JOB DESCRIPTION

1. Scope

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1. Context

About Relief International

Relief International (RI) partners with communities impacted by conflict, climate change, and disaster to save lives, build greater resilience and promote long-term health and well-being.

Currently, RI is active in 14 countries around the world, including some of the most fragile: Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Myanmar, Pakistan, Philippines, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Turkey, and Yemen.

Relief International includes the four corporate members of the RI Alliance: Relief International Inc., Relief International-UK, Relief International-France and Relief International-Europe Under our alliance agreement, we operate with a single, shared management structure.

Middle East Region

RI operates in six countries in the Middle East region:  Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey and Yemen, with a focus on the four RI sector pillars: Health, WASH, Education and Economic Opportunity.  We employ more than 4,000 staff (direct and indirect) in the Middle East region and implement a range of humanitarian and development programs valued at approximately $70 million USD on an annual basis.

1. Job Profile

The BHA Integrated Health and Protection Assistance (IHNPA) Project Director is a strategic and senior leader responsible to ensure the successful implementation of 12 month project with the total value of 24,190,000 U.S. dollars   across RI's operational hubs in Syria.

Your role will be to lead the comprehensive planning and execution of project activities, fostering collaboration between Hub Managers, technical advisors, and support functions. You will ensure seamless coordination, implementation and monitoring, adherence to donor requirements, and timely, high-quality reporting.

This is a high-level position that requires expertise in overseeing large grants, preferably BHA, implemented in multiple locations directly and through partners. While there are no direct reporting lines, you will play a pivotal role in coordinating teams, ensuring smooth operations, high level of program quality as well as ensuring the program is implemented in alignment with internal and donor’s processes and requirements.

Success in this position will require strong leadership, problem-solving, and cross-functional collaboration.

1. Key responsibilities

Accountability and Complexity

• Ensure timely and quality project implementation across multiple hubs , ensuring alignment between operational hubs, technical advisors, and partners to achieve project goals.
• Identify and solve complex problems, takes a broad perspective to identify innovative solutions - The role demands strategic problem-solving and innovative thinking to navigate the complexities of a multi-hub project implementation.
• The Project Director will need to engage in high-level coordination and representation, impacting the project's success and RI's reputation.
• Ensure that contextual information is effectively gathered from all project locations and analyzed to identify immediate or long-term implications on the project and proactively shared with key internal and external stakeholders - Effective information management and communication across multiple stakeholders are crucial for this role.

ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITIES AND DUTIES:       

Project Leadership:

• Ensure the successful implementation of the project, in coordination with Hub management and WOS Amman Management team (Grants & Reporting, Technical, HR, Supply Chain & Operations, Finance, and Awards & Partnerships functions).
• Oversee the overall project progress in all areas of implementation (incl. adaptation of implementation plans), monitoring and evaluation of project activities in coordination with key stakeholders at hub and Amman level
• Ensure appropriate spending of the project budget; identify possible spending issue on a timely manner and identify corrective solutions in coordination with hub and Amman management
• Effectively monitor project implementation to ensure successful achievements of project’s objectives within set timelines, budgets, and compliance requirements.
• Effectively coordinate between Amman Management Team and Hub teams, the donor and (where applicable) other external stakeholders.
• Conduct regular field visits to the hubs to meet staff and partners to assess progress of the project implementation.
• Identify and remove barriers to project implementation and work collaboratively to break down potential constraints to ensure quality and timely project implementation.
• In coordination with Deputy CDs and Hub Directors, under overall strategic guidance from the Country Director, interface with the donor providing project updates, challenges faced, and solutions introduced.
• Establish a strong base for data interpretation and analysis, which will feed into the strategic advocacy efforts in coordination with WOS Advocacy and Communication Manager and Senior leadership of the organization.

Award Performance Tracking:

• Lead on award and sub-award cycle management in coordination with Awards and Partnerships team, including kick off, award, post-award, pre- and post-close out. Establish effective monitoring system to ensure timely facilitation of the elements of each stage in the cycle management.
• Regularly assess project health, including the status of programmatic and financial deliverables.
• Ensure RI’s processes and tools are followed to guarantee monitoring of effective implementation.
• Reconciliate BVAs with procurement trackers to ensure precision in capturing actuals and spend down plans and nurture the decision making in coordination with relevant Hub and WOS focal points where deviations are spotted.

