Job Description
Scope
We’re looking for the next leader of our programs team: the Deputy Director for Programs (DDP). In this role, you provide strategic leadership to our dynamic portfolio of programs. As a senior leader, your core responsibilities will include program oversight, grants and budget management, program quality, strategic direction and fundraising. You’ll report directly to the Country Director (CD) and lead a team of six experienced professionals in programs, grants and M&E.
In Zimbabwe, we are currently leading exciting resilience-building and disaster risk management work across four districts (Beitbridge, Chimanimani, Chipinge and Nyanga). Do you have past experience in program leadership? Are you passionate about quality design, strategy, and want to make a meaningful impact on rural communities in Zimbabwe? Then join us.
Highlights of Key Responsibilities
• You are the programmatic lead for the Zimbabwe country program, covering implementation, grants management and business development.
• You lead on proposal and concept note development, and define with the CD the strategic direction of our programmatic and fundraising efforts.
• You mentor staff, providing guidance and support finance and grants teams in writing proposal narratives and budgets.
• You supervise and support the grants team’s consolidation of donor reports.
• You work to improve project management by rolling out new project cycle meetings to improve oversight, coordination and collaboration (monthly Budget versus Actual meetings, project opening meetings, implementation meetings, lessons learnt meetings, etc)
• You represent the IRC in donor and partner meetings, expanding our participation and visibility in key coordination forums.
• You monitor project implementation against work plans, while providing guidance to project leads.
• You foster a positive and productive professional work environment and professional relationships amongst staff; and facilitate productive working relationships between the program and operations staff.
Specific Responsibilities
Leadership and Representation
In this position you are part of the program’s senior leadership, and will set the tone and pace for the programs team. As DDP, you will lead the largest department in the organization.
• Provide leadership and supervisory management to the programs department, as a key member of the SMT, including mobilization and stewardship of resources, program quality and accountability, and performance management.
• Drive the quality implementation and support of programs, informed by the country program’s Strategy Action Plan (SAP), monitoring and evaluation systems and technical unit support.
• Supervise senior program staff
• Actively engage with donors, partner agencies, and the humanitarian community in Zimbabwe to ensure IRC is strongly represented in coordination and advocacy efforts.
Program Strategy & Design
You and the CD will collaborate regularly to set the strategic direction for the country program and lead fundraising efforts accordingly. You will need to be forward-thinking in translating our ambitious strategy into concrete action.
• Leader in driving the IRC/Zimbabwe’s ambitious SAP, with a particular focus on delivery of our commitments towards the strategic objectives. Specifically, work to ensure all programs are aligned with the outcomes and evidence framework (OEF) and designed along the guidance of the “Good and Great Standards.”
• Position IRC for future donor resources by initiating assessments (including qualitative and quantitative data gathering), and by furthering IRC’s reflective thought leadership around program quality in Zimbabwe.
• Seek out opportunities for new programming and funding to support it.
• Lead and support sector coordinators and programs teams to collaborate with grants/finance teams to develop responsive, competitive, evidenced-based, and cost-efficient funding applications.
• Provide mentorship to program staff regarding tools and strategies for programming that is based on input from communities, a deep understanding of the context, and evidence of technical effectiveness.
• Lead the development and implementation of integrated programming initiatives so that technical sectors complement one another for greater impact.
• Work with field management and support departments to ensure systems are fit for purpose to support ongoing programmatic goals and strategic growth opportunities.
Program Implementation & Grant Management
As DDP, you’ll be our main lead on all issues related to program implementation and quality, and will be the main driver of our strategy ambitions and the implementation of the IRC’s Good & Great Standards for program implementation. You will approve requisitions, work plans and budgets.
• Provide overall leadership and management of IRC Zimbabwe’s programming portfolio, ensuring strategically coherent program direction, well-managed growth, and compliance with IRC and donor regulations.
• Drive effective management of program implementation through structured work plans, spending plans, monitoring plans and regular field support visits; ensure that risks limiting achievement of objectives are reported and rapidly addressed.
• Coordinate with other members of Senior Management Team on appropriate management, compliance and performance standards, as well as effective systems for budget management, knowledge management and risk management.
