Global Lead, Collaboration with Local Actors At orwegian Refugee Council

Context

NRC wants to significantly scale up and improve our engagement with local actors, institutions and systems (including local authorities, NGOs and CSOs, the private sector, social entrepreneurs, academia and community-based organisations).

This is one of the key objectives in our global strategy for 2022-2025 and includes:

1. Creating space for local actors to provide assistance or services to displacement-affected populations within the international humanitarian system.
2. Mutual exchange of expertise with local actors to strengthen the humanitarian response and improve the quality of our analysis, advocacy and programmes.
3. Partner for implementation with local actors to extend and sustain the impact of the humanitarian response.
4. Engage with and support national and local authorities to provide quality assistance and protection to displacement-affected people and strengthen or build national response systems.

The Global Lead on Collaboration with Local Actors will play a crucial role in making us successful in our efforts. The position will sit within the Programme Strategy and Innovation Unit, in the Global Programme Section, but will work across, and in close collaboration, with other global functions as well as colleagues in regions and countries.

We are looking for someone that can help NRC’s senior management drive a culture change in relation to how we engage with local partners and help the organisation put in place the systems and support mechanisms required for us to partner better.

What you will do

You will perform two key functions: Act as the global lead for the NRC Global Strategy Sub-Objective 4 – Collaboration and Exchange with Local JD – Global Lead, Local Actors – July 2022 Actors; as well as develop frameworks and lead specific development project that falls under the sub-objective.

Some of your day-to-day tasks will include:

• Review and finalise NRC’s strategy/roadmap on collaboration with local actors.
• Map out priority needs across functions and levels to inform sequencing of actions and work plans.
• Document the current state of affairs in relation to the partnerships and approaches in countries and regions, including promising practices and lessons learned. Crucial in this will be to understand the feedback of existing local actors on NRC’s performance, pain points, and opportunities.
• Engage across the humanitarian sector and beyond to understand what others are doing, best or promising practices, and identify opportunities for collaboration.
• In collaboration with colleagues in Partnership and Policy and External Relations, map out and review current support functions/helpdesks in NRC and propose how we could structure these to promote synergies and avoid duplications.
• Map out where further guidance, tools, and systems are needed to assist regions and countries in engaging with a broad range of local actors and start developing what is needed.
• Other tasks identified by the Director for Programme Strategy and Innovation.

What you will bring

• Minimum 10 years of relevant leadership/management/adviser experience within the humanitarian field (field experience from complex and volatile contexts is required).
• Evidenced experience of working with a wide range of local actors. The private sector and local authorities are equally important to work with local organisations and civil society.
• Understanding of and experience from leading scoping exercises, organisational ,change and learning processes – preferably including global initiatives in a complex international organisation.
• Good understanding of governance and systems within complex international organisations.
• High level of understanding of organisational learning, and the role and contribution of M&E to evidencing impact.
• Familiar with systems thinking and trends in the humanitarian community, and a network to draw on to gather further insights.
• Ability to work collaboratively with colleagues, in person and remotely.
• Credibility to represent NRC at a strategic level, and contribute to global policy developments with senior management, key donors, and stakeholders.
• Familiarity with advocacy and policy work to complement programmatic action.
• Head of Programme experience – or similar – is an asset.
• Fluency in English both written and verbal. Knowledge of Spanish, French and Arabic is an asset.

We know that you are curious and would like to learn more about this role; please click here to access the full Job Description.

What makes this position attractive?

• A challenging and exciting opportunity with an international team dedicated to advocating for the rights of people forced to flee.
• A chance to lead the strategic development of programme development of Humanitarian Access in hard-to-reach locations.
• Salary and benefits according to NRC’s salary scale and terms and conditions in Head Office, Oslo – may also be based in Berlin, Brussels, Geneva or London if agreed, but accountability is to Head Office Global Programme Section.

We are also looking for people who share our values:

• To be dedicated to what we do;
• To be innovative with our solutions;
• To act as one unified and inclusive team;
• To be accountable to the donors that make our work possible; the beneficiaries that we exist to serve; and to each other… the members of our NRC family.

We will be assessing candidates on an ongoing basis; therefore, early applications are recommended.