Advocacy & Communication Manager – International Post At Independent Doctors Association

Who we are?

IDA is an international independent non-governmental organization providing medical and humanitarian assistance to people affected by conflicts, natural disasters and epidemics regardless of race, religion, gender or political affiliation.
IDA was founded in 2012 by Syrian doctors from Aleppo in response to the healthcare and humanitarian crisis in Syria.

IDA Syria is the main healthcare provider in the Northern Aleppo/Syria area, working closely with 500,000 IDPs and 700,000 host communities through 20 healthcare facilities and other health and nutrition projects

During last year, IDA has provided 1.2 million services in Heath, Nutrition, WaSH and Camp Management

Responsibilities:

• Actively participates as a management team member to ensure good collaboration, communication, strategic planning and implementation of IDA’s media and communication activities
• The team leader of the media and communication team, ensuring good internal communication and capacity building
• Takes the lead together with the General Director in developing IDA’s media and communication policy and communication vision
• Responsible for all formal and social media communications of IDA in close collaboration with the General Director, based on IDA’s strategic plan, coordinating closely with Program Coordinators for technical support in their respective technical fields for accuracy and quality of information
• Responsible for the IDA internet websites, ensuring up-to-date, relevant and accurate information and positive visibility is ensured
• Trains, provides guidance and supports the field teams for all media contacts and external communications
• Develops new media project proposals in collaboration with the Grant Coordinator/Manager, under the guidance of the General Director
• Represents IDA vis-à-vis and networks with national and international media, NGOs, in conferences and coordination meetings under the guidance of the General Director, analyzing the tendencies and interests carefully.
• Carries out other duties according to your professional capacity and position in the organization, as assigned by the General Director

Specific activities:

• Team participation
• Contributes actively in media strategy development based on IDA’s mission statement and vision and beneficiary needs
• Contributes to good communication among all team members and between departments and programs, ensuring other departments are adequately informed of media and communication activities for good collaboration
• Surveys media outlets for relevant information regarding humanitarian activities and the local context and shares them with management team members in a timely manner
• Respects the procedures of other departments and agrees to contribute for successful collaboration
• Briefs new staff of the media activities and procedures for external communication
• Compiles all required reporting for activities under her responsibility in collaboration with the Grant Manager in a timely manner
• Reviews the budget control on a monthly basis together with the Finance Manager to ensure correct allocation of expenditures to budget lines and timely and correct use of the available funds

Team leader

• Responsible for all staff of the Media team as per organigram, ensuring clear organizational structure and assigning responsibilities, activities and tasks clearly
• Assists in recruiting new staff of the media team, including developing job descriptions in coordination with human resource department and interviewing
• Ensures newly hired staff are inducted into their position in a timely manner to fulfill their responsibilities and tasks according to IDA’s media and communication strategy and objectives
• Assesses capacity building needs of the Media team and develops measures to build their capacity in media communications, networking and field support
• Provides technical and managerial support to the Media team and ensures compliance with IDA policies and procedures
• Ensures her team utilizes assets and finances in accordance with IDA’s regulations
• Provides her team members constructive feedback on work performance in a timely manner
• Plans vacation periods with her team members in coordination with HR department, ensuring that activities and responsibilities are covered by other staff during vacations and absences

Media and communication policy

• Under the guidance of the General Director, supported by Program Coordinators and with input from the field teams, develops a clear media and communication strategy to reflect IDA’s work, mission and communication objectives.
• Ensures the media and communication strategy incorporates a risk analysis for IDA and its field teams and continuously analyses changes and challenges
• Informs the General Director in a timely manner of any changes, challenges and difficulties, including deviations from planned budgets, during the implementation of media activities

