The Specialist, Humanitarian Operations, manages awards from the Office for Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA). The Specialist works closely with the Humanitarian Business Team, country and regional offices to proactively identify opportunities and challenges related to the OFDA portfolio, support field level implementation and compliance and to recommend improved proposal and award monitoring processes as necessary. S/he will liaise closely with country offices to ensure the production of high quality proposal submissions, the accurate and appropriate management of awards, and the effective flow of resources to Save the Children International (SCI). S/he is responsible for day-to-day award management from opportunity to closeout, including opportunity tracking, proposal development activities, project start-up, processing agreements/amendments, reporting and closeout. This position will engage closely with relevant stakeholders, particularly technical and financial staff to ensure effective management of the specified portfolio.
Areas of Responsibility:
Management of Geographical OFDA Portfolio: 40%
- Serve as a main point of contact managing the complete life cycle of awards from opportunity to close-out for a specified portion of the OFDA portfolio
- Ensure effective project start-up involving country office and relevant technical staff
- Work collaboratively with Country Offices (COs), Regional Offices (ROs), other SC members, and relevant partners and sub-grantees to ensure high quality, timely and compliant program implementation
- Support CO capacity building with training on SCUS donor requirements
- Assist COs with budget planning and monitor monthly budget versus actual expenditures
- Work with Finance and relevant member humanitarian technical staff leads to monitor rate of spending in COs and home office and to ensure expense charges are allowable and reasonable; follow up to ensure errors are corrected
- Monitor award implementation, reporting and procurements; provide needed compliance support to country offices
- Travel to Save the Children country offices to conduct award reviews and provide operations support
- Ensure submission of timely, accurate, high quality reporting to donors as well as input to internal agency reporting requests
- Ensure timely project closeout according to SC policies and procedures
- Support inputs into and use of OFDA portfolio review tools, including portfolio analysis, Level of Effort (LoE) analysis, and recommend improved processes for monitoring the portfolio
- Support the department/agency to maintain knowledge management systems
Support Management of High-Risk Awards (in Addition to Geographic Portfolio): 15%
- Provide secondary support/backstop Senior Specialist on critical, high-risk awards in the OFDA portfolio according to the award management best practices and duties laid out in the above section
- Support/backstop the wider DHR portfolio as requested
Portfolio Development: 35%
- Manage the process of developing and submitting high quality and compliant concept notes and proposals that are aligned with SC’s response strategy and donor priorities, and integrated with other SCUS account programming to the extent possible. This will include;
- Working closely with country office and technical teams to coordinate proposal timelines and roles and responsibilities
- Conducting detailed quality review of narrative, budget and annexes for technical and operational soundness and compliance with donor and agency requirements
- Provide feedback to COs; incorporate reviewer feedback into concept notes and proposal documents, ensure alignment to response strategy and other active awards/ proposals
- Working across teams to ensure timely technical and financial reviews and ensure feedback is incorporated into the final proposal
- Securing all needed approvals prior to submission
- Provide in-country support to CO to develop high quality proposals including proposal writing and coordination as necessary.
- Support the department to maintain knowledge management systems around resource development (ensuring documents are posted on AMS as applicable, maintaining proposal libraries, documenting lessons learned, etc.)
- Negotiate donor terms and conditions in coordination with CO and Grants and Contracts staff
- Complete administrative functions related to agreement review, processing and grant activation
- Adapt to new processes and systems as they are developed
Deploy in Humanitarian Responses: 10%
- Serve on SC’s Global Humanitarian Register; deploy on responses as requested- domestic and international
Educational Background:
High School Diploma
Skills/Experience:
- Minimum 3-5 years grant and program management experience in humanitarian or international development, field level humanitarian experience strongly preferred
- Demonstrated grant/award management experience.
- Knowledge of and experience working with USG donors. Experience working with and raising funds from OFDA strongly preferred.
- Proven ability to track, manage and represent large and diverse funding portfolios.
- Demonstrated ability to collaborate across teams effectively problem solve to ensure efficient and holistic award oversight.
- Excellent analytical, organization, communication and management skills. Must have attention to detail and ability to multi-task.
- Excellent written English and computer skills, advanced proficiency in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and ability to master SC systems.
- Ability to travel on average 20% of time as required in international and domestic locations to support award management and proposal development, typically to places facing a humanitarian crisis.
Preferred Qualifications
- Master’s Degree in field related to development, humanitarian work or business administration.
- Ability to speak French or Spanish
- Experience with UN agencies or other donors and partners
Compensation/Benefits:
- Meaningful work, with a knowledge that you are changing the lives of children all around the world
- A family friendly work environment
- Highly collaborative and innovative teams
- Generous paid vacation days, holidays, family leave days, and sick time
- Healthcare plans including medical, dental, and life insurance
- Retirement savings account with matching company contributions
- Structured and formalized management development and coaching programs for mid and senior level managers
- Extensive e-learning opportunities on a variety of topics offered through our affiliation with several prestigious universities as well as language learning opportunities
Job Function:
Organization Info
Listing Stats
Post Date:
Apr 13 2018
Active Until:
May 14 2018
Hiring Organization:
Save the Children US
industry:
Nonprofit