About CRS

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. CRS works to save, protect, and transform lives in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, HIV, health, agriculture, education, microfinance and peacebuilding.

For nearly 60 years, CRS has taken the lead in responding to natural and man-made disasters affecting Ethiopia's most vulnerable communities. Moving beyond emergency response, CRS' disaster mitigation and recovery projects in drought and flood-prone areas have rebuilt individual and community assets through non-food aid in the form of agriculture, livestock, health, nutrition, and water and sanitation assistance. CRS's humanitarian work in Ethiopia also provides livelihoods support to farmers and entrepreneurs, promotes gender equality, mobilizes for immunization and mitigates the impact of HIV.

As part of CRS family, you will join the more than 5000 strong and vibrant individuals working globally to accomplish the mission of CRS. CRS/Ethiopia invites you, the qualified candidate, to apply for the following position. 

Job Title: Program Manager I – Program Quality (JEOP)

Department:  JEOP

Band:  IX

Required Number:  One

Employment Term:  Definite term (six months, renewable if continued donor funding is secured)

Reports To:  JEOP Deputy Chief of Party – Program Quality

Country/Location:  Ethiopia/Mekelle

Application Deadline:  March 31, 2022

Job Summary:

As a manager for JEOP, you will facilitate achievement of high-quality project objectives through leading the field level JEOP Program Quality Unit in the Northern Ethiopia Response, advancing CRS work serving the poor and vulnerable. Your coordination and relationship management skills will ensure that JEOP applies best practices related to programming and partnership, and constantly works towards improving the impact of its benefits to those we serve. JEOP’s program quality unit covers monitoring evaluation accountability and learning (MEAL), early warning systems (EWS), protection mainstreaming (not standalone protection programming), disability inclusion, safeguarding and gender integration. You will work within JEOP to strengthen CRS and partner capacity in the above areas, in liaison with the CRS program quality technical team in Addis. This will include managerial support for JEOP program quality staff in Northern Ethiopia, facilitating workshops around and following up workplans across workstreams. The program quantity unit provides support to mainstream quality concepts across JEOP’s other core units: Operations, Compliance and Risk. The position holder will work with multiple JEOP staff and supply chain team members in CRS Mekelle Primary Distribution Point (PDP) to make sure that JEOP staff in CRS and partners have an appropriate capacity building plans in place, with training, support, follow up, with particular focus on local staff and partner capacity building, localization, and subsidiarity.

 Job Responsibilities:

Manage and implement all activities throughout relevant project cycles - project design, start-up, implementation, and close-out - to ensure efficient and effective implementation in line with CRS program quality principles and standards, donor requirements, and good practices. Ensure CRS and partner staff use appropriate systems and tools.

Strategic planning and coordination

• Provide technical direction to program quality activities/innovations in a manner that prioritizes safety, meaningful access, and dignity.
• Coordinate with JEOP partners to achieve high levels of program quality through technical oversight and guidance; consortium-wide learning; and effective management of human, material, and financial resources as per USAID/BHA regulations.
• Spearhead implementation of JEOP’s Gender Action Plan in Northern Ethiopia.
• Ensure effective and full integration of program interventions across technical sectors, including meaningful integration of cross cutting strategies regarding protection, gender, disability inclusion, youth, and sustainability.
• Review progress on implementation of JEOP program quality unit interventions in Northern Ethiopia according to the proposal, budget, detailed implementation, work-plans, and donor agreements and according to proposed technical design, quality standards and reporting schedules.
• Support development of quarterly progress reports among JEOP partners implementing in Northern Ethiopia, coordinating counterparts in Addis and consortium partners to provide timely updates.
• Ensure that the Ethiopia security plan is adhered to in all operations of the program, including staff movements
• Actively monitor and report to the Mekelle Senior Management Team (SMT) on on-going security environment within the operational area.
• Coordinate and monitor financial and material resources relevant to project needs. Through planning and oversight ensure efficient use of project resources.
• Spearhead leveraging and layering of CRS’ investments in Northern Ethiopia, working with other program managers to reinforce collaboration and prevent siloed approaches.

Program Quality, Monitoring and Learning

• Facilitate JEOP program implementation in Northern Ethiopia, and ensure quality of products including EWS reports, technical training modules, monitoring and evaluation reports, and compliance with agency and donor standard
• Champion learning - analyze and evaluate project performance data, proactively identify issues and concerns, using participatory processes which values diverse ideas to overcome implementation obstacles.
• Ensure functionality and accessibility of a Feedback and Response Mechanism, ensuring that feedback is responded to in a timely manner and used to inform decision-making, and that staff follow Country Program procedures for safely escalating sensitive reports
• Identify and support others to seek out innovation in respective technical areas and facilitate adaptation and application within the context Northern Ethiopia.
• Ensure that JEOP technical working group Northern Ethiopia components meet regularly, identify lessons learned, solve problems, and harmonize approaches.
• Enhance cross-learning within consortium through review reflections, exchange visits, exchange of staff and other practical innovations.
• Provide services for specific program activities on behalf of consortium members, including (but not limited to) short term and long-term consultancies, research studies and visits of donors and others.
• Support the communications team to identify and develop solid success stories, write-up of lessons learned and human-interest pieces.
• Support carrying out protection risk analyses in the project areas, identifying mitigating measures, and providing oversight of the implementation of those measures

Representation

• Establish and maintain solid working relationship with all stakeholders in respective geographic areas.
• Identify, assess, and strengthen partnerships relevant to JEOP, applying appropriate application of partnership concepts, tools and approaches.
• Support JEOP SMT in Addis to liaise between JEOP and other stakeholders in Northern Ethiopia, including local administration, food cluster, international agencies, and non-governmental organizations (NGO)s, JEOP consortium partners.
• Represent JEOP at external meetings and different fora as related to technical areas and ensure the experience of JEOP implementation is shared with others.
• Ensure compliance with CRS procedures and policies, as well as applicable donor regulations, across programing and operations with particular focus on safeguarding and protection.

