Creative seeks a Chief of Party (COP) for an upcoming USAID/OTI-funded project in Ethiopia. The anticipated project will implement activities in support of Ethiopia’s democratic opening and the Government of Ethiopia’s reform agenda.

In USAID/OTI programs, the Chief of Party commonly serves the traditional responsibilities of a Chief Operating Officer and is not a traditional Chief of Party role due to the USAID/OTI-Contractor relationship and key decision-making processes.

Qualities:

Based on USAID/OTI’s experiences, a strong COP for an USAID/OTI SWIFT Program should:

• Be willing to have close, daily collaboration with USAID/OTI’s in-country staff.
• Take programmatic and strategic direction from USAID/OTI staff.
• Have strong management and leadership skills, including the ability to mentor staff.
• Be a “hands on” manager who is actively engaged in all aspects of program management.
• Understand USAID/OTI’s need for direct program communication with all program staff.
• Have demonstrated past representational experience with host governments, other donors, and civil society and demonstrated success with inter-agency coordination and joint programming ideally.
• Be flexible to potential changes in program objectives and shifting political contingencies.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Make key decisions and solve problems in short time frames while ensuring operational and program integrity. Overall program direction is provided by USAID/OTI through the TOCOR and CR
• Management, oversight, and reporting of Contractor progress and quality of performance in meeting the activity undertakings in this program;
• Financial and program management, oversight, and reporting of Contractor progress and quality of performance in meeting the activity undertakings in this program;
• Serve as the Contractor’s designated person for overall management of the in-country relationship with USAID/OTI;
• In close consultation with the CR, responsible for providing oversight of grant activities, including supervision of the program staff, ensuring appropriate grant design, ensuring that procedures are established and complied with for grant development, grant worthiness, grant implementation, management, monitoring, evaluation, and grant closing;
• Under the guidance of the CR or DCR, contribute to the design and implementation of the Monitoring & Evaluation system at the activity level and for ensuring that all activities are monitored and evaluated;
• Responsible for developing familiarity with, and maintaining daily usage of, the USAID/OTI Activity Database, and ultimately responsible for ensuring that the relevant staff use, maintain, and upload weekly the Activity Database, and that data is consistent and complete; and
• Supervise the Operations Manager.

Required Qualifications:

• A minimum of eight (8) years of relevant work experience and a bachelor’s degree or twelve (12) years of relevant work experience without a bachelor’s degree. Relevant experience entails working in complex, high-speed, and/or challenging field operations in developing countries. At least three (3) years of this experience should include managing these field operations;
• Experience with a Contractor or international NGO managing an office or program;
• A minimum of four (4) years of supervisory experience;
• Experience with programs that provide quick delivery of assistance in response to emerging windows of opportunity;
• Experience with grants management;
• Experience in the hiring and supervising of host country local personnel and ensuring, when need arises, that they secure necessary training required to meet program needs;
• Financial management experience, including budgeting; financial management (tracking, reporting and accounting); and procurement;
• Experience with activity design, development, and implementation; and
• Experience with complex political transition programs and/or conflict environments.

Highly Desired Qualifications:

• Experience with in-kind and/or small grants;
• Demonstrated experience and knowledge in establishing systems and overseeing program start-up under limited time constraints;
• Demonstrated experience and knowledge in overseeing program close-out;
• Experience working in Ethiopia; and
• Experience with remote management in security-challenged environments.

Position contingent upon donor funding.