Junior Professional (for the ASPIRE Program) At Catholic Relief Services

Junior Professional Job Description– Asia

About CRS

As the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States, CRS carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. CRS works to save, protect, and transform lives in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through integrated programming in emergency response, health, agriculture/livelihoods, education, peacebuilding and more. We welcome as a part of our staff and as partners people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need.

Program Summary

The Junior Professionals Program (JPP) is a unique career-building opportunity for individuals who are passionate about relief and development work and have the skills, attitude and approach to grow into managerial positions with CRS. This structured and intentional field-based learning program is designed to prepare Junior Professionals for positions of greater responsibility with CRS.
Under the supervision of experienced staff, Junior Professionals actively support CRS’ relief and/or development projects while building foundational skills in programming and operations. Through the foundational training, Junior Professionals gain experience in project management (including communications), monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning, project design and proposal development, partnership and capacity strengthening, supply chain, human resources and more.
To complement the core training, each Junior Professional also hones their skills in a specific area that aligns with their career objectives and strategically positions them for onward employment with CRS. The Junior Professionals Program is offered over a 12-month period and can be extended for up to 24 months (depending on agency needs and candidate experience).

Primary Responsibilities

Under the supervision of an experienced staff member and in collaboration with CRS partners, the Junior Professional will support programming and operations as follows:
Project Management
• Support implementation of current projects (e.g. participate in planning/review workshops, support activity implementation in the field)
• Support appropriate management of cash and in-kind resources (e.g. monitor/analyze spending on project budgets, prepare cash forecasts, participate in financial reporting to donors, support commodity management).
• Support timely and accurate reporting (e.g. review/synthesize data to report on project indicators, draft/edit narrative reports).
• Support communication-related activities for country program and projects (e.g. draft program summaries, annual reports, partnership newsletters, social media content and webpage updates).
Project Design and Proposal Development
• Support project design (e.g. participate in needs assessments and problem identification, stakeholder analysis, development of concept notes)
• Support proposal development (e.g. participate in design workshops, draft sections of technical narratives and budgets, package/edit proposals for submission).
Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL)
Support MEAL activities in:
• Project design (e.g. support data collection, needs assessments, gender analysis, gap analysis, development of results frameworks, Proframes, theories of change, evaluation plans, performance management plans).
• Project start-up (e.g. support baseline assessments, development of MEAL manuals and accountability mechanisms)
• Project implementation (e.g. prepare survey instruments using ICT4D, support collection of monitoring data, prepare donor reports, organize learning events, document learning)
• Project close-out (e.g. draft final reports, support final evaluations and knowledge management activities).
Partnership & Capacity Strengthening
• Support CRS partners with project management, project design and MEAL
• Support partnership strengthening and capacity building (e.g. participate in partnership reflection workshops, partner assessments and monitoring visits).
Finance, Supply Chain, HR, Compliance
• Support strong financial management by analyzing budgets, monitoring & forecasting spending, reviewing supporting documentation for financial transactions by CRS and sub-recipients.
• Support supply chain and procurement by assisting with inventory counts, data collection, bid analysis and vendor selection, contracting, receipt and warehousing of goods.
• Support human resources by preparing job descriptions, reviewing applications/shortlisting candidates.
• Support audit and compliance by reviewing internal controls, systems for fraud prevention, studying CRS policies and donor regulations.
• Support staff safety by reviewing security protocols and manuals, updating as needed.

Key Working Relationships
Internal: CRS Country Representative, Head of Programming, Head of Operations, Program Managers, Finance, Supply Chain and HR staff
External: CRS partner organizations

Required Qualifications
• Bachelor’s degree in related field (e.g. International Development, Business, Public Administration, Development Communications)
• Recent graduate (degree conferred no more than 18 months prior to JPP start date)
• Strong speaking and writing skills in English
• National of a participating country (India, Cambodia, the Philippines)
• Willingness to travel (up to 10-15% of the time)
• Strong relation management skills (ability to collaborate with people of diverse backgrounds)
• Strong analytical, research and problem-solving skills

Preferred Qualifications

• Graduate degree (Master level or higher)
• Six months or more of relevant work experience (may include internships, volunteer or paid work experience)
• Experience in communications, monitoring and evaluation, and/or proposal development
• Knowledge of local languages may be preferred for some locations
• Female candidates are preferred

Agency-wide Competencies

Based on the mission, values, and guiding principles of the agency, CRS competencies are to be exemplified by all staff in fulfillment of his or her respective roles and responsibilities.
• Integrity
• Accountability and Stewardship
• Builds Relationships
• Develops Talent
• Continuous Improvement & Innovation
• Strategic Mindset