Partnerships:

• Foster strong partnerships by coordinating with Hub Program Managers, Awards & Partnerships teams, and technical advisors to ensure consistent partner performance and alignment with project objectives.
• Facilitate collaboration between partners to promote strategic, operational, and methodological alignment.
• In coordination with WOS and Hub Awards and Partnerships focal points, develop and oversee spot-check plan for various functions to enhance partner compliance and audit preparedness.
• Where applicable, facilitate inter-partner engagement to facilitate strategic, operational, and methodological alignment of project implementation.
• In coordination with Hub Management, WoS and Hubs Awards and Partnerships focal points and technical advisors conduct regular partners field visits to monitor quality implementation of activities.
• Consolidate learning to empower WOS and Hub leadership and budget holders to make decisions introducing corrective actions and enhancing the quality of operational and programmatic activities.

Reporting:

• Consolidate Hub submitted Project Implementation Tools (PIT) into consolidated PIT for the coordinated cross-functional review at the Whole of Syria level.
• Review and consolidate RI and partners’ monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, annual/final reports before submission to Grants and Reporting team for the final review prior to donor submission.
• Ensure that the content of the narrative reports is triangulated with the status of Detailed Implementation Plan, Indicator Tracking Table, Procurement Plan, Recruitment Plan, and other relevant documents.
• Participate in regular donor catch-up meetings with the Hub leadership and the SMT to provide project updates, challenges and lessons learned.

Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning:

• Closely work with the WoS MEAL Manager on the implementation of MEAL systems adopted by RI and its implementing partners, including the design of baseline, mid-term and final evaluation approaches.
• In coordination with WOS Monitoring and Evaluation Manager, contribute to the development of baseline, mid-term and final evaluation TORs both for RI and third parties.
• Maintain calendar for M&E activities scheduled under this project and follow up on the status of implementation with MEL focal points in Amman and in each hub.
• Lead the validation and operationalization of findings from monitoring, evaluation and accountability activities, ensuring that lessons learned are integrated into future project strategies. Collaborate with the WoS MEAL Manager to foster a culture of continuous improvement and adaptive learning across hubs. Facilitates the learning and dissemination of lessons from MEAL findings across hubs and teams, ensuring that those are integrated into future projects and program strategies.

Behavior and conduct     

• Ensures that behavior inside and outside of work promotes the values in RI’s code of conduct and safeguarding policies
• Acts with integrity and holds themselves accountable for being respectful, inclusive and professional
• Reports any concerns

Management and leadership:

• Ensure the highest standards of behavior inside and outside of work promotes the values in RI’s code of conduct and safeguarding policies.
• Be a model for ethical conduct standards for other team members.
• Embrace diversity, and model inclusive and equitable behaviour.
• Ensure own actions and the actions of the teams’ members they manage do not adversely impact the safety of the RI team and the vulnerable communities we serve.
• Ensure donors, partners and communities are aware of RI conduct and reporting mechanisms.
• Ensure safeguarding is embedded in all the work we do.
• Be responsible for ensuring a culture and systems in place for reporting.
• Report any concerns.

1. Person Specification

Skills, knowledge and expertise required for the role.

Essential criteria

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field (e.g., International Development, Humanitarian Studies, Project Management, or related disciplines 5-7 years of experience in similar roles (incl. Chief of Party or other multi-million dollar project portfolios).
• Good knowledge of BHA requirements and donor compliance Experience in partnership management, including local NGOs
• Experience in managing similar size/scope projects
• Proven expertise in agile project management, with a successful track record of leading complex, multi-faceted projects in diverse and challenging environments.
• Ability to effectively engage and collaborate with diverse stakeholders, including donors, local NGOs, and international partners, to achieve project objectives. .
• Excellent English language skills required
• Flexibility to undertake field visits, sometimes on short notice, to hardship locations.
• Excellent command of MS Office tools, such as Excel and Word
• Demonstrated ability to lead and coordinate cross-functional teams, ensuring efficient and collaborative working relationships with team members at all levels.
• Demonstrate attention to detail, ability to follow procedures, meet deadlines and work independently and cooperatively with team members and a proven ability to solve problems independently without direct supervision.

Desirable

• Experience in managing health and protection projects.
• Arabic language skills an advantage

1. RI Values

Guided by the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence, as well as “Do No Harm,” Relief International Values:

• Integrity
• Adaptability
• Collaboration
• Inclusivity
• Sustainability