Partnership Finance Manager, Occupied Palestinian Territories

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world’s largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 40 countries and more than 25 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees delivers lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you’re a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future.

The IRC began planning to reopen an oPt country program in mid-2022 and launched an emergency response in Gaza in October 2023. The organization is currently supporting a network of local partners in both Gaza and the West Bank to sustain critical health, protection, food security, cash, education, and early childhood development interventions. The IRC is also deploying emergency medical teams to provide surge clinical capacity in hospitals and other health facilities.

The IRC is working to scale its emergency response while building a longer-term oPt country program in parallel. This effort is being jointly managed by the Emergencies and Humanitarian Action Unit (EHAU) and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, with a view to eventually transition the country program fully under the MENA region.

Position overview

The Partnerships Finance Manager is a key position which provides support to IRC partners’ programs in Palestine. The position will provide financial oversight for IRC’s sub-awardees. The position will be responsible for capacity building for sub-awardees to build their financial management and administrative capacity. The Partnerships Finance Manager will review sub-awardee budgets at the proposal stage, participate in pre-award due diligence processes, document all financial matters related to sub-awardees’ finances to assure audit readiness, and manage sub-awardee finance documents/reports including budget review, financial report review, and providing guidance and training related to finance to sub-awardees in order to strengthen their capacity. The Partnerships Finance Manager acts as the focal point for sub-awards’ financial and compliance aspects, including ensuring sub-awardees’ high-quality financial monitoring.

This position reports to the Partnership Coordinator, with a technical reporting line to Deputy Director Finance.

Major Responsibilities

Partner Financial Management

• Ensure partner management complies with the PEERs manual (selection, capacity building, reporting, monitoring and verifications and the working group, etc.

• Participate in the Partner Capacity Assessment (PCA) of potential partners as required and contribute to efforts to analyze and manage material risks identified collaboratively.

• Work collaboratively and supportively with partners to develop and finalize budgets and budget amendments, and (in the case of milestone-based partnership agreements) determine the costing of milestones.

• Review draft partnership agreement terms relating to advances, reporting, and any special conditions relating to finance.

• For cost-reimbursable partnership agreements, agree with partners on the specific documentation required to support each type of cost, adjusting standard requirements to the operating context and the partner.

• Participate in Partnership Project Opening, Review, and Closure Meetings to review successes, challenges, and lessons learned with the partner and capture effective finance practices for future partnerships.

• Work collaboratively with partners to ensure the timely provision of funding to partners in accordance with the partnership agreement to ensure program continuity, ensuring clear communication with the partner and efficient resolution where, for whatever reason, this is not possible.

• Collaborate with partners to ensure completeness, correctness, and accuracy of financial reports and cash requests.

• Review partner financial reports (and narrative reports for consistency) and supporting documents to ensure compliance with the partnership agreement, Donor regulations, and IRC policy, and provide feedback to the partner as appropriate.

• Monitor partner budgets and actual spending in collaboration with technical coordinators, identifying issues and working proactively and collaboratively with partners to resolve them.

• Lead timely and effective finance review and reflection (monitoring), identifying appropriate follow-up actions, and providing completed reports to Partnership Lead.

• Assist in the close-out of partnership agreements, including in relation to financial verification and asset confirmation.

• Participate in reviewing the performance of the partner, IRC, and partnership, including successes, challenges, and lessons learned.

• Review partners’ internal record retention system to ensure compliance with IRC policy and the local laws.

• Ensure partners have sufficient procedures for retention of documents proper and systematic filing for ease of access.

• Review and consolidate cash projections submitted for all partners and share with the Finance Coordinator

• Ensure that timely cash transfers to the partners

• Core member of the Partnerships Working Group (PWG), actively participate in all meetings.

Partner Support & Capacity Sharing

• Provide Integra users/members with capacity support, information, tools, and other resources to improve performance and achieve team/organizational objectives.

• Provide finance and accounting training and mentoring support to partners in accordance with partner project support plans, with a focus on supporting the partner to strengthen financial management systems and capacities that are responsive to the needs of the partner.

Internal Financial Management

• Perform financial review of purchase requests (PRs) and bid analysis, ensuring correct coding, availability of funds, and IRC procedures for all transactions related to partner management.

• Perform expense review of payments, travel, and advances to ensure adequate supporting documentation and compliance with IRC policies and procedures for all transactions related to partner management.

• Prepare and upload in Integra all partner’s financial report journals and payments journal entries and completeness and accuracy prior to posting.

• Maintain all partners’ advance tracker and expenses liquidations and work closely with the Deputy Director, Finance and Finance Coordinator to reconcile all partners’ advances.

• Ensure Power BI reports for partner budgets, spending and spending plans are reviewed and shared with stakeholders.

• Seek from the Deputy Director, Finance guidance on accounting and internal control issues

Other

• Any other relevant duties as assigned by the Partnership Coordinator and Deputy Director, Finance.

Job Requirements:

• Master’s degree in accounting, Finance, and Economics or equivalent

• Significant experience and at least five (5) years in a similar position

• Have good experience working in development or humanitarian intervention, including at least five years of living experience, and working in the field concerned with developing countries and countries in transition.

• Knowledge of donor procedures such as ECHO, SIDA, EU, USAID, CDCS, etc.

• Knowledge of ERP-based systems (Microsoft Dynamics 365)

• Ability to carry out responsibilities independently with minimum technical support.

• Ability to work and manage a team and be committed to staff training and development.

• Ability to operate effectively in a complex environment.

• Ability to identify appropriate priorities and respond effectively to multiple simultaneous needs.

• Good knowledge of English and Arabic (good writing and oral communication skills)

• Very good organizational skills

• Pro-active and autonomous

• Proven interpersonal skills enabling him/her to interact with people from different cultural backgrounds.

• Courtesy and good written and oral communication

• Act with integrity while conducting business in the name of IRC and strictly adhering to the IRC Way.

• Proficiency with computer tools

Languages:

Professional fluency in spoken and written English and Arabic is required.

**Standard of Professional Conduct:**The IRC and the IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in the IRC Way – our Code of Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Accountability, and Equality.

Commitment to Gender, Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion: The IRC is committed to creating a diverse, inclusive, respectful, and safe work environment where all persons are treated fairly, with dignity and respect. The IRC expressly prohibits and will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, retaliation, or bullying of the IRC persons in any work setting. We aim to increase the representation of women, people that are from country and communities we serve, and people who identify as races and ethnicities that are under-represented in global power structures.