TOR for Sector-specific (waste management, circular economy, green business) advisory/ coaching services for Green Business Incubator Program 2025

Background

Reach for Change is a non-profit, non-governmental international organization with its headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden. The organization is operational in 11 countries across the globe, out of which three countries are in Africa. Reach for Change was registered in Ethiopia as a foreign organization in 2015 with registration number 3419, with the aim of positively impacting the lives of young women and children in Ethiopia through building the capacity of local social entrepreneurs.

Currently, Reach for Change (RFC) envisions a green, sustainable economy in Ethiopia where everyone has the opportunity to have a decent quality of life and reach their full potential. A project called “Building Waste and Circular Enterprises in Ethiopia.” We intend to continue the implementation of the Green Innovation Lab and, over the course of three years, deliver an evidence-based, high-performing intervention that reaches 75 high-potential green enterprises in Addis Ababa. In parallel to this, we will deliver the Green Business Incubator, targeting entrepreneurs who have already been part of the Innovation Lab, or who by themselves are at a more advanced stage, deepening our support to early-stage enterprises with the potential to accelerate job creation and green growth.

The ultimate goal of these interventions is to contribute to the national effort and Reach for Change’s Strategy in creating decent employment for youth and women, as well as address environmentally related challenges through environmentally friendly solutions.

Reach for Change Ethiopia is seeking to engage a qualified and experienced consultant or firm to provide training, coaching, and advisory services for the development of the Green Business Incubator program. This program will focus on key areas such as financial management, business plan development, marketing, human resources, operations, and other related topics for businesses engaged in waste management, circular economy, and green business initiatives.

Purpose

The purpose of this contract is for the consultant to conduct a needs assessment and provide five days of training focused on financial management, human resource management, operations management, and other relevant topics tailored to the needs identified during the assessment. This training will be aimed at 7 social entrepreneurs. Additionally, the consultant will offer follow-up mentorship and coaching support to these entrepreneurs in the areas identified, assisting them in achieving their business goals and developing sustainable business ventures. The plan shall include a milestone Gantt chart, explicit hand-off points between programs, and a weekly coordination cadence with Reach for Change to ensure continuity of data, learning, and participant progress.

General Objective

The overall objective of the coaching and advisory support is to build the knowledge and skills of social entrepreneurs and their teams in the areas of financial management, Human resource management, operations management, business plan development, Marketing, sales, business relationship/ partnership, and legal areas based on the need assessment in line with waste management, circular economy, and green business.

Expected outputs/Deliverables:

• The selected businesses successfully developed themselves and the businesses upon the gaps seen on the pre-assessments.
• Business development, Financial Management, HR, and marketing skills of the

enterprises are upgraded, and positive attitudes are developed to undertake engagement in a more meaningful effort at their organizational levels.

• Financial Management, HR, and Procurement manual and handout developed for all enterprises
• Business plan developed for all enterprises
• Standard operating procedures for operations management were produced
• Basic marketing and sales guide developed
• Audio/video pictures and reports captured;
• A coaching workshop report

For each enterprise, the Consultant shall deliver:

• Financial-management tools (cash-flow tracker, budget vs. actual, unit-economics sheet)
• HR E Operations Pack (org-chart, three core SOPs, JD templates)
• One-page Investment Memo and Pitch Deck
• Post-coaching progress summary referencing POC results

Impact Measurement E Data Standards (IMM)

The Consultant shall collect, clean, and submit datasets aligned with Reach for Change’s IMM indicator set using standard templates. Required indicators include: revenues, jobs created/safeguarded (sex/age-disaggregated), waste diverted, CO₂e avoided, and % women in decent jobs.

A light dashboard (Excel or Google Data Studio) summarizing results shall accompany the final report.

