The Organization
We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realise the right of children and to ensure their voices are heard.
We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:
- No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday
- All children learn from a quality basic education and that,
- Violence against children is no longer tolerated
We know that great people make a great organization, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children. We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive workplace where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued.
We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.
Save the Children International seeks to always be a child-safe organization by fulfilling its obligations to the community and through programme implementation carried out by the organization for safeguarding children and improve their living standards of the child.
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Position: Advocacy, Campaigns, Communications and Media Director
Location: Sanaa (with potential flexibility)
Contract Length: Fixed Term – Two years (with possibility of extension)
The Opportunity:
ROLE PURPOSE:
As a member of the Senior Management Team (SMT) in the CO, the Advocacy, Campaigns, Communications and Media Director (ACCM) shares in the overall responsibility for the direction and coordination of the Country Office. The ACCM Director in his/her capacity is responsible for providing leadership to ensure excellence in our public and private facing advocacy, campaigning, media and communications on the humanitarian crisis and situation of children in Yemen as well as our longer-term development work.
The purpose of the role is to lead and manage the external and internal Advocacy, Campaigns, Communications and Media work for the Yemen country office including the advocacy strategy development and implementation as a prioritized Category 1 response, supporting the priority programmatic areas, such as Child Protection, Health and Nutrition, Food Security, Education in Emergencies, and humanitarian space/operational space issues. The role will support the Senior Management Team in risk mapping, mitigation and management on issues identified as most relevant for the CO, and develop policy analysis and strategic planning in response to those issues.
SCOPE OF ROLE:
Reports to: Yemen Country Director
Dimensions: The Save the Children International (SCI) Yemen Country Office (CO) has over 700 staff and works in nine governorates in the north, centre and south of the country through seven field offices in addition to the main office in Sana’a. ACCM is an integrated and critical part of our work in Yemen, with the need to ensure humanitarian access, increased international visibility and donor interest in the crises, protection of children from grave violations and international pressure to end the conflict.
The ACCM Department is comprised of four teams working on media and communications, advocacy, campaigns, and advocacy programmes
Representation of SCI in public and private fora, meetings with state representatives, media, internal and external working groups and networks.
KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:
As a member of the Senior Management Team, contribute to:
- Leadership of the Yemen Country Office
- Support the development of an organisational culture that reflects the full programming spectrum (humanitarian and development) values, promotes accountability and high performance, encourages a team culture of learning, creativity and innovation, and supports staff to deliver outstanding results for children.
- Help design and implement a coherent organizational structure that is consistent with agency practices and appropriate to country office needs
- Ensure that all required support is provided promptly, during emergencies or times of humanitarian crisis.
- Develop risk mitigation management plans in response to SMT, regional office, center (HQ), or Member identified risks to the delivery of quality programs for children with focus and ownership on ‘Speaking Out’.
- Ensure strong linkages between Advocacy, Campaigns, Communications and Media function and other Directors on the SMT so that advocacy is well resourced, evidence based and program driven and that programs are enhanced through advocacy.
Advocacy Strategy Development and Implementation
As a member of the Senior Management Team (SMT), contribute to:
- Co-leadership of the Country Office
- Support the development of an organisational culture that reflects our full spectrum values, promotes accountability and high performance, encourages at team culture of learning, creativity and innovation, and frees up our people to deliver outstanding results for children and excellent customer service for our Members and donors
- Help design and implement a coherent organizational structure that is consistent with agency practices and appropriate to programme needs
- Ensure Country Office complies with all Save the Children Management Operating Standards and Standard Operating Procedures
- Ensure strong linkages between Advocacy, Media and Communication and other Directors on the SMT so that advocacy is well resourced, evidence based and program driven and that programs are enhanced through advocacy.
Advocacy Strategy
- Ensure development and implementation of the Yemen advocacy strategy, in coordination with the CO Advocacy, Media and Communications team, Programme Development and Quality (PDQ) Director and programs team, the Regional Office and the Save the Children Humanitarian Advocacy Working Group (HAWG).
- Liaise with key UN, NGO and other interlocutors in the region to ensure Save the Children has up to date information on the humanitarian situation and response in the country.
Situation and Advocacy Analysis
- Working closely with programs, provide analysis of how children have been affected by the crisis in Yemen, the national policy responses and policy frameworks, as well as other factors such as UN coordination, funding for the response, security and current and future challenges that have an impact on children and their access to humanitarian assistance, health, education and protection services.
- Define key advocacy opportunities and targets at national and regional levels, if relevant, and if needed mobilize international advocacy support for these.
- Ensure a strong power analysis of the relevant actors and where opportunities for influence and leverage lie to inform the advocacy strategy.
ACCM products
- Draft and otherwise support the production of advocacy products as outlined in the advocacy strategy for use at the country, regional and international levels.
- Ensure that all advocacy messages, documents and strategies are evidence-based, drawn from field experience and assessments, of high quality and effective, and are approved by the Country Director, the Regional Advocacy Director and the HAWG. When necessary ensure advocacy products are signed-off according to the SCI sign-off procedures.
Representation and coordination
- Support the Country Director in advocacy work towards the Humanitarian Coordinator, Humanitarian Country Team, key UN agencies, donors and other NGOs, as well as media, if necessary.
- Participate in the Yemen INGO Forum and lead SC’s response on advocacy, media and communications initiatives within that group
- Ensure coordination of advocacy messages and activities between the Country Office and the regional and international levels.
