Job Purpose

The purpose of this position is to lead a team composed of different functions which have overall responsibility for Humanitarian Diplomacy, Regional Liaison Support and the Communications. The position is responsible for overseeing different positioning initiatives and coordinating external relations of the Regional Director’s Office as well as the implementation of IFRC’s Humanitarian Diplomacy agenda in the region. The position is also responsible for managing Communications, Risk Management and Executive Support.

Job Duties And Responsibilities

• Reporting to the Regional Director, this position ensures that IFRC engages and influences key stakeholder through various forums and events, engagement with the diplomatic community, governments, and international organizations and humanitarian diplomacy initiatives with the aim of advancing the IFRC agenda and better positioning the IFRC in the humanitarian field.
• The role also includes communications with staff, National Societies, and a wide range of external stakeholders.
• As required, the Regional Director will directly engage on certain files such as communications and/or risk management as necessary.

Communications

• Provide strategic direction focusing on internal and external stakeholder engagement in support of humanitarian diplomacy goals.
• In close liaison with communication and technical leads, facilitate the production of analytical pieces, briefs, or reports to support effective advocacy.
• Collaborate with, and leverage support from, internal and external partners to support the development of innovative approaches and initiatives that build advocacy expertise and enable collective strategic positioning within the IFRC network.
• Provide direction on content generation and communication materials and products as well as for outreach strategies and associated distribution channels, including media and social media.
• Support the design of communication campaign and engagement strategies in line with regional priorities and Pan-African initiatives.

External Relations and Events

• Ensure thorough preparation and coordination of external relations and events.
• Coordinate the preparation and content development of supporting documentation for strategic meetings.

Engagement with the Diplomatic Community, Governments, and International Organizations

• Ensure the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the Regional Director’s strategic outgoing correspondence by coordinating with relevant internal stakeholders, providing analysis on political and humanitarian issues and compounding contexts and stakeholders as well as finalizing supporting documentation.
• Proactively identify opportunities for engagement with the diplomatic community, governments, and International Organizations and ensures effective follow-up as appropriate.

Risk Management

• Manage the provision of strategic risk management to the Regional Director.
• Ensure the successful implementation of the IFRC’s Risk Management Policy / Framework by ensuring its’ operationalization across country and regional teams.
• Manage the successful embedment of risk management into day-to-day tools, processes and policies.

Job Duties And Responsibilities (continued)

• Lead the analysis, collation and dissemination of salient information and advice pertaining to the management of risks facing IFRC in the region.
• Ensure informed decision making based on tracking, assessment, mitigation, escalation, and reporting of operational risks faced by IFRC and its stakeholders in the region.
• Provide proactive solutions to existing risk management issues.

Convening of Humanitarian Diplomacy Forums and Capacity Building

• Serve as a trusted adviser in positioning IFRC appropriately in the humanitarian diplomacy space and liaises closely with key internal and external stakeholders to support the Regional Director in the advancement of the Federation´s Humanitarian Diplomacy agenda in the region.
• Lead the planning, coordination, and management of the regional conference.
• Identify key decision-makers, power centres and policy opportunities to develop engagement plans to strategically position the IFRC within the Region.
• Prepare, coordinate, and promote policy position papers and briefs on relevant topics and ensure their implementation.
• Establish a clear HD strategy for the region, taking in to account the challenges outlined in the Strategy 2030.
• Facilitate support to and engagement of National Societies in enhancing their auxiliary role and national positioning as well as in contributing to regional and global humanitarian diplomacy goals.

Coordination

• Ensure proactive and effective coordination both internally and externally with a wide range of stakeholders, including the Movement, on humanitarian diplomacy and communications issues to further the IFRC agenda.
• Manage high level PNS coordination, including mapping and alinement of regional strategies with IFRC planning.
• Proactively coordinate with technical counterparts for each portfolio covered within the teams’ responsibilities.

Regional Liaison Support

• Ensure the effective planning and management of strategic forums and relationship development with key external stakeholders.
• Ensure smooth strategic and administrative support to both the Regional Director and Deputy Regional Director.
• Responsible for identifying risks within their work area, monitoring the development of the risks, and implementing risk responses or escalating to the Director when necessary.

Effective Matrix and People Management

• Ensure a well-managed team while promoting a culture of performance and continuous learning.
• Contribute to the effective coordination with the technical units of the Regional Office, country/cluster offices and PNSs.
• Ensure effective coordination with focal points from Country Delegations, Country Cluster Delegations and Geneva.

Education

• Master´s degree or equivalent in management, public administration, business administration, international relations, law, or other relevant field of study; or a first-level university degree combined with extensive relevant experience ( Required)
• Qualification or certification in project management or risk management qualification such as IRM (Preferred).

Experience

• At least 7 years of experience in Humanitarian Diplomacy in the humanitarian sector or similar.
• At least 7 years of experience managing staff.
• At least 5 years of experience working on risk management in an international environment.
• Strong experience working in a multicultural and cross-disciplinary environment.
• Experience in providing front office support.
• Experience in managing external relations with International Organizations, diplomatic missions and other key actors.
• Red Cross / Red Crescent experience.

