Zimbabwe recent jobs: CARE international country Director vacancy
Background
CARE International (CI) is one of the world’s largest Non Governmental relief and development agencies. CARE Canada (CA) is a member of an international partnership which provides means of support, empowerment, security, social justice and well-being for the poor in more than 70 developing countries. CARE Canada currently has approximately 35 expatriate staff, large number of consultants and thousands of national staff working internationally.
CARE Canada is the Lead Member for CARE International in Chad, Cuba, Indonesia, Kenya, Zambia and Zimbabwe, together managing a program portfolio of $80M per annum on average. COs are branch of CARE Canada.
The Country Director (CD) has the overall responsibility for the effective management of CARE International in country of assignment based on CARE International and CARE Canada’s mission vision, core values and program principals and Operational Code.
Job Summary
Reporting to VP-IOPs the Country Director provides effective leadership and management to CARE International (CI) staff and other stakeholders to undertake CARE International’s role in addressing poverty and injustice and providing humanitarian assistance when needed consistent with CI’s Vision, Mission and Focus.
The Country Director has overall responsibility and leadership to ensure the relevance, impact and cost-effectiveness of CARE International in the assigned country. S/he represents CI in the country, guiding a relevant program strategy development and implementation, ensuring effective humanitarian capacity and timely response, leading operational planning, and overseeing financial, operations and human resource management, including the safety and security of all CI staff and visitors.
Country Office Highlights
CARE’s began operations in Zimbabwe in 1992 in response to a severe drought that threatened the nation’s food security and left millions in need of food aid. In a country where many of the people are subsistence farmers, CARE quickly distributed food throughout the nation, establishing itself as a valued partner in Zimbabwe. Today, CARE works to promote women empowerment, through sustainable programmes that help people acquire the financial stability and skills they need to prepare for, and survive, disasters such as the 1992 drought. Over the past 20 years, CARE’s major initiatives in Zimbabwe have focused on agricultural and natural resources, emergency drought assistance, small economic activity development, and health and nutrition. CARE implements projects directly and with partners in the most needy provinces in Zimbabwe. Currently the CO implements a viable portfolio of approximately $10-15 million/annum and employs approximately 200 staff.
Job Responsibilities and Tasks
Job Responsibility #1 (Est. 10% of the time):
Representation, Communications and Relationships
- The Country Director is the representative of CARE International in the country and represents CI to all parties including the Government, donors, civil society and other organisations.
- Ensure that the CI has an appropriate legal basis for CI’s presence in the country, consistent with CI standards and program related agreements with the relevant government authorities;
- Maintain productive relationships with all key stakeholders (civil society, government, donors, etc) so that they understand and respect the value of CI’s contribution to addressing poverty, gender inequality and injustice and seek CI to contribute to development and humanitarian fora as a valuable source of experience and as a preferred partner.
- Ensure that the image of CARE International in the country is consistent with CI’s Mission, Vision and Focus and protects CI’s interests and assets.
- Encourage and facilitate the full engagement of all interested CI Members in all aspects of CI’s program and activities including engagement in strategic, program and project planning processes, securing donor funding for CI programs, maintaining project management and supporting the promotion of CI Member media and communications.
Job Responsibility #2 (Est. 20% of the time):
Program Development and Implementation
- Guided by the CARE International program strategy, donor and host government priorities, ensure that CI has a coherent, documented and understood strategy which clearly sets out how CI will fulfil its mandate to address poverty and injustice amongst poor and marginalised women and their communities.
- Ensure that CI’s programs and projects meet the objectives of the strategy and the CI Country Office is able to demonstrate the impact of this work through regular reporting of robust evidence.
- Provide support and guidance to the CO program staff in the identification, development and design of programs and projects consistent with CI’s program strategy;
- Develop value-adding partnerships that are complementary to CI’s activities and competencies, increase the effectiveness and impact of mutually agreed objectives and are consistent with CI’s approaches to partnership and global commitments, including humanitarian principles.;
- Identify and secure program and project funding consistent with CI’s program strategy through CI Members, bilateral and multilateral donors and non-traditional sources;
- Ensure excellence in programming through the application of best programming practices, sound technical approaches, and good practice monitoring, evaluation and learning and develop a robust evidence base to demonstrate impact and inform policy engagement;
- Ensure CI’s full compliance with donor contractual requirements;
- Ensure effective project implementation monitoring and evaluation that allows for accurate donor reporting, timely course corrections, and learning and innovation.
Job Responsibility #3 (Est. 10% of the time):
Emergency Preparedness & Response;
- Ensure that CARE maintains a high level of preparedness to respond to humanitarian emergencies and responds effectively to emergencies as required.
- Ensure that the Country Office emergency preparedness plan is current and reviewed regularly in collaboration with appropriate CI stakeholders and relevant in-country partners;
- Provide effective leadership and management for the response in the event of an humanitarian emergency.
