Programme Director, Philippines

Conciliation Resources is an independent international organisation working with people in conflict to prevent violence, resolve conflicts and promote peaceful societies. We believe that building sustainable peace takes time. We provide practical support to help people affected by violent conflict achieve lasting peace. We draw on our shared experiences to improve peacebuilding policies and practice worldwide.

Our work seeks to contribute to building more peaceful societies through enhanced analysis and comparative knowledge and through supporting and implementing targeted and adaptive peacebuilding programmes. We seek to build knowledge through context and conflict analysis; contribute to change through long-term accompanying partnerships; and enhance context-specific peacebuilding practice through comparative learning. As part of our work, we undertake comparative learning events, bringing together people to share knowledge and resources on relevant conflict issues around the world.

In the predominantly Muslim region of Western Mindanao in the Philippines, we are working with communities to resolve local conflicts, and strengthen relationships between them and local authorities. Conciliation Resources has been working with local partners in Mindanao for many years, supporting communities to contribute to the Bangsamoro peace process and play an active and meaningful role in the creation of a new Bangsamoro.

As part of the International Contact Group that supported the signing of the 2014 Comprehensive Agreement, Conciliation Resources continues to provide support to the peace process between the Government of the Philippines and the ‘The Moro Islamic Liberation Front’ (MILF), including on the implementation of the agreement.

Job Purpose

The postholder is responsible for the overall management of Conciliation Resources’ Philippines team, providing strategic direction, leadership and operational management to the team to achieve both the Philippines’s peacebuilding goals and the organisation’s vision, mission and objectives. The postholder will have overall responsibility for decisions at country level in line with the approved policy and the country budget. They will work independently under the direct supervision of SEAP Department Director who is based in Melbourne, Australia.

In close collaboration with the operations team based in Melbourne, the Philippines Programme Director will provide oversight to all finance and administrative services in the Philippines office as well as for programmes in the Philippines, and promote best practices in human resources management.

They will keep abreast of socio-economic and political changes in the environment and undertake timely strategic review of the Philippines Programme Strategy ensuring continued relevance in the rapidly changing environment. The postholder is responsible for the successful implementation of a programme of diverse projects, promoting community inclusion and engagement in the Bangsamoro peace processes, contributing to research and analysis on peace and conflict drivers and dynamics.

This includes oversight of the full project cycle, including design, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, narrative and financial reporting. The Philippines Programme Director is responsible for setting and overseeing the management of the programme’s budget, and for ensuring the integrity and credibility of Conciliation Resources’ reputation in the Philippines. The postholder will lead the team’s efforts to secure new funding for our work in the Philippines, developing new project concepts as well as relationships with existing and new donors.

The Philippines Programme Director is a member of Conciliation Resources’ Team Leaders Forum, and a member of the South East Asia and the Pacific Leadership team.

The post is based in Cotabato and will involve frequent travel within the region.

Specific responsibilities and tasks

a. Strategic and operational planning

Set the Philippines programme’s overall strategic direction and lead the Philippine’s team in its annual financial and programmatic design and planning, including coordinating partner and other external input.

Plan for and review the impact of programme activities on staff and partner security, adhering to the principle of ‘do no harm’.

Contribute to the development of organisation-wide strategy, policy and cross-organisational learning and a member of organisation leadership teams.

Create and promote a positive, multicultural work environment that supports consistency throughout the organization’s strategy and operational methods.

Play an active role as part of the Conciliation Resources Senior Leadership Team, participating in processes regarding the strategic and organisational development of Conciliation Resources. Lead the Philippines team’s contribution to organisational policy development and comparative learning processes, including being available as a resource person to participate in appropriate activities and engage with Conciliation Resources’ trustees as required.

b. Programme management and partner support

Lead, support and oversee the work of the team and consultants in developing and implementing programme plans at all stages (design, costing, implementation, reviewing and reporting). Manage specific projects or programme areas, and facilitate specific events or processes.

Provide support and advice to, and building strong relationships with, partner organisations to work towards mutually agreed outcomes, and ensure that these are implemented in compliance with contractual criteria agreed with donors. Convene regular meetings with partners and relevant CR staff, and manage programme-related meetings/conference calls.

Support the programme by frequent travel including, when necessary, to areas experiencing or having experienced violent conflict.

Lead on monitoring the delivery of the Philippines programme, including regular narrative and financial reports on activities and impact to the donor, partners and CR’s Executive Management Team and Board.

Support the SEAP Department Director to oversee the programme of work by providing project and financial reporting, and communicating any issues as they arise.

Comply with internal information management systems, including entering data on the Monitoring and Reporting System (MaRS) to ensure we are monitoring our activity and impact. Handle information in line with Conciliation Resources’ Data Protection and Privacy Policy and any other relevant policies.

c. Policy and analysis

Lead on the formulation of programme policy and delivery of policy messages, analysis and lessons learned to relevant interlocutors, including donors, partners and government officials.

Lead the team to sustain an independent analysis of conflicts and peace processes in the Philippines, and keep informed of political, social, economic and security developments within the region and affecting the region.

