Country Director, Jordan

BACKGROUND

IRC operates in two governorates in Jordan with offices in Amman and Mafraq, Women’s Centers and primary and reproductive health clinics in Mafraq and Ramtha, and a Women’s Center in Irbid. IRC also operates specialized programs in the country’s two largest Syrian refugee camps, Za’atri and Azraq. IRC assists Syrian refugees, Iraqi refugees and host communities in multiple sectors, including cash assistance, primary and reproductive health, women’s protection and empowerment, child protection, and non-food items. IRC also assists conflict-affected Syrians inside Syria through a cross-border program that includes delivery of pharmaceuticals, medical supplies and NFIs as well as disbursement of sub-grants to Syrian organizations. IRC’s portfolio in Jordan currently exceeds $38 million.

SCOPE OF WORK

The IRC Country Director is responsible for overall leadership and supervisory management of IRC offices and operations in the country, including stewardship of resources, staff safety and security, program quality and accountability, and performance management. The Country Director is IRC’s principal representative to Jordanian government officials, donors, international organizations, Jordanian civil society, and other international NGOs. The Country Director will develop a clear vision for the country program, bringing the staff team together to deliver high-quality programs and advocacy.

Success in this position requires an individual with demonstrated team leadership abilities; representational (including media relations), communications and risk management skills; and a facility for developing networks to build partnerships and diversify program resources.

Based in Amman and reporting to the Regional Director, this position receives support from regional and headquarters staff in the areas of program quality,  monitoring and evaluation, new business development, safety and security management, finance, human resources, operations management, and external affairs. The Country Director is additionally expected to actively participate in defining the IRC’s public advocacy positions. The Country Director directly supervises four positions in a country program of approximately 235 staff. This position is fully accompanied and requires extensive in country and occasional regional travel.

The overall security situation in Jordan is relatively calm, but conditons vary from one IRC operating area to another. This is especially true in and around the two large refugee camps where IRC has a large presence (Za’atri and Azraq). Camp populations and urban refugees are ofen in minor conflict with host communities, and sporadic violence in the three nortern cities where IRC operates can cause the suspension of activities for up to a week at a time. Two locations in Jordan – Zarqa, a large town on the outskirts of Amman, and Ma’an, in southern Jordan – are reportedly centers for nascent insurgents and serve as transit points for militants on their way to or from Syria. The Jordanian government is stable, with a popular monarch and a respected prime minister. However, Jordan’s generosity in hosting refugees from Palestine, Iraq and now Syria have created huge strains on the country’s economy and instrastructure. The quality of education health and municipal services is suffering, and the economic frustration of Jordanians is often directed at refugee populations.

For more than two years IRC has implemented cross-border operations from Amman to the governorates of Da’raa, Damascus, Rif Damascus, Quneitra, and As-Suwayda in southern Syria. Operating areas alernate between rebel and regime control; the dynamic nature of the Syrian conflict requires close monitoring and frequent adjustments to program activities.

SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES

• Leadership and Representation
• Lead the country program by maintaining open and professional relations with colleagues, promoting a strong team spirit and providing guidance, oversight and resources to enable staff to perform successfully.
• Develop and carry out strategies that result in strong representation with: Jordanian Government ministries at various levels; UN OCHA; donors including OFDA, USAID , DFID, BPRM, ECHO, SV, UNHCR, UNICEF, UNFPA and other international organizations; international and local NGOs; and networks such as ICVA and SIRF.
• Ensure that IRC remains a partner of choice for major international donors.
• Develop and maintain a high level of understanding of donor priorities and planned funding.
• Initiate and sustain strong, mutually beneficial and authentic partnerships with Jordanian organizations.
• Seek out and pursue opportunities to raise the profile of the work of IRC and its partners, as well as the lives and the needs of the people IRC seeks to serve.
• Play a leadership role in efforts to improve humanitarian response coordination in Jordan.
• Lead country program collaboration with colleagues in IRC’s Syria Response Region to deliver regional programming and advocacy.

Strategic Direction, Program Quality and Growth

• Set the strategic vision and direction of the country program to serve more people with the most responsive and highest quality programming possible, and secure the resources necessary for realization.
• Participate actively in the design, development and implementation of a new operating model to deliver assistance inside Syria.
• Align programming to IRC’s mission and strategy, sectoral expertise and technical standards.
• Ensure program quality through consistent use throughout the country program of: rigorous assessment, design, and proposal development and review processes; comprehensive monitoring & evaluation, accountability and learning systems; staff development investments; and partner organization capacity strengthening.
• Remain current on national and regional issues impacting the country program and partners, and develop responsive strategies to changing contexts.
• Ensure country program alignment with and involvement in meeting regional objectives and with the directives of the new IRC strategy.
• Identify opportunities for appropriate expansion and growth of programs, supported by the acquisition and investment in human resources.
• Lead programming from humanitarian assistance towards resilience and development, in line with the Jordan Response Plan (JRP), which seeks to support vulnerable Jordanian populations.
• Create and implement a contingency plan for the anticipated eventual reduction of refugee assistance programming, expected to occur sometime in 2016.
• Ensure timely submission of competitive, responsive and high-quality proposals, and support colleagues in negotiations with donors.

