The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world’s largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 40 countries and 29 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees deliver lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you’re a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future.
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The IRC is looking for a Senior P&C Coordinator for IRC CAR & Cameroon, newly merged Country Program (CO) with a total operating budget of roughly $10M.
Cameroon Context:
The IRC began its operations in Cameroon in 2016 to address violence from Boko Haram in the Far North. By 2018-2019, they expanded into South-West and North-West regions. With offices in Yaoundé, Maroua, and Buea, the IRC focuses on providing access to water, improving hygiene, offering cash assistance, enhancing food security, and delivering education and protection services. Their programs also include child protection and support for gender-based violence victims and human rights violations.
CAR Context:
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has been operating in the Central African Republic (CAR) since 2006. With its main office located in Bangui, the IRC CAR conducts activities across four provinces: Haut-Mbomou, Ouham-Pendé, and Bamingui-Bangoran with sub-offices in Zemio, Ndele, Bocaranga The organization provides comprehensive services in several key areas, including health and nutrition, education, food security and economic recovery and development (ERD), as well as protection services encompassing women’s protection and empowerment (WPE) and child protection.
Cameroon-CAR Country Programme:
In the coming months, the team will work on the Strategic Action Plan (SAP) for the IRC Cameroon-CAR country program, identifying synergies for coherent programming in both countries, and exploring opportunities for cross-border response. The IRC SAP aims to provide significant impact for boys, girls, women, and men affected by humanitarian crises. The team adheres to IRC’s core values of Integrity, Accountability, Service, and Equality. Additionally, IRC Cameroon-CAR plans to enhance the quantity and quality of its partnerships with national and local NGOs.
Purpose and Background:
The position holder will report directly to the Country Director with MiP relationship with Regional Director, P&C Central Africa. This assignment is pivotal to ensuring the merger is managed with integrity, empathy, and operational excellence. The Senior Coordinator -P&C will play a leading role in managing the merger from all P&C-related aspects—ensuring legal compliance, policy harmonization, cultural alignment, and staff-centered transition planning. They will lead the development of job descriptions, policies, and guidelines for the merged country program, and will actively participate in the transition taskforce.
Additionally, the Senior Coordinator- P&C will address staff concerns related to job security, recruitment fairness, and organizational change stressors. To ensure a successful, people-centered integration, the Senior Coordinator-P&C will work closely with the Country Director, Country P&C Leads, and relevant stakeholders at both regional and country levels, while maintaining clear, inclusive, and transparent communication.
Primary Responsibilities:
P&C Operations/ Foundational
Oversee the creation and tracking of P&C objectives at the Country Office, ensuring alignment with organizational goals. Actively engage in proposal design and grant review meetings, providing expert advice on organizational structure, position scoping, demographic and staffing analysis to build a robust P&C foundation that supports high program quality.
Drive informed decision-making by using data to support people and culture functions, ensuring all data reporting, monthly HR metrics, SG data; and Diversity, are accurate and timely delivered.
Oversee payroll process ensuring accurate and timely compensation for all staff.
Ensure the development and implementation of high-quality, context-specific strategies and practices in areas such as recruitment, compensation and benefits, employee relations, onboarding, offboarding, contract management, learning and development, performance management, leave management, code of conduct compliance, legal compliance, HR Information Systems, coordination of policy development and implementation, etc.
In alignment with our PEERS framework, provide technical P&C support to our local partners, and ensure their ways of working are aligned and in compliance with IRC’s standards.
Legal Review
Conduct a comprehensive legal review covering labor laws, employment contracts, taxation, social security, and statutory benefits in both country programs. Engage legal counsels to ensure compliance with both country regulations, especially for workforce restructuring or contract transitions. Review and vet existing P&C policies and procedures as needed.
Cultural Assessment Action Plan
Implement & monitor the recommendations and actions following the cultural assessment conducted in (May-July 2025). The cultural assessment findings reflect cultural differences and similarities between the two country programs. Findings share realities of the recommended working norms, work-life priorities, and well as identified gaps that need to be addressed by the SMT to ensure inclusion and the wellbeing of the staff across the (2) geographic zones.
P&C Unification
Ensure that a P&C strategy is developed for both geographic context, review local P&C policies, benefits structures, payroll systems, and employment terms between both country programs. Develop a consolidated HR manual that meets operational and legal requirements. Review total compensation structures, and how that shapes the structure of the merger. Identify matters related to the full employee life cycle and ensure policies are aligned, including compensation, benefits, and lifecycle procedures. Ensure adherence to each local labour environment within the HR manual.
Retention Strategy and Contingency Planning
Identify key staff critical for business continuity and develop retention interventions. Be mindful of staff managing increased workloads and generate strategies to address this. The turnover of key staff during mergers requires staff contingency planning. Work closely with RPCD and HQ leads for contingency resource deployments.
Staff Support and Communications
Contribute with the merged country programme communication plan to clearly communicate the rationale, timeline, and impact of the merger to all staff to prevent uncertainty and attrition. Ensure that the staff is informed of staff well-being options, Duty of Care resources, capacity-building services for skills development, and assistance to impacted staff due to mergers. Oversee and implement an employee engagement and communication strategy that supports effective interaction and integration across all teams and levels.