Knowledge, Skills and Language

• Highly developed leadership skills.
• Professional credibility, strong analytical skills, and ability to work at various levels of complexity.
• Excellent communication, networking, and representation skills.
• Proven ability to motivate and manage a team.
• Strategic analysis, systematic planning, and implementation skills.
• Excellent collaborative and teamwork skills.
• Highly organized and results oriented.
• Strong interpersonal and influencing skills and ability to negotiate while maintaining effective working relations.
• Risk Management.

Competencies and Values

• Values: Respect for diversity; Integrity; Professionalism; Accountability.
• Core competencies: Communication; Collaboration and teamwork; Judgement and decision making; National society and customer relations; Creativity and innovation; Building trust.
• Functional competencies: Strategic orientation; Building alliances; Leadership; Empowering others.
• Managerial competencies: Managing staff performance; Managing staff development.

Job Purpose

The purpose of this position is to lead Membership Services which has overall responsibility for managing the provision of result-oriented services to IFRC Membership in the sphere of governance excellence/leadership, National Society laws, branch development, volunteer and youth, as part of the wider National Society Development (NSD) agenda. 

Job Duties and Responsibilities

Reporting to the Deputy Regional Director, this role leads strategic coordination with National Societies - both Host National Societies and Partner National Societies (Membership Coordination) - and ICRC (including Movement Coordination) in connection with NSD issues. The incumbent:

• Enable IFRC lead role with internal and external stakeholders in all aspects of governance and National Society development.
• Promote learning and National Society networks and peer-to-peer support to further development and leadership issues.
• Be the focal point for integrity issues, under the regional director’s supervision, in close collaboration with the IFRC task force on integrity chaired by the Governance Support Department, including ensure that CMC lead process receive the relevant support.
• Provide strategic oversight and support to National Society development, including Volunteer and Youth Development, with a focus on branch strengthening and localization championning.
• Provide regular strategic support to National Society leadership and governance development. This includes::
• Supporting the processes of revision, amending or developing their legal base and/or their statutory base;
• Ensuring that all new National Society senior leaders have undertaken Movement Induction Courses.coordinating the preparation, induction and participation in statutory meetings and Pan-African conference and maintain contact on the same issues with the file-holders from the Secretariat.
• Ensure the coherent management of evidence-based knowledge and its effective orientation and application.
• Lead the development, implementation and monitoring of Pan-African initiative on NSD through operational networks, peer-to-peer learning and support mechanisms for National Societies.
• Ensure than NSD components in included in operations and programmes, particularly for emergency response and through all Pan-African initiatives (Zero Hunger, Red Ready, Tree planting and Care).

Job Duties and Responsibilities (continued)

• Facilitate NS compliance and accountability with a focus on enhancing capacity in fraud and corruption prevention, PSEA and reputational risk.
• Promote and disseminate regional networks and reference centres to enable the effective implementation of knowledge dissemination systems as well as platforms for policy development, data gathering and statistical analysis.
• Lead on youth and volunteer engagement and development in support to IFRC delegations and African NS in line with regional and global strategies and priorities, including for the protection, management and promotion of volunteers.
• Establish support mechanisms for National Society sustainability, in close liaison with cluster delegations and other technical file holders, with a focus on domesticly-driven income generation and partnerships, management systems (finance, HR), digital transformation.
• Responsible for identifying risks within their work area, monitoring the development of the risks, and implementing risk responses or escalating to the Director when necessary.
• Foster a vibrant innovation and research culture that is strategic and centered around financial sustainability, linking to Movement networks and beyond.

Effective matrix and people management

• Ensure a well-managed team while promoting a culture of performance and continuous learning.
• Contribute to the effective coordination with technical units of the Regional Office.
• Ensure effective coordination with focal points from Country Delegations, Country Cluster Delegations and Geneva focal points.

Education

• Master’s degree or equivalent in International Affairs, Political Science, Law, Economics, Public Policy, Social Studies or other relevant field of study; or a first-level university degree combined with extensive relevant experience.

Experience

• At least 7 years of experience in either Governance or National Society Development or a combination of these areas of expertise within the RCRC Movement.
• At least 7 years of experience managing staff.
• Experience working with external partners.
• Experience with National Societies on capacity building as well as other membership services and policy issues.
• Experience working in a multicultural, international environment.

Knowledge, Skills and Language

• Familiarity with IFRC and NS pledging and resource development systems
• Able to network effectively, influence and inspire others including National Societies, governments, other agencies, peers, staff, and partners.
• Highly developed leadership skills.
• Professional credibility, strong analytical skills, and ability to work at various levels of complexity.
• Superior oral and written communication, networking and representation skills.
• Proven ability to motivate and manage a team.
• Strategic analysis, systematic planning, and implementation skills and ability to translate strategy into reality.
• Excellent collaborative and teamwork skills.
• Highly organized and results oriented.
• Fluent spoken and written English
• Good command of another IFRC official language (French, Spanish, or Arabic)

Competencies and Values

• Values: Respect for diversity; Integrity; Professionalism; Accountability.
• Core competencies: Communication; Collaboration and teamwork; Judgement and decision making; National society and customer relations; Creativity and innovation; Building trust.
• Functional competencies: Strategic orientation; Building alliances; Leadership; Empowering others.
• Managerial competencies: Managing staff performance; Managing staff development