DEPUTY HEAD OF OPERATIONAL CELL 1 – DRECO (BASED IN AMMAN)

GENERAL CONTEXT

Médecins Sans Frontières is an international independent medical-humanitarian organization, which offers assistance to populations in distress, to victims of natural or man-made disasters and to victims of armed conflict, without discrimination and irrespective of race, religion, creed or political affiliation.

MSF is a civil society initiative that brings together individuals committed to the assistance of other human beings in crisis. As such MSF is by choice an association. Each individual working with MSF does it out of conviction and is ready to uphold the values and principles of MSF.

The MSF movement is built around six operational directorates. MSF OCBA is one of those directorates. The operations are implemented by field teams and the mission coordination teams; together with the organizational units based in Barcelona and decentralized in Nairobi, Dakar and Amman. The field operations are guided and supported by 5 Operational Cells, the Emergency Unit and other departments supporting operations, including the Logistics & Supply Chain Department.

GENERAL OBJECTIVE AND JOB ENVIROMENT

MSF OCBA works in operating environments characterized by violence and conflict and has a very strong emergency mind-set. The operational cell 1 portfolio has a strong focus on, but is not limited to, monitoring the Middle East area. The missions managed by the cell currently include: Syria, Yemen, and Palestine; the cell is also in the process of closing Turkey mission and will take over Afghanistan mission in the coming months.

The DRECO role provides continuous and consistent support to the Head of the Operational Cell (RECO), to ensure the implementation of the portfolio’s plans to high quality standards in a secure and safe manner. The DRECO will support the development of strategic planning that takes full account of the MSF OCBA strategic orientations and priorities. The DRECO will support the RECO and the missions to deal with key operational challenges. The DRECO provides the supervision of the portfolio’s logistics, finance, and human resources activities ensures those activities are coherent with, and supportive of, the portfolio’s strategic planning. S/he will provide support to the RECO and missions in the different aspects of emergency preparedness and implementing the emergency interventions.

The DRECO will build effective working relationships with different MSF OCBA technical referents and advisors. S/he will also support the RECO in the engagement and the coordination with different MSF regional offices and entities including but not limited to the liaison between Cell and Centre for The Advancement of Humanitarian Medicine CHAM. As part of the cell team, the DRECO will play a key facilitative role within the cell in organizing the information management and organizing the key planning moments. As part of the operations department, the DRECO will participate in the different departmental meetings and will take an active role in contributing to the MSF OCBA’s strategic orientation and strategies.

The DRECO is a full member of the operational cell 1 team based in Amman. S/he works closely with the Cell members and Heads of Missions. The DRECO reports hierarchically and functionally to the RECO. The position requires frequent travel to the field (up to 40% of the time), some of which are at short notice.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Support to general security management

• Provide sparring and contrasting with the RECO on security strategies and their impact on the operation and on the practical security measures.
• Lead any security-related processes, as delegated by the RECO.

2. Support to applied security management

• Ensure the implementation of applied security measures in the missions in appropriate time.
• Collaborate with the TELOCO (the cell’s Logistic Advisor) to ensure the logistics procedures and processes are in coherence with the Security Guidelines of the mission.
• Act as the cell Focal Point for security training and simulations organization with the cell members and missions.

3. Support of emergency preparedness and response

• Collaborate with and give technical support to the teams in the field in all phases of emergencies (surveillance, preparation, design of project proposal, planning and budgeting, monitoring and evaluation, reporting, follow up and re- orientation, exiting and closure).
• Together with the RECO, define and support the mission emergency response strategies and ensure its alignment with OCBA strategic orientations.

4. Support to certain Cell’s Advisors

• Supervise and support resources and departments functions in the portfolio (logistics, human resources and financial functions) during the planning seasons and throughout the planning cycle and interventions.
• Ensure that these certain departments’ activities are aligned with the cell operational ambitions and plans and with OCBA Operational orientations.
• In the follow up of the regular programs and emergency interventions, in addition to make sure the proposed projects components are coherent with the project’s objectives and overall mission strategy.
• Together with the RECO, define objectives, conduct evaluations and performance follow-up of the different members of the cell.
• Ensure key management tools are maintained and updated including security protocols and documents, regular sitreps and reports and budget follow up.

5. Operations Management and Support

• Contribute to the definition of MSF OCBA operational vision, strategies, and orientations.
• Contribute to analysing context and defining the strategy of missions within the portfolio.
• Participate in providing the operational input to define the strategies for the rest of the portfolio departments.
• Review and ensure quality of key documents, with adherence to agreed strategies, plans and processes, implementation of agreed decisions.
• Ensure monitoring and analysis of the missions’ reports (Annual and quarterly reports, Sitreps, etc.) and other management information, organise discussions and feedback process in the portfolio and with the missions.
• Monitor implementation of management decisions and actions agreed within the portfolio, between the portfolio and missions and with other MSF entities and offices.
• Flag serious issues and that affect programme implementation and engage in proactive identification of practical solutions.
• Support the identification of appropriate technical support for programme implementation and work with relevant technical referents to ensure follow up on programmatic quality issues.
• Support the organisation of the portfolio annual planning and regular reviews and ensure the follow up of the major operation decisions.

6. Coordination and information management

• Coordinate the internal cell activities, manage, facilitate in organizing the cell planning meetings and events.
• Ensure key operations monitoring information is collated and disseminated to the appropriate team members – contributing to the analysis and presentation.
• Ensure coordination of follow up to key operation/implementation issues, facilitating the timely delivery and follow up of required resources, information.
• Act as the portfolio focal person for projects and activities capitalization and evaluations.
• Carry out technical briefings and debriefings, involving technical referents when needed, and identify individual training needs.
• Work closely with other MSF OCBA departments and units (evaluations, fundraising, PCA, etc.) and take responsibility of some transversal dossiers as required.

7. Additional responsibilities as delegated by the RECO as bellow but not limited to:

• Schedule briefing, debriefing and day to day running of the cell, manage meetings, invitations reporting and documentation in SharePoint and follow up actions regular and events meetings.
• Join the operations department coordination meetings, emergency committees and security core group meetings.
• Represent the cell in the weekly Punto Info when the RECO is not available.
• Capacity to backup RECO in his absence.

SELECTION CRITERIA

• Previous experience in humanitarian settings, with minimum of 3 years of operations management with MSF (field coordinator or higher) in contexts of conflicts and humanitarian emergencies.
• Demonstrable experience in resource (HR, Finance, Logistics) mobilization and management, including budget monitoring and reporting.
• Proven experience in security management, including developing/reviewing security guidelines.
• Strong analytical and advisory skills, with basic understanding of medical data and epidemiological analysis.
• Ability to translate complex contexts and summarize the core elements into analysis with clear conclusions and recommendations.
• Experience of implementing continuous improvement or knowledge management initiatives in a large organization is strongly recommended.
• Fluency in English is essential, and a second working language (preferably Spanish, French, or Arabic) is strongly recommended.
• Advanced knowledge of Windows setting as a user (mainly Word and Excel), and new IT.
• Ability to travel, often at short notice, and occasionally to remote and insecure locations.

CONDITIONS

• Position based in MSF OCBA Hub in Amman, Jordan (Middle East Unit).
• Full-time job.
• Minimum commitment with the position of 3 years.
• Annual Gross Salary: level HQ-5A (divided in 12 monthly payments) + secondary benefits based on MSF OCBA Reward Policy. Subjected to local conditions.
• Travel 40% of the time to the field (on short notice).
• Starting date: ASAP.