Business Development Recruitment Advisor – Global People Team

Location: Portland, Oregon or Washington D.C. or Any Mercy Corps Europe Office

Position Status: Full-time, Regular, Exempt

Salary: US: Minimum Starting Salary for this role will be $64,000 commensurate on experience, based on local benchmark for candidates outside of the United States.

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have long term impact.

Program / Department Summary

The People Team ensures that Mercy Corps has the resources, systems, culture and support in place to drive an ambitious global mission while ensuring our individual team members thrive. With support and contributions of the individual units, including Global Talent Acquisition, Global Talent Management, Global Human Resources, Systems and Analytics, Total Rewards, Gender, Diversity and Inclusion (GDI), the People Team seeks to foster and achieve fulfilled, equitable, inclusive, diverse, and high performing global teams. We do this through recruiting and retaining the best global talent and shaping this talent into our future leaders through equitable development opportunities, and then by driving strategic partnership at all levels of the organization. We steward the organizational culture through our systems, structure, and processes and align conversations around diversity, equity, and inclusion, wellbeing, total rewards, learning and safeguarding priorities; and connect all of this to our core operations and overall mission.

The New Initiatives (NI) Team leads on institutional fundraising with the U.S. government for the most strategic, complex, and impactful opportunities, linking their program development, strategic partnership, and proposal management expertise with Technical Support Unit subject matter and field expertise to deliver winning concepts.

The Position

The Recruitment Advisor is a critical part of the Global Talent Acquisition and New Initiatives teams and supports all Mercy Corp’s global recruitment efforts, with specific focus on Proposal recruiting by providing full-cycle talent acquisition and recruitment support. The Global Recruitment Advisor is a high-energy individual who is an exceptional relationship builder, strategic planner, and employs creative approaches to sourcing talent. They are experienced in recruiting for new business development and come with a robust global network of highly qualified professionals spanning multiple international development sectors. As part of the Global Talent Acquisition team, this individual is responsible for identifying exceptional talent to advance Mercy Corps’ mission. The role has three focuses; first, work with key stakeholders to anticipate and plan for upcoming people needs; second, oversee and manage full-cycle recruitment, including designing and implementing effective strategies; lastly, build collaborative internal relationships and effective external networks. The Recruitment Advisor will increase Mercy Corps’ talent pool to ensure the agency’s global talent is representative of the communities we serve and is able to respond to the changing needs of the organization. They will implement industry “best practices” to recruit for individuals who are aligned with the organizational culture while building Mercy Corps as an employer of choice.

Essential Responsibilities

STRATEGY AND VISION

• Partner with field leaders and the New Initiatives team to track the pipeline of upcoming proposal opportunities and proactively take action in advance of talent needs.
• Advance the agency’s aim to have a global team that is representative of the places we work.
• Track and identify innovative trends in international talent acquisition, particularly in the international humanitarian aid sector.
• Identify areas of opportunity to strengthen the Talent Acquisition and broader People functions and proactively offer recommendations.

FULL CYCLE RECRUITMENT

• Take ownership for building and maintaining productive partnerships with New Initiative leaderships to plan for future talent needs.
• Deepen and widen the internal and external talent pools.
• Provide responsive, high-quality service to candidates with additional care for internal or former team members.
• Expand the capacity of hiring teams to identify talent via improved interview skills & ability to specific critical needs.
• Work closely with human resources professionals on country teams to identify strong national candidates, expand capacity, and ensure compliance with MC systems and processes.
• Work on New Initiatives recruitment portfolio including full lifecycle talent acquisition activities globally.
• Pivot focus as needed and as time allows to support non-New Initiatives recruiting, including Short Term Assignment (STA) recruiting.
• Support the development of tools to ensure national recruitment processes are aligned with global Mercy Corps practices and consistent with local labor context.
• Revise position descriptions and advertise positions through Jobvite on Mercy Corps’ website and on external portals.
• Shortlist candidates based on established requirements and present them to the hiring manager.
• Conduct phone interviews and provide summary notes to hiring managers then work with hiring managers to determine which candidates to invite for further interviews.
• Draft interview guides when appropriate and guide post-interview discussions, when appropriate, and help identify and execute next steps.
• Conduct reference checks and follow Mercy Corps established approval process to be able to negotiate offers.
• Utilize applicant tracking system (Jobvite) to manage recruitment from requisition to hire, ensuring compliance with Mercy Corps practices and applicable local laws.