Responsibilities of the consultant

• The consultant is responsible for the overall organization of the coaching, the quality, and standard of the mode of delivery, and appropriate choices in techniques and methodologies best suited for each business.
• The consultant will conduct pre- and post-assessment to know their level of

  understanding regarding Business development, financial management, HR, and marketing in general, and readjust the coaching materials as per their level, and also see how much knowledge and skills they gain at the end of the training.

• Develop the workshop session outline to discuss the coaching content outline of the

  coaching with the appropriate time allotment for each major area/theme from the total duration of the workshop, which is 1 day, along with the appropriate exercises needed.

• The consultant will allocate 3 days for each enterprise for coaching and mentoring

  support, with a total allocated 21 days of support allocated for the 7 social enterprises.

• Guide the coaching sessions in a participatory manner using their inputs and

experiences, and based on the gaps of each business that are identified.

• Organize the group formations and assist in the proper application of selected tools;
• Implement a systematic coaching monitoring tool to measure daily progress and make adjustments when needed.
• The Consultant shall co-create with each participating enterprise a 12-week Pathway of Change (POC) outlining baseline status, quantitative and qualitative targets, and weekly progress indicators.
• The POC will be used to monitor and report performance throughout the engagement.
• At intake and exit, the Consultant shall administer a short diagnostic instrument assessing entrepreneurial mindset and operational readiness (e.g., goal orientation, adaptability, coachability).
• Insights from this exercise will be used to tailor coaching delivery and to assess mindset change at endline.

Duration

The training will span five days, with an additional 21 days allocated for coaching support, providing three days for each participant in the Green Business Incubation program. The organization will cover fees for two days of preparation, five days of facilitation, and one day for report writing. The total fee will be calculated based on an eight-day commitment for each business, in accordance with the rate agreed upon by both parties.

Coaching and advising arrangements

Reach for Change will make the necessary venue and other arrangements for the introductory training, and the coaching and advising service will be provided at the program participants’ business site, as convenient for both parties.

Evaluation Criteria and Weights

Proposals will be evaluated on a total of 100 points, divided into Technical (70 points, 70%) and Financial (30 points, 30%) components. A minimum technical score of 70% is required for consideration.

Note: Only proposals scoring at least 49 points out of 70 in the technical evaluation will be considered for financial evaluation. Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.

About the Green Business/ social entrepreneur, you will work within the Green Business Incubator program

The Green Business Incubation Program supports established entrepreneurs focused on green businesses, specifically in the Waste Management and Circular Economy sectors. Below is a brief overview of the current participants and their specific areas of focus:

Organic Fertilizers Production

Businesses dedicated to producing organic fertilizers and compost from organic waste.

Women’s Sanitary Products

Several enterprises manufacture sanitary pads and other feminine hygiene products, utilizing waste materials in their production processes.

Paper Handcrafted Products

A business focused on recycling paper waste into handcrafted products.

Manufacturing Machines

A business focused on designing locally built machines, shredders, mixers, granulators, and composting lines, tailored to Ethiopian conditions.

Natural Oil Production

A business focused on recycling coffee and lemon waste into high-value natural oils.

Water Treatment Products

The business focuses on transforming ash into an effective, locally sourced wastewater treatment solution, enabling the reuse of wastewater and the repurposing of industrial waste.

Expectations/requirements of the consultant/team

The advisory/ coaching team will have the following competencies and skills:

• Have a minimum of a first degree in business administration, management, finance, or a related field
• Have relevant experience in advisory and coaching roles for businesses, especially SMEs.
• Must have good knowledge of Business model development, Business plan

Formulation, and operation management.

• Expertise in the current policies and procedures of business sectors in Ethiopia.
• Skills in Value analysis, and assessment of demand and supply chain
• Sector-specific expertise in garment, agri-business/agro-processing, energy, paper recycling, sanitary products, Mechanical, and Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
• Expertise in business relationships, partnerships, and legal advisory for businesses
• Expertise in supporting SMEs and startup firms in financial E operational management system development.
• Have renewed trade, professional licenses, and TIN Certificate