Current Opportunities at International Rescue Committee

Scope of work:

• The Partnership Coordinator will support the Kenya Country Program in its strategic management and oversight of its robust partnerships across the country. The Partnership Coordinator will facilitate the Kenya team’s delivery of high-quality partnerships that are strategic for IRC, compliant with IRC and donor requirements in order to provide quality services and outcomes for the communities we serve, consistent with the IRC’s PEER System. Working in close collaboration with the programs, grants and operations departments, the Partnership Coordinator will oversee all steps in the partnership management lifecycle ensuring that partnerships are appropriately integrated into the overall project cycle management.
• With the support of the senior management team, the Partnership Coordinator will also be a leader in building and promoting a culture, attitudes, and values conducive to collaborative partnerships among the team, based on a clear and shared understanding of IRC's role and approach, and core partnership principles. The Partnership Coordinator will report directly to the Deputy Director for Grants and Accountability (DDGA). The Partnership Coordinator is based in Nairobi, with travel to the field sites.

Major Responsibilities:

Partnership Strategy

• Together with DDGA lead on the development and implementation of IRC Kenya’s partnership strategy.
• Form and chair the Partnership Working Group to promote a coherent, strategic, and coordinated approach to local partnerships in IRC Kenya.
• Oversee the partnership management operating procedures for IRC Kenya that set out efficient and responsive processes, delineate clear roles and responsibilities, and articulate IRC Kenya’s strategic approach to partnerships, consistent with PEERS.
• Promote and take forward initiatives to enhance local partnerships in consultation with senior management and program staff, support further development of local partner capacity development, approaches and processes.
• Work with the IRC Kenya country leadership team and technical coordinators to ensure that the partnership-specific targets and ambitions with the IRC Kenya Strategy Action Plan are realized by FY24.
• In collaboration with the technical coordinators and program coordinator for quality and learning, identify key stakeholders for effective programming through a comprehensive stakeholder analysis.
• Promote, and support the DDGA and technical coordinators to conduct, an effective analysis of the roles, capacities and relationships between local government, civil society and private sector actors, and to identify the IRC’s program approach, based on how the IRC can best add value to local capacities and systems.
• Participate in Go/No-Go discussions to promote program approaches and design that are consistent with the SAP.
• Support the technical coordinators to ensure actor mapping is up-to-date and accessible to all programs, and to build and foster partnership relationships with appropriate actors.
• Promote full partner participation in program management, including through the IRC’s project cycle meetings processes.

Partnerships/Sub-Grant Processes:

• Supervise and support Partnership Manager, programs, grants, finance and operations staff on IRC’s on the implementation of the PEER system across all areas of sub-award management and documentation requirements; including pre-award assessment, partner proposal review, contracting tool selection; preparing sub-award agreement packages aligned with specific donor requirements, and sub-award review through OTIS.
• Ensure that Partnership Managers hold all project cycle meetings, and that sub-grant agreement terms and conditions are well understood by partners.
• Establish partner monitoring schedule per PPCR score and ensure programmatic and compliance monitoring visits take place in coordination with pertinent department staff.
• Lead periodic mapping of potential partners for emergency response, with a particular emphasis on local organizations; and update the potential partner tracker periodically, as needed.
• Coordinate the organization and facilitation of capacity and risk assessments for potential partners.
• Lead the internal sub-award proposal review and approval process.
• Support in the development of partnership templates and contracts/agreements.
• Work in collaboration with IRC finance, Programs, and other units to manage sub-grants effectively and in compliance with donor rules and regulations.
• Lead and facilitate capacity building of partner NGOs and local community organizations. Contribute to development of training materials.
• Ensure that partners meet all visibility requirements as listed in their subgrant agreements.
• Ensure that accurate and up to date records for all sub-awards is maintained, in line with PEER System requirements.

