The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world’s largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 50 countries and more than 25 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees deliver lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you’re a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future.
The IRC began working in Myanmar in May 2008 with emergency response and early recovery interventions for communities affected by Cyclone Nargis. Since then, the IRC has broadened its portfolio with health, protection, WASH, and shelter programs aiming to support displaced, crisis-affected and vulnerable communities to survive, recover, and gain control of their futures. IRC’s current programming in Myanmar has a strong humanitarian focus and aims to reach people affected by the national crisis and escalating conflict that has spread across the country following the February 2021 coup, together with pre-existing caseloads of IDPs and marginalized and stateless communities. In addition to direct service provision, a critical component of IRC’s program strategy in Myanmar involves support to and through local partners, and IRC’s portfolio includes a range of local partners working across multiple sectors. The IRC currently works in Rakhine, Chin, Kachin, Northern Shan, Kayah and Kayin States and implements an annual portfolio of over $16 million.
Job Summary:
We are seeking a visionary and experienced program leader with a hands-on senior management record in humanitarian programming in a complex context. S/he must be able to motivate and lead a diverse and committed team and provide pro-active representation and engagement within the humanitarian community, with funding partners, with authorities, and to international policymakers. S/he must also demonstrate sound financial and operational management skills and have solid experience managing in highly complex operating environments. In return, IRC promises a prominent role in one of the most testing and rewarding environments for humanitarian assistance globally, and an opportunity to contribute to delivering real improvements for crisis-affected people in Myanmar. The position of Deputy Director of Programs (DDP) is a member of the Senior Management Team and is integral to the successful implementation of IRC’s programs in Myanmar. Working under the direction of the Country Director (CD), the DDP is responsible for overall program leadership in the areas of strategy, program delivery, emergency preparedness and response, program quality and promoting strategic growth. In coordination with the Country Director, the DDP builds and sustains strong donor relationships. S/he must be able to motivate and lead a diverse staff as well as effectively manage programs, partnerships and budgets. This position oversees the program team responsible for programs delivery, program excellence, partnerships, Grants management and MEAL.
Responsibilities:
Program Design and Implementation
• Coordinate with the relevant departments at all levels during programme design, implementation and monitoring.
• Establish a system to promote/document programme learning and development.
• Enhance the capacity of Staff, partners and stakeholders on programme management.
• Ensure issues of gender equality and protection mainstreaming are integrated into program design.
• Work with the senior management team to develop/ revise the operational budget for the fiscal year based on relevant situational parameters including a detailed pipeline analysis.
• In collaboration with supply chain and finance functions, support Technical Coordinators to develop and update item forecasts, spending plans, Implementation Plans and M&E frameworks monthly/as needed.
• With support from the Country Director, ensure spending is monitored in a timely manner and corrective actions are taken by relevant units as needed.
• Maintain strong working relationships with Technical Units and Technical Advisors to ensure adequate remote and in-country support in line with country office needs and strategic direction.
• Provide on-going problem-solving guidance for field offices regarding programmatic issues, planning issues, and difficulties encounters with local authorities and partners.
• In collaboration with the Field leads, Technical Program Coordinators, develop IRC Myanmar emergency preparedness and response plans to help continually monitor the evolving conflict and humanitarian context and needs then channel analysis to SMT and EHAU.
Strategic Action Plan (SAP)
• Ensure all country program colleagues are familiar with the Strategic Action Plan (SAP) and that all programs are in line with IRC Sierra Leone’s strategy.
• Follow up on SAP – implementation plan (SAP-IP) actions with key focal points identified in the plan.
• Develop and manage the FY24 SAP budget for the country program, ensuring expenses are reviewed and re-forecasted monthly.
Grant and Partnership Management
• In collaboration with finance and operations, contribute to the development and periodic reforecasting of the annual operating budget.
• Develop systems to ensure that programming staff are well trained to properly manage project budgets.
• Identify opportunities to diversify the IRC Myanmar Country Program’s portfolio working in collaboration with the Grants Unit, Technical Coordinators and Technical Advisors, as well as regional business development colleagues.
• Work closely with the Grants Coordinator, sector coordinators, finance, and field management to hold efficient and effective Project Cycle Meetings.
• Support the Technical Coordinators and Grants Coordinator to conduct effective Project Cycle Management meetings, ensuring preparation is done in advance, and follow-up actions are implemented in a timely manner.
• In collaboration with the Grants Coordinator and Technical Coordinators, ensure that quality and timely Donor reports are generated and submitted to headquarters and donors.
• Ensure that risks limiting achievement of objectives are reported and rapidly addressed.
• Ensure the Country Program adheres to IRC’s Global partnership policy, Partnership Excellence for Effectiveness and Results System (PEERS).
• Support the identification of strategic partnerships and foster strong relationships, including providing capacity-building support as needed.
Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, Learning and Client Responsiveness
• Promote the use and understanding of IRC’s IMPACT standards and Outcome and Evidence Framework across the project cycle.
• Ensure all projects have monitoring and evaluation plans in place from the outset, which are reviewed at regular intervals.