• Strengthen our existing M&E systems alongside the M&E team; ensure data is used for decision-making and improvement of outcomes for our beneficiaries.
• Spearhead the institutionalization of regular project meetings (budget reviews, opening and closing meetings, learning meetings, etc) to enhance our project management and timely delivery of programs.
• Supervise program staff’s stewardship of the financial health and performance of all projects. Oversee grants team and guide staff to ensure compliance with both donor and IRC procedures.
• Contribute to risk mitigation, ensuring that program staff fully understand financial and administrative processes involved in project budget cycles.
Budget and Risk Management
• Master and support adherence to IRC programming, administrative and financial procedures and systems.
• Promote risk reduction management as a part of all staff’s responsibilities.
• Ensure that program staff are well trained to properly manage project budgets.
• Supervise program staff’s stewardship of the financial health and performance of all projects.
• Guide staff to ensure donor intent is respected and regulations followed.
• Meet with program, grants and finance staff regularly to review budget comparison reports.
• Approve release of resources for projects as per approved budgets, implementation plans, achievements, and agreements.
• Ensure program staff follow finance procedures to rapidly process payments.
• Mitigate risk by collaborating with the Finance Department to ensure that programming staff fully understand financial and administrative processes involved in project budget cycles.
• Ensure that risks limiting achievement of objectives are reported and rapidly addressed.
Staff Performance Management and Development
You will be directly supervising a team currently comprising six people, and inspire them to deliver their best.
• Coach, supervise and mentor your team into a high-energy and high-performance team; communicate clear expectations, set performance objectives, provide regular and timely positive and constructive performance feedback, and provide effective semi-annual performance reviews.
• Be an effective manager: hold high-quality meetings with each direct report on a regular and predictable basis; build development plans including on-the-job learning and providing mentorship on career paths; and promote and monitor staff care, well-being and self-care.
• Maintain open and professional relations with team members, nurturing a strong team spirit and providing oversight and guidance to enable staff to successfully perform in their positions.
• Model and encourage active practice of the principles of the “IRC Way – Global Standards for Professional Conduct;” be a champion for gender equality.
• Promote constructive, collegial teamwork between program staff and operational support staff.
Key Working Relationships
Position Reports to: Country Director
Position directly supervises: 4 x program leads; 1 x country monitoring & evaluation lead; 1 x grants lead
Other internal and external contacts:
Internal: Close working relationships with other SMT members (operations coordinator; senior finance manager; HR manager); collaborates with regional colleagues particularly deputy regional director and peer regional DDPs
External: Public and private donor agencies, international and national NGOs, UN agencies, partner organizations
Qualifications
• You have a solid work ethic and desire to work every single day for the improvement of the lives of the people we serve.
• As a leader in a position of trust, you can lead by example and inspire others through your positive role modeling.
• Graduate degree in relevant field preferred
• Six years of progressively responsible international management experience, preferably in remote management contexts, including technical staff supervision.
• Ability to develop successful proposals for a variety of donors.
• Ability to lead projects to completion on time, in compliance with donor requirements, within budget, and with the anticipated results.
• Demonstrated strengths in relationship management.
• Extensive experience with M&E tools and systems for complex programs.
• Established capacity to deal with ambiguity in stressful situations.
• Ability to respond to multiple priorities in a timely manner, producing high-quality outcomes.
• Excellent written English skills and familiarity with budgeting using MS Excel
• Excellent computer skills and competency in Word, Excel and PowerPoint
• Great multi-tasking abilities and communication skills, both oral and written
Standards of Professional Conduct
The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in the IRC Way – Code of Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Harassment-Free Workplace, Fiscal Integrity, Anti-Retaliation, Combating Trafficking in Persons and several others.
Gender Equality & Equal Opportunity
We are committed to narrowing the gender gap in leadership positions. We offer generous benefits that provide an enabling environment for women to participate in our workforce including parental leave, gender-sensitive security protocols and other supportive benefits and allowances. We welcome and strongly encourage qualified female professionals to apply.
IRC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. IRC considers all applicants on the basis of merit without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.
More Information
- Job City Harare