Partner Monitoring:

• Lead the partnerships team in monitoring sub- grantees/partners for donor compliance and progress against objectives; and contributing to the development of monitoring tools as needed.
• Coordinate field monitoring visits to partners; and share regularly monitoring schedule with all relevant departments and colleagues.
• Coordinate the Partnership Team in securing and reviewing subgrantees’ monthly/quarterly/final narrative and financial reports; share relevant feedback with subgrantees, as needed.
•  Coordinate with relevant departments to ensure that all reporting templates are updated; and share with sub-grantees on a timely basis.

Documentation and Reporting:

• Coordinate the maintenance of comprehensive electronic files for all subgrantees (current, past and potential partners) on OTIS and on Shared Drive; as per PEERS documentation requirements.
• Working with the relevant technical teams, coordinating the review of monthly internal reports, compile and submit partner reports into overall donor report, and support government reports/agreements as needed/requested.
• Carry out data analysis of existing subgrant portfolio and potential future partner commitments.

Human Resources Management, capacity building and Development

• Coach, train, supervise and mentor direct-report staff, including communicating clear expectations, setting quarterly performance objectives, providing regular and timely positive and constructive performance feedback, and providing documented semi-annual performance reviews.
• Hold high-quality meetings with each direct report on a regular and predictable basis, at least bi-weekly.
• Provide a measurable development plan including on-the-job learning with the aim of strengthening technical capacity, exchanging knowledge within the team, and providing guidance on career paths.
• In coordination with HR colleagues, promote and monitor staff care, well-being, and self-care. Approve and manage all time, attendance and leave requests to ensure adequate departmental coverage. Model healthy work-life balance practices. Support appropriate interventions in response to identified staff care needs of both national and international staff.
• Look for opportunities to support staff in their career growth, where appropriate. Offer leadership support for successful adherence by staff to IRC’s country and Global HR Operating Policies and Procedures.
• Develop a detailed capacity building plan for the partnerships team with regular training (minimum quarterly). As part of succession plan and nationalization goals, identify, train, and develop capability and capacity of a national staff to successfully transition role and responsibilities, by end of assignment.
• Maintain open and professional relations with team members, promoting a strong team spirit and providing oversight and guidance to enable staff to successfully perform in their positions.
• Work with HR staff to identify and implement recruitment and retention strategies.

Key Working Relationships

Position Reports to: DDGA
Position directly supervises:  Partnerships  Manager, Partnership Finance Manager

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in relevant discipline, master’s degree a plus.
• At least 5 years work experience in the NGO environment
• Proven experience in coordination of multiple stakeholders (internal and external).
• Bachelor’s degree in social studies or relevant field from a recognized university with 10 years of relevant experience; or Master’s Degree with 7 years of relevant experience.
• Strong preference given to candidates with previous experience in partnership management, consortium/network management or subgrant/partner identification and management.
• Familiarity with IRC PEER system a distinct advantage
• Experience facilitating sub-grants, including proposal review, agreement development, and monitoring strongly desired.
• Familiarity with USG (e.g. USAID/BHA, PRM) and ECHO rules and regulations.
• Program development experience, including development of key project documents such as logical frameworks, monitoring tools, etc.
• Experience designing and implementing capacity building programs is a plus.
• Computer literate (MS Word, Excel, PPT). Budgeting experience required.
• NGO experience in similar position is preferred.
• Good communication and interpersonal skills.
• Professional fluency in spoken and written English.

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Scope of work:

• The IRC Kenya Sn Grants Coordinator will report to and work with the Deputy Director for Grants and Accountability (DDGA) for the Kenya country programme to maintain quality grants coordination. Reporting to the DDGA, this position will work closely with all departments and staff including senior program coordinators, partnerships, MEAL, technical coordinators, finance, and operations on compliance, donor relations, business development and reporting. The Sn Grants Coordinator sitting in Nairobi will supervise a team of Grants Manager and Officers located in different locations.
• The IRC Kenya Sn Grants Coordinator will additionally liaise with the East Africa Regional office in Nairobi, as well as IRC Headquarters colleagues in NY, Germany, and the UK.  