Supervision

• Onboard, lead JEOP program staff in Northern Ethiopia (CRS and JEOP implementing partners) in developing and implementing efficient technical service delivery that may consist of capacity building, feedback mechanism from consortium partners and performance monitoring system to measure progress.
• Effectively manage talent and supervise. Manage team dynamics and staff well-being ensuring diverse voices on the team are heard. Provide coaching, strategically tailor individual development plans, contribute to the recruitment process of project staff, complete performance management for direct reports and support career pathways for underrepresented groups.
• Mentor staff to ensure high levels of motivation, commitment, capacity, and teamwork.
• Identify training needs for team members under his/her supervision and support the development of Program Quality capacity building for team members and partners.
• Support colleagues under their supervision to have the knowledge, skills and attitudes to carry out their work safely and with dignity; provide adequate supervision and provide adequate supervision to staff to ensure their work is carried out in a manner that does not cause any harm to children, vulnerable adults, or other staff, or increase risks of harm.
• Provide additional training on expected staff behaviors that are program and context specific; consistently and regularly communicate to staff and communities CRS’ commitment to safeguarding.
• Ensure staff understand local (internal) reporting procedures and support them in safely and appropriately reporting/responding to concerns, if necessary.

Business Development

• Support CRS in pre-positioning for new funding opportunities, and donor engagement through annual Pipeline and Resource Estimate Proposal (PREP).
• Act as a key resource person in project design and proposal development in respective programming area, gap-filling and taking on growth responsibilities, as needed.
• Support with assessments, project design, writing, technical review, etc. preparation of any new project proposals.
• Ensure that programming approaches and new proposals consider protection, gender and safeguarding via supporting/coordinating assessments with partners, to ensure that women, men, boys, and girls are consulted in design.
• Ensure practical application of a Do No Harm lens, incorporating adaptive accountability to affected populations.

Job Requirements

Typical Background, Experience & Requirements:

 Required Education and Experience

• Master's or Bachelor's Degree in Management, International Development, Social Science, related field with 4 years' relevant experience for MA degree or 5 years' relevant experience for BA degree for an international NGO. Additional experience may substitute for some education.
• Minimum three years’ experience in a senior position that demonstrates mentoring staff to achieve program results.
• Experience with and knowledge of mainstreaming protection in food assistance, gender integration, and gender-based violence (GBV) mainstreaming.
• Demonstrated commitment to accountability to affected populations, and experience working with and meaningfully engaging diverse populations, including pregnant and lactating mothers, persons with disabilities, older adults, and IDPs.
• Demonstrated commitment to and application of gender responsive programming and positive action measures towards gender equality, including the participation and leadership of women.
• Demonstrated knowledge of and commitment to safeguarding, including the protection of program participants, community members and staff from all forms of abuse and harm.
• Demonstrated ability to work both strategically and at an appropriate level of detail to lead a complex program and consortium, excellent analytical skills.
• Demonstrated capacity to understand current best practices and challenges while coordinating to implement JEOP program strategies through a participatory approach.
• Excellent partnership skills and the ability to interact effectively with donors, collaborating agencies, and local partners demonstrated through close work experience with international NGOs
• Computer literate, with strong knowledge of MS Office applications, spread sheets, database programs, and statistical software packages. 

Desired Education and Experience

• Knowledge and experience in USAID Title II program areas of emergency food distribution, program monitoring and evaluation, consortium management.
• Knowledge of USAID and USG grant regulations and procedures. Prior management of USAID funding; knowledge of Title II policies and procedures preferred.
• Additional demonstrated ability to lead a technical team in one or more of the following technical areas: early warning analysis, protection, nutrition, and MEAL.
• Experience in consortium management 

Personal Skills 

• Inclusive approach, able to elevate the voices of underrepresented groups.
• Flexibility, persistence, and ability to work well with people and cross-cultural skills.
• Analysis and problem-solving skills with ability to make sound judgment.
• Strong relationship management skills and the ability to work closely with local partners.
• Proactive, results-oriented, and service-oriented.
• Attention to detail, accuracy, and timeliness in executing assigned responsibilities.
• Strong facilitation and creative problem-solving skills. 

Required/Desired Foreign Language: Tigrinya and English essential. Amharic and other Ethiopian national languages a plus.

Travel Required: 15% road travel within Tigray initially with potential to extend across Northern Ethiopia (subject to need and flexible to family commitments) 

Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff)  

These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.  

• Integrity
• Continuous Improvement & Innovation
• Builds Relationships
• Develops Talent
• Strategic Mindset
• Accountability & Stewardship

Supervisory: 4 or more Senior Project Officers 

Key Working Relationships: 

• Internal: CRS PDP Management, Supply Chain, JEOP Senior Management Team and technical leads, CRS Ethiopia partnership unit, CRS Ethiopia safeguarding, finance, protection, and gender units.
• External: JEOP implementing partners, food cluster, World Food Program.

***Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. We welcome as a part of our staff people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need. CRS’ processes and policies reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation

How to Apply

You should fill the application form through this APPLICATION FORM and attach your up-to-date CV on / before the application deadline March 31, 2022.

You will be contacted only if selected for written exam/interview. Phone solicitations will not be accepted. These job opportunities are open to Ethiopian nationals only. CRS requires its staff to treat all people with dignity and respect and to actively prevent harassment, abuse, exploitation, and human trafficking. 

 ** Qualified women are highly encouraged to apply**