Enterprise Support Specialist (National Position)

Near East Foundation (NEF)

Job Advertisement – Jordan

Position Title: Enterprise Support Specialist

Reports to: Project Manager

Location: Amman, Jordan

Travel: Frequent travel between project sites within Jordan.

Pending final funding confirmation.

The Near East Foundation (NEF) anticipates implementing the Jordan MSME Evergreen Fund, a multi-year enterprise development and innovative financing programme designed to expand access to appropriate finance and tailored business support for underserved micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Jordan. The programme will combine revolving enterprise financing with tailored business development services, investment-readiness support, mentoring, post-financing technical assistance, digital solutions, and market linkages through NEF's locally embedded Siraj network. It will support enterprises at different stages of development—from microenterprises to growth-oriented Missing Middle and Development & Innovation enterprises—while working with financial institutions, government entities, private sector partners, and other MSME ecosystem actors to strengthen financial products and services for underserved businesses. By recycling repayments into successive financing cycles, the Fund aims to expand its reach over time while supporting sustainable enterprise growth, job creation, financial inclusion, and a stronger MSME ecosystem in Jordan.

Position Description:

Enterprise Support Specialists will provide the core technical support accompanying entrepreneurs throughout the enterprise development and financing journey. They will assess enterprise needs and growth potential, provide tailored business development and investment-readiness support, and ensure that financing decisions are informed by robust enterprise analysis. They will continue supporting financed enterprises after disbursement to strengthen business performance, market access, and sustainable growth.

Key Roles and Responsibilities

• Conduct detailed enterprise diagnostics to assess business maturity, commercial viability, operational performance, market position, growth potential, investment requirements, and business development needs.
• Support the segmentation of enterprises into the programme's Micro Enterprise, Missing Middle, and Development & Innovation enterprise categories based on established programme criteria and diagnostic findings.
• Develop tailored Enterprise Development Plans identifying the technical, managerial, financial, and market support required by each participating enterprise.
• Deliver and/or coordinate tailored business development support covering areas such as business planning, financial management, cash-flow management, costing and pricing, marketing, digitalization, business growth, and market expansion.
• Provide more advanced and specialized advisory support to Missing Middle and Development & Innovation enterprises according to their stage of growth and investment requirements.
• Support entrepreneurs to develop and refine business and investment plans and determine realistic financing requirements based on business needs and projected cash flows.
• Assess enterprise investment readiness and provide technical recommendations to inform the financing appraisal and selection process.
• Work closely with the Credit Administration Specialist and finance team to ensure that enterprise assessments, investment proposals, and technical recommendations are appropriately reflected in financing decisions.
• Integrate NEF's Environmental and Social Risk Management requirements into enterprise diagnostics, business planning, and investment-readiness support, including relevant considerations related to decent work, occupational health and safety, resource efficiency, and responsible business practices.
• Deliver structured post-financing mentoring and coaching to support effective utilization of financing, business performance, financial management, and repayment capacity.
• Identify underperforming or at-risk enterprises early and develop tailored business improvement or recovery measures in coordination with programme and financing teams.
• Facilitate market linkages by connecting enterprises with relevant suppliers, buyers, business associations, value-chain actors, digital platforms, and other market opportunities, including through Siraj Market.
• Document enterprise progress, technical assistance provided, emerging constraints, and business performance through NEF's programme monitoring and digital systems.
• Capture enterprise-level market intelligence and recurring business constraints to inform programme learning, financial product adaptation, and wider market systems development activities.

Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, Economics, Finance, Entrepreneurship, Accounting, Marketing, or another relevant discipline; advanced degree or relevant professional certification is an advantage.
• Minimum 5 years of relevant experience in MSME development, business advisory services, entrepreneurship, enterprise finance, investment readiness, or private sector development.
• Demonstrated practical experience conducting enterprise diagnostics and business assessments and translating findings into tailored business development plans.
• Strong experience supporting MSMEs in areas such as business planning, financial management, cash-flow analysis, costing and pricing, marketing, operational improvement, investment planning, and business growth.
• Experience assessing business viability, investment requirements, growth potential, and financing readiness of micro and small enterprises.
• Ability to review and analyze business plans, financial projections, investment proposals, and enterprise cash flows.
• Experience providing one-to-one business mentoring, coaching, and technical assistance to entrepreneurs and existing enterprises.
• Practical understanding of different enterprise stages, from early-stage micro businesses to established growth-oriented MSMEs.
• Experience supporting market access, buyer/supplier linkages, value-chain integration, digitalization, or business-to-business connections is highly desirable.
• Understanding of responsible enterprise development, including environmental and social risk considerations, decent work, occupational health and safety, and responsible business practices.
• Experience working with financial institutions or supporting enterprises to access loans or other financial products is a strong advantage.
• Strong analytical and interpersonal skills, with the ability to identify the underlying causes of enterprise performance constraints rather than applying standardized solutions.
• Strong Arabic communication skills and good working proficiency in English.
• Ability and willingness to conduct frequent enterprise visits within programme locations.