Lead on monitoring the delivery of the Philippines programme, including regular narrative and financial reports on activities and impact to the donor, partners and Conciliation Resources’ Executive Management Team and Board.

Ensure that conflict and gender sensitive analysis is integrated into all projects.

Lead and support programme learning, through programme reviews, regular monitoring and evaluation at key points, and ensure that conflict and gender-sensitive analysis is integrated into all projects.

Contribute to broader Conciliation Resources peacebuilding and conflict analysis, and organisation policies.

d. Representation and networking

Represent the Philippines programme, and Conciliation Resources, in consultative fora or networks, and with government ministries, embassies, donors, the media, partners, and other interested and relevant organisations and individuals, advancing Conciliation Resources’ policy agendas and ensuring its credibility.

Actively develop and maintain relationships and networks with individuals and organisations in the strategic interest of the Philippines programme, and build and maintain collaborative partnerships and donor relationships.

Oversee the delivery of all Philippines programme communications (including written publications, multimedia material, website and intranet entries and other public resources) and ensure that the programme’s public outputs are developed through appropriate interface with other parts of Conciliation Resources.

e. Financial management and fundraising

With support from the SEAP finance team, set and manage the annual budget for the Philippines programme. Lead and monitor quarterly re-forecasts of the team’s budget, reporting on any arising issues to the Director of Programmes.

Lead on and oversee the financial management of grants and preparation for audits, working closely with SEAP’s and partners’ finance teams. Convene monthly programme finance meetings and work closely with members of the Finance team to ensure the provision of accurate and timely information as required.

Lead the team’s exploration of opportunities for programme development, new partnerships and innovative approaches to conflict transformation.

Lead on securing funds for the Philippines, including developing project concepts, writing proposals and budgets, and developing new and existing donor relationships. Consult with partner organisations and other interlocutors on the development of initiatives.

Ensure that appropriate project documentation, systems and processes in relation to the programme are in place, and ensuring that the programme complies with and participates in maintaining Conciliation Resources’ administrative and financial systems and policies.

f. Personnel management

Lead and guide all members of the Philippines team, providing strategic vision to the team and representation to and from wider Conciliation Resources structures.

Line manage the Mindanao Project Manager providing operational management, ensuring professional development and performance management, including through fortnightly meetings and annual appraisals.

Ensure they, all staff and consultants adhere to Conciliation Resources’ security and safeguarding policies and guidelines when working and travelling to the Philippines. Be mindful of and plan around the security implications for partners of engaging with Conciliation Resources.

g. Other

Share in collegial duties as a senior staff member. Perform other tasks consistent with the skills and expertise of the post-holder as required on an ad hoc basis, and as requested by the SEAP Department Director.

Apply our core values to all work and develop them within the organisation, including through signing and adhering to Conciliation Resources’ Code of Conduct.

Person specification

Essential knowledge, skills and experience

• Significant project management experience, designing and implementing conflict resolution and peacebuilding interventions, including programme design, budget development, programme implementation, monitoring, evaluation and reporting.
• Practical and conceptual knowledge of peacebuilding and conflict transformation processes, of processes of social and political change and of supporting the development of local capacities for peacebuilding.
• Extensive knowledge of the social and political landscape in the Bangsamoro, and its conflicts.
• Experience of working with local and national partners in an accompaniment and mentoring role, including capacity building and due diligence.
• Significant financial management, including experience preparing and managing annual budgets of at least £700k, monitoring and forecasting spend, and overseeing internal and external financial reporting.
• Experience of leading government or other donor-funded programmes, including donor relationship management, programme development and narrative and budget reporting.
• Experience of line managing staff, including task management, performance management and professional development.
• Significant experience of securing funding for new work, including concept development, building donor relationships and writing proposals and budgets.
• Experience of and sensitivity to communicating with multicultural and diverse audiences.
• Excellent communication skills, to communicate complex issues effectively and adjust communication style to varying circumstances, including ability to listen actively to people from varying backgrounds and with a range of political, cultural, gender and sexual identities and value orientations, combined with an ability to engage with them clearly and sensitively.
• Good written and spoken English.
• Experience living and working in the Philippines region.
• Experience implementing projects in difficult social and political situations or conflict contexts, and experience of hostile environment training or willingness to undertake hostile environment training.
• Post-graduate study or equivalent by experience in conflict resolution, international relations, development studies, international humanitarian law, gender, peace and security or other related fields.
• Excellent organisational and coordination skills, including the ability to think and plan strategically while also retaining close attention to detail, to manage and prioritise a diverse and demanding workload, to convene and run efficient meetings and meet deadlines.
• Ability to navigate political sensitivities and awareness of the complexity of working in conflict-affected situations, including appreciation of confidentiality and handling sensitive information with due care.
• Willingness and ability to work irregular hours on occasions and to undertake frequent international travel in sometimes uncomfortable or insecure conditions.
• Excellent word processing, spreadsheet, database and email software skills.

Desirable knowledge, skills and experience

• Experience facilitating dialogue processes.
• Experience undertaking advocacy with policymakers.
• Sound working knowledge of Filipino