USAID/Sierra Leone- Project Management Specialist (Local)

About Us

International Business & Technical Consultants, Inc. (IBTCI), a U.S. based international development consulting company established in 1987, has worked in over 100 countries and implemented over 300 projects. IBTCI serves government agencies, private sector companies, and several donor agencies. IBTCI specializes in monitoring, evaluation, research, and learning (MERL) and institutional support across many areas and sectors including, but not limited to, conflict and crisis, democracy and governance, agriculture, economic growth, food security, education, environment, and global health.

Job Title: Project Management Specialist

Department/Location: USAID/Sierra Leone (Local)

Reports To: Activity Manager

Type: Regular Full-Time

Clearance Required:Facilities Access

Overview:

USAID’s Democracy, Governance, and Human Rights program in Sierra Leone centers on fostering accountability of local government to citizens and preventing and mitigating political violence. The program aims to strengthen democratic governance by working with Sierra Leoneans to build government accountability, ensure responsive public institutions, and promote strong democratic norms and processes. The program also supports violence and conflict prevention programming to address political tensions and address underlying cleavages in communities. Additionally, USAID is working to achieve gender equality in Sierra Leone where customary laws, institutional and economic barriers and widely held cultural and social beliefs act as significant barriers to women’s full integration into the decision-making sphere at the household, community, and national levels.

IBTCI is seeking a Project Management Specialist to provide support for the Democracy, Rights & Governance (DRG) office. The Specialist will plan and organize the development and implementation of appropriate locally led program interventions to address priority issues in Sierra Leone and serve as the Mission’s advisor on Local Works and locally led development policy. The Specialist is responsible for project coordination, management and design. The Specialist will expand and deepen relationships with local actors and will focus on non-traditional partners and those which consist of or work with the marginalized and the vulnerable. The Specialist will facilitate local actors to address their development challenges, engage with local governments and other development actors, and strengthen networks.

The Project Management Specialist serves as a program manager for Mission activities focused on advancing locally led development, highlighting their needs, and facilitating consultative processes that empower local actors to lead their own development. While based in Freetown, the position will require frequent travel for field monitoring, as well as extensive coordination with communities, officials, and other donors.

The Specialist works with a great deal of independence and carries out major assignments on their own initiative. The Specialist must be capable of applying knowledge, skills, and experience to issues without detailed guidance from the supervisor. The Specialist often sets their own deadlines and priorities with minimum supervision. The Specialist reports directly to the DRG Office Director or their delegate. The supervision of other staff is not contemplated; however they will mentor interns and will perform acting roles within the DRG Office if needed.

The Specialist may occasionally be asked to explain and interpret existing USAID guidelines and policies in areas related to program management, strategy, evaluation, and budgeting. The Specialist may not independently commit the USG to the expenditure of funds. The Specialist will discuss with the Sierra Leone Office supervisor and implementing partners the acceptability of project activities and performance and make recommendations to appropriate Mission Management regarding contractual and financial actions.

The Specialist will establish and maintain contacts with Government of Sierra Leone representatives and counterpart institutions for the purpose of determining needs and priorities so that USAID assistance is focused in the most appropriate manner and so that programs are coordinated with government initiatives. They are required to maintain strong contacts with and oversight of implementing partner personnel, including Chiefs of Party. They must maintain contacts with Government of Sierra Leone staff as well as implementing partner field staff responsible for project implementation and coordination. While the position requires extensive travel to locations across the country, reasonable accommodation will be provided for candidates who have a disability (e.g. through virtual field trips).

