Job Opportunity for Senior Specialist, Terwilliger Center for Innovation in Shelter (TCIS) at Habitat for Humanity International in Chennai, India

## Senior Specialist, Terwilliger Center for Innovation in Shelter (TCIS)

 

**About Habitat for Humanity International**

 

Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI) is a global, Christian-based nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring that everyone has a decent place to live. Founded in 1976, Habitat brings together people of all faiths and people of no faith to build homes, communities, and hope. We work alongside each other to help families and individuals build and improve places to call home, achieving the strength, stability, and self-reliance they need to build better lives for themselves. 

 

**About Terwilliger Center for Innovation in Shelter (TCIS)**

 

Terwilliger Center is an innovation hub within HFHI that contributes to its mission by influencing market actors such as private companies, public officials, civil society, consumers, and households. TCIS supports scalable and affordable housing solutions through its products and services.

 

**Job Description**

 

Habitat for Humanity International is seeking an initiative-taker who is results-oriented, adaptive, and passionate about impact and organizational performance. This position will deliver and support housing market systems across India for the Terwilliger Center for Innovation in Shelter (TCIS).

 

**Job Location:** Chennai, India

 

**Experience Required:**

 

* Ten (10) years of relevant experience in business, social entrepreneurship, international development, housing markets, or similar fields with progressively increasing responsibility.

 

**Essential Duties and Responsibilities:**

 

* Lead the housing market systems work in India, identifying and soliciting initiatives from various market actors in the housing value chain, building relationships, and supporting facilitation activities.

* Provide project management on the delivery of market research and facilitation activities with private sector firms.

* Liaise with potential partners such as financial institutions, government agencies, construction companies, materials suppliers, etc. Provide technical inputs on various products and services in the housing value chain. Assist in technical/commercial feasibility of various proposals and in structuring agreements with market actors.

* Lead monitoring and evaluation of the initiatives. Ensure data is periodically captured and analyzed, prepare reports, and facilitate internal learning activities based on feedback from the programs.

* Assist the country lead and sector lead in the research, strategy, and planning of the housing market systems program in India.

* Represent Habitat and TCIS as needed in industry gatherings and conferences.

 

**Minimum Requirements:**

 

* **Education:** Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Economics, Finance, Engineering, or related field. MBA is a plus. Equivalent experience (if applicable).

* **Years of Related Experience:** Ten (10) years of relevant experience in business, social entrepreneurship, international development, housing markets, or similar fields with progressively increasing responsibility.

 

**Qualifications:**

 

* **Capabilities:**

    * Entrepreneurial: Works well in dynamic environments with limited resources.

    * Persuasive: Demonstrates the ability to influence others, to work with outside actors, and create collaborative projects.

    * Agile: Prioritizes tasks and redirects work effort in response to new opportunities and changes in priorities.

    * Strong inter-personal skills with the ability to develop and manage good relationships between the project, private sector, government, and stakeholders.

    * Quality and results-oriented: Demonstrated attention to detail, highly organized, and able to coordinate multiple activities simultaneously and within deadlines.

* **Technical Competencies:**

    * Technical proposal development: Capacity to write technical proposals for lead firms and/or contracts.

    * Monitoring projects: Understands projects monitoring and evaluation considerations and adds value to data received to make project improvements. Ability to monitor project implementation and manage project budgets.

    * Communication and presentation skills in English (written and oral).

    * Ability to converse in one or more South Indian languages, Tamil preferred.

 

**Preferred Qualifications:**

 

* Housing Construction/Engineering with understanding of affordable housing products, services for low-income groups, particularly in disaster-prone areas.

* Strong networking skills including the demonstrated ability to engage with a range of different stakeholders from the private, public, and civil society sectors.

* Innovative, growth mindset with a demonstrated sense of curiosity.

* Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to approach a problem from multiple perspectives.

 

**Work Arrangement:**

 

* Hybrid, flextime schedule.

 

**Contract:**

 

* 2-year fixed term contract, subject to renewal depending on the availability of funds.

* Local country-based compensation package.

 

**Candidates must be currently eligible to work in India without sponsorship.**