Major Responsibilities:

Program Design & Proposal Development (approx 40% of time)

• Support the DDGA to cultivate donor relationships in Kenya and the Region.
• Track upcoming opportunities by priority sectors in the country programme
• Support the development and management of the BD strategy for Kenya.
• Support the DDGA and technical leads in comprehensive business development and develop funding proposals, appropriate to the context and aligned with the country-level Strategic Action Plan.
• Lead proposal development initiatives, providing overall coordination function between HQ IRC’s global technical advisors, partners, finance, operations, HR, and program focal points to ensure smooth and timely proposal development processes.
• Serve as team lead for all proposals, working with and /or overseeing other key roles (e.g. regional support team, consultants) when needed and as resources are available to support them.
• Ensure proposals are tracked with standard IRC tracking tools (e.g. OTIS, Internal tracker)
• In collaboration with MEAL Coordinator, utilize needs assessments contextual analysis results to inform project design.
• Monitor major donor trends (policies, strategic directions, etc.) and funding opportunities through regular research and monitoring of information on relevant websites and/or other sources.
• Support program growth aligned with strategic priorities through liaising and collaborating with respective technical units in program design, researching context, gaps, needs assessments, and viable new funding opportunities.
• Ensure the identification, appraisal, and mapping of partners is carried out constructively and consistently, and that strategic partners are appropriately engaged in pre-positioning and proposals development processes.
• Interpreting donor solicitations and donor-specific rules and regulations to ensure a responsive and compliant proposal design.
• Support proposal budget develop and ensure responsiveness and that it matches the technical narrative.
• Consolidate written inputs into a cohesive proposal narrative; write non-technical sections such as the management and past performance sections.
• Edit full technical proposal and budget narrative for coherence, length, uniformity, and responsiveness to the solicitation.
• Ensure timely submission of quality proposals.

Grants Management and Compliance (approx 40% of time)

• Review and negotiate donor contracts and agreements.
• Review any request for extension and amendments in coordination with the DDGA and maintain a tracker for IRC and partners payments and expenditure per each grant.
• Manage and provide overall oversight of the grants portfolio and regularly update the grants tracker for dissemination internally and to Awards Management Unit
• Ensure open, timely and accurate information flow within the Grants Unit and between the Unit and relevant departments.
• Ensure the submission of timely and high-quality reports (including narrative, financial and MEAL) to donors, including the development and update of regular funding and reporting trackers and schedules for dissemination to relevant staff.
• Maintain strong oversight of the portfolio and pipeline, including grant opening and closing dates to ensure timely submission of all related deliverables.
• Provide technical guidance on IRC and donor regulations to ensure compliance within operations, program implementation and reporting.
• Raise compliance issues proactively with program staff and the DDGA, DDP, DDF and DDO for timely action and keep senior management informed of any projected inabilities to meet contractual obligations, reports submission and of spend rates/signification budget variances.
• Manage and/or support all agreements reviews, revisions, amendments, and budget realignments, including relevant approvals.
• Leads the Grants Unit to coordinate closely with finance teams and review project spending plans and financial health to ensure effective spending amendments, and closeout activities.
• In coordination with DDGA, conduct project lessons learned meeting during project closeout phase.

Human Resources Management, capacity building and development (approx. 20% of the time)

