Tracking Code: 218813-927
Job Description:
Note: This position is a six month long
position.
PROGRAM SUMMARY:
Mercy Corps has been working in the Democratic Republic of
the Congo (DRC) since 2007, with a focus on both humanitarian response and
development programming. Mercy Corps’ current programs focus on the provision
of water, sanitation and hygiene (WaSH) services in camps for internally
displaced people, and large-scale WaSH infrastructure and service delivery in
urban centers. With a staff of more than 150 people, Mercy Corps also
implements food security, economic recovery/development and governance programs
in North Kivu and Orientale Provinces.
GENERAL POSITION SUMMARY:
Mercy Corps recently received funding for a DFID-funded
program to increase access to water, sanitation and hygiene in four urban
centers in eastern DRC. Mercy Corps is preparing a series of quantitative and
qualitative assessments to take place during the one-year inception phase.
These assessments will enable Mercy Corps to better understand the context and
the environment relative to provision of water, access to improved sanitation facilities,
governance of water systems, hygiene and behavior change, gender dynamics,
environmental impacts, and financial stability and risk of key actors.
The Assessment Program Manager will oversee the
non-engineering assessments and appraisals as part of the program’s inception
phase. This includes overall coordination of the socio-economic and ecological
appraisals, an environmental impact assessment, a fiduciary risk assessment, a
baseline assessment and other assessments and appraisals focused on gender,
governance, market development, sanitation marketing, and hygiene and behavior
change. S/he will supervise the team of consultants conducting these
assessments and ensure that consistent approaches are used during the
assessments in the four project sites.
ESSENTIAL JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:
Program Implementation and Management
- In
coordination with the Program Director and assessment teams, plan,
coordinate and oversee the non-engineering assessments and appraisals.
Coordinate with program team and other departments to ensure operational
systems are in place to support assessment activities including logistics,
administration and human resources.
- Provide
overall leadership in the management and monitoring of assessments in line
with Mercy Corps and/donor policies and the overall strategic objectives
of the program. Ensure assessments are on time, target and budget.
- Implement
and model Mercy Corps’ philosophy of social entrepreneurship and leverage
Mercy Corps’ best practices.
- Participate
in the preparation and maintenance of a detailed implementation plan and
in the development of the program work plan, ensuring accurate and timely
input into specific plans (weekly, monthly, quarterly and annually).
- Contribute
to timely preparation and review of the (non-engineering) reports and
documents required for the inception phase report; ensuring that
recommendations of are made to refine program design and implementation
strategies to improve efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery.
- Conduct
regular field visits to all project sites.
Team Management
- Create
and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive
to achieve excellence.
- Promote
accountability, communicate expectations and provide constructive feedback
via regular performance reviews.
- Supervise,
hire and orient new team members and consultants as necessary. Mentor
assessment teams to ensure quality of data collection and analysis.
- Provide
team members with information, tools and other resources to improve
performance and reach objectives.
- Contribute
to country team-building efforts, help team members identify problem
solving options and ensure the integration of all team members into
relevant decision-making processes.
Organizational Learning: As part of our
commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that
learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the
communities they serve - we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time
to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves.
Accountability to Beneficiaries: Mercy Corps
team members are expected to support all efforts towards accountability,
specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international
relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as
equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
ACCOUNTABILITY:
REPORTS DIRECTLY TO: Program Director/Chief Technical
Advisor
WORKS DIRECTLY WITH: Assessment team (sectors include
engineering, sanitation, socio-economics, environment, governance, market
development, gender, hygiene and behavior change, and monitoring and
evaluation), DRC team members, members of the Mercy Corps Technical Support
Units
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
- BS or
equivalent in in social science, management, international development or
other relevant field; MA/S preferred.
- Five
years of overseas experience including at least two years in a management
position.
- Experience
conducting assessments and/or managing programs in relevant technical
area(s) including water and sanitation, governance, gender, market
development, hygiene and behavior change, and/or environment.
- Strong
written and oral communication skills in English, including report
development, writing and editing.
- Proficient
written and oral communication in French.
- Previous
experience working in francophone Africa preferred.
SUCCESS FACTORS:
The successful Assessment Program Manager will have proven
leadership experience working with cross-cultural teams. S/he must have strong
analytical skills and an ability to pull together information from multiple
sectors and identify linkages. S/he will demonstrate flexibility and creativity
in planning and problem solving, and have a proven ability to learn quickly and
achieve stated results and objectives. Multi-tasking, prioritizing, problem
solving and simultaneous attention to detail and strategic vision are
essential. The most successful Mercy Corps staff members have a strong
commitment to teamwork and accountability, thrive in evolving and changing
environments and make effective written and verbal communication a priority in
all situations.
LIVING CONDITIONS/ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS:
This is an accompanied position based in Goma, DRC and it
requires up to 60% travel to Bukavu, Bunia and Butembo. While conditions in the
country are improving, there are still pockets of violence and insecurity.
Years of conflict and corruption have badly damaged the country's
infrastructure. Air travel is necessary to get from one end of the
country to the other. There are virtually no telephone land lines in the
DRC, though mobile phones and cellular service are widely available.
Internet is limited, but available in all Mercy Corps offices. Living
conditions are clean and secure, but basic.
Mercy Corps Team members represent the agency both during
and outside of work hours when deployed in a field posting or on a visit/TDY to
a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a
professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies,
procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.
Job Location: Goma, Nord-Kivu, Congo - Kinshasa
Position Type: Full-Time/Regular
