Senior Programs Coordinator

  • Contractor
  • Bamako Mali
  • TBD USD / Year
  • International Rescue Committee profile




  • Job applications may no longer being accepted for this opportunity.


International Rescue Committee

IRC opened the national program in Mali in 2012. Our programs range from humanitarian assistance to early recovery activities, focusing on child protection, education, economic well-being, nutrition, health, water and sanitation, governance. We work both in the north, the center and the south of Mali. Conflict and drought have caused the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people in Mali and neighboring countries. The security situation in the north remains fragile. Nonetheless, the needs of internally displaced persons and conflict-affected host communities are vast, and the issue of humanitarian access is an ongoing process.

Job Overview

Under direct line-management of the Deputy Director of Programs (DDP), the Senior Programs Coordinator (SPC) will supervise a team of seven technical program coordinators and support them in implementing and assuring quality of IRC activities. This includes overseeing project cycle management, budget management, developing and monitoring planning tools, team management, managing partnerships, complying with internal systems and use IRC online tools. The main objective of the SPC position is to support the technical coordinators and foster their success, while ensuring that our projects are implemented to the highest possible quality standards and continue to improve over time.

Major responsibilities:

Project Cycle Management

• Project Cycle Meetings. Supervise and support technical coordinators (or the staff they delegate as project managers on specific grants) in the preparation and facilitation of project cycle meetings for their projects in a timely, accurate and constructive manner, in coordination with the Finance and Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) departments.

• Planning tools. Mentor and assist technical coordinators in developing work plans, staffing plans, expenditure plans, procurement plans (item forecasts) and distribution plans for each new grant in their portfolio. If necessary, develop and propose harmonized planning tools for IRC Mali.

• Project follow-up. Ensure a monthly follow-up of the above-mentioned planning tools with each technical coordinator. Create a regular meeting space to analyze and discuss together the spending level, purchasing and implementation of activities for each of their grants, and ensure that well-structured corrective actions are initiated and followed up if necessary.

• Monitoring of indicators. In collaboration and coordination with the MEAL Coordinator, organize monthly meetings with each technical coordinator to follow up on their Indicator Tracking Sheets (ITSs).

• Salary mapping. Review all salary mapping produced monthly by technical coordinators, to ensure that program staff are covered by existing budgets, and quickly identify any gaps in coverage.

• Donor reports. Read and review all reports to donors. The SPC review differs from that of the Grants Department and aims to: a) ensure that the SPC is up to date with details of project implementation, what is being communicated to the donor and how it is communicated; b) propose clarifications, reformulations or integrations in the report to ensure that the report accurately reflects the work done by the team, including successes and lessons learned.

• Integra system. Support and monitor coordinators in the correct and harmonized use of our new Integra internal finance and procurement system. Collect, transmit and identify solutions to common problems encountered by the technical coordinators with the Senior Management Team (SMT) and Integra team.

• Partnerships. Support technical coordinators in establishing good collaboration with their national and international partners, including regular communication and monitoring systems around program implementation.

• Problem solving. Establish a relationship of trust and support with the technical coordinators, so that they can openly discuss the difficulties they encounter. Supervise technical coordinators on how to overcome difficulties and/or quickly convey them to the management team for discussion and resolution.

• Field visits. Plan frequent field visits to monitor the implementation of the programs, meet and exchange with front-line staff and customers, provide feedback and advice to technical coordinators to ensure constant improvement of the quality of our services. Ensure as well regular visits of activities in the field by the various technical coordinators.

Team Management

• Weekly one-to-one meetings with technical coordinators (TCs). In weekly meetings with each technical coordinator, help them set their priorities and act as a sounding board to discuss their ideas and/or any challenges they may face.

• Coaching of TCs on team management. Discuss regularly with technical coordinators how they manage their own team, in order to: a) Ensure good practices in the management of their team, especially in cases of remote supervision; b) Identify talent within sector teams and ways to motivate, retain and possibly promote them; c) Identify underperforming staff and/or conflicts within teams and ways to manage them, if necessary in collaboration with Human Resources department; (d) Adapt team structures as grants open and close to ensure proper use of resources.

• Performance monitoring and training. Ensure that all technical coordinators set ambitious but realistic goals at the beginning of each fiscal year and provide them with a thorough and meaningful performance evaluation at the end of the year. Facilitate training and learning opportunities for technical coordinators in line with their development goals.

• Recruitment. In collaboration with the DDP, manage the recruitment of technical coordinators if necessary.

• Leading by example. Contribute to promoting an ambitious, responsible and committed leadership culture among technical coordinators and other program managers. Support program staff through consistent communication and attention to staff care, mentoring and development. Create and maintain a work environment based on mutual respect, where team members strive to achieve excellence.

Support for the strategic action plan and strategic initiatives

• Strategic Action Plan (SAP). With the support of the DDP, get familiar with the SAP of IRC Mali and ensure the monthly update of the SAP Implementation Plan, and remind and promote its content to the Technical Coordinators if necessary.

• Collaboration with MEAL. Maintain good collaboration with the MEAL Coordinator to: a) ensure cross-cutting MEAL support to all programs; b) use the beneficiary feedback information produced by the MEAL team (including Client Responsiveness Surveys) to introduce improvements in programs implementation, and c) provide ideas for programmatic learning to the DDP and MEAL coordinator.

• Collaboration with the Cash Technical Advisor at headquarters. Maintain a good collaboration with the Cash Specialist to ensure cross-functional support for all programs, to ensure that our cash transfer interventions continue to grow in scope and quality.

• Collaboration with the Grants and Partnership Departments. Maintain good collaboration with the Grants and Partnerships team to promote and monitor good collaboration with our partners; participate in key Partnership Excellence for Equality and Results SyStem (PEERS) meetings with strategic partners.

• Other. Support the DDP in the promotion and implementation of other aspects of IRC Mali’s SAP, as required.

Coordination and representation

• In consultation with the DDP, develop and maintain individually and collectively effective working relationships with key humanitarian actors, including donors, government actors, UN agencies, international and national NGOs and other relevant actors, as well as other technical coordinators.

• Support, as appropriate, the Partnership Coordinator in the process of identifying new national and international implementing partners, including the private sector.

Job Requirements:

• Master in a relevant management or technical field.

• Minimum of five years of relevant work experience at a senior level in the humanitarian field.

• Previous experience in managing programs in complex emergency responses as well as the ability to manage remote teams.

• Proven leadership and strategic planning abilities and demonstrated budget management ability.

• Knowledge of all regulatory, contractual, legal and financial compliance requirements associated with international donor funding.

• Be willing to travel in the field and occasionally spend the night on field sites with rustic conditions and various levels of deprivation.

• Fluency in French and English required.

Working Environment

The Senior Programs Coordinator will be based in Bamako (yellow security level) and will visit the field sites frequently.

Accommodation: The Senior Programs Coordinator will be offered private accommodation in Bamako. This position is limited accompanied.

The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way – Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Equality, Service, and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity, and Anti-Retaliation.

IRC is equal opportunity employer, considered all the candidates on the basis of merit without regard to race, sex, color, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran or disability.

How to apply

https://rescue.csod.com/ux/ats/careersite/1/home/requisition/31731?c=rescue


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