Senior Compliance Officer, USAID (USAID Contracts) At International Rescue Committee

BACKGROUND

Over the past 90 years, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) has developed unparalleled expertise in responding to emergencies and helping uprooted communities to rebuild. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC’s mission is to help people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover, and gain control of their future. The IRC is on the ground in more than 40 countries, providing emergency relief and rebuilding lives in the wake of disaster. Through 28 regional offices in cities across the United States, the IRC also helps refugees resettle in the US and become self-sufficient. The IRC is committed to a culture of bold leadership, innovation in all aspects of our work, creative partnerships and, most crucially, accountability to those we serve. The IRC is a tireless advocate for the most vulnerable.

The Awards Management Unit (AMU)

Established in January 2016, the Awards Management Unit (AMU) is a global unit with the responsibility for identifying, securing, and managing all funding from statutory/government donors. The unit is organized into five pillars: Strategic Partnerships, Program and Grant Support, Compliance and Policy, Program Development, and Training.

The AMU is a liaison between donors and the field: providing expert technical advice to the field, while maintaining portfolio-level visibility to ensure consistency, compliance, and manage risk. This unit ensures that donor compliance policies and procedures are implemented consistently, and supports all staff working across the grants management cycle for all restricted funding from global government sources.

AMU Compliance & Policy

AMU Compliance & Policy (C&P) develops and manages donor compliance-related tools, guidance and templates; it tracks and communicates changes in donor regulations, and builds knowledge of compliance throughout the IRC. The C&P team offers escalated support in case of complex donor compliance questions or to carry out supplementary reviews of agreements in the event that the donor is new or issues are flagged. This position reports to the Senior Director Compliance and Policy.

Key Working Relationships

Program and Grant Support Teams (AMU), Business Development (AMU), Strategic Partnerships (AMU), Training & Curriculum Design (AMU), Subawards and Partnership (AMU C&P), RAI, Technical Excellence, Ethics and Compliance Unit, Finance, Office of the General Counsel, Global Supply Chain.

The Purpose of the Role

The Senior Compliance Officer – USAID is responsible for ensuring compliance with statutory donor rules and regulations within his/her assigned portfolio. This role ensures a culture of compliance by providing advice and guidance on statutory donor rules and regulations for grants and contracts, enforces administrative policies, and promotes adherence to procedures to ensure that all IRC staff, project partners, subcontractors, and sub-awardees follow USG and USAID statutory regulations and local government requirements. The Senior Compliance Officer provides guidance to relevant staff to improve their understanding of the terms and conditions of grants and contracts by providing donor compliance advice and training so that programs are delivered responsibly with minimized compliance risk. The role also advises implementing teams in areas of risk analysis and mitigation. This role will provide guidance on all USAID awards (assistance and acquisition), with special focus on acquisition for both pre-award and post-award phases.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

· Serve as a solution oriented subject matter expert for major compliance matters related to USAID with a special focus on USAID acquisition matters. Respond to escalated compliance-related questions covering both the pre-award and post-award phases of USAID awards.

· Develop and maintain strong relations with key IRC internal stakeholders: Awards Management Unit (AMU), Crisis Response, Recovery, and Development (CRRD), Resettlement, Asylum & Integration (RAI) Finance, Ethics and Compliance Unit (ECU), and Office of General Counsel (OGC) as needed;

· Review and understand IRC’s internal policies impacted by USAID donor compliance regulations (i.e. IRC’s Organizational Policies, Global Supply Chain Standards of Procedure, Human Resources Policies, Partnership Excellence for Equality and Results System (PEERS) and more). Conduct research into both IRC policies and USAID requirements and provide guidance to stakeholders on how USAID requirements (with a special focus on USAID’s acquisition regulations) interact with the IRC’s internal policies.

· Advise on and disseminate information throughout the organization of any changes made to USAID compliance regulations (with a special focus on USAID acquisition regulations) and assess their impact on IRC programs and internal policies; Engage with key stakeholders as needed to provide input and develop solutions and tools to ensure compliance with USAID regulations (focusing especially on acquisition regulations);

· Work closely with the Sr Director and the compliance team to develop IRC policies, guidelines, tools and templates as needed to ensure optimal implementation of USAID compliance requirements, with a special focus on USAID acquisition requirements;

· Support negotiations with donor and/or partners contacts, as needed;

· Working with the AMU C&P Subaward and Partnership team, regional teams, and technical units to provide advice, input and develop solutions on partnership management (including grants under contracts, subawards and more);

· Work closely with the Director of Training to develop and provide training on USAID compliance matters, with a special focus on USAID acquisition training;

· Provide support for major compliance matters related to other US Government donors filling in as focal point when needed;

· Other responsibilities as assigned by the Senior Director.

REQUIREMENTS

Essential

· 5-7 years of relevant professional experience

· Demonstrated knowledge of the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) and agency supplement: USAID Acquisition Regulation (AIDAR) required

· Proven expertise in interpreting and applying statutory and regulatory language in executing awards and contracts from USG entities and in maintaining a current knowledge of changes in the language, application and enforcement of this language;

· Developed understanding of professional business standards required to create a high performing and accountable environment;

· Experience in organizational problem solving, operations, high performance management in complex organizations;

· A positive thinker and collaborative problem solver.

· Strong interpersonal relations, teambuilding and communication skills;

· Previous experience providing compliance training in a multicultural setting.

Preferred

· Demonstrated prior experience working on USAID assistance awards preferred

· Demonstrated knowledge of applicable USAID Assistance Regulations such as Code of Federal Regulation (CFRs): 2 CFR 200, 2 CFR 700, 22 CFR 228; Automated Directive System (ADS) series, Acquisition & Assistance Policy Directives (AAPDS) preferred

· Experience with varying contract types: fixed-price, cost-reimbursable, time and material and incentive type contracts is preferred.

· Experience with CAS compliance

· Previous experience with large international nonprofit organizations

We offer a comprehensive and highly competitive set of benefits. In the US, these include: 10 sick days, 10 US holidays, 20-25 paid time off days (depending on role and tenure), medical insurance starting at $145 per month, dental starting at $7 per month, and vision starting at $5 per month, FSA for healthcare, childcare, and commuter costs, a 403b retirement savings plans with up to 4.5% immediately vested matching contribution, plus a 3-7% base IRC contribution (3 year vesting), disability & life insurance, and an Employee Assistance Program which is available to our staff and their families to support counseling and care in times of crisis and mental health struggles.

COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement: In accordance with IRC’s duty to provide and maintain a workplace that is free of known hazards and our commitment to safeguard the health of our employees, clients, and communities, IRC requires new hires to furnish proof of vaccination against COVID-19 in order to be considered for any in-office or hybrid positions. All IRC US offices require full vaccination to attend any in-office functions (e.g., meetings, trainings).