ESG Expert – Business Development & Partnership Officer - Uganda

Role Overview

We are looking for an ESG professional with proven commercial and partnership-building skills to drive SBC's next stage of growth. Sitting at the intersection of subject-matter expertise and revenue generation, this role will own the origination and conversion of advisory mandates, scale our software product sales, deepen institutional partnerships with DFIs, foundations, and ecosystem players, and position SBC as the go-to sustainability partner across East Africa and beyond. The ideal candidate is fluent across global ESG frameworks and the realities of sustainability adoption in African markets — and equally comfortable scoping a corporate advisory engagement, structuring a multi-year donor-funded program, or closing an enterprise deal for our ESG and carbon platforms.

Key Responsibilities

Business Development & Revenue Growth

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• Own and deliver an annual revenue target across SBC's three commercial streams: (1) advisory and consulting mandates, (2) training and SBC Academy enrollments, and (3) software/SaaS subscriptions (Carbon Management, Sustainability & ESG Tool, EHS, Incident Management, Enterprise & Third-Party Risk, Business Continuity).
  

  
  

• Build and manage a qualified pipeline across target client segments — listed corporates, financial institutions, agribusiness and manufacturing, large SMEs, family offices, DFIs, foundations, and government agencies.
  

  
  

• Lead the full sales cycle: prospecting, scoping, proposal writing, technical-financial bid response, commercial negotiation, and contracting.
  

  
  

• Convert SBC's thought leadership, research outputs, and blog/publications pipeline into structured demand-generation campaigns.
  

  
  

Strategic Partnerships

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• Deepen existing institutional partnerships and originate new ones with DFIs, multilaterals, foundations, and impact investors funding sustainability, MSME, and entrepreneurship programming.
  

  
  

• Pursue accreditations, panels, and framework agreements that put SBC on preferred-supplier lists for donor-funded sustainability and TA programs.
  

  
  

• Build co-delivery and reseller partnerships for SBC's software products with auditors, accountancy firms, EHS consultancies, and management consulting firms across the region.
  

  
  

• Negotiate MoUs, consortium agreements, and revenue-share structures.
  

  
  

ESG Subject-Matter Leadership

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• Serve as a credible external face of SBC at conferences, donor convenings, investor forums, and industry roundtables; contribute to SBC's blog, publications, and impact stories.
  

  
  

• Maintain expert-level fluency across the frameworks SBC's clients ask about: GRI, ISSB/IFRS S1 & S2, TCFD, TNFD, SASB, GHG Protocol, SBTi, IFC Performance Standards, Equator Principles, UN PRI, UNGC, B Corp, and the SDGs — plus emerging African and Kenyan sustainability disclosure expectations (e.g., NSE ESG Disclosures Guidance Manual, CMA stewardship code, CBK climate risk guidance).
  

  
  

• Translate evolving regulation, lender requirements, and investor expectations into commercial offerings and product roadmap input.
  

  
  

Product Go-to-Market (Software)

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• Partner with the product team to refine ICPs and packaging for SBC's Carbon Management Platform and Sustainability & ESG Software.
  

  
  

• Drive enterprise sales motion: outbound, demos, security/procurement reviews, pricing negotiation, and renewals/upsell.
  

  
  

• Build a regional reseller and implementation-partner ecosystem.
  

  
  

Market Intelligence & Strategy

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• Track competitor positioning and pricing across African sustainability advisory and ESG SaaS markets.
  

  
  

• Provide structured input into pricing, productization, and geographic-expansion decisions (e.g., Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Francophone West Africa).
  

  
  

• Represent the voice of the client in cross-functional planning with consulting, research, and product teams.
  

  
  

Cross-Functional Collaboration

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• Work closely with the consulting, research, training (SBC Academy), and product teams to ensure smooth handover from sale to delivery and high client retention.
  

  
  

• Mentor business development and analyst staff; contribute to a high-performance commercial culture grounded in SBC's purpose.
  

  
  

Required Qualifications

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• Bachelor's degree in sustainability, environmental science, business, finance, economics, development studies, or a related field; Master's degree (MBA, MSc Sustainability, MPA, or similar) preferred.
  

  
  

• 7+ years of progressive experience combining ESG/sustainability subject-matter work with business development, partnerships, key-account management, or client-facing advisory.
  

  
  

• Demonstrable track record of originating and closing engagements — ideally a mix of corporate advisory mandates and institutional/donor-funded programs.
  

  
  

• Working knowledge of major ESG frameworks and disclosure regimes; ability to credibly engage CFOs, sustainability heads, and investment committees.
  

  
  

• Established network across at least two of: East African corporates and listed companies, DFIs and donor agencies, ESG-focused investors, sustainability ecosystem players (incubators, B Lab, shared-value networks).
  

  
  

• Excellent written and verbal communication in English; Swahili and/or French a plus.
  

  
  

Preferred Qualifications

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• Direct experience selling enterprise SaaS or sustainability data/tech products.
  

  
  

• Recognized ESG credentials (e.g., GARP SCR, CFA ESG, IEMA, SASB FSA Credential, GRI Certified Sustainability Professional).
  

  
  

• Exposure to climate finance, blended finance, gender-lens or impact investing.
  

  
  

• Familiarity with the regulatory direction in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Rwanda on sustainability disclosure, climate risk, and decent work.
  

  
  

How to Apply

Please send your CV and a brief cover letter to outlining (1) a sustainability advisory mandate or partnership you originated and closed, and (2) your view on the most underappreciated commercial opportunity in African sustainability over the next three years. info@sbclimited.org