Deputy Director, Quality and Partnerships in Emergencies

IRC’s Emergencies & Humanitarian Action Unit

The IRC’s Emergencies & Humanitarian Action Unit (EHAU) is responsible for IRC’s global emergency preparedness and response activities. The mission of the EHAU is to expand and improve IRC’s ability to help affected communities survive in acute emergencies and hard to reach contexts by investing in people, systems, and solutions to complex humanitarian challenges. The EHAU team achieves this mission through ongoing thorough risk analysis, investing in capacity strengthening of frontline humanitarians, partnership with local actors, offering collaborative support and technical assistance to teams working in emergencies and hard to reach places, and deploying and supporting world class emergency response staff as they help people affected by acute crisis situations.

Job Overview

The Deputy Director, Quality & Partnerships in Emergencies, will play an exciting new role in the EHAU leadership team. This role sits at the intersection of two closely related commitments in the IRC’s strategy action plan for emergencies – to partner better and more, and to improve the quality and impact of IRC’s programming. The Deputy Director will work across two pillars of the EHAU team to support alignment and integration of partnership commitments within technical program teams; to promote ongoing learning and evolution as we operationalize partnership principles in our work; and to ensure we are able to measure and speak to our performance and progress related to partnerships and the quality of programming. They will be managed in partnership by the Senior Director for Quality in Emergences and the Director of Strategic Initiatives for EHAU, helping to steward shared direction and collaborative action across these teams and other stakeholders in EHAU. The Deputy Director will work closely with other stakeholders across the EHAU team, including but not limited to Regional Emergency Directors, Senior Technical Advisors, and the Strategic Projects Officer; and with counterparts outside EHAU focused on similar themes of program quality, strategy and partnerships.

Major Responsibilities

Strategy planning and implementation

• Play a leading role in the implementation of the organizational strategy action plan (SAP) for emergencies, and the accompanying SAP Implementation Plan for the Quality in Emergencies and Strategic Initiatives teams

• Develop of strong tools building off of the experience of existing country and regional processes to track progress toward emergency SAP metrics and commitments, in partnership with IRC regions and country teams

• Socialize and promote the centrality of the emergency SAP to guide organizational approaches and initiatives related to emergencies, such as IMPACT and other cross-departmental and sectoral work streams

• Train and support ERT and EER Coordinators in QiE on relevant partnership tools, systems and processes, and work with STAs to ensure that partnership approaches are incorporated into sector specific emergency response tools and partnerships

• Support the quality in emergencies team to design and deliver the rollout and socialization of emergency response and preparedness tools across IRC program quality and delivery teams

Quality & Partnerships

• Participate in the development and rollout of an emergency preparedness framework that includes and promotes program quality and partnerships in emergencies, across IRC regions/country programs

• Manage the integration of partnership support, routines and principles into the terms of references and practices of Quality in Emergency team members

• Promote coherent ways of working, understanding of roles and responsibilities, and structure within responses across ERT focused on partnerships and direct programming

• Collaborate with Regional Emergency Directors to develop processes and promote a detailed working knowledge of the civil society landscapes in countries/regions on the IRC Watchlist, and where possible the establishment of a network of strategic partner relationships in these contexts

• Work with the EHAU MEAL team to develop a system and ensure systematic partner feedback on IRC’s management of and performance in partnerships, as well as appropriate action in response to the feedback

• Work with the EHAU MEAL team to promote and refine systems for knowledge management and maintenance in the quality in emergencies team

• Contribute to learning and advocacy targeting donors and policymakers to promote approaches and requirements that are appropriate and responsive to the priorities and realities of partners, and that advance commitments to equity

• As required, deploy to lead emergency response / start-up in complex or large-scale emergencies (15-20% of time and maximum 6 weeks for single deployment) focusing on strategic design and implementation between partnership and program teams. This is inclusive of but not limited to responsibilities such as:

o Rapid needs assessments, evaluation efforts, or other accountability support functions;

o Short-term DDP or emergency leadership roles, including scoping missions;

o Technical coordination and strategic leadership within a complex response;

Team culture

• Build and maintain strong working relationships with EHAU colleagues and continually promote a culture of partnership and collaboration

• Cultivate and maintain a positive, collaborative, safe and protective work environment, while additionally setting an example of ‘One IRC’-way of working within the team, EHAU and the wider organization

• Contribute to efforts across EHAU to promote gender equality, diversity and more inclusive practice across our programming and our ways of working

Key Working Relationships:

Position is managed in partnership by: Senior Director for Quality in Emergences and the Director of Strategic Initiatives for EHAU

Works closely with: Regional Emergency Directors, EHAU Senior Technical Advisors, and the EHAU Strategic Projects Officer; and with counterparts outside EHAU focused on similar themes of program quality, strategy and partnerships

Requirements:

• Experience in leadership in complex humanitarian programs

• Demonstrated experience in strategy development and leadership

• Experience working with partners to advance shared goals, in line with principles of transparency, mutuality and equity

• Experience assessing, designing and implementing response programming in acute emergency settings

• Excellent project and task management skills

• Strong capacity to establish and maintain lasting professional relationships

• Demonstrated abilities to build consensus among and facilitate decision making across multiple partners

• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to facilitate effective collaboration, communication and team work

• Ability to work with multi-cultural and multi-disciplinary teams and shown ability to develop positive relationships with global, local and remote team members

• High-energy and a proactive nature — positive can-do attitude, results-driven, exceptional problem-solving

• Effective interpersonal skills; can work seamlessly across countries, cultures, and organizational units

• Strong written and verbal communication skills

Language Skills: Fluency in English required; fluency in French, Arabic and/or Spanish desirable

Qualified candidates residing in any location where the IRC operates are encouraged to apply.

EHAU strives to build a diverse and inclusive team at all levels who as individuals, and as a group, embody our culture statement creating a working environment characterized by critical reflection, power sharing, debate, and objectivity for us to achieve our aspirations as a unit and deliver the best possible services to our clients.

The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way – Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Accountability and Equality. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity, and Anti-Retaliation

Narrowing the Gender Gap: The International Rescue Committee is committed to narrowing the gender gap in leadership positions. We offer benefits that provide an enabling environment for women to participate in our workforce including flexible hours (when possible), maternity leave, transportation support, and gender-sensitive security protocols.