GRANT OFFICER At RET International

Reporting Line

The Grant Officer reports to the Director of Operations.

S/he also works in close coordination with the Strategic Planning and Technical Director on specific topics under his/her responsibility.

Primary Location

S/he is based in RET Americas Bureau located in Panama City, with frequent missions to the field.

General Responsibilities

• Oversee the compliance and requirement of implementing grants funded by USAID/BHA and quality reporting in time.
• Identify areas where support and improvement are required and ensure follow up mechanism is in the place to meet and maintain the standard and operational efficiency of specific grants.
• Develop performance measures, evaluating applicants, monitoring grant spending and performance compliance, preparing analyses and reports, and working with Staff and Field teams and community groups, and organizations throughout the lifetime of the grant.
• Support summarizing USAID/BHA compliance requirements of grants issued by RET and communicating these requirements to Staff and Field teams.
• Support in prepare modification requests to the USAID/BHA awards in Venezuela.
• Provide mentoring, monitoring and supervision for Staff and Field teams during implementation and support grant closeout processes in line with RET and donor regulations.
• Make frequent field visits to ensure Staff and field-based staff have adequate support to meet and maintain compliance requirement.

Specific Responsibilities

• Understand the terms of the USAID grants, specifically the expected results of the project, and ensure compliance with the requirements.
• Responsible to monitor and review compliances of all applicable regulations, status and rules of USAID and maintain minimum operating standard in regard to grant management operation.
• Support to senior to prepare different periodical and analytical report for respective Grants.
• Contribute actively to internal discussions on programmatic strategy and activity ideas.
• Contribute lessons learned to help shape best practice observed in country offices and analysis of tools and systems shortcoming
• Support the line Managers to design and implement appropriate monitoring and supervision mechanisms for grants management purpose.
• Maintain a broad and deep understanding of donor policies, regulations and procedures and build this knowledge among other team members.
• Proactively identify compliance risks throughout the portfolio and advise programs, operations and finance teams.
• Conducts briefing sessions on donor requirements and templates with staff and partners, in coordination with relevant staff and field-based staff, when necessary.
• Prepare Monthly Grants Financial Monitoring reports and highlight any spending abnormalities (over/under spending).
• Co-Facilitate Grants Review Meetings, record and share action points agreed during the meeting.
• Follow up with relevant focal points on pending issues and action points related to grants and project closure
• Follow up on the preparation and submission of internal and external reporting (programs and finance), ensuring high-quality, well-written and timely reports meeting donor and RET requirements.
• Ensure quality information management related to grants by overseeing the regular maintenance of reporting calendars.
• Contribute to identification of new funding opportunities for multi-country initiatives, and provide support to development of funding proposals, working collaboratively with Staff and field-based staff.
• Work with the relevant COs to ensure Grant Opening Meetings are arranged and all mandatory documents are in place (internal log frame, internal budget, procurement plan, work-plan and M&E matrix).
• Working with communications staff to collect lessons learned from RET work and draft case studies from programs.

Secondary Responsibilities

• Participate in the elaboration of USAID proposals to ensure the programme and financial coherence and an effective logistic and security approaches, analysis and plans;
• If requested by the Director of Operations, participate to coordination meetings with the authorities, donors and/or partners;
• Complete any additional task, as requested by the Director of Operations.

In addition, like all RET Staff

• Comply with internal policies, ensuring that activities and their performance comply with what is established in RET’s Code of Conduct, PSEA and other policies;
• Work as a team member to achieve RET’s goals;
• Manage in a transparent way RET’s resources, fulfilling effectively and efficiently the tasks entrusted;
• Propose, constructively, alternative solutions to problems that arise in the work area.

Core Competencies Required

• People and Management Skills: Ability to work independently and in a team, demonstrate management skills and leadership;
• Communication Skills: Well-developed written and oral communication skills, both in English and Spanish is required. Able to communicate clearly and sensitively with relevant institutions and organizations, internal and external stakeholders as a representative of RET. These skills include effective negotiation and representation;
• Integrity: Work with trustworthiness and integrity and has a clear commitment to RET core values and humanitarian principles.
• Resilience/Adaptability and flexibility: Works and lives with a flexible, adaptable and resilient manner in line with the humanitarian nature of RET International’s core activities;
• Awareness and sensitivity of self and others: Demonstrates awareness and sensitivity to gender and diversity. Have experience and the ability to live and work in diverse cultural contexts in a culturally acceptable manner;
• Confidentiality: Appreciation and understanding of confidentiality and use of discretion when dealing with employment/staff matters.

Qualifications and Requirements

• Bachelor degree preferably in accounting, management, finance, public policy, political science, or a related field. MBA or Master degree in Project Management.
• At least 5 years’ experience supporting NGOs grants management, compliance or equivalent; prior USAID grant management experience required.
• Good understanding of rules, standards and regulations of USAID and other key donors e.g., SDC and UN Agencies, et al.
• Ability to use Work Plan, Procurement Plan and Budget as a tool in project/program planning and follow-up.
• Attention to detail, a good understanding of processes, and the ability to follow instructions.
• Good personal organisational skills, including time management, and ability to meet deadlines and work under pressure;
• Staff capacity-building experience;
• Willingness to travel to field offices and work in difficult environment according to travel requirements.
• Excellent word processing and IT skills, including knowledge of a range of software packages and comprehensive capabilities in Microsoft Office (Word, advanced Excel, PowerPoint, Project);
• Flexibility to manage different tasks effectively and willingness to put in extra hours when required.