Deputy Country Director At Relief International

Position: Deputy Country Director

Location: Jordan

Reports to: Country Director- Jordan

About Relief International

Relief International (RI) is a leading nonprofit organization working in 16 countries to relieve poverty, ensure well-being and advance dignity. We specialize in fragile settings, responding to natural disasters, humanitarian crises and chronic poverty.

Relief International combines humanitarian and development approaches to provide immediate services while laying the groundwork for long-term impact. Our signature approach — which we call the RI Way—emphasizes local participation, an integration of services, strategic partnerships and a focus on civic skills. In this way, we empower communities to find, design and implement the solutions that work best for them.

Relief International includes the four members of the RI Alliance in the USA, UK, France, and Belgium. Under our alliance agreement, we operate under a single, shared management structure with one CEO and one Board of Directors.

About our Programs

RI is active in 16 countries around the world, including some of the most fragile: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Myanmar, Pakistan, Philippines, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Turkey, and Yemen. Often, RI is the only organization providing assistance to highly vulnerable communities.

· RI employs 7,000+ staff and auxiliary workers

· 97% of staff are in-country nationals

· We only have some 90 ex-pat staff out of 7,000+

· RI spent $125 million in 2019 on our programs.

RI invests in four broad program sectors: Economic Opportunity, Education, Health, and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH). We design our programs to incorporate The RI Way: local participation, integrated programming, the development of civic skills, and partnerships including with local NGOs, governments, and the private sector.

RI supports solutions that reinforce and improve upon existing in-country systems. Where such systems do not exist or are chronically underperforming, RI’s crisis response lays the foundation for long-term, sustainable change.

Position Summary:

This Senior Management Team position is directly reporting to the Country Director. This position requires a dedicated, experienced and highly motivated individual capable of living and working in a tough environment while maintaining a positive attitude, leading by example to ensure a healthy work environment.

This position will also require exceptional flexibility in job function to serve the needs of a new program in a complicated context.

The DCD Program is a senior leadership position within the Country Office team. S/he will implement effective systems and ways of working in order to promote community participation, as well as ensuring high quality, evidenced based, and integrated programming. The DCD Program is responsible for overall achievement of RI’s Country Strategic Plan and RI Way. S/he will ensure key donor relationships are strengthened and maintained.

The DCD Program is responsible for thematic quality and design, thematic leadership in New Business Development as well as Program Quality Assurance. S/he will manage and support technical advisors who ensure that field teams are appropriately supported to grow the portfolio, ensure program quality and foster effective partnerships. The DCD Program will ensure an active learning agenda. The DCD Program will also be responsible for coordinating and managing unexpected events and program needs as they arise.

ESSENTIAL POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES AND DUTIES:

The DCD Program is responsible for the effective and quality delivery of the overall program and its activities in close coordination with the Area managers and core sectors Technical Advisors in country, regional and global offices; in accordance with Jordan strategy and the Relief International’s global strategy.

Strategy

· Develop new programmatic initiatives to support the strategic direction of the organization

· Develop long-term goals and objectives to achieve the successful outcome of the program

· Provide overall guidance and direction focusing the program team on achieving agreed targets and long-term strategic objectives;

· Develop Core Sector Strategy in Coordination with Core sector technical advisors in country

· Contribute and lead program development efforts by identifying opportunities and working with Jordan CD, as well as RI’s regional and headquarters-based Program Development department to draft proposals to respond to those opportunities

· Participate in the development of funding proposals for the program to ensure the continuous delivery of services; Innovation and creativity will be essential.

· Identify and evaluate the risks and possible threats associated with program activities and take appropriate action to control the risks, communicating and collaborating regularly with the CD, Operations Manager and Security Manager.

Team Management

• Ensure effective management of the core sector Technical Advisors, M&E, Program Director and Grant units, leading by example, supporting them in their efforts to direct the implementation of programs in coordination with Project Managers.
• Participate in the recruitment, selection, orientation and training of key project/ program staff, and other staff
• In collaboration with the HR team, develop an adapted and focused capacity building plan for national staff
• Ensure timely and quality staff performance management of directly managed staff, making sure all program team follows best practices in this regard
• Ensure proper communication within the program team, making sure that the strategy, decisions and future endeavors are shared in a transparent manner
• In collaboration with the HR team, help address disciplinary, conflict and abuse issues within the program team
• In accordance with RI’s HR policy and in-line with RI’s staff care efforts, maintain a healthy work environment, with reasonable workloads and proper leaves. Work with the RHRM to assess and prevent risks of excessive stress and burnout in the workplace

Program Management

· Oversee all technical aspects of programs being implemented by RI Jordan.

· Oversee the preparation and submission of technical and program reports as per the grant agreement;

· Ensure effective and agile program contingency plans are always up to date and evolving as needed.

· Ensure that program activities comply with all donors’ regulations, Jordan legislation and professional standards

· Develop forms and records to document program learning

· Provide guidance to staff on all issues related to program quality

Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting

· In collaboration with the Monitoring and Evaluation Department, develop a program evaluation framework to assess the strengths of the program and to identify and support Program Implementation Director to implement action plans regarding areas for improvement

· Ensure program quality control, monitoring, evaluating and documenting of program learnings

· Oversee the collection and maintenance of records on the clients of the program for statistical purposes according to the confidentiality/privacy policy of the organization and feed this information to the M and E Department for analysis and feedback.

· Following M&E reports, recommend and implement changes to enhance the program, as appropriate;

· Contribute to the leadership of the Accountability system through RI programming

Coordination

· Attend meetings with donors and other stakeholder in coordination with CD

· Maintain effective communication with donors and other stakeholders

· Participate in NGO sector coordination groups and identify areas for coordination and collaboration; Networking and bilateral meeting are key to success in this context.

· Maintain effective communication with CD and other Core sector s technical advisors, Area Managers and with RSO regarding program implementation as required;

· Perform other duties as needed.

QUALIFICATIONS & REQUIREMENTS:

· This position demands a dynamic individual with a demonstrated ability to achieve results in a demanding and fast paced environment. Creativity, flexibility, strong work ethic and a sense of humor are highly valued.

· Master’s degree in a relevant Humanitarian/Development field or Bachelor’s degree with commensurate work experience; technical experience in Education, livelihoods, Protection, strongly preferred.

· Minimum 7 years of professional program management experience in conflict settings; including Program development and proposal writing experience.

· Solid background and knowledge of ECHO and PRM Rules and Regulations;

· Extensive contacts with donors, U.N. agencies and other international emergency response and development actors;

· Excellent interpersonal, communication, public speaking, and strategic planning skills required;

· The RI Jordan Country Office fosters an environment of respect for all coworkers regardless of level of seniority. Capacity building of national staff is a core competency of every international position, and international staff will be evaluated on their ability to strengthen the skills and growth of more junior staff and institutional partners;

· Fluency in English (spoken and written) required; Arabic language skills are highly advantageous;

· Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities, deadlines, tasks efficiently;

· Excellent time management skills and resourcefulness with strong attention to detail.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Relief International is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.

We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Relief International (RI) is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to RI’s Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct e-learning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.

RI Values:

We uphold the Humanitarian Principles: humanity, neutrality, impartiality and operational independence. We affirmatively engage the most vulnerable communities.

We value:

• Inclusiveness
• Transparency and accountability
• Agility and innovation
• Collaboration
• Sustainability