Deployment Manager at Save the Children

GRADE: TBC       

CONTRACT LENGTH: 2 years

CHILD SAFEGUARDING:

Level 3:  a police check will be required since the role holder will deploy to Humanitarian Responses, particularly in the first phase of major emergencies.

ROLE PURPOSE:   

 

The Global Expertise and Humanitarian Surge Platform (GEHSP) operates on behalf of the members and SCI, and is dedicated to identifying, developing and deploying skilled and experienced surge and technical staff from across the movement to meet the needs of our domestic and international responses and programs globally. This helps to improve our response quality, timeliness, and effectiveness; ultimately, this will save the lives of children and their families. The GEHSP is responsible for:

• Ensuring our humanitarian responses and global programs have access to suitably skilled and experienced staff they need to deliver high quality and timely programs;
• Managing the end-to-end deployment process for all deployments;
• Identifying and developing future humanitarian surge and technical staff to meet the needs of our responses and global programs;
• Identifying new and innovative ways to meet the surge needs of our responses.

The Deployment Manager is a key role within the deployment management function of the GEHSP and will be responsible for:

• Ensuring the identification and safe, rapid deployment of trained, pre-cleared humanitarian and technical staff to all categories of humanitarian emergencies and global programs.
• Providing a quality and timely service to meet the surge capacity needs of response teams and global programs.
• Implementing fit for purpose, end-to-end deployment systems and processes;
• Providing direct line management to a cohort of Humanitarian Surge Team staff (HSTs) and support to Technical Experts (TE), Humanitarian Standby Surge (HSS) and Humanitarian General Surge (HGS) as assigned.
• Deploying to emergencies (up to 50%).

The Deployment Manager will work closely with other GEHSP staff and will build strong relationships Regional and Country Office staff involved in Humanitarian Response; and will also liaise with other key stakeholders across SCI and Save the Children Members.

SCOPE OF ROLE:

Reports to: Head of Deployment

Staff reporting to this post:  TBC – a cohort of HSTs, HSS HGS and TEs as assigned.

Budget Responsibilities:  None

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

1. Prioritise deployments in line with needs and ensure best fit of individuals for specific deployments working collaboratively with technical and operational leads and functional managers.
2. Proactively communicate available surge and technical capacity to all relevant stakeholders, providing advice and guidance to COs and ROs on potential deployment opportunities, advocating where necessary for the deployment of enabling functions such as HR, Finance and specialist roles such as Gender Advisor, Partnerships Advisor, co-ordinating with technical/functional managers where appropriate.
3. Directly line manage a cohort of surge and technical staff including linking with appropriate subject matter advice and communities of practice.
4. Support identification of staff who are interested and available to take on deployments, and respond to changing priorities through the redeployment of surge resources and negotiate with Members and Country Offices in the release of shared availability capacity.
5. Day to day management (workload, learning, wellbeing and morale) of all types of deployable staff during deployments, in addition to direct line management of a cohort of HSTs
6. Facilitate the personal and professional development of surge and technical staff in collaboration with technical and functional leads
7. Initiate pre-deployment briefings and ensure adherence to safety & security policies including medical checks, security clearances, provision of deployment kit etc.
8. Ensure end of deployment requirements are completed and performance review is conducted in conjunction with technical/functional line manager and in-country staff and recorded, signposting staff to appropriate support mechanisms as appropriate, considering gender, ethnicity, age and cultural contexts.
9. Embed staff resilience within all aspects of surge deployment in line with the Wellness policies and processes as advised by the Wellbeing Manager.
10. Communicate a point of contact for the provision of administrative and logistical support during deployment.
11. Ensure the deployment database is maintains accurate and up to date information
12. Deploy to emergencies as required/requested, up to 50% to be decided with the GEHSP Head of Deployment.

SKILLS AND BEHAVIOURS (SCI Values in Practice)

Accountability:

• Holds self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values

Ambition:

• Sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves and their team, takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages their team to do the same

Collaboration:

• Combines a professional hands-on approach with the ability to energise team members to fulfil their potential
• Builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, Members and external partners and supporters
• Values diversity, sees it as a source of competitive strength
• Approachable, good listener, easy to talk to

Creativity:

• Develops and encourages new and innovative solutions
• Willing to take disciplined risks

Integrity:

• Honest, encourages openness and transparency; demonstrates highest levels of integrity

QUALIFICATIONS 

• Educated to first degree level or relevant commensurate professional experience

EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS

Essential

• Experience in a management position and of managing a team of remotely located, staff with cross functional specialisms with demonstrable cultural sensitivity
• Field based management experience gained within multiple emergency response contexts, grounded in pragmatic and solution orientated outcomes in sectors such as programs, operations or HR.
• Prior experience working in challenging circumstances (including long hours at little or no notice in the event of a major, sudden onset emergency)
• Dedicated people manager, competent in coaching and mentoring others, with the ability to provide personal support to a diverse cohort of humanitarian staff
• Ability to engage and influence senior decision makers within a humanitarian response
• Experience of ensuring adherence to organisational policy, practice and systems which ensures compliance with legal/regulatory requirements and organisational risk management standards.
• Experience as a champion and advocate of good Child Safeguarding and Anti-Harassment practice.
• Demonstrable planning and co-ordination skills.
• Proven ability to drive continuous improvement and develop new ways of working.
• Highly developed relationship building, influencing, negotiating and interpersonal skills.
• Adaptable working style; effective when working in situations that may appear ambiguous.
• Clear thinker who remains calm and focussed when working under pressure, with experience in delivering results in exceptional circumstances.
• Ability to communicate fluently in English (both verbal and written).
• Quality focussed with strong attention to detail.
• Willingness to deploy/travel up to 50%.

Highly Desirable

• Fluency in French or Spanish.

Additional job responsibilities

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

Equal Opportunities

The post holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI Equal Opportunities and Diversity policies and procedures.

Health and Safety

The post holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with SCI Health and Safety policies and procedures.

Child Safeguarding:

We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks and reflects our commitment to protect children from abuse of any kind.