Formal and social media communications

• Stays up to date on changes of the situation in the field where IDA works and follows developments and trends in her field of work
• Creates stories and communications, with accompanying photographs, videos or tags, for external outlets including news agencies, social media, magazines, journals, etc. to strengthen IDA’s external visibility and achieve IDA’s communication objectives
• Develops, writes and issues regular press releases with clearly formulated messages, based on IDA’s communication strategy and to achieve IDA’s communication objectives
• Under the guidance of the General Director, is responsible for choosing the right audience for IDA’s external communications, in close coordination with Program Coordinators
• Arranges reporter field visits and ensures they are accompanied as required
• Ensures timeliness and accuracy of information of external communications by working in close collaboration with the technical management staff, ensuring a professional image of IDA
• Ensures IDA’s core principles as a humanitarian organization are upheld in the communications according to IDA’s mission, vision and communication strategy
• Collaborates with the Grants Manager to ensure donor required visibility is correctly incorporated in external communications according to project agreements and IDA’s risk analysis
• Monitors and evaluates media coverage generated and draws lessons learned to improve the achievement of communication objectives
• Maintains a confidential contact list of key interlocutors

IDA internet websites

• Has the overall responsibility of setting up and overseeing the IDA websites, ensuring a user-friendly and clear structure and up-to-date and accurate information
• Outlines IDA’s programs and projects and creates stories, with accompanying photographs, videos or tags, for IDA’s website for internal and external visibility
• Collaborates with the Grants Manager to ensure donor required visibility is correctly incorporated in the websites according to project agreements and IDA’s risk analysis

Support field teams for media contacts and external communications

• Responsible to inform field team managers of IDA’s communication strategy, principles and objectives and strengthen coordination and collaboration with the field teams
• Trains relevant IDA field staff on managing contacts with media in the field
• Serves as external relations resource for field staff for direction, guidance and support, providing (written) guidance to the field teams how to answer difficult questions
• Supports field teams in designing communication material (pamphlets, posters, etc) for use in health, nutrition and protection activities, ensuring clear and appropriate communication of key messages

New media project proposal development

• Designs and develops project concept notes and project proposals in the field media and communication in collaboration with the Grant Manager/Grant Coordinator, taking into consideration IDA’s mission and vision, staff capacity, humanitarian needs in the field, funding availability and best practices
• Communicates with donors and potential partners under the guidance of the General Director and in coordination with the Grant Coordinator/Manager

Represents IDA and networks with national and international media, media related NGOs

• Networks with international and national media to proactively further humanitarian stories about IDA’s programs and projects and to advocate for and build partnerships of high-quality, according to IDA’s media and communication strategy
• Networks with partners, stakeholders, other NGOs, agencies and key informants to establish coordination mechanisms in regards to information collection, media coverage and humanitarian communications
• Attends and represents IDA at press conferences and coordination meetings
• Attends media related external and internal meetings, workshops, and training arranged by partners or media institutions

Carries out other duties

• Adheres to IDA’s rules and regulations
• Maintains confidentiality of sensitive information, including financial and human resource data
• Performs any other duties requested by the General Director

Competencies

• Competencies are important in order for the employee and the organization to deliver desired results. They are relevant for all staff and are divided into the following two categories:

1. Professional competencies

• These are skills, knowledge and experience that are important for effective performance.

Generic professional competencies for this position:

• B.A in Media or any relevant department
• 4 years of experience in Media
• Experience working within a humanitarian context;
• Experience of activities relating to specific sectors of humanitarian work, possibly including Media, communication and advocacy
• Previous experience working in complex and volatile contexts;
• Documented results related to the position’s responsibilities;
• Fluency in Arabic is essential, both written and verbal;
• Fluency in English is beneficial;
• Good IT skills, including Excel and Word;

Context/specific skills, knowledge and experience:

• Knowledge of the context in Northwest Syria and Azzaz sub-district in particular
• Good standing and reputation in the community
• Experience of working with local partners;
• Experience of conducting assessments and monitoring activities;

2. Behavioral competencies

• These are personal qualities that influence how successful people are in their job, the following are essential for this position:
• Planning and delivering results
• Working with people
• Communicating with impact and respect
• Handling insecure environments

Independent Doctors Association does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, and committed to acting professionally and ethically.
Independent Doctors Association is zero tolerable with any SEA case, IDA is creating the best environment to make sure that all staff have understood SEA and how to report in case there is any suspected case