About Mercy Corps
Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have long term impact.
DEPARTMENT SUMMARY
Mercy Corps seeks to alleviate suffering, poverty and oppression by helping build secure, productive and just communities. Working in Lebanon since 1993, Mercy Corps has been working towards generating positive opportunities for Lebanese people, Syrian and Palestine refugees and other vulnerable groups, with a strong focus on engaging women and youth. We do this through:
- Building the resilience of vulnerable individuals, by enhancing their human, social and political capital, to enable them to better adapt to shocks and stresses;
- Strengthening participatory governance and social cohesion to encourage diverse groups to work together to solve public challenges and provide equitable service delivery;
- Promoting economic growth and creating employment opportunities and revenue for vulnerable population groups;
- Carrying out research and developing an evidence-base to influence the adoption of effective and equitable humanitarian and development initiatives in Lebanon;
- Adapting to the changing context in providing both humanitarian life-saving assistance and supporting markets in crisis when and where needed,
The Mercy Corps Lebanon team consists of over 125 staff working across four offices throughout Beirut/Mount Lebanon, South Lebanon, North Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley. Current funders of Mercy Corps in Lebanon include the government of the Netherlands, Global Affairs Canada, the US Government, Agence Française de Development, RDPP and the European Union through Madad funds. Mercy Corps’ programs aim to sustain Mercy Corps’ reputation as a key and reliable partner for various donors, INGOs, government authorities and civil society actors, to be part of the process of positive changes along the humanitarian, development and peace spectrum.
Primary program interventions include humanitarian assistance through cash-based response, support to employment and to small and medium enterprises, good governance, capacity building, economic development, livelihood support, and support to markets in crisis. As the effect of the multi-dimensional crisis affecting Lebanon for the past two years becomes increasingly dire for the population, Mercy Corps is currently pivoting to bring a greater focus on cash assistance, agriculture and food security, with an increased access to renewable energy.
GENERAL POSITION SUMMARY
This position is responsible for understanding Lebanon’s ever-changing implementation context and humanitarian coordination landscape, articulating Mercy Corps Lebanon’s vision for CVA programme design and development; serving as focal point for any proposal development with CVA components; supporting quality analysis and implementation for CVA; conducting evaluations and research; and helping manage donor and partner relations at local, regional, and headquarter levels. This role will also be hands-on to provide direct support to programme teams, including the development / review of internal program tools and processes as well as defining MCL’s stances on topics like interagency harmonization, social protection linkages, and/or MPCA deduplication. The position will technically represent Mercy Corps in all CVA fora and explore the potential to expand further CVA as a tool used by programmes.
ESSENTIAL JOB RESPONSIBILITIES
Strategy and Business development
- Work closely with the program country team to build Mercy Corps’ strategy and influence in CVA in Lebanon
- In close coordination with the Director of Programs and PaQ team, support prepositioning and development of program strategies. Write/review proposals and concept notes for funding from donors including foundations, corporations, and US, European, and UN agencies.
- Work with program team members on the design and support of multi-sectoral programs that encompass elements of broader country goals such as food security, market systems development, and governance.
- Ensure Mercy Corps is continuing to better collect and use data to analyze, understand and document the many facets of vulnerability in Lebanon, the role of CVA in addressing it, and identify opportunities to work with other entities on this.
- Provide technical and strategic support to ensure that cash based programs are designed, implemented, monitored and evaluated correctly.
Technical Leadership and Training
- Provide training to Mercy Corps teams and partners on CVA principles and practices, including the Mercy Corps Cash Minimum Standards.
- Lead on deduplication efforts, ensure coordination with other agencies to ensure buy-in, propose duplication mitigation strategies and establish systems to facilitate deduplication with other CVA actors, including Social Safety Net actors (MoSA, ESSN).
- Lead the refinement of criteria and data collection tools for beneficiary selection, and the indicators and data collection tools for monitoring and evaluation, in collaboration with the MEL team.
- With the Programs team, ensure compliance with Mercy Corps Cash Minimum Standards, including periodic revision of the SOPs.