Responsibilities

Essential Duties/Tasks and Responsibilities:

• Project Management- 50% The Specialist serves as program manager for Mission awards and advises the Mission’s technical teams on locally led development principles and programmatic opportunities. They also promote partnerships with non-traditional implementing partners, especially those which work with the marginalized and the vulnerable. The Specialist’s major project development and management responsibilities include:
  • Serving on technical evaluation committees as non-voting members to review and select the most sound and cost-effective proposal;
  • Serving as program manager and advising the AOR/COR or alternate AOR/COR for Mission activities;
  • Drafting scopes of work and ensuring activities are implemented according to them;
  • Reviewing vouchers and tracking expenditures against the approved budget;
  • Reviewing partner deliverables such as work plans and progress reports;
  • Monitoring partners’ performance and progress, issuing technical advice and ensuring data quality while at the same time monitoring for accountability and ensuring beneficiary feedback mechanisms are in place;
  • Consulting with other technical offices on ways to expand use of local partners;
  • Communicating with implementing partners, relevant technical teams, the Office of Acquisition and Assistance, and Mission management to ensure that all stakeholders are well informed of activity implementation progress, as well as challenges and opportunities for advocacy to promote locally led solutions;
  • Supporting oversight of activity close-outs. They may also provide coaching, mentoring and training to development partners in locally led development approaches.
  • The Specialist will ensure partners carry out regular reviews and reflections to gather lessons learned to modify programming. They will be responsible for coordinating high-level visits, including for the Ambassador, USAID Mission Leadership, Congressional Delegations and other visiting officials. For these visits the Specialist will be responsible for developing comprehensive briefing materials, providing in-person briefings in advance of travel, and otherwise coordinating the details of these visits in coordination with the Control Officer and relevant security officials.
  • They will also play a key role in advancing strategy documents for the Sierra Leone Office, and will support internal workforce priorities for diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (DEIA). The Specialist must be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the terms diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility as well as articulate how they have mainstreamed DEIA in development programming.
• Project development, planning, organization and implementation- 40%
  • Plan and organize the development and implementation of appropriate program interventions to address priority issues in Sierra Leone; serves as the Mission’s advisor on Local Works and locally led development policy areas; advises and coordinates with other donors on civil society and local resource development and related issues.
  • Work with other technical offices and Front Office within the USAID mission on civil society and local development activities; serve on technical evaluation committees as a non-voting member, reviewing competitive proposals for locally led development projects for Local Works and other projects.
  • Stays abreast of developments within Sierra Leone’s civil society to understand existing networks of actors, domestic resources, and local community development. Provides advanced advice to the Mission, Embassy, USAID, implementers, government counterparts, and other donors on a wide host of issues related to locally led development goals.
  • Conduct research, analysis and assessments to support current and future programming, advising on political and social developments that impact the Mission’s locally led development programs. Make recommendations to appropriate USAID staff regarding US government policy positions to be expressed to the Government of Sierra Leone and other development actors when necessary.
• Promoting Locally Led Development- 10%
  • Assist in providing cross-cutting monitoring, evaluation, learning, and reporting of activities to the locally led development portfolio. They will promote indigenous knowledge and practice of marginalized and vulnerable groups that are useful to address the prioritized development issues. They will share those lessons with the larger Mission, provide advice to program managers and other staff on new program directions and possibilities to refine ongoing programs to ensure maximum impact and promote locally led development.
  • Identify opportunities for advancing local ownership and procurement innovation including documentation of processes, frameworks, tools, etc for locally led development.
  • Test approaches that inform learning about locally led development.
  • Engage the private sector to identify skill sets that can be utilized with new partners to improve their project planning, implementation, reporting and organizational development.
  • Identify capacity gaps and design solutions to support local entities to improve their overall ability to provide services.

The Specialist must effectively communicate project progress and challenges to diverse audiences, including relevant officials in Embassy and Mission management, in both oral and written forms. They engage in USAID initiatives and strategy development to ensure that locally led development is effectively integrated into Mission strategies, operation plans and reporting information. This requires a close working relationship with all technical teams. They are responsible for developing high-quality briefings, presentations, success stories and other communication products for both internal and external consumption. They will attend public events and donor coordination fora and will often interact with high-level Government officials. As such, the Specialist must possess excellent oral communication abilities.

