Save the Children

Position: Head of Awards Management

Job Time: Full-Time

Job Type: Contract

Place of Work: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Posted date: 41 minutes ago

Application Deadline: Jul, 13/2021 (13 days left)

ROLE PURPOSE: 

The Head of Award Management is responsible for delivering efficient and effective award management functions in the Ethiopia Country program. He/she will lead award management for all programs and develop best practice award management processes across the Ethiopia Country Office. The role has three main aspects to it: lead and develop the Country Office award management effort; capacity building of staff and contributing to the development of best practices systems and processes.

The role offers a leadership opportunity for an individual highly experienced in grants management, business development, and donor communications. It requires an individual capable of providing strategic leadership to a dynamic team that is responsible for supporting ambitious fundraising targets as well as the management of a portfolio of awards currently valued at 100 Million USD.

The individual will be responsible for working with all other teams in the Country Office to develop the capacity of all staff and provide on-the-job support to develop an awards management process that supports Save the Children quality standards.

The individual will play a strong coordination role across the Save the Children global network and with donors to assure an effective Award Management system in place for the country program. Also, he/she will coordinate the development of high-quality proposals that are reflective of Save the Children and donor strategic objectives, ensuring proposal budgets are accurately costed, ensure accurate and up-to-date information on the award portfolio is readily available to SMT, and members.

Working with the Finance Team ensure the CO has a clear framework for master budget development, cost allocation, monitoring of award budgets, phasing, and forecasting, in particular ensuring alignment between the master budget and funding tracker.

During implementation, he/she will provide support and information to the technical and field-based teams to deliver donor compliant awards and high-quality and timely donor reports. The maintenance of AMS and related AM systems, processes, and day-to-day management of the Award Managers who lead five portfolios will be a primary function of the Head of Awards.

The individual will play a key leadership role in the development of a culture that promotes the primacy of ensuring Save the Children delivers high-quality programs whilst always seeking to improve national staff capacity and set high-performing standers for the Award Team in day-to-day operations. 

In the event of a major humanitarian emergency, the post holder will be expected to work outside the normal role profile and be able to vary working hours accordingly.

COPE OF ROLE:

Reports to: Director SPPA

Staff reporting to this post: Five Award Manager

Budget Responsibilities: No

Role Dimensions: Award Cycle Management with SCI set standers, Member and donor coordination which include relationship management, Hold accountability on Award Management KPIs, Effective engagement and coordination with cross-functional teams, and Award team management.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Developing self and others; Networking

• Building a high performing award management team to support good practice and high-quality delivery across the Country Program
• Lead Award Management related capacity building both within the AM team and for other relevant staff members including budget holders
• Develop strong relationships with the region, center, members, and another cross-functional team in the country program; escalate issues through the correct channels when and where required

Communicating with impact:

• Provide strategic support to the D SPPA on all aspects of award management including pipeline management and donor compliance; champion Award management at the Country Office
• Develop and maintain a strong relationship with NBD/PDU unit on coordination of proposals, working with PDQ, Finance, and Operations to produce high quality, fully costed proposals and provide the necessary support for donor compliance both on Development and Humanitarian awards.
• Ensure monthly calls with all members who are active in the country portfolio and take the necessary action by coordinating with other teams.
• Ensure the production of high quality and timely reports that accurately reflect the impact achieved and lessons learned during the implementation of an award
• Build and maintain relationships with relevant networks and award management staff of similar organizations in the country, as well as local representatives of donor organizations

Compliance (systems, processes & donor):

• To engage globally in the development of Save the Children systems and processes and the sharing of best practice
• To ensure that the Award Management System (AMS) is effectively maintained and up to date for all awards and sub-awards including authorization and document retention
• To ensure that key staff (including partners) have a clear understanding of donor compliance requirements throughout the project management cycle and that there is a complete audit trail of the implementation and reporting for all awards
• Develop and maintain a close relationship with the Risk and Compliance team to safeguard identified compliance risks and mitigate audit risks to the country program. 