- Ensure that Yemen situation reports contain information on advocacy activities and successes, from regional, capitals and global levels.
Media and Communications
- Support the Media and Communications Manager and team to effectively implement the communication and media strategy and deliver high quality media and communication products; maintain overall accountability for communication and media, including through sign off of all products.
- Ensure that media and communications strategy is in line with and supporting the objectives of the Yemen advocacy and campaign strategy.
- Proactively develop a high profile for SCI in the region and globally through the production of high quality, well researched, and well written products (in a variety of mediums), responding quickly and appropriately to external requests for information.
- Develop and deliver a clear and effective system for internal communications including the dissemination of information and other documents and publications for internal stakeholders including being able to scale up the delivery of robust communications material during emergencies per the agreed protocols and requests from Members and SCI
- Develop and maintain excellent working relationships, on behalf of the CO, with media focal points and leadership within the RO, SCI centre and Members of SCI
- Act as one of the CO Media Spokesperson as needed.
Staff Management, Mentorship, and Development – Policy, Advocacy, Campaigns, Media, and Communications
- Ensure appropriate CO staffing within Campaigns, Media, Communications and Policy and Advocacy
- Ensure that all staff understand and are able to perform their role during an emergency response
- Manage Media, Communications and Advocacy team; define expectations, provide leadership and technical support as needed, and evaluate direct reports regularly
- Ensure the recruitment, training, and promotion of staff as appropriate and ensure availability of appropriate professional development opportunities for staff
- Incorporate staff development strategies and Performance Management Systems into team building process. Establish result based system and follow up
- Ensure the on-going, targeted and planned professional development of National staff within Media, Communications and Advocacy and Campaigns department to taken on progressively more senior roles within the CO.
- Manage the performance of all staff in the work area through:
- Effective use of the Performance Management System including the establishment of clear, measureable objectives, ongoing feedback, periodic reviews and fair and unbiased evaluations;
- Coaching, mentoring and other developmental opportunities;
- Recognition and rewards for outstanding performance;
- Documentation of performance that is less than satisfactory, with appropriate performance improvements/ work plans
SKILLS AND BEHAVIOURS (our Values in Practice)
Accountability:
- Holds self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values
- Holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities – giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved
Ambition:
- Sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves (and their team), takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages others to do the same
- Widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others
- Future orientated, thinks strategically
Collaboration:
- Builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, members and external partners and supporters
- Values diversity, sees it as a source of competitive strength
- Approachable, good listener, easy to talk to
Creativity:
- Develops and encourages new and innovative solutions
- Willing to take disciplined risks
Integrity:
- Honest, encourages openness and transparency
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
Essential
- Post-graduate degree in social science, politics, human rights, journalism and media or other related fields or equivalent experience
- A minimum of 8 years demonstrated experience in progressively responsible positions at senior management levels.
- At least 8 years-experience in a humanitarian or development environment, preferably leading advocacy and policy change in the Middle East.
- Prior management experience working in emergency response contexts or fragile states.
- Significant prior experience working in advocacy on humanitarian issues, child rights, human rights, and/or development issues.
- Experience of influencing and advocacy work including lobbying, policy development and information provision in humanitarian issues.
- Excellent skills in advocating towards government officials in developing countries.
- Experience of and strong skills in developing and implementing humanitarian advocacy strategies.
- Proven skills in media and communication work, including interviews on radio, print and TV.
- Demonstrated ability to develop and lead research, surveys and other activities oriented towards developing positions and evidence base.
- Highly developed communication skills both written and verbal in order to establish effective relationships with a wide variety of internal and external audiences including at a geographical distance
- Ability to present complex information in a succinct and compelling manner
- Fluency in Writing and Presentation skills in English required
- Cultural awareness and ability to build relationships quickly with a wide variety of people
- Excellent planning, management and coordination skills, with the ability to organise a substantial workload comprised of complex, diverse tasks and responsibilities
- Patient, adaptable, flexible, able to improvise and remain responsive and communicate clearly and effectively under pressure
- Ability and willingness to dramatically change work practices and hours, and work with incoming surge teams, in the event of emergencies
- Experience in managing risks associated with advocacy and communications in high-risk settings, including in developing risk management plans and mitigation measures.
- Advanced understanding of Protection issues arising from a conflict setting, impact on protected populations, and implications for humanitarian aid agencies.
Preferred
- Extensive knowledge of child rights and international humanitarian law
- Understanding of UN and donor operations at country level
- High level analytical and strategic thinking skills
- Excellent interpersonal skills, with experience in managing multicultural teams.
- Experience in coaching, capacity-building and supporting the development of a team, including supporting junior members of staff to deliver high-quality output.
- Experience working for an international humanitarian organisation in Yemen (or the Middle East) preferred
- Experience with programs, program development, proposal writing, or implementation a plus.
- Experience in coordination of various stakeholders a plus
- Experience solving complex issues through analysis
- Has a strong international network within advocacy and policy settings
- Understanding of the issues concerning the INGO sector with an in-depth knowledge in communications, marketing and/or fundraising
- Demonstrable track record of leading change, resulting in significant results for the organisation and their stakeholders.
Desirable
- High Fluency in writing and presentation skills in Arabic
Application Information:
Please attach a copy of your CV and cover letter with your application, and include details of your current remuneration and salary expectations. A copy of the full role profile can be found at www.savethechildren.net/careers/apply
“Save the Children is an equal opportunity employer. Women are strongly encouraged to apply”
Same Posting Description for Internal and External Candidates