities and differences, as well as
best practices across our current corporate partnership approaches. This mapping exercise will result
in an analysis of the currents trends and latest development within the Alliance, both at country and
global levels, for corporate engagement and partnerships.
b) Review goals, principles and conditions of corporate engagement
This work will lead to the review of ChildFund Alliance’s current corporate guidelines. The goal is to
define how, in its partnership with the private sector, the Alliance will be selective and ensure a
corporate partner’s full alignment with ChildFund’s core values, as well as outline clear and agreed
upon responsibilities and accountability of all partners.
Through this review, the consultant will need to:
• Update the Alliance review process for corporate engagement, which include relevance,
additionally, development impact, risk, environmental and social governance standards
(including CSR), values (including human rights, core values, environment, child labor, child
safeguarding, anti-corruption, terrorism, etc.)
• Identify the type of partnerships that leverage the strengths of the corporate sector on behalf
of the world’s children, especially the most vulnerable.
• Develop clear procedures for assessing and managing the risks of engaging with private sector
partners, which will take into consideration the specificities of ChildFund Alliance work with
and for children.
• Recommend innovative engagement practices with the private sector.
c) Recommend internal guidelines for cross-Alliance cooperation for corporate engagement
Based on the Alliance’s current protocols and procedures, the consultant will be asked to reflect on
how the different members of the Alliance cooperate for corporate engagement, identify the value
added and barriers to joint engagement, and recommend internal guidelines for cross-Alliance
collaboration and cooperation for corporate engagement.
d) Provide advice and guidance on the potential implications for ChildFund Alliance
The consultant will take into consideration the global context that isshaping and influencing corporate
engagement (Grand Bargain, Covid-19, etc.).
The consultant will suggest potential implications of endorsing and implementing the corporate
engagement guidelines across ChildFund Alliance in relation to the current operational model. This
should be broken down into benefits, challenges and proposed recommendations.
Key questions to be covered include:
• What isthe appetite for private sector engagement (e.g., multi-national corporations, national
companies, and small- to medium-sized businesses)?
• What is the shared-value approach across all types of partnerships (e.g., strategic
programmatic funding, advocacy, leveraging a company’s core expertise and networks,
and/or promoting child-rights principles in responsible business practices) to make a
transformational difference for children?
• What is the appetite for risk amongst Alliance members regarding engagement and
contractual arrangements between Alliance members and in-country corporate partners?
• What are the key implications in terms of operations, finance, and indirect cost-recovery for
the existing ChildFund Alliance structure?
5. Timeframe and Deliverables
Activities are scheduled to take place during 15 working days between December 2021/January 2022
and March/April 2022. Outputs and activities for this work are provided below. (Note that actual
dates are subject to discussion with the consultant.)
Outputs and Activities
• Finalization of contract
• Introductory chat with key ChildFund staff: context setting and
sharing work plan and methodology
• Desk review background / context documents
• Virtual consultations with key stakeholders
• Draft deliverables
• Virtual consultations and feedback
• Final deliverables
Expected deliverables are as follow:
• Summary of key findings based on the initial desk review and virtual consultations
• Reviewed Guidelines for Corporate Engagement
• Internal Guidelines for Cross-Alliance Corporate Engagement
• Review and analysis report
Throughout the consultancy, the ChildFund Alliance Secretariat and the Alliance Corporate
Subcommittee will:
• Provide relevant background documents to the consultant
• Be available for meetings over Skype/phone when needed
• Organize virtual stakeholder consultations when needed.
The Consultant will report to ChildFund Alliance Global Partnership Advisor. All reports and
documents must be written in English and provided in an electronic format (Microsoft Word).
6. Required Qualifications and Experience
• University degree in social / development studies, or any other relevant areas
• Significant experience in policy design, development, and implementation in a development
context
• Excellent knowledge of private sector engagement in development and INGO structures
• Working experience and/or knowledge of civil society on the national and local level
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English
• Excellent analytical and report writing skills
• Proven record of professional, timely and high-quality consultancy assignments in the
development, humanitarian and/or non-profit sector
7. Conditions
The successful applicant will be required to comply with the ChildFund Alliance Child Safeguarding
Policy and Procedures and to sign the Code of Conduct. If the consultant will have direct, contact with
children or have access to children’s personal information, a relevant Criminal Background Check must
also be completed.
The Parties shall treat all discussions and documents relating to this TOR as confidential. The ChildFund
Alliance, its Board and staff make no express or implied representation or warranty as to the currency,
reliability or completeness of the information contained in this TOR. Nothing in this TOR should be
construed to give rise to any contractual obligations or rights, expressed or implied, by the issue of
this TOR or the submission of an expression of interest in response to it. No contract will be created
until a formal written agreement is executed between ChildFund and a selected consultant.
Applying
Please submit your expression of interest (EOI), in English, to recruitment@childfundalliance.org by
30 November 2021. The EOI should include the Consultant’s CV, detailed technical and financial
proposal based on the TORs, and availability between December 2021 and April 2022. Only finalists
will be contacted.