Dr Rejoice Shumba

✔️Lead the strategic direction and growth of Impact Accelerators, positioning the firm as a specialist in grant writing, international fundraising, and impact measurement for social impact organisations. ✔️Design and deliver international fundraising strategies, including donor readiness assessments, pipeline development, and funder engagement approaches (foundations, institutional donors, and philanthropy networks). ✔️Conduct funding research and develop best-fit funder shortlists, aligning opportunities to organisational priorities, eligibility, and timelines. ✔️Develop high-quality funding submissions: concept notes, proposals, logframes/Theory of Change, budgets, MEL plans, and donor reporting frameworks. ✔️Build client fundraising systems and tools, including grant trackers, donor CRM workflows, proposal calendars, and reporting templates to strengthen consistency and follow-through. ✔️Support organisations to strengthen case for support and donor-facing assets (capability statements, pitch decks, donor briefs, one-pagers). ✔️Provide advisory on partnership development and consortium-building for larger bids, including stakeholder mapping and coordination support. ✔️Integrate data, evidence, and impact storytelling to strengthen competitiveness of proposals and donor communications. ✔️Lead client engagements end-to-end: scoping, workplans, delivery, quality assurance, and continuous improvement. ✔️Build and manage a network of collaborators (writers, researchers, designers, MEL specialists) to deliver high-quality outputs at scale.

In my role, I leverage my extensive experience and expertise to support Siyakholwa in achieving its strategic and operational goals. I do this by: Strategic Planning and Development: Collaborating with leadership teams to design and implement strategic plans that align with the organization's mission and vision, ensuring sustainable growth and impact. Grant Writing and Fundraising: Crafting compelling grant proposals and fundraising strategies that effectively communicate the organization's goals and secure funding from diverse sources, including government agencies, foundations, and corporate partners. Advisory Services: Providing expert advisory services to guide organizations through complex challenges, offering insights and recommendations that drive decision-making and enhance organizational effectiveness. Impact Measurement and Evaluation: Developing and implementing robust impact measurement frameworks to assess the effectiveness of programs and initiatives, enabling data-driven improvements and reporting to stakeholders. Stakeholder Engagement: Building and maintaining strong relationships with key stakeholders, including donors, partners, and community organizations, to foster collaboration and support for organizational initiatives. Capacity Building: Conducting workshops and training sessions to enhance the skills and competencies of staff and stakeholders, promoting a culture of continuous learning and improvement. Through my strategic insights, grant writing expertise, and advisory services, I help the organization to maximize its impact, achieve its objectives, and create lasting positive change in communities.

•Led strategic business initiatives, ensuring successful delivery of projects within scope, time, and budget constraints. •Directed cross-functional teams to deliver high-impact solutions, ensuring alignment with organizational goals and KPIs. •Conducted detailed stakeholder analysis to enhance client relationships and drive decision-making. •Developed and managed complex financial budgets, reporting on business performance. •Needs Assessment: Conducted in-depth analyses of community needs to inform program design and resource allocation. •Stakeholder Collaboration: Engaged with government agencies, donors, and community leaders to gather requirements and expectations. •Requirements Gathering: Elicited and documented requirements for new or improved projects and initiatives. •Operational Efficiency: Identified inefficiencies in program delivery and implemented process improvements. •Technology Integration: Proposed and implemented technology solutions to enhance program management and delivery. •Testing: Facilitate testing activities such as quality assurance, user acceptance and regression testing with stakeholders. •Workshops and Training: Facilitated workshops for staff and stakeholders to ensure alignment on objectives and processes.

Conducted comprehensive needs assessments to understand community and stakeholder needs, aligning them with the organization's mission. Collaborated with leadership to define measurable goals and objectives for various projects and programs. Performed SWOT analyses to identify organizational strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, optimizing strategic direction. Identified and mapped key stakeholders, including funders, beneficiaries, and partners, and assessed their influence and interests. Facilitated collaboration among stakeholders to align expectations and gather input for program development. Conducted interviews, focus groups, and surveys to elicit and document stakeholder needs and requirements. Analyzed organizational processes and workflows, identifying inefficiencies and recommending improvements. Performed gap analyses to evaluate existing capabilities against desired outcomes, proposing actionable solutions. Conducted cost-benefit analyses to assess the feasibility of new programs and initiatives, ensuring alignment with budgets and organizational goals. Developed key performance indicators (KPIs) to track and measure program success and organizational impact. Designed and implemented frameworks to measure and report on social, environmental, and economic impacts of initiatives. Analyzed program data to provide insights on performance and identify opportunities for improvement. Created detailed business cases to justify funding and support for new initiatives. Prepared and delivered progress reports for stakeholders, highlighting the outcomes and benefits of projects. Identified and documented technology requirements to enhance operational efficiency, including donor management systems and impact tracking tools. Supported the selection and implementation of systems to streamline organizational processes and improve effectiveness. Ensured proper data collection, storage, and usage for informed decision-making.

Conducted in-depth research to analyze business management challenges and propose data-driven solutions. Designed and implemented research methodologies to study organizational processes, stakeholder dynamics, and decision-making frameworks. Developed models and frameworks to evaluate the impact of business practices on organizational performance and sustainability. Gathered quantitative and qualitative data through surveys, interviews, and secondary sources to inform research studies. Performed advanced data analysis using statistical and analytical tools to identify trends, patterns, and insights. Analyzed business and organizational data to evaluate operational efficiency and recommend process improvements. Collaborated with academic, industry, and community stakeholders to align research objectives with practical applications. Facilitated workshops and focus groups to gather insights and validate research findings. Engaged with organizational leaders to translate research outcomes into actionable strategies. Assessed the effeholder Engagementctiveness of existing business strategies and proposed evidence-based enhancements. Developed strategic frameworks for business planning, organizational change, and performance measurement. Evaluated the success of programs through impact assessments and recommended adjustments to improve outcomes.

• I was involved in the conceptualisation of the pilot project on incubation social enterprises from marginalised and rural communities. The proposal was submitted to National Treasury and was funded to the tune of 1 million rand. I was appointed as the Lead Researcher and implemented the program from inception to completion including monitoring and evaluation and the final presentation to the funder.

Research

•Led regional business analysis for volunteer programs across Southern Africa, collaborating with government and NGOs to optimize program delivery. •Conducted program evaluation, generating reports that influenced strategic planning and stakeholder engagement.

• Coordinating VOSESA projects • Proposal writing • Research (qualitative and quantitative) • Data analysis • Report writing • Project management • Compiling annual report • Editing documents and newsletter articles • Representing VOSESA at workshops, conferences and meetings • Writing and sourcing articles for VOSESA newsletter • Updating VOSESA contacts and resource database