Deputy Chief of Party at Catholic Relief Services

Supervisor: Chief of Party

Note: This position is contingent upon grant and candidate approvals by the donor.

Job Summary

CRS Kenya is seeking a Deputy Chief of Party (DCoP) who will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the program. The DCoP will strengthen communication, integration and harmonization of technical approaches in all areas of the program. They will coordinate the development of annual work plans, strategic plans, and donor reports, while also maintaining systems to track program quality. The DCoP will support the development of strong Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) systems for monitoring implementation and ensure that data is analyzed and used for decision making that strengthens programming. When necessary, the DCoP will fulfill Chief of Party (CoP) duties during this position's absence and will collaborate closely with implementing partners, relevant Government of Kenya (GoK) entities and USAID/Food for Peace. The DCoP will also ensure appropriate support to implementation partners according to identified needs and in collaboration with CRS internal departments (Finance, HR, Commodity Management, Purchasing, Administration, etc.).

The DCoP is expected to have a high level of self-initiative and use critical thinking skills to identify and fill gaps. S/he should have the ability to work sensitively and positively with the DFSA team and promote an inclusive development environment -- success of the post relies on this.

Specific Responsibilities

• Leadership and Representation
  • Along with the CoP, provide leadership, supervision, and oversight to improve the performance of all program activities, ensuring efficient and effective project implementation including the timely completion of high-quality work plans, accurate reports, and other mandated deliverables.
  • Work with the CoP and MEAL Manager in preparing project work-plans with clear objectives and achievable benchmarks, reflecting strategic long-term and short-term priorities.
  • Maintain clear, regular and effective lines of communication with relevant GoK stakeholders and CRS implementing partners.
  • Ensure all approaches are aligned with GoK food security and resilience building priorities, plans and policies.
  • Project Innovation and Organizational Learning
  • Capitalize on achievements and identify pertinent learning questions for improved program quality.
  • Promote and facilitate innovation through capacity building and motivation of implementing staff
  • Regularly review the program strategy to ensure relevance and enhance program impact by suggesting appropriate alternative strategies and changes to the technical working groups.
  • With the MEAL Manager, develop mechanisms, including Quality Improvement Verification Checklists, for regular feedback on the quality of on the ground activities and targeting of supervisory support.
• Project Implementation and Reporting
  • Facilitate development of CRS and partner annual Detailed Implementation Plans (including the budget).
  • Responsible for the submission of consistently high-quality reports to donor through planning with team leaders quarterly, and annual program reviews, assisting in drafting reports, providing critical feedback and quality control.
  • Participate in the development and analysis of baseline data and contribute to the baseline report.
  • In consultation with the CoP, CRS Kenya Country Representative (CR) and Head of Programs (HoP), make efforts and support a strategy to complement services under the program through identifying, leveraging and creating linkages with other projects where appropriate.
  • Coordinate the organization of sessions to share study results (baseline, formative research, Gender Assessment) with communities, partners and local development actors.
  • Support the MEAL Team in conducting data quality assessments.
  • Participate in working group meetings to improve and standardize technical tools.
  • Support the team leaders in conducting operational research and evaluative studies.
  • Draft Scopes of Work and supervise consultants selected for different project activities.
  • Address bottlenecks and scale up best practices to achieve high quality program implementation.
• Partnership/Capacity-Strengthening
  • Draft and oversee partnership agreements with implementing partners.
  • Coordinate, with CRS technical teams, the training of technical partner staff, field agents and community volunteers on the use of data collection tools.
  • Accompany partners in project management, annual reviews and integration of activities.
  • Accompany partners in data analysis and the use of data to inform programming activities.
  • Train and accompany partners in the use of the Indicator Performance Tracking Table (IPTT) and other relevant project documents.
  • Accompany partners in drafting quarterly and annual reports in a timely manner and according to project requirements.
  • Accompany partners in establishing and implementing community-based MEAL systems.
  • Accompany partners in organizing regular sessions to share project results and outcomes to date with local development actors.
• Management, Supervision, Finance and Donor Compliance
  • Manage all resources associated with project implementation in compliance with CRS and donor policies.
  • Contribute to the preparation of financial and commodities reports for internal review according to CRS and donor procedures.
  • Support partners in preparing budgets and financial reports in collaboration with the Grants & Compliance Manager and CRS technical staff.
  • Implement CRS' performance management system by organizing coaching and evaluation sessions with supervisees.
  • Assist with the hiring, orientation, and training of key staff to build a technically strong, well supported, motivated team.
  • Provide direction and technical advice through quarterly coaching sessions and daily support.

Key Working Relationships

Supervisory: Team leaders for programming sectors. (TBD)

Internal: Country Representative, Head of Programs, Chief of Party, all Country Program staff, Regional and HQ technical staff.

External: Officials at USAID, government organizations, representatives from for-profit and other non-for-profit organizations, including all partner organizations, representatives of non-traditional public donors including UN, World Bank and other relevant GoK stakeholders.

Required Qualifications And Experience

• Master's degree in a relevant field including public health, food security or international development.
• Minimum 7 years demonstrated experience managing large USG or other similar development projects focused on food security; preferably with experience related to engaging food insecure populations and increasing resilience.
• 5 years experience managing donor funds, including multi country grants. Strong knowledge and experience in budget management.
• Demonstrated ability to work and coordinate effectively with a wide variety of stakeholders, including national and local government, donors, community-based organizations and the private sector.
• Demonstrated experience working in food security and a strong understanding of the underlying causes of food insecurity in Kenya and the Kenya context. (Preferred)
• Experience with USAID project implementation.
• Knowledge of program quality standards, MEAL standards, Catholic Social Teaching and the justice lens preferred.
• Experience with facilitation, capacity strengthening and partnership building through formal and informal training with the capacity of empower staff through opportunities for professional growth and development.
• Detail-oriented and excellent time management skills with the ability to meet deadlines and deliver required results in a timely and quality manner.
• Cultural sensitivity, patience, flexibility and ability to work well in a multi-sectoral and multi-cultural team and to work closely, understand and support local Church partners.
• Ability to work in a challenging and stressful environment with unexpected challenges.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English required.
• Ability to travel for field missions for 30-50% level of effort as needed.

Agency-wide Competencies (for All CRS Staff)

These are rooted in the mission, values, and principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and to achieve the desired results.

• Integrity
• Accountability and Stewardship
• Build Relationships
• Develops Talent
• Continuous Improvement and Innovation
• Strategic Mindset

MEAL Competencies

• Monitoring: Implementing monitoring activities, including timely collection of quality data, set up and maintenance of databases, facilitation of participatory reflection on monitoring results, and submission of timely progress reports.
• Evaluation: Supporting project and program evaluations and reviews by ensuring the quality of evaluation methods, tools, and data and facilitating the use of evaluation results to inform decision-making and enhance learning.
• Accountability: Improving our accountability to a range of stakeholders through increased participation, transparent communication, responsive feedback mechanisms, and adherence to internal and external quality standards and requirements
• Learning: Promoting excellent knowledge management and collaborative learning processes at the project, program and institutional levels, generating robust evidence for project and programmatic learning that leads to action, decision-making and influence

Disclaimer Clause

This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skill, effort, duties and responsibilities associated with the position.

Required Travel: Regular travel within Kenya and internationally as required.

Work Environment: Office environment with regular travel to the field.

Disclaimer: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skill, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.

CRS' talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.