Lebanon: Regional Finance Manager - Danish Red Cross

Job purpose:

The Regional Finance Manager (RFM) has a daily reporting line to the Head of Region (HoR) and a direct reference line to the Head of International Finance (HQ). An integral member of the MENA team, s/he has the following key responsibilities:

• Manage the finances of the DRC MENA Regional Office (RO), in terms of cash flow, executing payments, and booking entries in the DRC HQ accounts;
• Oversee the financial management of the projects, in coordination with the country teams and regional finance staff;
• Support the Country Coordinators and in-country delegates, in particular by ensuring the coverage of each country team’s day-to-day working expenses;
• Ensure timely, accurate and complete accounting and reporting in compliance with DRC standing operating procedures (SOPs) and donor requirements;
• Directly line manage the DRC regional finance team, currently consisting of three Regional Finance Officers;
• Troubleshoot financial and administrative problems as they are identified, seeking to limit their impact and rectify their cause so they do not recur;
• Advise the HoR on all issues related to regional financial management, particularly in relation to longer-term planning of income and expenditure;
• Provide technical advice to the DRC country teams and the NS they support, on general financial management issues, in order to build their capacity.
• Provide input to the continuous development of the DRC financial system (AX09) and procedures, routines, and processes at regional and HQ level, e.g. by suggesting revisions to the SOPs.

Job duties and responsibilities:

Oversee all financial management aspects of DRC country programmes and projects

• Proactively support DRC and NS in preparing partner cooperation and project agreements and modifications and project budgets in accordance with DRC and donor guidelines.
• Coordinate with HQ Finance in the creation of regional and country-level grants and projects within the DRC accounts.
• Ensure compliance of project financial arrangements and reporting with DRC’s and relevant donor regulations.
• Monitor project budgets and expenditure, advise on budget performance and, if applicable, suggest budget revisions.
• Monitor and quality control the cash requests submitted by country teams and partners via the DRC country programme delegates.
• Support the HoR in maintaining the grants overview table of project income and expenditure vs. time remaining.
• Ensure that grant income and expenditure budgets for the projects in each country are kept up to date.
• Execute cash pledges to IFRC and ICRC, as determined by DRC HQ and approved by the DRC HoR.
• Contribute financial data to the annual Country and Project Progress Reports (CPPRs and PPRs) in support of delegates.
• Support the DRC country programme delegates, in the development of new project proposal budgets and provide quality technical advice on budget templates and guidelines.
• Coordinate the preparation of the annual MENA programme budget and regional office budget in accordance with instructions from HQ Finance.
• Coordinate and support the annual audit of all DRC programmes and supervise their tendering and overall execution.
• When tasked by DRC HQ or the HoR, undertake investigations or internal audit missions for programmes / projects.
• Ensure compliant closure of projects, including final financial reporting, external audit, and updating the DRC accounts.
• Periodically visit countries to provide on-site face to face support to the DRC country teams and the finance department of the Host NS.

Manage DRC MENA Regional Office (RO) finances and support the HoR in its administration

• Facilitate efficient communication and coordination between DRC HQ, the RO, country offices and the NS on finance.
• Manage the DRC MENA RO cash flow, including the preparation and processing of transfer requests from DRC HQ.
• Ensure effective, correct and timely book-keeping of RO expenditure data into AX09, and correct payment processing.
• Ensure preparation of accurate, complete and timely financial reports (including reconciliations) in accordance with DRC and donor requirements.
• Prepare and maintain an allocation formula to cover shared expenses, particularly financing regional delegate positions.
• Follow-up on monthly time registration on project budgets by staff at DRC HQ and the MENA RO, on a regular basis.
• Initiate, plan and support conduct of the external audit of the DRC MENA RO; receive results and respond to findings.
• Ensure that the management of RO, country office and delegates’ finances complies with DRC policies.
• Ensure that appropriate physical and electronic filing of relevant documents, is maintained.
• Ensure the maintenance of a fixed asset inventory list for the region, covering assets at the RO and in the countries, and the insurance thereof.

Support DRC Country Coordinators and delegates in 5 countries

• Advise / assist Country Coordinators and delegates with budget responsibilities on operational financial management.
• Provide collegial support and back-up to the joint DRC/Norcross Programme Finance Delegate embedded within IRCS headquarters in Baghdad, and the local finance staff directly supporting DRC’s programmes in oPt, Syria and Yemen.
• Oversee the level of working advances made to Country Coordinators and Delegates.
• Ensure that delegates’ working advances are properly accounted for and replenished, as necessary.
• Ensure that the country teams’ financial management procedures comply with DRC SOPs and other applicable policies.
• Support the Country Coordinators in the recruitment of any programme finance staff needed in their country offices.