• Coach, train, supervise and mentor direct-report staff, including communicating clear expectations, setting quarterly performance objectives, providing regular and timely positive and constructive performance feedback, and providing documented semi-annual performance reviews.
• Make sure the Grants team work as one even if sitting in different locations and covering different field locations.
• Hold high-quality meetings with each direct report on a regular and predictable basis, at least bi-weekly.
• Provide a measurable development plan including on-the-job learning with the aim of strengthening technical capacity, exchanging knowledge within the team, and providing guidance on career paths.
• In coordination with HR colleagues, promote and monitor staff care, well-being, and self-care. Approve and manage all time, attendance and leave requests to ensure adequate departmental coverage. Model healthy work-life balance practices. Support appropriate interventions in response to identified staff care needs of both national and international staff.
• Look for opportunities to support staff in their career growth, where appropriate. Offer leadership support for successful adherence by staff to IRC’s country and Global HR Operating Policies and Procedures.
• Develop a detailed capacity building plan for the grants department with regular trainings (minimum quarterly). As part of succession plan and nationalization goals, identify, train, and develop capability and capacity of a national staff to successfully transition role and responsibilities, by end of assignment.
• Identify top performing national staff and prioritize these staff for capacity building and mentoring investment.
• Build the capacity of key program staff in grants management including reporting, compliance, proposal development, compliance etc. through regular training.
• Maintain open and professional relations with team members, promoting a strong team spirit and providing oversight and guidance to enable staff to successfully perform in their positions.
• Work with HR staff to identify and implement recruitment and retention strategies.

Partnerships

• IRC Kenya has committed in its SAP to spend 8% of funding through local partners by FY2024. The grants unit facilitates this process by:
• Contributing to achievement of goals related to the SAP partnerships ambition including identification and onboarding of Strategic Partners
• Embody and model IRC values related to partnerships (partner as equals, partner first) and facilitate this approach in implementation of IRC programmes
• Support development and maintenance of strategic partnerships.
• Support negotiation of partner sub award agreements in coordination with the Partnerships Coordinator, Award Management Unit and Compliance Unit

Representation and Advocacy

• In coordination with the DDP/DDGA, actively develop and maintain effective working relationships with stakeholders including local communities, donors, government actors, UN agencies, international and local NGOs, and other relevant actors. Liaise with county and national governments, donors, NGOs, and other operational partners in Kenya via attendance at meetings, consultations, and other forums.
• In coordination with the DDP/ Senior Coordinator for Program delivery, assist in organizing donor visits by supporting staff in the smooth design and running of field visits.

Country Program Management

• Actively participate in and contribute to strategy discussions, including SAP revision processes
• Stay updated on new IRC priorities, policies, or process updates and ensure Grants & Partnerships and MEAL units are informed of any changes.

Qualifications

• Advanced degree – international studies/development or similar OR Bachelor’s Degree with significant grants management experience and superior writing skills.
• At least 7 years of demonstrated field-based experience with humanitarian grants management, possibly including experience working with sub-grantee partners to build their capacity to access and account for resources. 5 years of this experience should be working in relief and development contexts.
• Excellent writing skills and experience in writing proposals/concept notes.
• Strong understanding and knowledge of USAID, PRM, FCDO, UNHCR, UNICEF, SIDA, SV, EU, ECHO and private donor rules and regulations.
• Proven competency with program design, M&E, proposal writing (including logical frameworks) and building budgets.
• Excellent management and coordination skills.
• Solid ability to provide team building, coaching, and development for staff as well as encourage cross-functional collaboration and cooperation.
• Ability to work independently while being a strong team player.
• Excellent relationship-building, interpersonal skills, and the ability to effectively represent IRC at forums and with donors.
• Full professional competency in Microsoft Office Suite, especially Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook.
• High attention to detail and excellent time management skills
• Excellent leadership and management skills including coaching, mentoring, and managing teams.
• Politically astute, with well-developed diplomatic and negotiating skills.
• Superior oral and written communication skills, with ability to express ideas and concepts clearly and persuasively with senior internal and external stakeholders.
• Extensive representation and fundraising success, including prior experience with European, US and other international and private donors.
• Established capacity to deal with ambiguity in stressful situations.
• Strong commitment to IRC’s vision, mission, and core values.
• Proven ability to design and lead training engagements with staff and partners to enhance skills and adapt to changing program demands.
• Professional fluency in spoken and written English.
• Familiarity with Kiswahili is an advantage.
• Full professional competency in Microsoft Office Suite, especially Word, Excel, PowerPoint. 
• Familiarity with file sharing systems such as SharePoint desirable.