Senior Operations Officer

The AFCW3 Country Management Unit (CMU) for Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali and Niger provides a range of financial, knowledge and convening services to help address the countries’ most complex development issues. The CMU covers staff in the four country offices (CO) supported by an Anchor team based at Headquarters in Washington DC and consisting of a Sr. Operations Officer (SOO) and a Program Assistant. The Country Director (CD) is based in Bamako, together with an Operations Manager, a Senior Operations Officer, and four Program Leaders (PL), coordinating and overseeing the AFCW3 CMU. The Country Managers (CM) for Burkina Faso, Chad, and Niger manage the day-to-day operations of the program for the respective country, with the assistance of an Operations Officer.

Duties and Accountabilities

The Senior Operations Officer will work in close collaboration with the Country Director (CD), the Operations Manager (OM), the Country Managers (CMs) and other members of the CMU management and country teams on all aspects of the work program to ensure strategic focus, integration and consistency across and within the portfolio.

More specifically (s)he will:

• Be the Focal point for the CMU in Washington DC; engage with corporate units on behalf of the CMU including DFI and others as needed.
• Contribute to strong relationships and liaison at headquarters (HQ) vis-a-vis Executive Directors, and support external outreach with other donors and civil society, as required.
• Coordinate AFCW3 country work with the Africa Region management, senior management, Global Practices (GPs), other Bank units and internal partners such as IFC, MIGA and IEG, as required.
• Work with the OM, PLs and Operations Officers to analyze and monitor work program delivery, portfolio and operational performance, quality and trends, and contribute to problem resolution with task teams.
• Prepare briefing notes and assist in determining appropriate Bank responses; and draft and review operational correspondence.
• Take the lead, or participate as a key team member, of important strategic products activities and contribute to or lead the preparation of management briefs and other major or complex internal reports.
• Serve as a liaison, coordination and integration point for the extended country teams; provide guidance and advice on country developments, operational priorities and strategies as needed; help foster teamwork and cross-sectoral cooperation on program preparation and implementation, and contribute to country team meetings and activities.
• Assist in country program management, including business planning and work program preparation, WPA budget allocation, monitoring of work program and budget implementation, quarterly reviews and progress reporting.

Selection Criteria

• Masters in a relevant field (Economics, Business Studies, Political Science, Finance, International Relations, or similar filed relevant to the Bank’s mission.)
• Minimum of 8 years of relevant experience with the World Bank or comparable institution. Thorough knowledge of Bank operational policies and business practices.
• Proven ability to think strategically, and to apply this to the design and implementation of country assistance programs.
• Extensive knowledge of WB instruments, policies, and procedures, and ability to proactively apply them.
• Strong level of attention to detail and ability to manipulate and interpret portfolio data to identify areas for focus of further monitoring.
• Outstanding inter-personal skills with proven ability to work cooperatively with a multi-disciplinary country team, other groups throughout the Bank, and development partners.
• Demonstrated initiative, leadership skills and drive for results, including ability to undertake diverse tasks within a rapidly changing and demanding environment on short deadlines.
• Strong problem-solving skills and solutions-oriented attitude.
• Political sensitivity and mature judgment; and ability to focus on big the picture, while not losing sight of details.
• Highly developed spoken and written communications skills; including the ability to draft concise briefs and reports and correspondence.
• Language proficiency in English and French (speak, read and write) is essential.

Source: https://worldbankgroup.csod.com/ats/careersite/JobDetails.aspx?id=28065&site=1