• Support the M&E Coordinator to ensure the M&E team stays up to date on IRC M&E practices through regular communication with the Regional Measurement and Action Coordinator (RMAC) and training on the MEAL handbook.
• Ensure adequate budgeting of M&E, accountability and learning activities in all proposals.
• Support the MEAL Coordinator and Client Responsiveness Manager to roll out Client Response Mechanisms in line with the Client Responsiveness and Safeguarding Mechanisms SOP.
• Ensure the development and implementation of the Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) framework at all levels.
Staff management and Human Resources
• Directly supervise senior program and technical staff- Technical Coordinators and Managers for Health, Women Protection and Empowerment (WPE), MEAL Coordinator, Senior Grants Coordinator and Partnership Coordinator.
• With support from the Country Director and Technical Advisors, conduct regular 1:1 meeting with direct reports to receive updates on activities and set key actions.
• With support from the Country Director, conduct bi-monthly Program Coordination Meetings with program leads.
• With Support from the Country Director, set performance objectives and provide regular and constructive feedback for direct reports.
• Support the Country Director to initiate coordination/Extended management team meetings bringing together program, finance, operations and field sector leads.
• Maintain open communications with regional management staff, regional technical advisors, and HQ departmental staff.
Representation and Communications
• Assist the Country Director to represent the IRC with donors and government institutions, at interagency meetings, conferences, seminars or other events.
• In Collaboration with Communication Coordinator, lead the development and updating of informational materials such as brochures, fact sheets, articles, posters, audio-visual materials, etc. to promote the work of IRC among various stakeholders, in particular donors, international organizations, and IRC headquarters.
• Support the Country Director and the SMT, to ensure an effective communication mechanism is in place to facilitate access to information by all staff to enhance inclusive participation and empowering work environment.
Ethics and Integrity
• Adhere to and act in accordance with the IRC Way (code of conduct) and other IRC Safeguarding policies and procedures.
• Collaborate with the IRC’s Ethics and Compliance Unit (ECU) and SMT to ensure that complaints are handled according to policies and procedures.
• Ensure all partners under a sub-award contract adhere to their safeguarding policies and procedures and meet donor minimum requirements/standards.
Country Leadership
• Contribute to the effective leadership of the country program as an active member of IRC Myanmar Senior Management Team and Extended Senior Management team.
• Encourage constructive and productive relationships between program staff and operations, finance and field staff.
• Adhere to and act in accordance with the IRC Global HR Policies and Procedures and communicates through word and example a high standard of compliance with all applicable policies and regulations.
• Champion gender, diversity and inclusion throughout our operations and our programs.
Position Reports to: Country Director
Position directly supervises: technical Coordinators ( Health, WPE, WASH, NFIs and Protection), Grants and partnership Coordinator, MEAL coordinator among others.
Requirements:
Education:
• Master’s degree in relevant field (Development Studies, project management, Social Sciences, International Relations, etc) or equivalent experience.
• Training in project management – desired certification and experience conducting project management capacity building.
Work Experience:
• 8-10 years of experience, preferably in relief/development work with over 5 years in program leadership and senior management in a country program.
• Technical thematic experience in any program area including Protection, WPE, Health, MEAL, Grants management and WASH.
• Experience working with and coordinating with donors including EU, ECHO, foundation donors, UN, USG, FCDO, USAID etc. and knowledge of specific donor guidelines and priorities.
Demonstrated Skills:
• Demonstrated success managing multi-sectoral humanitarian programs with hundreds of employees in multiple locations within a country program is required.
• Strong experience is required in the management of humanitarian and post-conflict recovery projects, including specific skill in program design, people management, program budget management, project cycle management and donor relations (proposal negotiation, reporting, and donor compliance)
• Demonstrated excellence in proposal and report development and writing.
• Demonstrated excellence in human resource management, particularly in a multi-cultural environment, including techniques for staff development, training, motivation, and discipline.
• Direct experience in building the capacity of national NGOs and working with local partners including a clear understanding of NGO capacity building.
• Knowledge of best practices in project design, implementation and community participation techniques.
• Ability to take the initiative and proven ability to work creatively, innovatively and effectively to make decisions with limited direct supervision.
Languages Required/Preferred:
• Professional fluency in written and spoken English.
Computer/Other Tech Requirements:
• Proficiency with the Microsoft Office Suite, especially Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.
• Working knowledge of file sharing protocols such as Dropbox, SharePoint, etc., an advantage.
Working Environment: The position is based in Yangon with frequent travel (approximately 50%) required to project field site locations in rural areas of the country and approximately several international trips per year. The security situation in Myanmar is fluid and varies according to region, with regular spikes in violence and insecurity in some states.
**Standard of Professional Conduct:**The IRC and the IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in the IRC Way – our Code of Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Accountability, and Equality.
Commitment to Gender, Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion: The IRC is committed to creating a diverse, inclusive, respectful, and safe work environment where all persons are treated fairly, with dignity and respect. The IRC expressly prohibits and will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, retaliation, or bullying of the IRC persons in any work setting. We aim to increase the representation of women, people that are from country and communities we serve, and people who identify as races and ethnicities that are under-represented in global power structures.
How to apply
https://careers.rescue.org/us/en/job/req55309/Deputy-Director-Programs