Director Program Operations

ROLE PURPOSE:

The Director Program Operations supports the Country Director in the overall management of the Country Office and is directly responsible for implementation of all programmes in country, the management of all field offices, emergency preparedness and response and supply chain for the Niger Country Office.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

As a member of the Senior Management Team:

• Support the CD on the day to day management of the Country Office with particular focus on cross departmental ways of working and collaboration for improved quality in programme design, budgeting, compliance and implementation.
• Demonstrate a collective leadership approach taking responsibility for and appropriately representing SMT decisions to staff and partners
• Support a working culture that reflects our values, promotes accountability, diversity and high performance
• Support the SMT in ensuring a field focus and a culture of learning, creativity and innovation that allows our people to deliver outstanding results for children and excellent customer service for our Members and donors
• Support the CD and PDQ Director in building strategic relationships and in representing the Country Office with host government authorities, donors, partner agencies including major institutional donors, and local and international NGOs as well as Members and SCI
• Provide strategic vision and direction for the Country Office, supporting the CD and PDQ Director in positioning SCI in Niger as a partner of choice for child focused programming in Niger.
• Support the development of programme strategies and annual plans ensuring participation of the operations team and active contribution to the CSP.
• Participate in conceptualizing and designing cost effective, innovative and high quality and safe programming to serve difficult to reach children and ensure quality enjoys a strong voice in programme implementation at all times.
• Help design and implement a coherent organizational structure that is consistent with agency practices, appropriate to program needs and cost effective.
• Ensure that the required support is provided promptly, at scale and in line with the rules and principles during emergencies, working closely with the Regional Office

Leadership of Program Implementation

• Provide leadership to the Operations team ensuring overall coordination of program implementation and appropriate delegation of responsibility for field delivery of high quality and safe programming in line with the objectives of the country strategy
• In collaboration with the Director of Program Development and Quality, develop and maintain One Save the Children vision for programming, as well as effective and efficient allocation of Country Office resources to achieve strategic goals and commitments
• In close coordination with the Director of Program Development and Quality and Director of Finance, participate in program proposal process and ensure that all programs progress in accordance with grant agreements, are completed within time and on budget
• Working with Director of Program Development and Quality, participate in conceptualizing and designing cost effective, innovative and high quality and safe programs to serve difficult to reach children
• Serve as overall budget holder for most programming at field level; manage and support budget holders for individual projects and grants
• Ensure programs are implemented in ways responsive to the communities, and children in line with Save the Children principles, values and strategic plan and following Save the Children compliance procedures. This includes working with government and national NGO-partners to strengthen national capacity
• Ensure preparation of timely and high-quality progress reports, program reports, and donor reports supporting project leads where needed to ensure our reports show case our work and remain compliant with donor formats and regulations.

Supply Chain

• Ensure that the CO logistics capacity and systems meet the SCI MOS and are able to satisfy the programming requirements

• Ensure appropriate and adequate emergency logistics procedures are detailed in the Country Office Emergency Preparedness Plan in order to enable rapid scale up

• Provide leadership to the CO Supply Chain department ensuring that all CO supply chain activities (fleet, assets, transport, supply chain, base setup etc) are coordinated

• Ensure goods and services procured are cost effective and of standard quality

• Ensure procurement processes are effectively implemented

• Work closely with the procurement team in negotiating the best deals with suppliers

Humanitarian Response Management

• Strengthen the country office readiness to respond to emergencies in line with global SCI humanitarian goal and benchmarks
• Ensure that the country office designs, updates and implements a full set of humanitarian preparedness actions, drawing on SC member input and resources
• Mount appropriate and timely responses at scale to all emergencies consistent with established benchmarks, plans and organizational policies, and in close cooperation with incoming surge teams
• Ensure that all country office staff across departments and sub offices are familiar with, adhere to and implement the procedures and processes detailed in the Rules and Principles for humanitarian response
• In coordination with Country Director and Program Design and Quality maintain consistent and coherent engagement in key inter-agency emergency preparedness and response coordination mechanisms including the Cluster system

Awards Management

• Ensure full ownership of awards management at field level
• Provide overall leadership to the awards team to ensure donor compliance are met throughout the life of the award
• In collaboration with the Director of PDQ, to ensure quality of reporting is met
• In collaboration with the Director of PDQ, to ensure the country office funding strategy is aligned with the Country Office Strategic Plan and that it is reviewed periodically to capture major changes
• To maintain oversight on the country office portfolio and regularly share main updates with the Country Director and the SMT.