Staff Data Management
Ensure that both country program staff data is in one format and accurate, updated, and reconciled frequently. Ensure that physical and electronic data/records are secured and integrated for compensation and benefits, talent acquisition, staff changes, and separations. HRIS/Workday systems as appropriate are finalized to maintain the future state of HR data management under a unified plan. Drive data-informed decision-making by ensuring timely and accurate delivery of key P&C data reports including safeguarding, and leadership diversity goals.
Workforce Planning and Reorganization
Support the country leadership (SMT) to define the new organizational structure, ensuring role clarity, reporting lines, and functional responsibilities in the merged entity. Identify duplicate roles or redundancies and determine whether they can be restructured, reassigned, or phased out. Adjust key job descriptions and Support in developing new JDs for a competitive recruitment process. Participate in proposal design and grant review meetings to provide expert input on org design, staffing plans, and structure.
Competitive Process for Unified/Merged ESMT
Ensure that a competitive recruitment process is designed and implemented in line with IRC’s Talent Movement Framework for merged roles, providing equal opportunities to internal talent. Participate in the transition taskforce and contribute to key decisions and documentation supporting the merger timeline.
Launch P&C Strategy-GEDI and Safeguarding Integration
Establish a P&C strategy with integration of workflows between HR, GEDI & Safeguarding. Coordinate and support the implementation of GEDI action plans and minimum safeguarding standards across the newly merged structure. Ensure that inclusive and feminist practices are embedded in hiring, team culture, and leadership. Partner with relevant GEDI, Safeguarding, and Ethics teams to ensure compliance and safe, inclusive workspaces. Promote healthy organizational culture through culture-building activities and support the integration of diverse staff voices in decision-making.
Duty of Care and Team Wellbeing
Develop and lead initiatives to support staff morale and wellbeing through the merger. Facilitate post-critical incident care (if applicable), regular team check-ins, and mental health support. Actively promotes safe, respectful, and caring leadership in line with Duty of Care principles. Ensure physical and psychological safety across locations, in collaboration with the DoC focal points and support teams.
SMT Participation and Leadership
The Senior Coordinator-P&C will serve as a full member of the Senior Management Team (SMT) for the merged country program, actively participating in all SMT meetings and processes of both country programs. They will contribute to strategic decision-making, organizational leadership, and cross-functional coordination, ensuring that P&C perspectives are integrated into all aspects of country program management during the merger process.
Other Responsibilities:
Actively participate in and support staff meetings to foster a collaborative work environment.
Conduct Listening sessions to gather insights and feedback from staff, enhancing organizational communication and employee satisfaction.
Support the Country Director with ad hoc tasks as needed, addressing requirements that may arise outside of the usual responsibilities.
Remain vigilant for any signs of discrepancies or irregularities in operational and administrative procedures, ensuring organizational standards are upheld.
Escalate code of conduct issues and lead or co-lead investigations in collaboration with the Employee Relations unit and when needed Ethics and Compliance unit (ECU). Ensure that issues are thoroughly resolved, and appropriate follow-up actions are implemented to maintain integrity and compliance within the organization.
Key Working Relationships:
Position Reports to Country Director with technical support from the Regional P&C Director – Management in Partnership (MIP)
Direct Reports: HR operations and Employee experience managers
Key Internal Relationships:
Country Senior Management Team
Regional Functional Leads
Global P&C Functional Leads
Key External Relationships: INGO counterparts; legal counsel; P&C associations and networks
Job Requirements:
Formal education in a relevant field (such as a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree) or demonstrated equivalent experience is required. HR management, International Relations or Development, social sciences, MBA, Law, or related field is preferred.
A minimum of 6 years of progressive professional P&C experience
Demonstrated success as a P&C leader supporting groups of 100+ employees at multiple organizational levels, cultures, and locations in Myanmar, within a regional or global environment.
Demonstrated success as a P&C professional in emergency response, conflict zones and/or humanitarian aid sector preferred.
Strong understanding of GEDI & Safeguarding and key challenges relevant to the contexts in both Cameroon & CAR
Demonstrated success in supporting key senior management and building strong, trusted relationships.
Proven track record of excellent management and leadership skills including capacity-building, coaching, mentoring, performance management and delivering individual and group training.
High degree of comfort and successful track record supervising in matrixed environments.
High levels of integrity and empathy, with the ability to understand, engage, and inspire others.
Skilled in collaborating with operational and technical focal points to ensure organizational best practices are represented in work.
Broad knowledge and experience across the broad spectrum of People & Culture competencies
Strong collaborator with effective interpersonal and analytical skills who can work seamlessly across countries, cultures, and organizational units required.
Demonstrated ability to work, manage, and meet competing deadlines in a fast-paced, high-volume environment and on deadlines; aptitude for problem-solving and decision-making needed.
Excellent interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills required.
Must possess a highly collaborative, inclusive, consultative, and resourceful workstyle that balances required compliance/policy enforcement with a steadfast commitment to client service and support.
Excellent project management and organizational skills including detailed work planning and superior time management skills.
Proficient in people analytics and data management and interpretation, with an aptitude for translating datasets into actionable people insights.
Language/Travel:
Fluency in English and French is a must.
Travel: minimum national travel is required – 50%
Working Environment
The role can be based in either Yaoundé or Bangui and will involve regular travel between both countries, including to field locations, with close collaboration with both country teams, regional colleagues, and the transition taskforce. Travel between field offices may be required, along with flexible working arrangements depending on context.
**Standard of Professional Conduct:**The IRC and the IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in the IRC Way – our Code of Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Accountability, and Equality.
More Information
- Job City Cameroon, Central African Republic