- Coach and support the Mercy Corps team on effective analysis, report writing and presentations of CVA quantitative and qualitative data.
- Support as needed in discussions with Financial Service Providers (FSP) and other service providers in coordination with the Program Manager and the Procurement Department.
- Ensure that the implementation of the program is adapted to communities, authorities and partners and in line with the relevant guidelines, principles, values and quality standards (such as Conflict Sensitivity Do No Harm principles and beneficiary accountability standards)
Research and Learning and Impact (in close coordination with the PAQ unit and LCAT)
- Work with Mercy Corps’ program and PaQ departments on the piloting, evidence-building, and growth of CVA, in line with the country’s priorities.
- Contribute to developing and driving a research strategy around the impact of CVA in Lebanon, using clear research objectives and plans, leading data analysis, writing reports, and ensuring the results are spread to all relevant actors.
- In collaboration with the Director of Programs, the Program teams, the PAQ unit and LCAT identify topics for research and learning such as pathways from CVA to durable financial inclusion,
- Leverage existing research and evidence pieces in shaping program design and improving impact, including through lessons gleaned from on-going impact evaluations, reviews and partner studies.
- Support the design and use of robust monitoring and evaluation frameworks across CVA, including through the development of tools, surveys and methodologies to improve how outcomes are measured, in alignment with global industry standards and best practices.
- Support new and ongoing programs with best practice advice and assistance on assessment, implementation, research, and evaluation needs.
- Support field teams to regularly conduct market analysis and Multisectoral Rapid Assessment within the framework of the CVA.
- Conduct assessments; write case studies, learning documents, short articles, and blogs; and develop internal and external dissemination plans for all products.
Representation and Influence
- Represent Mercy Corps in all CVA fora, including the Cash Task Force, the Basic Assistance Working Group (BAWG) and other coordination mechanisms as required
- Interface with the representatives of donors, partners, and other CVA stakeholders in close coordination with the Director of Programs.
- Lead on the dissemination of CVA learnings and briefs produced by Mercy Corps.
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY: none
ACCOUNTABILITY
REPORTS DIRECTLY TO: Director of Programs
WORKS DIRECTLY WITH: ECHO / SAFER team, LCAT team, PAQ Unit, HQ Technical Support Unit (Cash and Market Advisors); members of Operations, Program departments, and the Senior Management Team.
Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
- Bachelor’s degree required. M.A, M.S., M.Sc., or equivalent in international development, business, economics or related field preferrable..
- 7 + years working in humanitarian response and development.
- 5 + years’ direct experience managing and/or supporting Cash programming in the field, including extensive field-based research and market assessments.
- Experience in co-chairing Cash Working Groups or a Cash Task Force preferred.
- Proven understanding of and experience using CVA tools, indicators, and other best practices.
- Previous experience managing cash transfer programming and knowledge of e-transfer mechanisms.
- Previous experience building capacity of staff and local partners.
- Ability to work in a collaborative spirit with other departments, in particular Procurement and Finance, to effectively support implementation of programs while staying compliant with donor and Mercy Corps regulations.
- Advanced computer skills in MS Office programs, particularly Excel.
- Effective verbal and written communication, multi-tasking, organizational and prioritization skills.
- Excellent oral and written English skills required, Arabic fluency is an asset.
Success Factors
The successful candidate will have deep commitment to humanitarian principles and values and the willingness to learn new skills and methodologies while driving an innovative and impactful program strategy. They will have the ability to work under pressure, independently and with limited supervision and demonstrate creative problem-solving skills. The candidate will have highly developed interpersonal communication skills and demonstrate decision- making and leadership skills and excellent time management capacities.
Living Conditions/Environmental Conditions
The position is based in Beirut, Lebanon and is an accompanied position. The country is currently going through an important economic crisis that has some effect on the living conditions, however access to basic services and infrastructure is guaranteed.
Ongoing Learning
In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives. We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.
Equal Employment Opportunity
Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.
We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.
Safeguarding & Ethics
Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to theInteragency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere toMercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct elearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.