Country: United States of America
Closing date: 20 Oct 2017
The position description is a guide to the critical duties and essential functions of the job, not an all-inclusive list of responsibilities, qualifications, physical demands and work environment conditions. Position descriptions are reviewed and revised to meet IFES’ changing needs, at the sole discretion of management.
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Job Responsibilities:
PRIMARY FUNCTION/PURPOSE: IFES launched a transformation of the CFO organization. This transformation includes positioning IFES for success by focusing on two main goals – financial sustainability and systems & processes. As part of this process, IFES is transforming the current unit of project accountants who are responsible for reviewing 100% of the accounting records across 36 project in 25 countries, to a more risk based approach of sampling and testing. To that end, this team is repurposed to a Program Administration team responsible for providing full package of financial administrative services to programs teams in HQ and overseas. This transition requires a complete mind shift and culture shift for members of this team. Additionally, IFES is wanting to find synergies, drive simplification and streamlining of business processes, systems and tools in its Contracts and Grants team (C&G). The Director, PACT (Program Administration & Contracts Team) will be overseeing these transformations and lead a team of ~ 13FTEs.
MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
The Director will be responsible for the support to programs in all areas of program administration (proposal costing, annual budgeting, pipeline management & analysis) and contracting (procurement, consultants, grants and sub-grant management).
S/he will work closely with the CFO, the VP programs, Regional Directors, Chief of Parties to ensure that the COs in the region has effective and efficient P/S functions in place and that those functions operate at levels in line with agreed upon organizational standards. The Director is responsible for identifying weaknesses in PACT systems through CO visits and reviews of CO financial and audit reports and then working with the COs to correct those weaknesses.
The Director will lead in the development, implementation and socialization of cost effective policies and procedures for program administration and Contracts & Grants units, respectively. S/he will also identify, record and share best practices in the area of PACT. S/he will facilitate information sharing and networking within the regions.
The Director will visit COs on a regular basis to review structures, systems and capacities and then offer assistance in helping rectify areas which have been identified for improvement. S/he will also identify common concerns across the COs in the region and identify systemic solutions to those concerns.
The Director will play a key role in the development and implementation of training programs for new staff in general and program staff in particular as it relates to the areas covered by PACT.
Build Staff Capacity (PACT, local and HQ)
Conduct Strategic and Operational Analysis of systems, tools and processes re PACT
Improve Efficiency and Cost Effectiveness of PACT operations
Integrate the PACT team in the new structure
Enhance Country Management Controls
POSITION SCOPE: Reporting to the Chief Financial Officer with a dotted line to the VP programs, the purpose of this position is to assist leadership in the headquarters and the field to develop, strengthen and maintain relevant, effective and efficient management systems and processes in the areas of program administration, contracts & grants, procurement and subcontracting that balances risk.
DECISION MAKING/PROBLEM SOLVING: Identifies risk factors with potential to disrupt achievement of program or operational goals. Analyzes and proposes solutions based on knowledge of professional principles and best practices. Consults with stakeholders within and outside the organization; identifies, proposes and builds consensus around best solutions. Leads implementation after approval. May be consulted or have approval authority for solutions proposed by peers or subordinate staff Complex decision-making requiring in-depth analysis and consensus-building, subject to management review.
FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY: Develops and oversees program or project budgets. Accountable for achievement of income and expense targets. Reforecasts budget projections based on interim results. Manages the preparation of financial reporting. Authority to approve program or project expenses, contracts and purchases, subject to established controls and procedures.
RELATIONSHIPS: Manages and maintains relationships with senior-level internal and external partners to create and implement strategies to achieve IFES goals and enhance the organization’s reputation. Strategic relationships require well-established credentials, broad and deep technical knowledge and strong ability to effectively wield influence.
SUPERVISION EXERCISED: Directs and coordinates complex, multi-faceted programs or operations. Coaches others to develop their professional capacity and supervisory skills. Leads planning and implementation of program or operational goals and objectives and is accountable for ongoing assessment and evaluation of outcomes.
Qualifications:
POSITION REQUIREMENTS:
Education: Bachelor’s Degree in Finance, Business Administration or related field to finance, procurement, C&G management.
Experience: Minimum of 10 years of experience in management of financial programs and operation functions.
Related Skills or Knowledge: Experience negotiating with donor agencies, development and implementation of ongoing organizational improvement and compliance initiatives. Experience with change management, building partnerships, program financial management, and international development.
LANGUAGE SKILLS: Fluency in English required. Fluency in other languages highly preferred such as Spanish, French, Arabic, or sign language highly desired.
TRAVEL: Travel to the field could be up to 25%.
PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS/WORK ENVIRONMENT:
Please evaluate and describe any physical skills, abilities or working conditions that are required to perform the essential duties of this position, as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Standard office work environment. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job.
How to apply:
To Apply:
You must go to www.ifes.org to the Careers section and apply online. Applications are only accepted in this way. Make sure you upload all papers together (ie. cover letter and application, etc.). Resumes are only reviewed and accepted if submitted through our careers page.
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