Monitoring and analysis:

• Working in collaboration with the Director SPPA, Finance Director, and SMT, ensure the CO has a clear framework for master budget development, cost allocation, monitoring of award budgets, phasing and forecasting, ensuring alignment between the master budget and funding tracker.
• Ensure to maintain ‘Green’ KPIs for Award Management and activate necessary actions by activating KPI improvement plan for the country program
• Using strong financial analysis skills to oversee the award portfolio and pipeline data
• To work in collaboration with the finance department and provide technical advice regarding strategic donor costs allocations intending to minimize compliance issues where possible

Leadership, portfolio management & strategy

• Define the strategic direction of the awards management unit and undertake effective planning that supports the unit to establish and maintain an efficient and effective awards management process
• To use key performance indicators and other management information to identify and address operational issues that could impact negatively on the delivery of programs
• Work with Director SPPA and SLT to engage with donors and identify possible funding opportunities in line with CO strategy
• To support in the development of a Country Office funding strategy that enables proactive engagement across Save the Children globally and with donors to secure funding opportunities promptly, making recommendations and flagging issues to Senior Management
• To provide detailed analysis of current/ pipeline awards to senior management

To engage with Save the Children globally and provide information to support in the building of professional relationships with donors to identify strategic fundraising opportunities

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE  

Essential

• A minimum of 10- 12 years experience in senior management role out of which 5 years INGO experience with an excellent grasp of operational issues.
• Bachelor's degree in relevant field or have CIMA or ACCA
• Sound knowledge of the requirements of major institutional donors including budgeting, eligibility issues, compliance management, and reporting
• Proven track record of active contribution to a senior management team, and providing strategic support across multiple sectors and/or regions
• Proven experience in establishing and running the award management function in the field.
• Ability to present complex information in a succinct and compelling manner
• Action-oriented analytical skills; demonstrated experience in setting up and maintaining quality assurance /compliance systems
• Excellent planning, management, and coordination skills, with the ability to organize a demanding workload comprised of diverse and challenging tasks and responsibilities
• Experience in engaging with donors at country strategy levels.
• Experience in and well-developed skills in staff management and supervision with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures. Proven strong coaching and capacity-building skills.
• Strong communication (written and spoken), and interpersonal skills in English, with experience in managing multicultural teams
• Computer literate (i.e. WORD, advanced Excel, Outlook, Internet Explorer, financial systems).
• Patient, adaptable, flexible, culturally aware, and able to improvise and remain responsive and communicate clearly and effectively under pressure
• Commitment to Save the Children values
• Desirable
• Experience with Save the Children award management policies, procedures, and systems (AMS)
• Able to use Agresso accounting software
• Experience in Partnership Management, Project Management, M&E Management or Funding Coordination

Additional job responsibilities

The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties within reasonableness of their level of skills and experience.

Equal Opportunities

The role holder is required to carry out the duties following the SCI Equal Opportunities and Diversity policies and procedures.

Health and Safety

The role holder is required to carry out the duties following SCI Health and Safety policies and procedures.

Competences:

SC Values are Accountability, Ambition, Collaboration, Creativity, and Integrity. To meet the value system the post holder is expected to demonstrate the following Competencies on an ongoing basis (this varies according to the position please consider the below as an example)

Leading: (align with Ambition, Integrity collaboration, and creativity)

• Delivering result: Takes personal responsibility and holds others to account to deliver our ambitious goals for children, continually improving our own performance or that of the team/ organization.

Thinking: (align with Ambition, Creativity, Collaboration, and Creativity)

• Applying technical and professional expertise: Applies the required technical and professional expertise to the highest standards; promotes and shares best practices within and outside the organization.

Engaging: (align with Collaboration, Creativity)

• Working effectively with others Works collaboratively to achieve shared goals and thrives on diversity of people and perspectives; knows when to lead and when to follow and how to ensure effective cross-boundary working.
• Communicating with Impact: Communicates clearly and confidently with others to engage and influence; promotes dialogue and ensures timely and appropriate messages, building confidence and trust with others. 
• We offer a competitive package in the context of the sector. 

The Organization

We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education, and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realize children's rights and ensure their voices are heard. 

We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:

• No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday
• All children learn from quality basic education and that,
• Violence against children is no longer tolerated

We know that great people make a great organization and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children. We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive environment where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued. 

We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse. 

All employees are expected to carry out their duties following our global anti-harassment policy

How to apply

Please attach a copy of your CV and cover letter with your application, and include details of your current remuneration and salary expectations.  A copy of the full role profile can be found here