Mercy Corps is a global organization, 4,000 strong, powered by the belief that a better world is possible. We help people survive and get back on their feet when natural disaster strikes, economies collapse or conflict erupts. And where there are chronic threats to peace and progress, we partner with communities to overcome obstacles and thrive.

POSITION : Humanitarian Programs Manager

Tracking Code: 220076-927

General Position Summary

The Humanitarian Programs Manager will be responsible for coordinating and implementing the delivery of humanitarian response programming that include livelihoods, cash, food, non-food items and wash interventions for families affected by conflict or unrest from both host and displaced communities.
The position includes field leadership of humanitarian program, management of daily program activities and staff, ensuring appropriate systems and support mechanisms are in place to track, analyze and report on results as well as engagement with senior management on the strategic direction of the overall emergency and recovery program.
The post holder will represent Mercy Corps on state level humanitarian coordination platforms.

Program/Department Summary

Mercy Corps has been present in Nigeria since 2012, focusing its interventions on adolescent girls' empowerment, economic development and conflict mitigation. With the insurgency spilling over from the north east of Nigeria and causing displacement of thousands of individuals, Mercy Corps has decided to address the rising humanitarian needs among displaced households and vulnerable host communities by starting its humanitarian program in July 2014.
Mercy Corps Nigeria's humanitarian program aims to provide assistance to populations affected by the crisis in Northeast Nigeria. With funding from humanitarian donors including OFDA, FFP, and ECHO the humanitarian program has been focusing on food assistance, non-food items distribution, protection, livelihoods support, WASH and capacity building of humanitarian response actors. Mercy Corps plans to scale up and expand its humanitarian response in Northeast Nigeria to reach more beneficiaries with additional and varied assistance in a wider geographic area.
All Mercy Corps interventions in Nigeria are implemented in a conflict and gender sensitive manner.

Essential Job Functions

Program Management:

Oversee program start-up and ongoing program management and administration of teams across various field locations
Ensure that program implementation is responsive to communities, authorities and partners and consistent with Mercy Corps' relevant program guidelines, principles, values, quality standards and strategic plan
Ensure that beneficiaries are effectively targeted according to established vulnerability criteria
Develop and oversee program implementation strategies, including partnership frameworks, beneficiary targeting, distribution processes and capacity building of partners as needed
Initiate needs assessments, surveys and other data gathering tools to ensure that Mercy Corps has continued access to updated information and is able to address emerging needs in timely manner
Integrate community approaches, gender sensitivity and capacity building into all activities as appropriate
Ensure program implementation is on time, target and budget, using effective M&E systems to achieve the desired impact
Create and maintain systems ensuring effective and transparent use of financial resources and timely, accurate and informative reporting in line with donor and Mercy Corps policies and procedures
Fulfill Mercy Corps Program Management Minimum Standards based on the organization-wide guide.

Team Management:

Lead the program team in implementation of the humanitarian program.
Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect in which team members strive to achieve excellence
Promote accountability, communicate expectations and provide constructive feedback via regular performance reviews
Hire, orient and supervise new team members as necessary
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.

Representation & Fundraising:

Identify, build and manage collaborative partnerships with consortium partners, sub-grantees, donors, local governments and other stakeholders
Communicate effectively to ensure overall project targets and donor obligations are met
Represent Mercy Corps programs with national and international media and participate in community activities as appropriate
Fundraise to address ongoing needs of IDPs.

Strategy and Vision:

Recognize opportunities for innovative action and create an environment of empowerment, inclusion and participation
Set direction by prioritizing and organizing actions and resources to achieve objectives and contribute to country-wide strategy development
Bring innovation into program implementation, ensuring diversity of modalities and promoting market-based approaches and use of technology, wherever local and security conditions () permit
Support senior management in developing the strategic direction of the overall humanitarian response in Nigeria
Contribute to proposal development to expand the programme and respond to increasing needs
Integrate conflict and gender programming into the humanitarian response.

Finance and Compliance Management:

Ensure compliance with donor and Mercy Corps regulations related to humanitarian programming
Build and/or maintain operational systems that ensure proper administrative support for programs
Draft and/or review scopes of work to hire and manage technical consultants, including review for technical capacities and contract budget
Manage humanitarian program budget(s)

Security:

Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country leadership
Proactively ensure that team members operate in a secure environment and are aware of policies.

Personal Leadership:

Consistently demonstrate flexibility, resilience and ability to maintain positive relationships and composure, even under difficult circumstances
Maintain high ethical standards and treat people with respect and dignity
Demonstrate an awareness of his/her own strengths and development needs
Accountability: 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.
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.

Supervisory Responsibility:

Humanitarian Program & Support Team

Accountability:

Reports Directly to: Director of Humanitarian Programs
Works Directly with: Operations, Finance, Program Managers, TSU team members, and others.

Knowledge and Experience Required

MA or equivalent in relevant field
At least 5 years of field experience in international relief and/or development programs, including demonstrable success in managing humanitarian programs in transitional environments
Previous working experience in Africa required
At least 3 years of management, capacity building and field management experience.
Demonstrated success working effectively and respectfully with host country governments, private sector, INGO, NGO partners and other stakeholders in complex environments
Proven skills in finance and grants management; prior experience with emergency response grant management for both private and institutional donors desired
Knowledge of SPHERE and other humanitarian programming standards
Successful and proven negotiation, communication and organization skills
Excellent oral and written English skills
Ability to work effectively with an ethnically diverse team in a sensitive environment
Fluency in Hausa is a plus

Success Factors:

The successful candidate will skillfully represent programmatic priorities of the agency to donors and regional partners while providing effective leadership to the Mercy Corps humanitarian program team.
S/he will be capable of multi-tasking, rapid decision-making, have initiative, drive and a lot of energy, as well as high emotional intelligence, constructive mentoring skills and proven experience with capacity building.
S/he will be committed to long-term program sustainability and the delivery of high-impact activities at the community level.
Successful Mercy Corps team members have a strong commitment to teamwork and accountability, thrive in evolving and challenging environments, and make effective written and verbal communication a priority.

Living Conditions:

The position will be based either in Yola, Adamawa state or Gombe, Gombe state, Nigeria and it requires frequent travel (60%) between field locations. Considering the frequent travel from/to different field locations, this position will require flexibility in terms of accommodation and logistics. Housing in the field will be in hotels or guesthouse where available. Security in the field locations require additional vigilance and accessibility will be reassessed continuously.
Access to good medical services in north east is limited. Phone communication, internet, electricity and water is available but might be erratic.
The location is currently being assessed for eligibility for hardship and R&R benefits and the intent is that these benefits will be in place at the time of hire. Given the nature of the humanitarian response, working hours require flexibility and working through weekends/evenings might be necessary.
Mercy Corps Team members represent the agency both during and outside of work hours when deployed in a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and Mercy Corps policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all locations.