About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action —  helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within.  Now, and for the future.

Program / Department Summary

Mercy Corps works in places of transition, where conflict, disaster, political upheaval, or economic collapse present opportunities to build more secure, productive, and just communities. Providing emergency relief in times of crisis, we move quickly to help communities recover and build resilience to future shocks, and promote sustainable change by supporting community-led and market-driven initiatives. Recognizing both the great potential and the complex challenges faced by the Middle East, since 1989 Mercy Corps has been implementing a range of humanitarian assistance and development programs tailored to the specific needs of the region and of those communities where we work.

The Position

The Grants Coordinator, a member of the Grants Management Unit, plays a pivotal role in coordinating and administering the program’s grant requirements. He/she plays a critical role in coordinating grants management, compliance, learning, and adherence to minimum program management and administration standards at all points in the program cycle. S/he will ensure high-quality and timely donor reporting, know and advise the team on donor rules and compliance, and work collaboratively with the Team Leaders, Performance and Quality (PaQ) Team, Finance and Compliance Teams, and Headquarters staff. The Grants Coordinator  works closely with program staff in building the team’s capacity and ensures compliance with PM@MC 2.0 minimum standards. It is critical that s/he to be an excellent English communicator, who is supportive and solution-focused. The Grants Coordinator needs to be highly motivated, self-driven, and able to support a complex program with limited daily support and directions; s/he will be able to work remotely with internal and external stakeholders to achieve common objectives. In addition, s/he will support the Grants Management Unit to facilitate the required meetings and sessions to design and agree on the way forward at each decision gate of the project/program lifecycle. This position will report to the Grants Team Lead,  while working closely with the program managers, coordinators, etc.

Essential Job Responsibilities

PROGRAM QUALITY

• Prepare monthly, quarterly, and annual reports for the donor and other reports required by the Project with high-quality standards and in alignment with donor regulations and PM@MC2.0 minimum standards.
• Along with the team leaders and project staff, coordinates the development of the Project’s annual work plan with high-quality standards, following donor agreements and regulations and PM@MC minimum standards. 
• Work with the program and the PaQ team to create, keep and maintain updated program files.
• Maintain a grant management system, ensuring compliance with PM@MC 2.0 minimum standards.
• Develop and organize activities with team leaders and the Project Operations Manager to secure internal resources for the program and work with stakeholders to provide all adequate documentation and support.
• Work with the Project team to keep an updated compliance tracker, risk register and issues log.
• Play a leading role in ensuring that all grant information, including deadlines, donor priorities, and requirements are communicated and understood by the team and partners to comply with donor regulations.
• Work with project partners to ensure high-quality programmatic reporting requirements are provided on time.
• Facilitate regular meetings with Program, MEL, Finance and Operations teams, the Grants Management Unit, and the Director of Programs to ensure that performance on the grant is tracked effectively, risks and issues are flagged and action taken as appropriate.

PROGRAM COMPLIANCE

• Work closely with Project staff, operations and finance, to ensure compliance with donor and Mercy Corps regulations (including PM@MC 2.0 minimum standards).
• Ensure that the program is executed in alignment with the donor agreement and the applicable donor regulations, staying abreast of changes in the regulatory environment related to donor/grant compliance; updating partnership process, tools, policies and procedures as necessary.
• Ensure compliance with donor and Mercy Corps regulations related to programming.
• Draft and/or review scope/s of work to hire and manage any technical consultants, including review for technical efficacy and contract budget.

PROGRAM REPORTING AND COMMUNICATIONS

• Oversee and coordinates reporting workflows and processes between Project partners, team leaders, senior leadership, and HQ to ensure the timely and quality development, review and submission of reports and other communication products.
• Maintain a reporting tracker and share regularly with Program, MEL and HQ Teams.

PROPOSAL DEVELOPMENT & DESIGN

• Feed into Jordan's new business tracker. Track/record pre-positioning conversations, maintain and document relevant donor strategies, and potential opportunities as well as high-level snapshots of proposals in process.
• Create and maintain boilerplate language related to capacity statements or key topics to be used in proposals
• Coordinating in the Identification and Design stages of some of the proposal opportunities (medium size). This includes submitting the go/no-go request for the regional director’s approval to pursue certain opportunities, developing work plans and roles and responsibilities framework, and coordinating the needed kickoff and design sessions.
• Enforce the Proposal Development SOP by ensuring that the guidelines and needed signs off are being adhered to in the RED, PINK, MAGENTA, and Green reviews
• Contribute to the proposal development process, by gathering information for  problem statements and background sections and ensuring we have the needed content of the program description from the technical and field team members.

Supervisory Responsibility

 None.

Accountability:

Reports Directly to: Grants Team Lead

Works Directly with:  Team Leaders, Director of Programs, Finance and Compliance teams, PaQ Team, HQ Desk Officers

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

• Bachelor’s degree required. Masters or equivalent in a field related to Humanitarian or International Development or relevant fields is preferred.
• 5+ years of experience providing coordination or management support to program implementation in a relevant field of expertise that includes:
• Preparing writing and analysis on programmatic activities.
• Managing work plans.
• Experience working in the Middle East region on economic development programming preferred.
• Proven ability to work cooperatively with internal and external stakeholders, and to play a leadership role in convening groups. Astute skills in relationship building and coordination.
• Experience working with USAID and familiarity with USAID rules and regulations.
• Understanding and experience of adaptive management.
• Extensive experience with monitoring and evaluation and other learning efforts.
• Excellent writing and communications skills required.
• Willingness and ability to travel frequently to Mercy Corps project sites and field locations, including traveling to insecure environments, is required.