Program Officer – EAP CSO Lifeline

Location: Preference is for this position to be based in the Washington, DC area, however, candidates in other U.S. locations as well as outside of the U.S. may also be considered and are welcome to apply.

POSITION SUMMARY

The Emergency Assistance Program (EAP) of Freedom House (FH) provides small, short-term grants to human rights defenders (HRDs) and civil society organizations (CSOs) that are under threat or attack because of their human rights work. EAP seeks a Program Officer to provide administrative and programmatic support for the Lifeline Embattled CSO Fund (www.csolifeline.org). Lifeline is a consortium of seven international NGOs that provides rapid response grants to local CSOs to address attacks, boost the resiliency of most at-risk organizations, and mount challenges to closing civic space. The Program Officer takes a leadership role in management of Lifeline’s rapid response grant-making and monitoring and evaluation and contributes essential support for the Lifeline team including financial, logistical, administrative, research, writing and data analysis assistance.

PRINCIPAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

• Subgrant Management and Implementation.
  • Assumes primary management for Lifeline’s rapid response grant portfolio, including evaluation and assessment of proposed projects, engaging with partners and sub-grantees to strengthen project design, monitoring progress, ensuring compliance, and capturing impact.
  • Oversees and provides technical assistance to ensure accurate and timely financial and narrative reporting from subgrant recipients.
• Consortium Management .
  • Assists in the management of a consortium of seven international partner organizations to foster effective and ongoing communication, identify areas of greater collaboration, ensure high-quality narrative and financial reporting, and encourage productive engagement between high-capacity consortium partners.
  • Takes leadership in planning and implementation of Lifeline annual retreat, including development of agenda, materials, travel arrangements, and other logistics
• Monitoring and Evaluation.
  • Assumes primary management for Lifeline’s monitoring and evaluation process, track and document grant activities and its impact to ensure that all grant objectives are met.
  • Identifies successes and failures in project implementation based on monitoring and evaluation and recommends program adjustments accordingly.
  • Explores learning opportunities from qualitative and quantitative data to enhance Lifeline’s impact, in partnership with EAP M&E specialist
• Operational and Financial Management.
  • Works closely with the EAP business manager to ensure track budget accurately and provide projections to help determine work plans and programming capacity.
  • Produces financial documents such as reconciliations and advance requests in line with FH and donor requirements.
  • Leads procurement process for program expenditures in line with supervisor’s instructions.
  • Coordinates travel logistics for self and others as appropriate.
  • Participates in recruiting and selection of interns; train, assign, organize, and review work of interns; provide performance feedback to supervisor.
• Outreach and Learning Agenda.
  • Contributes to Lifeline’s outreach and learning agenda by monitoring key developments in assigned countries and/or thematic portfolio, such as women’s rights, elections, freedom of association/assembly restrictions, and others based on personal interest and organizational priorities.
  • Conducts outreach with other civil society organizations to raise awareness about Lifeline grant opportunities, seek new sub-grant partners, and to expand Lifeline’s network of referral organizations.
  • Assumes management for discreet projects, as needed, to advance program strategy and enhance effectiveness and impact of Lifeline’s work.
  • Contributes to FH publications, and write web site content, press releases, briefings, policy papers, etc.
• Donor and Stakeholder Engagement.
  • Liaises with US State Department and other donors on items of import under the program mandate.
  • Prepares program quarterly, final, and ad-hoc reports for authorized internal and external audiences.
  • Develops relationships with other stakeholders including the diplomatic community, congressional staff, partners and grantees, policy community, other NGOs and think tanks, as directed by supervisor.
• Internal collaboration.
  • Engages as part of the overall emergency assistance team, including contributing to support for overall team needs.
  • Participates in FH activities geared toward organizational success and strength, including cross-team collaboration activities.
  • Maintains an effective and collaborative working relationship with all other FH units, in particular with regional program counterparts, and share and exchange information about the assigned program’s activities, approaches, and strategies.
• Travel .
  • Travels within U.S. and abroad as required.
• Other related duties as assigned .

QUALIFICATIONS:

Education:

• Bachelors’ degree in political science, human rights, social justice, international relations, anthropology or related field required
• Master’s degree in political science, human rights, social justice, international relations, anthropology or related field preferred

Experience:

• 3 to 5 years of directly related experience is required (such as human rights, democracy and rule of law, or civil society strengthening)
• At least 2 years of program management and grant management experience is required
• Experience managing US government grants is preferred

Technical Skills and Abilities:

• Professional proficiency in another language is preferred, such as Arabic, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Farsi/Dari, Turkish, Russian
• Strong computer skills with Microsoft Office, in addition to knowledge of database software
• Strong ability to communicate effectively in English, both verbally and in writing
• Proven ability to write effective and concise reports and maintain accurate documentation
• Proven program management skills from design to implementation, evaluation, and close-out
• Ability to oversee financial management and grants-related compliance requirements
• Ability to apply strong and accurate database and records management skills
• Ability to use digitally secure means of communication and secure digital databases
• Ability to work independently and as a member of a team to coordinate and lead the efforts of other professionals to effectively meet program needs
• Strong knowledge of human rights principles and mechanisms, and understanding of democracy promotion
• Ability to consistently apply good judgment in problem solving and decision making
• Ability to maintain the highest degree of confidentiality regarding all aspects of work at all times
• Strong ability to plan, organize, prioritize work, and multi task to meet tight deadlines
• Ability to apply superb attention to detail and consistently produce timely and error-free work

Personal Attributes and Characteristics:

• Strong work ethic and desire for personal and professional development. Demonstrable desire for personal excellence. Assesses own strengths and weaknesses; pursues training and development opportunities; strives to continuously build knowledge and skills.
• Deeply committed to nonpartisanship, exhibiting a strong and sustained commitment to the mission of Freedom House.
• Committed to a diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplace where all feel that they belong.
• Works as an effective team member, successfully balancing individual and team responsibilities.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• Salaries are commensurate with experience and based on pay grades that prioritize equity across the organization. Salary range for this role is $64,000 to $75,000 annualized, dependent upon experience.
• Candidates hired in the U.S. must possess authorization to work in the U.S. independent from Freedom House.

WORKING CONDITIONS:

General Working Conditions:

• General working office environment or telecommuting.
• May require long hours including evenings and weekends to complete tasks.

Work Environment and Physical Demands:
Essential functions are typically performed in an office setting or remote work. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

Freedom House is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate in its selection and employment practices. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, disability, or protected veteran status, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, or other non-merit factors.

Only candidates who have been selected for an interview will be contacted.

EOE M/F/D/V

Diversity makes our work stronger. We actively seek a diverse applicant pool and encourage candidates of all backgrounds to apply.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this description indicates the general nature and expectations of work performed by employees assigned to this position. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications required of employees assigned to this job and cannot reasonably encompass all specific job tasks that an employee may be required to perform. Employees are required to follow any other job-related instructions and perform job-related duties as may be reasonably assigned by their supervisor. Freedom House may add, change, or remove essential and other duties at any time.