Membership and Communications Internship

International Association of Professionals in Humanitarian Assistance and Protection

Brussels, Belgium

Summary

The International Association of Professionals in Humanitarian Assistance and Protection (PHAP) is recruiting a Membership and Communications Intern to start on 7 October 2013 at its headquarters in Brussels, on a full-time basis, for a period of six months. As an integral part of a small and dynamic professional team, the Membership and Communications Intern will contribute significantly to the operations of the association, assisting with the development and management of member services aimed at supporting the humanitarian community, communications with current and prospective PHAP members; and the production of web content, including for social media.

About PHAP

The International Association of Professionals in Humanitarian Assistance and Protection (PHAP) is the world’s only member-governed, sector-wide association of professionals engaged in humanitarian assistance and protection. Its global member network encompasses the full spectrum of institutional affiliations and professional backgrounds in the humanitarian sector. Established in mid-2010, PHAP’s mission is to enhance the humanitarian sector’s ability to respond to current and future crises in a professional manner. To this end, it pursues the following strategic objectives: build capacity of professionals to assist and protect vulnerable populations; distill professional knowledge and disseminate good practices for humanitarian action; create a space for reflection and exchange on policy issues within the humanitarian sector; cultivate networks and provide services to further the professional, social, and personal development of its members. For more information about PHAP and its activities, see our website (www.phap.org).

Conditions

• Starting date: 7 October 2013;
• Based in Brussels (legally able to work in Belgium for the entire duration of the internship);
• Full-time schedule of five days (38 hours) per week;
• Six months, consisting of an initial three-month period plus a three-month extension (to be decided at the latest one month before the end of the first three month period).

Employment will be under the Belgian “convention d’immersion professionnelle,” and the intern will thereby be covered by the Belgian social security. Compensation will be according to Belgian law for a maximum of 736,20 € per month (net, after tax). Please note that this type of internship cannot be given to students with an internship as obligatory requirement in their study program (bachelor or master).

Duties

• Assist with various aspects of PHAP’s external communications, including:
  
  • Correspondence with and support to prospective and current members;
  • Processing of new membership applications and payments and maintenance of the membership database;
  • Drafting and editing content for the PHAP website (for example, Featured Member Profiles, News Stories, Articles);
  • Maintenance of PHAP’s social media presence;
  • Maintenance and development of online member services;
  • Preparation of online events.

• Contribute to other tasks and projects as assigned by the Executive Director.

Qualifications

• At least one year of prior relevant work experience (including prior internships);
• Legal ability to work in Belgium;
• Excellent English language skills, including both written and verbal communication skills;
• Demonstrated ability to draft clear and concise texts for external communication (writing sample welcome but not required);
• Strong IT skills (Word, Excel, databases) together with a demonstrated aptitude and enthusiasm for learning how to use new IT tools and systems;
• Knowledge of HTML and CSS is an advantage; knowledge of PHP is also an advantage;
• Prior experience working with content management systems (in particular Drupal) and contact relationship management databases (in particular CiviCRM) is an advantage;
• Prior experience working in a membership organization/professional association is an advantage;
• Demonstrated interest in and knowledge of the field of humanitarian affairs is an advantage;
• Strong organizational skills, resourcefulness, flexibility and ability to efficiently handle multiple tasks;
• Ability to work independently, with attention to detail;
• Entrepreneurial spirit.

Application Procedure

DEADLINE: 26 September 2013, 5 p.m. GMT (applications are reviewed on a rolling basis; interested candidates are advised to apply as soon as possible).

• By Thursday, 26 September 2013, 5 p.m. GMT, applicants should send their cover letter and CV (and, optionally, writing sample) by email to jobs@phap.org (applications sent by email will be acknowledged automatically upon receipt). Please note that all application materials must be written in English;

• In addition, in order to be considered for the internship, all applicants MUST register and complete an online skills assessment and brief questionnaire before close of business on Thursday, 26 September 2013.(Instructions and the registration link for the online skills assessment will be sent to applicants after they submit their cover letter and CV to jobs@phap.org. The online skills assessment is not a timed test. Candidates are advised to schedule up to 2 hours to complete it.)

• Interviews will take place on Monday 30 September, either in person in Brussels or via phone/Skype.