Senior Program Manager, Humanitarian Programs

ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY

The Senior Program Manager is a senior humanitarian professional with a demonstrable understanding of and/or track record in best practice in Communication and Engagement in a humanitarian crisis and how it contributes to improved inclusion, transparency, and accountability for communities. The Senior Program Manager reports to the Humanitarian Director and works within a small technical team that operationalizes Internews humanitarian strategy responding to both protracted and acute crises. The role includes project design and development, project management, fundraising, policy and advocacy support, and representation in the humanitarian funder and implementer community. This role is based in Washington DC, with occasional travel to challenging environments.

LOGISTICS

Internews has US offices in Arcata, CA and Washington, DC which support a hybrid workforce with staff working remotely, fully in-office or partially remote. Ultimately this position is based in Washington, DC, and may work remotely, partially remote, or fully in-office.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, so candidates are encouraged to apply soon.

OUR COMMITMENT TO FOSTERING A CULTURE OF BELONGING

We are an organization of dynamic, mission-driven individuals who are passionate about our core values and about supporting positive change in the world. We pride ourselves on our commitment to innovation and flexibility. We believe that diverse teams are strong teams and work to support an ethic of belonging, dignity, and justice for all people. Our current team includes a mix of genders, parents and non-parents, and people of multiple races, nationalities, ages, sexual orientations, and socioeconomic backgrounds. We are an EEO employer and encourage candidates of all races, genders, ages, orientations, ethnicities, and national origins to apply, and welcome those with alternative backgrounds and experiences.

DAY-TO-DAY TASKS will include:

Operational: Humanitarian Response Project Design and Field Work

• Work closely with the Humanitarian Director and Humanitarian Technical Lead/s to formulate design for humanitarian projects and develop tools and methodologies that exemplify Internews signature approaches to Community Engagement and Accountability and mis-/disinformation management in humanitarian contexts.
• Work closely with the Global Development team and Regional Program Management Units on proposal writing and budgeting for humanitarian information projects.
• Provide humanitarian technical support to field missions by remote or travel to site.
• Provide overall management to projects as assigned by Humanitarian Director.
• In case of breaking humanitarian crises, support the design and implementation of emergency assessments and/or other responses in the most efficient and relevant manner, including on-site deployment and/or provision of technical expertise remotely.
• Support the production of assessment reports, working with a designer, country teams, the communications department, and others as appropriate for timely and well-coordinated release of assessment findings.
• Recruit and manage staff as needed, including drafting job descriptions and working with People & Culture to contract staff.
• Act as deputy for Humanitarian Director as required.
• In all duties, demonstrate an understanding of and commitment to upholding Internews’ Core Values.

Representation, Policy, and Advocacy

• Represent Internews and provide thought leadership around policies and practices in the humanitarian information space at relevant sector forums and conferences.
• Build and maintain a strong network of policymakers, practitioners and independent policy analysts engaged on humanitarian communication issues, ensuring that Internews is informed and involved in relevant debates and events.
• Along with the Humanitarian Director and Business Development Team, foster and maintain a strong network of donors from humanitarian and non-traditional funding streams to allow the development of new projects and the piloting of innovative methodologies.
• Provide input to Internews media and communications materials, blogs, press releases, etc..

QUALIFICATIONS WE’RE LOOKING FOR

Required

• Minimum 5 years senior humanitarian experience in a large humanitarian and/or crisis management agency including field operations experience in complex, rapid onset and protracted emergencies.
• Substantial knowledge of international humanitarian systems, institutions, and donors, and of procedures, accountability frameworks and best practices in emergency management.
• Substantial knowledge of the field of Community Engagement and Accountability in Humanitarian response.
• Ability to be flexible to work across time zones to meet project needs.
• Solid project management experience including fundraising, proposal writing, budget analysis and management, recruitment, procurement, compliance, administrative oversight.
• Demonstrated experience in representation and negotiation with governments/donors and international agencies.
• An existing network of donor contacts in Washington DC and/or experience in building personal networks at senior levels, resulting in significant new opportunities for the organization.
• Demonstrated ability to thrive in a matrix management environment and collaborative decision making, problem solving and work planning.
• Highly developed interpersonal and communication skills.
• Excellent English writing skills.
• Relevant university degree or equivalent lived/professional experience.
• Ability and willingness to travel, including to challenging environments. Travel is not expected to exceed 15% for this role.

Preferred

Note: Candidates who do not have these preferred qualifications, but who are interested and willing to learn, are encouraged to apply.

• French, Spanish, or Arabic language proficiency desirable – additional languages a plus.
• Hostile Environment experience and/or previous incident training is desirable.
• Understanding of/experience in Technology for Good/Development or Humanitarian innovation programming.
• Understanding of/experience in qualitative and quantitative data management and research & assessment methodologies in humanitarian scenarios.
• Experience working in humanitarian contexts in Protection, Climate change, or Food Security programming.
• Demonstrated experience working with media in challenging contexts to bridge capacity and build relationships with the wider humanitarian or development architecture.
• Experience in participatory content and programming development including demonstrated experience in partner codesign.

The annual salary range for this position is US $98,600 – US $128,200.