Staff Safety and Security

• Ensure full ownership of Safety and Security policy and practice at field level and that Field Managers and Operations Managers maintain excellent working relationships with the Niamey based Safety and Security Director.
• Ensure that all safety and security minimum operating standards and in country guidelines and procedures are met by field offices
• Work closely with the Safety and Security Manager to promote a culture of security awareness and duty of care amongst staff across the CO.

Representation and Networking

• Proactively seek and maintain, active and regular working relationships with host government authorities, development, humanitarian and corporate donors and partner agencies (e.g., USAID, ECHO, SDC, EU, etc.), Scandinavian the UN system, and local and international NGOs for operations matters.
• Interacts regularly with the international donor and NGO community to ensure awareness of SC programmes and to collect up to date information about the plans and programmes of other actors.

Staff Management, Mentorship, and Development – Program Operations

• Work closely with Director of HR to ensure appropriate staffing within program operations, including sub office staff
• Ensure that all staff understand and are able to perform their role in an emergency
• Manage program operations team; define expectations, provide leadership and technical support as needed, and evaluate direct reports regularly
• Work closely with Director of HR to ensure the recruitment, training, and promotion of staff as appropriate and ensure availability of appropriate professional development opportunities for staff
• Incorporate staff development strategies and Performance Management Systems into team building process. Establish result-based system and follow up
• Manage the performance of all staff in the program operations work area through:
  • Effective use of the Performance Management System including the establishment of clear, measurable objectives, ongoing feedback, periodic reviews and fair and unbiased evaluations;
  • Coaching, mentoring and other developmental opportunities;
  • Recognition and rewards for outstanding performance;
  • Documentation of performance that is less than satisfactory, with appropriate performance improvements/ workplans

Other

• Serve as Acting Country Director as requested
• Represent the Country office as required
• Any other tasks as requested by the Country Director

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• A minimum of 10 years’ management experience in a corporate or an NGO environment, in a range of cultures including significant field operations experience running both emergency and development programs

• Previous experience (at Senior manager or Director level) of managing and developing a team and the ability to lead, motivate and develop others.

• Robust experience of NGO emergency program cycle management, and with experience of working within a complex and matrix organisation structure

• A very good understanding of at least three of the sectoral programs and a working knowledge of the program priorities of the Country Office

• Good knowledge of logistics, including procurement, supply chain, fleet management & inventory

• Significant knowledge of international humanitarian systems, institutions and donors, and of procedures, accountability frameworks and best practices in emergency management

• Substantial and proven experience and knowledge of effective financial and budgetary control and securing and managing grants from major institutional donors

• Solid project management skills related to organisational development projects and international, cross-functional teams with a proven history of delivering results

• Ability to analyze information, evaluate options and to think and plan strategically

• Demonstrated experience working on complex, multi-partner projects in an international setting

• An in-depth understanding of national and international development issues in particular in relation to children

• Previous experience of managing and developing a team and the ability to lead, motivate and develop others

• Ability and willingness to change work practices and hours, and work with incoming teams in the event of major emergencies

• Commitment to and understanding of Save the Children’s aims, values and principles including rights-based approaches

• Ability to think creatively to solve problems and find effective and efficient ways to accomplish goals

• Ability to make decisions, work under pressure on a number of competing tasks and meet deadlines

• Ability to work successfully in a complex political environment and on sensitive issues

• Willingness to travel to implementation sites for technical monitoring and supervision visits

• Excellent people management skills/experience and proven ability to create an environment which encourages team-working

DESIRABLE :

• Post graduate Masters degree in development or other social sciences
• Experience in, and/or knowledge of Niger or the region is preferred
• Excellent interpersonal, communication and presentation skills.
• Fluency in written and spoken French and English is mandatory
• Commitment to and understanding of Save the Children’s aims, values and principles including rights-based approaches
• Excellent personal organisational skills, including time management, and ability to meet deadlines and work under pressure

DURATION & TYPE OF CONTRACT: 36 MONTHS / INTERNATIONAL or NATIONAL CONTRACT

The Organisation

We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realise the right of children and to ensure their voices are heard.

We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:

• No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday
• All children learn from a quality basic education and that,
• Violence against children is no longer tolerated

We know that great people make a great organization, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children. We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive workplace where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued.

Application Information:

Please apply using a cover letter and up-to-date CV as a single document. Please also include details of your current remuneration and salary expectations.