INTERNAL/EXTERNAL VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT

Senior Awards and Sub Awards Specialist 

CARE is an international NGO with local staff and community partners in more than 90 countries. We create local solutions to poverty and inequality, and we seek dignity for everyone every day and during times of crisis.  These solutions have a broad range, from clean water to access to education; from microfinance to ensuring that everyone has nutritious food; from agriculture and climate change to disaster response. CARE puts women and girls at the center of everything we do because they have proven to be the best hope for creating lasting change in the world.  Our staff live where they work, which makes us effective at understanding the challenges they face. We’ve been doing this for over 70 years since World War II. It started with the world’s first CARE Package® of food for the post-war hungry in Europe.  Our work today is as important as ever, we believe that poverty and inequality are historic injustices that we can end within a generation, for good. If you share our core beliefs: poverty is an injustice; poverty is solvable; and together, we have the power to end it, join us.

Date of Announcement: August 18, 2022  

Vacancy No.: 105/22

 Salary: $1203

No of positions:2                   

Unit/Program: Grants

Contract Duration: Indefinite

Duty Base: Head Office

Closing Date: Ten days from the date of announcement

I.  JOB SUMMARY

The purpose of the Awards and sub awards Senior Specialist is to work closely with the Awards and Sub awards Manager for smooth and effective management of awards, sub awards and contracts. The position is responsible to oversee the management of awards and sub agreements of assigned CO Portfolio/rogram Pillar (SRH&N, Resilience, Humaniterian Response, Women Economic Justice) in compliance with CARE’s programming principles and policies and donors and governemnt laws, rules, and regulations.  

S/he also manages sub awards through the provison of expertise and technical support as outlined in  CARE’s sub agreement mangement policy.  S/he monitors a team who provide techncial support to an evolving program portfolio, including the development of  new proposals and CO  operational  and master budgets.

The post holder is also repsonsible for the oversight of the grant unit riks, audit, and compliance responsibilties. She/he manages project audits, risk assessments/due deligencies/financial monitoring of assigned portfolio/program pillar. 

II. RESPONSIBILITIES AND TASKS: 

Job Responsibility #1: Coordination and Representation (10%)

• Coordinates the overall grants management and reporting process of assigned Portfolio/Program Pillar through effective channels of internal and external communication.

• Assist the Awards and Sub awards manager in maintaining effective communications with CARE USA, shared service center (SSC), CARE member partners (CMPs) regarding award agreements andmodifications; Donor related issues; audits and periodic reports.

• Represents the Portfolio she/he assigned in key donors and partners award and sub award meetings, networks and relevant consortiums.

• Ensures the effective coordination of Awards and Sub awards team with the repsective Portfolion/Progam unit assigned for. To this effect, ensure that peirodic review meetings on status of awards is conducted, follow up action items form such meetings, and ensure the service level satisfaction of the program portfolio team.

Job Responsibility #2:  New Business Development (NBD) and Program Startups (10%)

Review

• Assists in preparation of proposal budgets/cost proposals to ensure donor compliance requirements and that CARE budget policies are properly adhered.

• Participates in the preparation of cost share or match proposals in support of the awards and sub awards manager.

• Reviews grants and contracts agreements as per the agreement checklist and flags issues of organizational concern for revision/negotiation.

• Reviews/prepares sub -award agreements for sub -recipients in line with CARE’s sub agreement management policy and advice on contracting mechanisms and financial management matters related to sub award management.

• Reviews and sends new award setup and budget upload requests to SSC with the required documentation and follows up with SSC for the timely completion of such requests.

• Prepares new awards cheat sheets/compliance checklists and ensure the timely sharing of same to key relevant actors (budget holders, finance specialists, admin assistants, procurement, Field Office finance).

Job Responsibility #3:  Implementation, Monitoring and Reporting (40%)

• Reviews and confirms that the awards management system is accurately maintained and up to date for all awards and sub-awards at People Soft.

• Supervises the request for fund transfers from donors as per funding schedules/terms of payment and follows up for timely collection of donors’ advances.

• Reviews, analyzes, reconciles monthly grants receivable payable (GRP) position of the assigned portfolio; assists the awards manager on alternative solutions for long overdue Donor receivables.

• Supervises the ongoing level of expenditure on individual contracts/fund codes of assigned portfolio against active budgets and provides timely advice of likely over or under expenditure.

• Supervises the timely start up, implementation, modifications, monitoring, and reporting of sub award agreements.

• Coordinates the completion and timely update of supportive financial monitoring plan of the assigned Portfolio; follow up on supportive supervision and/or financial monitoring plans to ensure that they are conducted as per the approved plan.

• Reviews VAT Refund requests; ensures that vAT Refund requests are submitted and refunds timely recorded at People Soft.

• Reviews all donors and partners financial reports for assigned portfolio/program pillar and provides feedback.