NOTE: The consultant will not perform other inherently governmental functions or duties (e.g. will not serve as AOR/COR or supervise staff), but rather will advise, mentor, and facilitate as appropriate on the performance of inherently governmental functions on the part of the Sierra Leone Mission.

Qualifications

Minimum Requirements:

• A minimum of five years of progressively responsible experience in the design, management, evaluation of locally led development programs that may include programming in gender issues such as social inclusion, livelihoods, social protection, and resilience.
• Working familiarity with grant making, organizational assessment and capacity building and programming mechanisms and implementing organizations.
• Level IV English reading, writing and speaking ability is required. Must be able to speak in a concise, articulate and thoughtful manner on development programs and issues.
• A thorough knowledge of host government policies, laws, regulations, and operational procedures related to civil society and locally led development policy.
• Demonstrated knowledge of participatory development approaches, social inclusion, gender issues such as Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) and basic climate change concepts and programmatic approaches.
• Must demonstrate understanding of and be able to explain the concepts of diversity, inclusion, and equity and relate them to their work, have knowledge of USG context and policies on diversity, inclusion, and equity.
• Ability to understand and explain concepts of diversity, inclusion, and equity and can relate them to their work; can explain the value of diversity inclusion in development programming and in the workplace.
• Ability to prepare and deliver formal presentations on cross-cutting issues such as locally led development, marginalization and vulnerability, resilience, gender, monitoring evaluation and learning to internal and external audiences.
• Able to prepare short papers on sector strategy, performance, and progress on program implementation. Must be able to quickly review and comment on reports, studies and other documents prepared by implementing partners.
• Computer skills in using statistical software, spreadsheet and PowerPoint including ability to obtain, analyze and evaluate a variety of data and to organize and present meaningful terms to others.
• Excellent social and professional judgment, strong interpersonal skills and cross-cultural communication abilities.
• Oral and written fluency in English required, fluency in another language preferred.

Education: A Bachelor’s degree from a recognized university in Economics, Business Administration/Management, Finance, Development, Social Sciences, or a related field.

Working Environment: Work is typically performed in an office environment. Currently the company is allowing for remote work due to COVID 19 in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia (DMV) area. This can be updated by the company.

COVID Vaccine status: As a condition of employment, IBTCI requires all new employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Candidates should be prepared to submit proof of COVID-19 vaccination upon hire or request for an accommodation with HR that is consistent with our COVID-19 safety protocols and policies.

Physical Requirements: This is largely a sedentary position that requires the ability to speak, hear, see, and lift small objects up to 20 lbs.

Supervisory Responsibility: This position does not have supervisory responsibilities.

Travel: International travel may be required and may include travel to fragile and/or conflict-prone zones.

Work Authorization: Candidate must be authorized to work in Sierra Leone.

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

About the Organization:

IBTCI has been in business since 1987. We specialize in Monitoring, Evaluation, Research & Learning (MERL), Institutional Support (IS), Financial & Risk Management (FRM), Supply Chain Management & Procurement (SCMP); Social & Behavior Change (SBC) and Capacity Building. We provide these services across many sectors including, but not limited to, agriculture, resilience & food security, conflict & crisis, democracy & governance, economic growth & trade, education & human capacity development, energy & infrastructure, environment & climate change, global health & WASH and humanitarian and disaster assistance. At IBTCI, our colleagues are encouraged to collaborate and be part of the solution while getting the tools and guidance needed to grow and support our clients’ missions.

IBTCI is committed to a policy of equal employment opportunity for all persons without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identification, age, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, disabled veteran or Vietnam-era veteran, or any other classification protected by applicable anti-discrimination laws. We prohibit and do not tolerate any form of discrimination or harassment. VEVRAA Federal Contractor.

If you are an applicant with a disability that requires a reasonable accommodation to complete any part of the application process or are limited in the ability, or unable to use the online application system and need an alternative method for applying, you may contact the Talent Acquisition team at [email protected] (Do not send your resume to this account, for consideration please apply in our career page, https://careers.ibtci.com/jobs).