Directly line manage the DRC MENA Regional Finance Team

• Provide day-to-day supervision of the activities of the 2 Regional Finance Officers and technical supervision of the Regional Finance Officer dedicated to the Madad Programme in 5 countries, funded by the EU.
• Conduct annual ‘employee conversations’ and prepare appraisals for staff under supervision, as necessary.
• Recruit new finance staff for the RO, when required.
• Ensure the management of resources to fund these positions on a continuous basis.

Capacity building

• Identify capacity development needs and subsequently suggest, design and assist the country teams.
• Mentor the Regional Finance Officers and DRC delegates with finance roles, to further develop their technical skills.
• Assist NS partners in the development of effective and efficient internal financial systems and procedures.
• Assist the Country Coordinators to implement measures and build capacity to comply with DRC’s anti-corruption policy.
• Assist HQ in developing standard accounting tools and systems, e.g. budget templates with sufficient detail for donors.
• Advise HQ in ensuring that its internal financial systems and procedures are fit for purpose / best practice.
• Advise in the development of relevant materials for the financial management training of DRC delegates and NS staff.
• Periodically visit countries covered to provide on-site support and financial management capacity development of NS stafff and, where necessary, also the DRC Delegates in-country.
• Provide support to and keep updated with the NorCross led finance development project activities with the HNS in Syria and Iraq.

General financial management and other managerial responsibilities

• Advise the HoR on issues of financial planning, budget preparation, monitoring and reporting income and expenditure.
• At all times maintain an overview of all financial activities in the region, covering the entire MENA portfolio, and effective summaries of the regional status, for management and relevant delegates at HQ, RO and country level.
• Understand and communicate the financial management and reporting compliance requirements of DRC and its key donors in the MENA Region, and communicate changes and new developments in their respective guidelines.
• Participate in relevant internal meetings, development fora, workshops and courses of DRC and the Movement.
• Provide suggestions and input to the continuous development of the financial systems (AX09) and procedures, routines, and processes at regional and HQ level, e.g. by suggesting revisions the SOPs.
• Other tasks as may be requested by the Head of Region and/or the HQ Head of International Finance.

Duties applicable to all staff:

1. Actively work towards the achievement of the Red Cross / Red Crescent Movement’s goals.

2. Abide by and work in accordance with the Red Cross and Red Crescent principles.

3. Perform any other appropriate work-related duties and responsibilities that may be assigned by the line manager.

Position Requirements:

Education**:**

• University Degree in Financial Management, Accounting, Business Administration, Commerce, or any other relevant fields. (Required)
• MBA or a Master Degree in financial management or a related field. (Required)

Experience:

• Ten years or more experience in financial management and reporting, budgeting and accounting, and financial audits. (Required)
• Extensive experience in management of finance teams, and development of staff. (Required)
• Experience in developing and executing project and programme budgets and scrutiny of financial reports. (Required)
• Experience with donor agencies, e.g. ECHO, Europe Aid, Danish Government, etc. (Preferred)
• Experience in working for a humanitarian organization, especially within the Red Cross / Red Crescent Movement. (Preferred)

Knowledge and Skills:

• Technical knowledge and experience in facilitating, supporting, monitoring and supervising activity plans, budgets and financial management. (Required)
• Ability to support and impart technical knowledge to colleagues and subordinates. (Required)
• Strong computer skills (Microsoft Office Package, especially Excel) and full proficiency in a standard financial accounting (ERP) system, ideally AX09. (Required)
• Excellent analytical skills, particularly of complex financial documents and questions. (Required)
• The ability to advise upon, establish and enforce sound internal financial controls. (Required)
• Good judgment and the experience to know how to comply with regulations but at the same time enable efficient and effective operations in the field. (Required)
• Good knowledge of donor financial management and reporting requirements. (Preferred)

Languages:

• Fluency in English with good spoken and written command of the language. (Required)
• Fluency in Arabic with good spoken and written command of the language. (Required)

Competencies:

• Able to handle a very heavy workload for a prolonged period.
• Able to work within a team environment, taking both leadership and team member roles as appropriate.
• Flexible and adaptable to changing conditions, and able to cope with a working environment that could occasionally be stressful due to e.g. fluctuating workloads, unplanned tasks, and personal insecurity.
• High degree of integrity, proactivity and discretion in personal conduct.
• Self-motivated, with good judgment and initiative.
• Able to prioritize tasks and meet deadlines.
• Able to manage effective remote communication with DRC HQ, Country Programme teams and NS Finance staff.
• Good communication, coordination, networking and facilitation skills.
• Conversant with and willing to work for brief periods in volatile environments e.g. Iraq, Yemen or Syria.
• Willing to have up to 20% traveling days per year, either to the programme countries or HQ (Denmark).

For those who are interested in the above-mentioned position, kindly submit your CV with the cover letter to the HR personnel: hr.mena@ifrc.org

Make sure to put the title of the vacancy you are applying to as the subject of your email, otherwise your application will NOT be considered.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted within 2 weeks after the ad is closed.