• Leads key communications with Donors/CMPs for assigned portfolio/program pillar in relation to implementation issues and coordinates and provides responses to Donors or CMPs queries as required.

• Compiles/prepares commitment control reporting for assigned portfolio. Conduct meeting on the report with budget holders for review on status of grant and required actions.

Job Responsibility #4:  Risk, Audit, and Compliance (10%)

• Coordinates donor project specific audits. Follow up on action items for timely closing of question/disallowed costs.

• Leads the risk assessment/due diligence/financial monitoring conducted by donors for assigned portfolio. Ensure that action items are timely followed up and closed.

• Ensures regular award monitoring across her/his portfolio for compliance to donors’ regulations, contractual obligations, government laws, CARE Policies, etc.

• Organizes regular meetings with portfolio/program managers to ensure individual award performance is being tracked effectively, and that risks and issues are being recognized and actions taken.

• Ensures that CARE Internal Control frameworks for grants and contracts are consistently applied for in all awards.

• Follow up on risks on awards/grants management that are registered at ROAR; ensure that issues flagged at ROAR are closed as per agreed timeline and action items.

• Closely work with program admin assistants and budget holders for the correct use of charging codes. By doing do, ensure that data quality through the use of correct charging codes and minimizes audit issues from discrepancy between People Soft record and donors reports.

Job Responsibility # 5 Awards and Sub awards Close- Out (10%)

·       Supervises timely completion of close out checklists as per the award management policy of CARE and follows up the timely deactivation of closed awards and sub awards in the awards management system.

• Leads the final GRP validation for final close out with SSC.

• Participates in close out meetings.

• Prepares all required final close out letters, final reports, disposition plans, etc. for the successful completion of projects under assigned portfolio/program pillar.

Job Responsibility #6:  Staff Management (15%)

·       Develops and maintains a staffing plan for the portfolio/Program Pillar assigned so that new hires and/or replacements are completed in a timely manner.

·       Coordinates and consolidates his/her Portfolio annual vacation plans so that day to day operations are not disrupted as a result of poor vacation utilization.

·       Assists the awards and sub awards manager in the development of grant unit annual work plans and cascades the same to individual work plans.

·       Ensures performance objectives are developed, agreed and key award and sub award management KPIs (gold standards) are internalized and considered as part of the performance objectives of his/her portfolio.

·       Ensures that APAAs (annual and semiannual) are completed in a timely manner and submitted to awards and sub awards manager.

Job Responsibility #7: Others (5%)

• Ensures the timely filing of award records and documentations (both in hard and soft) copy; follow up the timely uploading of these records and documentations at CO approved share point/one drive.

• Performs other related duties as required and assigned

Job Requirements

III. Qualifications

Required:

§  BA degree in a relevant discipline including financial management and administration or equivalent combination of education and work experience.

§  Minimum of five years experience including responsibilities for grants management, particularly financial and narrative consolidation and reporting.

§  Proven track record of supporting program management team

§  Experience of and well developed skills in staff management, supervision and capacity building

§  Knowledge of the requirements of the major donors and experience in reporting to donors.

§  Adaptable, flexible, able to improvise and remain responsive and communicate clearly and effectively under pressure

§  Very strong attention to detail, problem solving skills, and ability to analyze trends

Desired:

·       Training of relevance to the sector

·       Experience in development and working for an international NGO

·       Strong interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to work effectively with a wide range of constituencies;

·       Excellent financial skills including applied knowledge of generally accepted accounting principles, budgeting, financial reporting and consolidation;

·       Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English language;

·       Skills in organizing and facilitating events;

·       Excellent documentation skills;

·       Firm belief in teamwork and gender equity

How to Apply

If you are interested to be part of our dynamic team, exciting work environment and contribute to CARE Ethiopia’s mission and vision, please send your CV (not more than 3 pages) and cover letter (not more than one page) through CLICK HERE

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Passionate and dedicated candidates who meet the requirement are strongly encouraged to apply, especially women!

CARE seeks to improve the lives of the most marginalized, particularly women and girls. Our diversity is our strength. We encourage people from all backgrounds and experiences to apply.

CARE Ethiopia is committed to preventing all unwanted behavior at work. This includes sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse, and child abuse. We expect everyone who works for us to share this commitment by understanding and working within the CARE Safeguarding Policy and related framework. CARE Ethiopia has a zero-tolerance approach to any harm to, or exploitation of, a vulnerable adult or child by any of our staff, representatives, or partners.

CARE Ethiopia reserves the right to seek information from job applicants’ current and/or previous employers about incidents of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment the applicant may have been found guilty to have committed or about which an investigation was in the process of being carried out at the time of the termination of the applicant’s employment with that employer.

By submitting the application, the job applicant confirms that s/he has no objection to CARE Ethiopia requesting the information specified above. All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks.