Area Manager - Bossaso, Puntland (DRC)

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OVERALL OBJECTIVE

The Area Manager (AM) is responsible for managing all activities under DRC sub office in Bossaso, and reports to the Country Director, Somalia. The Area Manager will contribute to strategic planning and lead in management of all sectors within Bossaso programme areas. The AM is responsible for high quality and accountable programme design and delivery. In DRC, the AM retains a high degree of management autonomy, within a clearly defined regional strategic framework, and under the direct supervision of the Country Director.

BACKGROUND

The Danish Refugee Council (DRC) has been providing relief and development services in the Horn of Africa since 1997. Using a protection of human rights framework, DRC has mainly focused on those who are displaced by conflict. Programs including protection, livelihoods, food and NFI distribution, water and sanitation, and advocacy amongst others, as well as non-operational region-wide initiatives, focusing on advocacy and capacity building. The Puntland operation includes three sub-offices that are supported by the Bossaso main office. Currently there is about 70 staff in the DRC Puntland programme.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Programme Strategy:

• To contribute to the local programme strategy, within DRC’s overall regional and global strategic frameworks. Tasks include: a) ensuring all staff understand the regional and global frameworks, b) with Regional Office (RO), managing a consultative process for local strategy development, c) play a leading role in annual programme portfolio analyses, d) playing significant role in fundraising and donor contract management.

Programme Delivery:

• To be responsible for all aspects of delivering a high quality and accountable programme. Tasks include: a) ensuring a local quality assurance system is developed and followed, b) providing staff with direction and input at all major stages of programme cycle, c) ensuring timely implementation and reporting, d) ensuring all staff have work plans which are in line with strategic priorities, e) apply performance management systems.

Quality and Accountability:

• To be responsible for achieving programme compliance with the organisational quality and accountability commitments. Tasks include: a) With RO, ensure that Programme Handbook is presented to all staff, b) lead process of developing and updating local HAF and Quality Management System (QMS), c) enabling staff to reach compliance with HAF and follow QMS, d) ensure complaints handling mechanisms are in place for all programmes, e) preparing the quarterly report including section on compliance, f) promote accountability concepts and practices amongst humanitarian community.

Safety and Security:

• To be overall responsible for ensuring that programmes are delivered in a safe and secure manner. Tasks include: a) working with RSA (regional Security Advisor) to ensure that all DRC HoA security management protocols and procedures are updated, made locally relevant and applied consistently, b) to be overall responsible for ensuring security analyses is being done collectively and regularly, c) ensuring that good security management becomes a cultural and procedural norm for all staff.

Representation Coordination and Stakeholder management:

• To ensure that DRC maintains excellent and productive relations with all key stakeholders, especially beneficiaries, local authorities, the humanitarian community and donors. Tasks include: a) representing DRC at relevant and senior forums/ meetings, b) ensuring other staff are appropriately representing DRC at relevant forums/ meetings, c) maintaining agreed profile of DRC at country/programme level, d) conducting regular stakeholder analyses to ensure that DRC has good understanding of dynamics/ relationships, e) ensuring that all staff maintain beneficiaries and communities at the centre of DRC’s stakeholder list, f) engaging in coordination processes amongst key stakeholders.

Advocacy and Communication:

• To lead the team’s advocacy in all DRC’s key and agreed messages. Tasks include: a) with RO, preparing a programme advocacy and communication strategy, b) guiding staff to advocate clearly, appropriately and strategically.

Finance and budget accountability:

• To be overall responsible for ensuring financial accountability. Tasks include: a) responsible for all aspects of budget management, b) managing the finance team, c) ensuring that all financial systems are followed and that financial reports submitted are accurate, d) ensuring the finance and programme teams have a productive relationship.

Support services:

• To ensure that HR/ Admin and Logistics teams are effectively supporting programme needs. Tasks include: a) ensuring that HR/ Admin and logistics protocols and procedures are being followed, b) ensuring that Support services are adapting and responding to programmatic needs, c) play a very active oversight role in sensitive areas, such as recruitment, discipline and complaints handling.

Capacity Building:

• Ensure that staffs are continuously developing their ability to fulfill their job descriptions as well as the organisational requirements. Task include: a) with RO, preparing a capacity building strategy and action plan, b) securing resources to enable capacity building, c) implementing a variety of capacity building techniques, d) ensuring on-the-job feedback and performance development.

REPORTING ARRANGEMENTS

The Country Director, Somalia will supervise the Area Manager. The Area Manager will manage the heads of all sections in Bossaso (programme, finance, security, logistics, etc)

QUALIFICATIONS

Essential

• A Masters degree in relevant field of study.

• Progressive management experience in complex/protracted emergency and recovery operations.

• Three years management experience as head or senior member of humanitarian or development organization.

• Well developed human resource management skills.

• Good communicator and proven diplomacy with all types of stakeholders

• Committed to upholding dignity and diversity

• Proven commitment to accountable practices and knowledgeable of quality assurance systems

• Hands on experience of managing staff in insecure locations

• Proven financial and human resource management skills

• Experience of managing budgets and multiple donor contracts

• Knowledge of protection issues

• Fluent and articulate in spoken and written English

• Ability and willingness to engage with all levels of staff and stakeholder

• Proactive problem-solver who is able to, and enjoys, identifying, unraveling and solving multiple difficulties, challenges and constraints

Preferable

• Experienced with conflict related displacement issues

• Somali and/or Arabic language.

• Experience of humanitarian advocacy.

CONDITIONS

Availability: September 2011

Duty station: The duty station for this position is based in Bossaso, Puntland. This is a non-family post.

Contract: One year with possibility of extension. Salary and other conditions in accordance with the Danish Refugee Council’s Terms of Employment for Field Recruited Expatriates recruited by the Horn of Africa (HOA) Regional Office in Nairobi, Kenya OR the Somalia National Staff Salary scale.

For general information about the Danish Refugee Council, please consult www.drc.dk.

GENERAL

Commitments

DRC has a Humanitarian Accountability Framework, outlining its global accountability commitments. All staff are required to contribute to the achievement of this framework (http://www.drc.dk/HAF.4265.0.html)

APPLICATION PROCESS

Applicants should send a 1-page cover letter that clearly explains their motivation for applying, as well as why they are particularly suited to achieve the job responsibilities, together with their CV (not longer than 4 pages) to: drcjobs@drckenya.org. Please indicate “Area Manager Bossaso” as the subject heading.

The deadline for applications is 31. July, 2011.