Safety and Security Management

• Take primary responsibility for overall management of safety and security for the country program.
• Oversee the management of all security issues, including appropriate response to emergency situations as they arise.
• Create and maintain a culture of safety and security throughout the country program, including trainings and briefings that prepare all country program staff for security incident prevention and response.
• Keep security, evacuation and contingency plans current and accessible to country program staff.
• Maintain close coordination and communication with the Regional Safety and Security Advisor on safety and security concerns and evolving issues that could adversely affect IRC staff or operations.

Staff Performance Management and Development

• Supervise and mentor direct-report staff, including communicating clear expectations, setting performance objectives, providing regular and timely performance feedback, and leading documented semi-annual performance reviews.
• Provide constructive feedback and counsel on appropriate career paths and professional development for IRC staff.
• Oversee the management, coaching and development of national and international staff to build a cadre of skilled, committed and motivated personnel.
• Continue to pursue nationalization of senior and second-level management positions.
• Promote and monitor staff care and well-being. Model healthy work-life balance practices. Support appropriate interventions in response to identified staff care needs of both national and international staff.
• Offer leadership support for successful adherence by all staff to IRC’s Global HR Operating Policies and Procedures.
• Work with regional HR staff to identify and implement recruitment and retention strategies.
• Undertake regular reviews of labor and salary markets in Jordan for the purpose of enhancing the competitiveness of the IRC’s overall compensation package for national staff.

Stewardship and Operational Management

• Drive operational excellence to achieve optimal efficiency and cost-effectiveness in all functions and operations of the country program.
• Oversee the development, deployment and utilization of financial and operational policies, procedures, and systems to deliver compliance with IRC and donor requirements.
• Ensure responsiveness and appropriate levels of in-person and remote support to all offices, especially in the areas of HR, finance and supply chain.
• Provide timely and effective oversight of the Jordan country program’s financial position.
• Maintain effective and coordinated budget monitoring processes for grant funds and discretionary funds.
• Seek opportunities to introduce efficiencies and eliminate redundancies in existing business processes.

Communications

• Model and encourage active practice of the principles of the “IRC Way – Global Standards for Professional Conduct” throughout the Iraq country program.
• Maintain a healthy and empowering office environment that encourages open, honest and productive communication among IRC staff and with partner organizations.
• Maintain open communications with regional management staff, regional technical advisors, and HQ departmental staff.

Supervisory Responsibilities: 4 direct reports, including the Deputy Directors for Programs,  Deputy Director for Operations, the HR Lead,  and the Finance Controller.

Key Working Relationships

Internal: SRR Regional Director; SRR regional team; Syria Response Director; other SRR Country Directors; HQ departmental staff, as appropriate.

External: Partner organizations, host country government officials, public and private donor agencies, international and national NGOs, UN agencies, foreign governments.

Professional Standards

IRC staff must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way – Global Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, 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.

PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS

• Graduate degree in a relevant field
• At least eight years of progressively responsible international work experience, including leadership  at the Country Director level of multi-site, multi-sectoral operations in a complex operating environment
• Experience of building personal networks at a senior level, resulting in securing new opportunities for the organization
• Demonstrated successful leadership and management experience with a multi-disciplinary team in a cross-cultural setting, including active mentoring and coaching
• Proven experience delivering appropriate levels oversight of a portfolio consisting of a variety of complex, high-value donor-funded projects
• Extensive representation and fundraising success, including prior experience with European, US and international donors
• Superior communications skills, verbal and written, in English
• Experience of managing security in a complex and rapidly changing security context
• Proven ability to negotiate and work with partner organizations. Experience with organizational capacity strengthening and partnership building helpful
• Strong budget and fiscal oversight capacities
• Established capacity to deal with ambiguity in stressful situations
• Ability to respond to multiple priorities in a timely manner, producing high-quality outcomes
• A keen understanding of political complexities in the Middle East region

Arabic language skills a definite advantage

This position is based in Amman and is fully accompanied, with an estimated one-third of the Country Director’s time spent in other locations in Jordan and elsewhere in the region.

IRC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. IRC considers all applicants on the basis of merit without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status or disability.