Do you have a passion for advancing opportunities for highly motivated people in the world's poorest communities? Do you enjoy volunteering on a flexible schedule from the comfort of your own home?
Zidisha Microfinance launched in 2009 as the world's first true person-to-person microlending platform, based on direct communication and transactions between lenders worldwide and borrowers in developing countries. We currently have openings for English- and French-speaking volunteers to contribute five to ten hours per week to join our Virtual Volunteer team. Our Virtual Volunteers review applications for completeness, and assist borrowers who request help to interact with our website via email and SMS. This is a position that may be undertaken on a flexible schedule, from any location in the world with an internet connection.
Members of Zidisha's Virtual Volunteer Team provide services to Zidisha loan applicants and current borrowers. The goals of the position are twofold:
1. Ensure to the best of our ability that admitted applicants meet Zidisha's standards for membership.
2. Provide pleasant, professional and quick service to everyone who applies to join Zidisha and to our current members.
Responsibilities
1. Assisting New Applicants
- Review new borrower applications for completeness. Work with applicants via email and SMS as necessary to help them add any missing information to their applications.
- Work with local verification partner organizations and local community officials via email and SMS to independently confirm key information in new borrower applications.
- Once applications are complete and key information is verified, work with Zidisha staff to make a decision of whether to admit an applicant as a Zidisha borrower.
2. Assisting Current Members
- Provide helpful responses to member inquiries via our organization's email, Skype and SMS messaging platforms.
- Contact any members who miss scheduled loan repayment installments, and gain an understanding of the reason the payment was missed. If needed, assist the member to propose a new repayment schedule through their member account in the Zidisha website, or enlist the assistance of local community members via SMS or telephone calls to reestablish contact with any members we are unable to reach directly.
Qualifications
· Passion for our mission of advancing economic opportunities for marginalized communities.
· Strong interpersonal skills, cultural sensitivity, discretion and mature judgment.
· Skill in working with teams and in maintaining good communication at multiple levels.
· Proficiency in English required. Proficiency in French is a plus.
