Head of Programming I

Position description

As a member of the Country Program (CP) Senior Management Team, you will provide strategic direction, leadership, and management of the CP’s programming to ensure the establishment and successful implementation of high-quality programs serving the poor and vulnerable. Your leadership, program expertise, management oversight, partnership and business development skills will ensure that the CRS and its partners develop and deliver high-quality programming and continuously work towards improving program impact. You will play a critical role in advancing local leadership and ensuring the capacity of staff and local partners is strengthened to advance CRS and its partners strategic priorities, particularly localization and impact.

Background:

CRS opened the Greece program in 2016 in response to the refugee crisis, to support refugee families to meet their basic shelter and living needs. Since that time, CRS has partnered with local Caritas members, national and local government, UN entities and a range of church and civil society organizations, to enable asylum seekers and refugees to build self-reliance and facilitate their transition to independence, through urban shelter, multi-purpose cash assistance, social integration and livelihoods programming. Following eight years of implementing high quality programs and building strong partnerships, CRS/Greece and its partners are well positioned to further advance their localization and impact strategic priorities.

Roles and Key Responsibilities:

• In collaboration with the Country Manager (CM) and EMECA DRD/PQ, provide strategic direction for the design of the CP strategic frameworks and plans, to ensure continuing programs sustainability and scale through advancing local partnerships in line with regional and agency strategic priorities;
• Oversee the accompaniment and capacity strengthening and sharing with Caritas Hellas and Caritas Athens; and appropriate application of partnership concepts, tools and approaches; support them in accessing Gov’t of Greece, UN and other funding opportunities as prime recipients as appropriate;
• Ensure technical assistance and capacity strengthening for project teams and partners in project management standards and related MEAL, business development and operational activities. Identify training opportunities, develop training curricula and facilitate trainings and other learning events;
• Work with partners and staff to lead high-quality project design incorporating project management standards and MEAL methods, appropriate to scope and context, and incorporating technical advice and best practices from EMECA RTA expertise;
• Effectively manage talent and supervise. Manage team dynamics and staff well-being. Provide coaching, strategically tailor individual development plans, and complete performance assessment for direct reports. Contribute to developing staffing plans appropriate to the strategic plan of advancing localization and local partnerships;
• Ensure high quality documentation of impact and learning; including supporting team and partner learning through partnership reviews, program reflections and other learning events, reflecting on CRS and its partners experience over the past years;
• Create and maintain proper conditions for learning. Establish a safe environment for sharing of ideas, solutions, and difficulties, with the capacity to detect, analyze and respond quickly to deficiencies. Promote accountability, learning and knowledge management. Oversee implementation of the MEAL policy, as well as cross-sectoral and cross-department learning;
• Coordinate with CP operations leads to ensure appropriate project budgeting and efficient use and stewardship of project material sources;
• In coordination with other CP, partner and regional staff, oversee the business development cycle to ensure quality proposals per agency and donor standards;
• As a part of the Senior Management Team you will proactively manage and mitigate a range of risks, including financial, program and security.

Required Languages – Professional working proficiency in English.
Travel – The position requires travel about 10% of the time.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Excellent strategic, analytical, systems thinking, and problem-solving skills, with capacity to see the big picture and ability to make sound judgment and decisions;
• Excellent partnership and capacity strengthening skills. Ability to manage multiple, complex partnerships with Church, Govt. and UN/INGO agencies;
• Team leadership abilities with diverse/multi-disciplinary teams. Coaching/mentoring skills;
• Strong communications and presentation skills; able to develop tailored and persuasive messaging for varied audiences;
• Proactive, resourceful, solutions-oriented and results-oriented.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• Supervises a team of six senior national project and program managers, including a MEAL manager.

Key Working Relationships:

• Internal: Direct reports; EMECA Deputy Regional Director for Program Quality; regional technical advisors and other regional staff; technical advisors in the Humanitarian Response Department; HQ Security colleagues; colleagues in Overops departments, USOps, Finance, HR, Audit and Charitable Giving;
• External: Caritas Greece and Athens, donor agencies, host country government agencies, international and national non-governmental organizations, CI agencies, UN agencies.

Qualifications:

Basic Qualifications:

• Master’s Degree in International Development, International Relations or relevant field;
• Minimum of five years of relevant field-based program management, at least three years of middle/senior management experience;
• Experience in the development of successful proposals, reports, strategic alliances, project design, project management, and monitoring and evaluation;
• Experience in partner capacity strengthening, staff development, training, and mentoring, as well as in team building and strategic planning initiatives. Experience working with Church partners is a plus;
• Experience in community development, community mobilization, or similar grassroots, self-help initiatives;
• Demonstrated experience successfully managing a variety of complex, high-value projects implemented through local partners with funding from multiple international donors, including UN agencies and European Govts.; understanding of relevant donor regulations;
• Experience with successful business development activities capturing public and/or private donor funding.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Staff management and team leadership experience, including coaching and mentoring senior program staff.
• Experience and expertise in refugee integration, social cohesion, livelihoods and cash programming through partnership models is preferred.
• Previous Head of Programs experience is a plus.
• Experience facilitating capacity development in program quality and business development, for CRS & partner senior programming staff.
• Experience mentoring, coaching and developing teams & organizations a plus.
• Knowledge of Government of Greece & European Union contexts, and experience with successful government partnerships, coordination and capacity/system strengthening is a plus.
• Excellent English writing skills, and Greek a plus
• Strong communications and presentation skills; able to develop tailored and persuasive messaging for varied audiences.
• Proactive, resourceful, solutions-oriented and results-oriented.
• Experience using MS Office packages (Excel, Word, PowerPoint), Web Conferencing Applications, information and budget management systems, and knowledge sharing networks.

Application instructions

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