Director of Programs

Duties and Responsibilities

• Serving as the country program’s focal point, for strategy action plan development and delivery, rollout of related strategic initiatives, monitoring, reporting, and leading strategic action plan review processes.
• Investigate opportunities for increased integration of IRC Ethiopia projects and approaches.
• Collaborate and coordinate closely with the Deputy Director for Emergencies (DDE) to encourage holistic programming and ensure that all opportunities for sector integration are utilized in project design and implementation.
• Collaborate and coordinate closely with Director of Operations (DO), Deputy Director for Supply Chain (DDSC), Deputy Director for Grants and Partnerships (DDGPU), Field Coordinators, Human Resources (HR), Deputy Director for Finance (DDF) to deliver quality programs and timely resolution of implementation challenges and bottlenecks.
• Liaise with key donors and partners on funding opportunities, program priorities and strategies, and ongoing program successes and/or support needs.
• Oversee and facilitate decision-making related to project design, pursuing funding opportunities, and partnership/consortia development.
• In collaboration with the Accountability and Learning Coordinator, support the Technical and Project Coordinators to design monitoring, evaluation and learning activities in order to ensure responsive programs that use data and evidence for project design and course correction.
• In collaboration with the Accountability and Learning Coordinator, ensure that all Ethiopia projects have Client Feedback Mechanisms, as appropriate, and support Technical and Project Coordinators in  registering, analyzing and taking actions on the basis of beneficiary feedback, including closing the feedback loop.
• Investigate opportunities to expand existing programs to deepen the impact on the lives of IRC Ethiopia clients/beneficiaries.
• In collaboration with the DDE, initiate new programming relevant to all IRC  sector capacities and strategic priorities, and provide senior-level, strategic direction and direct support to the proposal development process.
• Lead, operationalize and institutionalize new strategic initiatives within the IRC Strategy and country office Strategy Action Plan (SAP) frameworks.
• Work with program teams and operational departments (e.g. Finance, Supply Chain, HR) to strengthen and to ensure integrated (financial and programmatic) planning and measure performance against the plan.
• Provide complementary technical support to Emergency Response and Grants Units with the CD and DDE.
• Promote positive and productive teamwork and overall working environment.
• Work with the Technical and Project Coordinators to review staffing structure, analyze continuously if teams are fit for purpose, and implement steps to address identified gaps.
• Support Technical and Project Coordinators in HR management of the staff they supervise, and ensure timely, quality performance review and feedback among program teams.
• Assess and identify capacity building needs of the technical staff and match them with the available capacity building opportunities within and outside of IRC.
• Be an active change agent and support the technical teams in acquiring the necessary skills and competencies to successfully transition to the new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system.
• Ensure Technical Coordinators develop and follow up on individual capacity building plans of their staff.
• In coordination with the CD, DDE, and DDO, liaise with national and district authorities, donors, NGOs, and other operational partners, including attendance at scheduled and ad hoc meetings, and represent IRC and IRC interests by maintaining positive, constructive relations.
• With the CD, take a lead in donor relations, representing the IRC at various donor and other internal and external stakeholder forums.
• Ensure IRC participation in sector-specific coordination forums and help foster exchanges of program information and lessons learned with partners, client communities, and other IRC country programs.
• Supervise and complete special projects, as assigned, by the CD.

Job Requirement

• Master’s degree in relevant field from a recognized university is preferred.
• At least 7 years of experience in Program Management within one of the sectors the Ethiopia Country Program operates in, preferably in relief/development work with management and supervisory responsibilities in program administration at senior management level.
• Ethiopia and/or Horn of Africa experience considered an advantage.
• Past experience as a Deputy Director, Project Director, Consortium Director or equivalent is required for this role.
• Experience working with US, EU and UN donors, and experience coordinating with other INGOs, national NGOs and government agencies.
• Proven ability to manage complex teams and work collaboratively with programs and operational departments, particularly in a multi-cultural environment.
• Strong writing and communication skills, with fluency in English, is one of the most essential skills for the position.
• Strong multi-tasking and time management skills are essential, as are flexibility and adaptability.
• Knowledge and understanding of the full project cycle, including project design and M&E systems and procedures required.
• Innovative and creative problem solver.

Preferred knowledge and skills

• Proven flexibility to meet internal and external deadlines in the context of heavy workload and competing priorities.
• Ability to independently organize work and prioritize tasks.
• Works well both independently and as part of a team.
• Self-motivated, honest, highly responsible, and punctual.
• Willing to travel extensively to monitor implementation and program quality and support donor visits.

How to Apply

Interested and qualified applicants can send their applications and a copy of non returnable CV with the necessary documents to the following link below

https://tinyurl.com/ykry2eaw