COLLABORATION & NETWORKING

• Develop and maintain collaborative relationships with talent sources including technical networks, thought leaders and academic institutions.
• Assist in promotion Mercy Corps as an employer of choice by attending events promoting through social media, job boards and developing talent communities.
• Build effective partnerships with internal stakeholders to support current needs and develop plans for future needs
• Collaborate with all members of the People team to develop best practices, promote continuous improvement and foster information/idea sharing.
• Understand the operational impact of this role within the broader context of the organization, with a particular appreciation of the interdependency of effective HR practices and interdepartmental collaboration.
• Communicate in a manner that facilitates cross-functional partnerships and is result oriented.
• Develop meaningful relationships with leadership teams that facilitate problem solving and strategic planning.
• Respond to and address questions, issues, and inquiries within a reasonable period of time and keep stakeholders continuously up-to-date.
• Identify trends in commonly escalated issues and recommend/implement solutions as appropriate.
• Anticipate and adapt to changing support needs within the organization and be an active participant in change management.

Supervisory Responsibility

None

Accountability

• Reports Directly To: Global Talent Acquisition Director with dotted line to New Initiatives Senior Director
• Works Directly With: Global Talent Acquisition Team, People Teams, Proposal Teams drawn from various HQ and Country Teams

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

• Bachelor’s degree of equivalent in human resources, business administration, social science or relevant field
• 4+ years of experience with recruitment and talent acquisition related activities
• Experience with successful sourcing strategies for globally representative and diverse candidates
• Demonstrated experience working in a high-volume and complex recruitment environment
• Familiarity with USAID recruitment policies and experience with proposal recruitment is a plus.
• Proficiency in MS Office, applicant tracking systems and use of social media for sourcing talent – Jobvite experience a plus!
• Demonstrated interest in staffing and talent planning in international relief and development environments
• Ability to communicate, influence and problem solve effectively across diverse cultures and geographical distances with sensitivity

Success Factors

The successful candidate will be a quick learner who is excited to jump into a fast paced and high-volume recruitment atmosphere. The Advisor will be accustomed to the high pressure, quick turnaround nature of proposal recruitment with the need to identify multiple outstanding candidates in a short time period. They will also thrive on building high quality senior management teams that combine a variety of complementary skill sets along with compelling CVs that will help Mercy Corps win new programs and then implement effectively. The Advisor will be excited to earn the complexities of Mercy Corps’ hiring process and be flexible yet have an astute attention to detail and process. They will possess the ability to prioritize and manage multiple recruitments simultaneously, while remaining committed to providing quality support and communication to our candidates and hiring teams. They will be interested, resilient, and possess the ability to problem solve and make decisions while asking questions while needed. An ability to take the work seriously while maintaining a sense of humor and finding joy in the mission of Mercy Corps is critical.

Living Conditions

The position is to be based in either Portland, Oregon, Washington D.C. or London UK or Remote. Occasional travel may be required.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.

We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times.

As a safeguarding measure, Mercy Corps screens all potential US-Based employees. Any offers of employment or continued employment are dependent on the successful completion of the screens which include, but are not limited to our Background Check and Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme processes.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient, and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development

Covid-19 Vaccine Policy for US-Based Employees

Mercy Corps has determined that, in an effort to protect the health, safety, and well-being of all Mercy Corps employees working in the United States, all U.S.-based employees must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19, regardless of prior COVID-19 infection status.

This policy will be revised as needed to comply with federal, state, and local requirements, and to respond to changing guidance from public health authorities.

For new employees this requirement goes into effect within 10 business days of employment. Team members that travel are expected to comply with host-country requirements, including vaccinations. Failure to comply may impact your employment. Proof of vaccination or exemption must be provided.