Global Security Advisor

Cordaid works to end poverty and exclusion. We do this in the world’s most vulnerable and conflict-affected areas. We involve communities in order to restore trust and resilience and to increase people’s self-reliance. Where poverty, conflict and exclusion divide societies, we connect people and communities. Cordaid is one of the leading civil society organizations in the Netherlands and works in fragile contexts in the areas of health, resilience, private sector development, humanitarian aid and safety and justice, economic empowerment and food security. Cordaid has more than 1000 employees, working at Global Office in the Netherlands and at offices in the world’s most vulnerable countries. Within Cordaid we work on the basis of respect, accountability, sustainability and diversity & inclusion.

Cordaid is looking for a

Global Security Advisor

(36 hours)

Location: The Hague, in the Netherlands or any of the Cordaid countries of operation

The Global Security Advisor is responsible for the safety & security (hereafter: security) policy and its implementation in Cordaid, to ensure safe access to people in need.

The Cordaid security team is composed of the Global Security Advisor, Regional Security Advisors, and Security Officers, or Security Focal Points, in the countries where Cordaid programmes are operational, forming together a Community of Experts that share and continuously improve standardized ways of working. The Global Security Advisor reports to the COO.

What you do

Policy development

• Analyses international and local developments and translates these into recommendations for improvements in security policy, procedures, and guidelines, ensuring that Cordaid is continually incorporating best practice approaches.
• Responsible for guidance, operational support and oversight of Cordaid’s Security Risk Management (hereafter: SRM) framework, to enable the safest possible and most efficient conduct of programmes.
• Ensures that Cordaid’s SRM framework is reviewed in line with best practices from the sector, and in line with other Cordaid policies, standards and requirements.
• Actively contributes to the development of Country Security plans. Ensures these are on file for each country program, revised and updated as needed (but not less than once per year).

Monitoring compliance

• Knows the degree of embedding of, and compliance with, the security policy in the organization, and informs the relevant Country Office Director, Regional Security Advisor and Committee on Safety, Security and Crisis (hereafter: CSSC) of any areas of concern, non-compliance, or potential or suspected violations.
• Monitors the security situation in Cordaid programme countries, ensuring that country SRM is in line with Cordaid’s policy, principles and risk threshold.
• Is responsible for guiding, mentoring and supporting the Regional Security Advisors (hereafter: RSA).

Advice & training

• Supports the CSSC to manage critical security incidents and crises, including the evaluation of lessons learned. Prepares the CSSC and local crisis response team members for their relevant role in the crisis management team through regular training and simulations.
• Ensures that staff have the security skills and awareness that they need, ensuring compliance with Cordaid’s security training policy, providing briefings to new GO employees, and delivering and/or arranging training and presentations as required;
• Provides technical advisory services on security to Global Office and Country Offices, to improve SRM throughout the organization.
• Promotes of the overall security awareness within the organization, including hands-on collaboration with colleagues from other departments. Ensures that the supporting departments (HR, Finance and Logistics) have in place appropriate systems to facilitate good SRM.

Information & analysis

• Leads on the sharing of analysis of contextual trends and best practices in SRM, to enable the CSSC and other internal stakeholders to make informed decisions.
• Ensures that information concerning security is communicated to all relevant stakeholders (local and expat/Global Office staff, consultants, interns and third-party travellers).
• Maintains a database of security incidents and tracks their follow up. Reports to the CSSC quarterly and annually.
• Leads a Community of Experts (composed of Regional Security Advisors, local security officers or Security Focal Points, and the Global Security Advisor) and ensures that standard ways of working, templates and formats are accessible, known throughout Cordaid, and continuously improved.

Representation in national and international networks.

• Participates actively in the Dutch Security Network and EISF (European Interagency Security Forum), Caritas Security Network, INSO, UNDSS (Saving Lives Together) and other relevant (inter)national NGO security forums and organizations, actively seeking opportunities for formal and informal cooperation.
• Maintains an active network among key actors to ensure gathering of reliable security information, training opportunities and emergency support.

You have

• A Master diploma in a field relevant to Security Risk Management, or the experience that equivalates this.
• A minimum of 5 years’ experience in the area of Security Risk Management within a development or humanitarian organization;
• A strong understanding of humanitarian principles, codes of conduct, and the organizational culture on Non-Governmental Organizations;
• Thorough familiarity with acceptance-based models of security risk management;
• Experience with and understanding of the contextual dynamics and local actors, gained by working and / or travelling in at least several of the countries that Cordaid works in;
• Proven analytical skills, the ability to give others insight into complex issues;
• Excellent advice skills, knows to tactfully convince people internally and externally, even in situations of conflicting interests, crisis and time pressure.
• Able to work as member of multinational and multicultural teams, coordinate teamwork, and manage a variety of external and internal relationships to achieve results.
• Substantial experience as a trainer with a participatory training style, coupled with the ability to convey learning through mentoring.
• Experience in incident and crisis management, including the training of local and international crisis management teams;
• Knowledge of communications technology, including satellite communications and tracking systems.
• Excellent written and spoken English and French, and the ability to conduct trainings in these languages.
• Reliable, calm under pressure, excellent soft skills;
• Flexible to work irregular hours, in the evening or during the weekend, and the commitment to travel to insecure areas.
• The candidate must possess the right to work in the location in which they will be based.

What we offer

• a responsible position in a professional organization;
• a varied role where initiative is encouraged;
• a global organization with a focus on social entrepreneurship;
• a competitive compensation and benefits packages that align competitively with locations and regions around the world;
• a position for 1 year with the possibility of extension, starting as soon as possible.