Nairobi Director at Crisis Action

Job description

Key Details

Role Type: Full time position

Duration: 2 year contract, extendable

Salary: Competitive senior-level package with generous benefits including health insurance, employer-contribution to pension scheme, 5 weeks of annual leave, inflationary increases and other benefits

Responsible To: Chief of Staff

Start Date: Asap

Deadline for applications is 23:59 on Sunday 14 January 2018

As Nairobi Director you will play a key role in crafting and delivering on strategies for impactful collective campaigns to protect civilians from armed conflict in Africa. You will build on and work closely with a strong network of civil society across Africa and maximise their joint impact to achieve change. We are looking for an activist at heart, an exceptional strategist and powerful networker that takes our engagement in Africa to the next level and ensures we are ever more effective in our mission to protect civilians affected by conflict.

Your responsibilities will include:

Planning and executing collective advocacy campaigns to protect civilians in African countries experiencing conflict – The focus of your work will be to craft and deliver on strategies for impactful collective campaigning across Africa to protect civilians from armed conflict. Together with our South Africa Director you will be working with our partner organisations and civil society more broadly in Africa and will bring them together in powerful, highly effective coalitions. You will maximise their collective impact by advising on strategy, injecting innovative and creative campaign tactics and then most efficiently implementing diverse advocacy activities, including gaining headline media attention. You will help create regional and global campaign moments to ensure governments fulfil their obligations to protect civilians.

Strengthening and building on a diverse, flexible and innovative network of civil society organisations across key African countries committed to the prevention of armed conflicts – You will achieve this by closely cooperating with a wide range of civil society organisations, mainly from the East and Horn of Africa whose work enhances the protection of civilians and by delivering high impact advocacy and media work in collaboration with them. You will liaise with senior representatives from partner organisations as well as the media and become a resourceful and trusted counterpart for them. You will expand our network by proactively engaging with and recruiting new partner NGOs.

Researching and analysing government policies to develop targeted strategies – Focusing on actual or potential conflicts that are of most strategic importance to our partners, you will ensure that Crisis Action provides valuable intel by investigating and analysing the policy positions of governments within the East and Horn of Africa states, the IGAD and EAC as well. You will ensure that Crisis Action builds an in-depth and sophisticated intelligence of these African governments and institutions’ positions towards relevant conflicts, the results of which will be top quality advice to partners on advocacy demands, strategy and suggestions for action. You will also be responsible for feeding this intelligence into our global groups, strategies and analysis. As a formidable political operator, you will build and sustain political relationships within these target countries and institutions.

Leadership of Nairobi office – You will manage the Nairobi team and will be responsible for ensuring that the work of the team is conducted to the highest professional standards. You will advise and guide the team members on their campaign work and foster their professional development. You will also be responsible for the financial management and running of our operations in Nairobi as well as official representation of Crisis Action.

Supporting our global work – You will be a core part of our international team, jointly strategizing around regional and international politics and how to change it. You will also help us reach out to potential partners in countries where we don’t have a presence and seek to engage and support them. You will be asked to advise on devising and implementing our fundraising plan, and to input into our organizational strategy and vision.

Person Specifications:

The following are essential:

• At least 7-10 years of relevant work experience in leading effective campaigns that have had positive impact through engaging in policy change in Africa and at any one of key African institutions.
• Expertise in media and communications; including knowing what different audiences need to hear, crafting media stories, producing high-quality media materials and working across media platforms, including new media. Experience of media work with national and regional media.
• Excellent political judgement and the ability to think and work strategically to achieve political change.
• High level contacts in politics, the media and civil society across the East and Horn of Africa.
• Experience of leading or working within coalitions.
• Team player: thrives as part of a team.
• High levels of professionalism. Extremely reliable and organized. Completes tasks in a timely and thorough manner. Great project management and time management skills to efficiently juggle competing priorities.
• High levels of ambition, energy, drive, dynamism, determination and focus.
• First-class interpersonal and communication skills, including the ability to cultivate high-level contacts and to instill trust and confidence in partner organisations and colleagues from a variety of backgrounds.
• Resilience and the ability to manage multiple internal and external demands.
• Commitment to Crisis Action’s aims, objectives and mandate.
• Intercultural working experiences.
• Ability to work in Nairobi and travel in the region.
• The following would be an advantage:
• Experience of campaigning on human rights issues and knowledge of individual conflict situations.
• Excellent knowledge key regional institutions in Africa and a proven track record in working with these.
• Languages other than English, especially French, Swahili, Arabic.