Humanitarian Finance Coordinator At ACT Alliance

Contract type: fixed term contract
Duration: 12 months, renewable
Worktime: 100% FTE
Target start date: As soon as possible
Reports to: Finance Manager/Humanitarian Operations Manager
Languages required: English
Experience: 5 years

About ACT Alliance

ACT Alliance is one of the world’s largest coalition of churches and church-related organisations engaged in humanitarian, development and advocacy work. It consists of 144 members working together in over 120 countries, with headquarters in 73 countries, whose aim is to create a positive and sustainable change in the lives of poor and marginalised people regardless of their religion, politics, gender, sexual orientation, race or nationality in keeping with the highest international codes and standards. 64% of our members are headquartered in the Global South, 30% in the Global North, and 6% are Global members. For more details about the general work of ACT, please refer to http://www.actalliance.org/.

ACT Alliance’s structure is unique, with national, sub-regional and regional forums that bring local, national, regional, and international church-related organisations to work together under the same principles and standards, bringing different skills and expertise to support each other and leverage collective action in humanitarian, development, and advocacy engagement. Thanks to the presence of national ACT forums in over 50 countries, and of its global secretariat in strategic locations (Geneva, New York, Nairobi, Bangkok, Amman, Brussels, Toronto, and Bogota), ACT Alliance is able to bring local and regional concerns to the global arena.

Major functions

The Finance Coordinator is a member of the Operations Team of the secretariat, reporting to the Finance Manager and matrix managed by the Humanitarian Operations Manager. S/he is primarily responsible for supporting the Ukraine appeal (UKR221) and its requesting members. This post will also share the responsibility, as needed, for the financial management of the humanitarian mechanism, including all appeals, rapid response funds and any future humanitarian funding approaches including consortia.

Duties and Responsibilities

Appeals & Rapid Response

• Monitor income flows to appeals and rapid responses, highlighting funding deficits and/or discrepancies.
• Coordinate pledges and financial contributions with funding and requesting members ensuring transfer to requesting members in a timely fashion.
• Review clauses of appeal contracts and track, together with the humanitarian team, the requirements related to finance and reporting.
• Communicate with the humanitarian team, the Ukraine appeal coordinator, and with members as needed for clarifications related to finance and issue confirmation of funds received etc.
• Timely booking of all appeal pledges, income, and transfers in the finance system.
• Timely review of budgets reports and appeal budget revisions submitted by requesting members prior to publication and in conjunction with the Ukraine appeal coordinator and humanitarian operations manager.
• Ensure creation and accurate filing of finance related documentation for appeals and rapid response.
• Generate and disseminate regular appeal fund status overviews to the Humanitarian Team and relevant member organisations.
• Coordinate regular update meetings with the Ukraine appeal coordinator to ensure information exchange.Review financial reports and audits forin accordance with given standards.
• Participate in monitoring visits when requested by the Humanitarian Operations Manager.
• Provide cover and support for/to the other Humanitarian Finance Coordinator as needed.

Finance system

• Document financial processes in the finance system related to the humanitarian mechanism.
• Suggest developments and modifications to the finance system to improve ways of working and to adapt to future changes in ACTs humanitarian mechanism relevant to finance.

Humanitarian Mechanism

• Represent the Finance Team in discussions and inputs regarding the new Humanitarian Mechanism and Operations Manual.
• Coordinate adaptation of finance system to the new humanitarian mechanism processes.

Bank (access to be confirmed)

• Manage directly bank transfers/payments for appeals, or instruct other members of the finance team.
• Manage communication with the bank and member organisations regarding appeal donations, in particular with regards to due diligence for sanctioned regions and countries when relevant.

Competences and behaviours

• Committed to the values of the ACT Alliance and takes pride in delivering on agreed priorities according to the highest standards individually and as part of a global team.
• Proactively finds innovative and creative solutions, is efficient and reliable, adapts to change and uncertainty, is decisive and acts with integrity.
• Builds effective internal and external relationships, involves others when solving problems and treats others with consideration and respect in an alliance where faith is a key ingredient of people’s lives.
• Passion for building and developing core skills for the role and contributes knowledge outside of immediate own role.

Working relationships

• Internally: collaborate closely with the Finance Manager and other finance staff, Ukraine Appeal Coordinator, Humanitarian Operations Manager, Regional Humanitarian Programme Officers, and Head of Humanitarian Affairs, as well as other secretariat staff and consultants, as relevant.
• Externally: communicate with relevant ACT member organisations, and service providers in relation to finance.

Skills and experiences

• Relevant degree in financial management or business administration or other relevant educational background combined with professional experience;
• Professional accounting qualification preferred but not essential. Must have however strong systems knowledge and a complete understanding of all aspects of accounting, production of financial statements and internal controls.
• Minimum 5 years of work experience relating to financial accounting and administrative management;
• Experience in a non-profit organisation at country and /or regional levels;
• Experience in working with humanitarian responses preferred;
• Ability to work with tight deadlines and to deliver results with limited supervision;
• Ability to function under pressure and to handle multiple tasks simultaneously;
• Excellent organizational and computer skills (including excellent command of spread sheets and financial management software);
• Self-motivated and with a positive attitude;
• Precise, curious, analytical and organized mindset;
• Pays attention to detail and takes pride in delivering accurate, high-quality work;
• Flexible, innovative and effective in working collaboratively as part of a multicultural team;
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English; knowledge of other languages is an asset.