Emergency Program Manager (217525-927)

PROGRAM/DEPARTMENT SUMMARY:

Mercy Corps has been present in the Middle East since the 1980s. Presently it has offices in Lebanon, the West Bank and Gaza, Jordan, Syria, Yemen and Iraq. Programming in the region includes relief and recovery activities in northern Iraq, Lebanon, Gaza, Jordan and Syria – working often with refugees and displaced persons, as well as host communities affected by conflict and poverty. Mercy Corps has had an assessment team on the ground in Libya since March 2^nd, and is now based in Benghazi, in the East. This assessment follows nearly a month of protests against the country’s leader, Muammar Qadaffi, which turned violent on February 17^th when protesters encountered deadly resistance from pro-government troops. The situation in Libya quickly became one of emergency by many standards. Mercy Corps intends to gain as much information as possible in order to determine needs for longer-term presence and assistance in the country. The assessment team will remain based in Benghazi until that becomes untenable, or the security situation allows a contingent to travel to Tripoli for further needs assessment.

GENERAL POSITION SUMMARY:

The Emergency Program Manager is responsible for oversight of field assessments and coordination, program development, supervisory and managerial responsibility over emergency response and recovery programs on the ground. The Emergency Program Manager leads field monitoring and program performance by tracking progress toward specified objectives. This position will have a special emphasis on program leadership and innovation in a post-disaster, recovery setting involving ‘cash for work,’ health, water and sanitation. The Emergency Program Manager will need to be highly sensitive to the political dynamics of the region and have relevant security experience.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:

Vision, Leadership and Strategy

• Communicate a clear vision of program goals related to current emergency situation and the recovery phase in Libya;
• Provide leadership and direction to the emergency response;
• Develop a program strategy in collaboration with key team members, to be communicated to all team members, local beneficiaries, local and central government and the international community.

Quality Program Development

• Oversee emergency assessments and gathering of baseline data.
• Monitor the on the ground situation as it develops and utilize information for development of quality emergency response and recovery programming.
• Identify, set priorities and lead the process of program implementation in collaboration with Libya team members and Mercy Corps regional and headquarters staff..

Program Management

• Coordinate with program, finance and administrative staff to ensure systems are in compliance with donor and Mercy Corps policies and procedures.
• Ensure program implementation is on time, on target and on-budget using effective M&E systems.
• Create and maintain systems ensuring effective and transparent use of financial resources for timely and informative reporting in line with donor and Mercy Corps policies and procedures
• Implements and models Mercy Corps’ philosophy of social entrepreneurship.
• Develops collaborative relationships with Mercy Corps Country Director and field leaders.

Tam Management

• Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive to achieve excellence.
• Promote accountability, communicate expectations and provide constructive feedback via regular performance reviews.
• Contribute to country team-building efforts, help team members identify problem solving options and ensure the integration of all team members into relevant decision-making processes.
• Supervise, hire and orient new team members as necessary.
• Provide team members with information, tools and other resources to improve performance & reach objectives.

Representation and Diplomacy

• Identify, build and manage collaborative partnerships with consortium partners, sub-grantees, donors, local governments and other stakeholders.
• Convey information and ideas and effectively coordinate to ensure overall project targets and donor obligations are met.

ACCOUNTABILITY: Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts towards accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Organizational Learning: As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities they serve - we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY: All Libya emergency team members and coordinate any outside HQ support.

REPORTS DIRECTLY TO: Country Representative for Egypt

WORKS DIRECTLY WITH: Mercy Corps Libya and Egypt teams; HQ-based Program Operations, Finance and Technical Support Units

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

• MA/S or equivalent in social science, management, international development preferred
• At least 5-7 years' experience in emergency programming
• 5+ years field-based experience in a senior leadership position building and managing a team of professionals; developing and managing programs, and providing financial oversight
• Experience with donor-funded programs including protocols of one or more of the following donors: USAID/ OFDA, UN, EU, DFID and private donors.
• History of working effectively and respectfully with host country government, INGO and NGO partners
• Experience in highly volatile security situations and a commitment to team safety
• Commitment to the principles of participatory team management and participatory, community-oriented development.
• Effective verbal and written communication, multi-tasking, organizational skills.
• Prior experience living overseas and ability to work comfortably in the Libya cultural environment is required.
• Arabic language skills preferred

SUCCESS FACTORS:

The successful PM will recognize that Mercy Corps’ ability to function safely and successfully in Libya depends on the ability of staff to understand the context in which programs operate. The successful Emergency PM will apply a strong combination of team leadership, program development and implementation skills in a volatile security and fast-changing environment. The PM will have a strong commitment to teamwork and accountability; the ability to work successfully and respectfully and will maintain a sense of humor in stressful conditions. S/he will have an excellent understanding of emergency and transitional issues and programmatic approaches. The successful PM will be able to work across a wide range of stakeholder working with local community members, governmental authorities, NGO partners, and donors. S/he will bring a positive approach to the job, embracing challenges as opportunities to innovate. S/he will write well and communicate in a manner that is confident and clear, yet diplomatic, enabling him/her to forge positive working relationships with donors and other stakeholders. Finally, the successful PM will work well under pressure in a fluid operating and security environment.

LIVING CONDITIONS/ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS:

Group living environment in guest housing; must be able to work in an environment with energy, transportation and communication challenges located in Benghazi or other parts of Libya. Mercy Corps Team members represent the agency both during and outside of work hours when deployed in a field posting or on a visit/TDY to a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

Submitting a resume online at a job site could cause valuable screening information to be missed.

Please apply directly at:

http://mercycorps.silkroad.com/epostings/submit.cfm?fuseaction=app.dspjo....

Mercy Corps is an AA/EOE.