Job Responsibility #4 (Est. 10% of the time):
Safety and Security;
The Country Director has primary responsibility for the safety and security of all CARE International staff in-country and to safeguard all organisational assets and operations. The Country Director will:
- Promote a safe and secure work environment, foster a safety and security culture and ensure consistent application of and compliance with CARE International safety and security policies and procedures.
- Consult with the line manager and CI stakeholders as required in the event of any major safety or security-related matter.
- Lead the Crisis Management Team under the direction of the line manager and oversee the CO’s overall response in critical incident situations, , liaising with Country Governments, CI Members, donors and media.
Job Responsibility #5 (Est. 15% of the time):
Country Office Strategic and Operational Planning and Implementation,
- Undertake periodic assessment and review to ensure that the type of presence of CI in the country is appropriate for the program strategy including humanitarian mandate, the operating environment and the funding base and enables CI to achieve maximum impact at minimum cost.
- Establish and maintain an effective management structure in the country that is documented and identifies responsibilities and accountabilities, includes appropriate engagement of stakeholders in decision-making and has systems for internal communication;
- Maintain the operational planning cycle, such as Annual Operating Plans, consistent with CI Member standards.
- Maintain all reporting requirements to host government, development stakeholders, CI Members and line management.
Job Responsibility #6 (Est. 20% of the time):
Country Office Financial, Budget and Administration Management
- Ensure the development of the CO’s annual budget as per CI policies and procedures;
- Ensure the financial viability of the CO to ensure that project budgets are able to cover the running costs of the CO;
- Monitor and analyze the CO cost structure, particularly in anticipation of changes in the program portfolio;
- Ensure that the CO performance and audit results are satisfactory, recommendations from previous evaluations and audits are addressed and show an overall improving trend;
- Ensure that the risk register is maintained and issues acted upon in a timely manner;
- Ensure compliance with CI Member financial policies and procedures including internal controls and reporting requirements;
- Ensure compliance with all legal, contractual and statutory requirements.
Job Responsibility #7 (Est. 10% of the time):
Human Resources Development and Management
- Responsible for the overall performance and management of the country office workforce consistent with CARE International Performance Standards;
- Ensure that all personnel working for CARE are managed in accordance with the relevant CI Member and national staff HR policies and practices and CI Member Minimum Standards for national staff HR management.
- Ensure that all personnel management systems, policies and practices are documented including but not limited to staff orientation and induction, safety and security, work plans and performance appraisal, managing poor performance and misconduct; and are adhered to by staff.
- Ensure that all HR policies and procedures are established in accordance with host country laws and legislation and reviewed on a regular basis; ensure that HR policies are respected for expatriate personnel;
- Promote staff development and the maximization of local talent, through coaching and mentoring, talent management, succession planning and active career development.
Job Responsibility #8 (Est. 5% of the time):
Communication, information and public relations
- Liaise with the CARE International Members to publicize CARE work, experiences and best practice.
- Provide information for the Fundraising and Communication Departments of CARE International Members.
- Engage with national and international media and seek opportunities for publicizing CARE.
Qualifications:
Education & Training:
- Required: Appropriate educational background and qualifications commensurate with the seniority of the position.
- Higher education in a relevant discipline is an asset.
Experience:
- Required:
- Minimum of ten years of experience in international development and humanitarian assistance;
- At least five years of successful experience at the senior management level in international settings, in contexts similar to country of assignment;
- Demonstrated experience of development and humanitarian programs relevant to the situation in the country of assignment,
- Solid understanding of financial and budget management, and of best practice programming;
- Proven abilities in decision-making and problem-solving including in dynamic contexts;
Language competency:
- Required:
- Fluent in English (speaking, reading and writing);
- Desired:
- Fluent oral and/or written communication in local language.
Key Competencies:
Critical: Visibly and consistently demonstrate high standards for CIs core values.
Necessary:
- Demonstrated leadership and management competence at a senior executive level in a dynamic environment;
- Demonstrated ability to work independently, team player, creativity, appreciation of efficiency, highly organized, ability to handle detail concurrent with strategic issues, and reverence of deadlines and time obligations,
- Demonstrate awareness and sensitivity to gender and diversity.
- Experience leading an organization through organizational change
- Have demonstrated experience, patience and the ability to work in diverse, cultural contexts in a culturally appropriate manner.
- Has a capacity to make accurate self-assessment particularly in high stress situations.
- Excellent communication skills, ability to work under stress, patience, multi-tasking and problem solving skills; and positive attitude.
How to apply
If you are someone who thrives on challenge, loves to be part of a dynamic team and you are passionate about making a difference, then this opportunity is for you. Please apply directly at http://bit.ly/2uvcV3Y before August 7, 2017. Resumes will be reviewed on an ongoing basis and the position will remain posted until a qualified candidate is identified