Guatemala: Operations Manager – The Fuego Volcano Guatemala

JOB PURPOSE

The incumbent provides the technical lead to ensure the optimal coordination and direct management of resources required for the effective and efficient implementation of the emergency operations. The position will report to the Head of Country Cluster Support Team, who is based in Tegucigalpa, capital city of Honduras, while keeping a second report line to the Head of Disaster and Crisis for the Americas, who is based in Panama City, capital of the Republic of Panama.

The also will contribute to identify, design and implement the multilateral livelihoods programme, under the Plan of Action for the recovery. The Ops Manager will ensure that the programmes are based on sound and ongoing assessment analysis of the affected population needs, vulnerabilities and capacities.

JOB DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Management responsabilities:

• Negotiate, plan and mobilise IFRC resources in support of the NS in the assessment, planning, and implementation of the emergency response.
• Supervise IFRC technical leads to ensure they work closely with the managers of relevant NS departments in all related programming roles and responsibilities, providing advice and recommendations that carefully consider local capacity and context.
• Along the NS, build alliances and partnerships with other humanitarian actors to enhance the implementation of the emergency plan of action.
• Promote and assist the integration of humanitarian priorities and interventions within all relevant programming divisions in the NS.
• Ensure that the response is based on frameworks and approaches that are consistent with or have considered national and international standards and guidelines, as well as IFRC policies, procedures and tools.
• Assist the NS, Movement and external partners in the achievement of planned outcomes and deliverables following quality standards, in a timely fashion, and within budgets.
• Ensure a robust and coherent monitoring of the situation and its potential evolution, and ensure that humanitarian interventions are responsive to current and emerging needs and threats.
• Support the NS in setting up the structure needed to ensure that all components of the response are identified, planned and carried out in a coordinated, collaborative and integrated manner with Movement and external partners.
• Support the NS in developing and implementing operational standards, tools and procedures that ensure quality, consistency and sustainability of emergency response interventions. Together with the NS and the Head of Country Office, represent IFRC in coordination meetings and forums, involving national authorities, national and international agencies, donors and other partners in the country.
• Support the NS in establishing an effective information management system for the response, including statistics.
• Work with PMER leads in IFRC and the NS to ensure that planning and reporting requirements are met in a timely and efficient manner.
• Advise on the need of additional human resources and support deployments in coordination with the Country and Regional IFRC offices, HR departments and/or surge desk.
• Ensure sound financial management is applied to all Federation-assisted programmes within the NS, that budgets are monitored and any problems identified and solutions implemented in timely and effective manner.
• Manage operational budgets to ensure that expenditure relating to IFRC-supported operations is within income and approved ceilings, in compliance with IFRC finance procedures and in line with donor earmarking requirements.

Technical responsibilities:

• Support in restarting, strengthening, protecting and diversifying livelihoods of the affected population in order to ensure they are more resilient to future disasters. This may be through (although not exclusively) a range of approaches, which have been identified in the livelihoods needs assessment.
• Identify the need to update livelihoods needs assessment and/or redirect the already-drawn livelihoods intervention strategy.
• Support the GRC in the development and refinement of its new Livelihoods strategy based on Federation Secretariat livelihood strategy that outlines livelihood measures, reaching appropriate scale in the response comparative to need, and in line with existing Federation policies and frameworks and global good practice.
• Work to ensure that livelihoods programmes include priority cross cutting issues such as gender, protection of vulnerable groups, environment, disaster risk reduction, and ensuring that projects are in line with the IFRC Framework of Community resilience.
• Support GRC to coordinate and lead livelihoods assessments that integrate and draw upon sectoral assessments and analysis and beneficiaries changing and diverse needs, vulnerabilities and capacities.
• Support GRC to develop multilateral livelihoods programming operational procedures, systems and programme guidance.
• Support the GRC to recruit and manage livelihoods staff as per operational needs and requirements.
• Liaise and ensure GRC livelihoods technical staff liaises with livelihoods area of focus focal point in Panama for technical input and support.
• Prepare regular work plans and provide regular updates on progress to the CCST.
• Develop and maintain positive and progressive working relationships with the Guatemalan Red Cross, national and local authorities and international and national organisation always in agreement with the GRC.
• Ensure regular contact with technical focal points in livelihoods at Region and Geneva levels.
• Facilitate technical support to GRC to identify and implement the livelihoods projects with the affected and target communities and families in an accurate and timely manner to achieve the goals set.
• Support the GRC to ensure the data collection and start-up of the monitoring and evaluation mechanisms are accurately established to measure the results and impact of the livelihoods interventions.
• Represent IFRC in the field when necessary and feedback about the results.

EDUCATION

• University degree in relevant area or equivalent experience
• Basic Delegates Training Course or IMPACT. FACT, ERU, RDRT training , Preferred
• Education on needs assessment for Livelihoods programing and Cash Transfer Programming
• Professional qualifications in social sciences, economics, agronomic or equivalent, preferred

EXPERIENCE

• At least 5 years of disaster management experience, including managing staff
• Field experience in coordinating and managing disaster and crisis management projects and activities especially livelihoods
• Work experience with RC/RC
• Experience in project cycle management including proposal development, budgeting and reporting, monitoring and evaluation
• Experience on Livelihoods needs assessment and implementation of Livelihoods programmes/projects and Cash Transfer Programming
• Good knowledge and relevant work experience in the regional context

KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS

• Effective team and project management skills
• Good analytical skills and solution-oriented
• Good mentoring and capacity development skills
• Ability to work well in a multicultural team
• Excellent stress management skills
• Demonstrated accountability

LANGUAGE:

• Fluently spoken and written Spanish
• Good command of another IFRC official language (English, French or Arabic), preferred

COMPETENCIES AND VALUES

• VALUES: Respect for diversity; Integrity; Professionalism; Accountability
• CORE COMPETENCIES: Communication; Collaboration and teamwork; Judgement and decision making; National society and customer relations; Creativity and innovation; Building trust
• MANAGERIAL COMPETENCIES: Managing Staff Performance; Managing Staff Development; Strategic Orientation
• FUNCTIONAL COMPETENCIES: Strategic orientation; Building alliances; Leadership; Empowering others

A letter of motivation must be submitted along with the application no later than September 24, 2018. In order to ensure a proper comparative evaluation of your application for this vacancy and to enable us to consider your profile against other similar current and future vacancies, we ask that you submit your application thru the following link http://www.ifrc.org/en/who-we-are/working-with-us/current-vacancies/job-description/?id=13416 taking into account the following:

Message for applicants:

Applicants will need to send their applications together with a letter of motivation no later than the closing date. In order for us to assure a proper comparative evaluation of your application for this vacancy and to enable us to consider your profile against other similar current and future vacancies, we ask that you submit your application considering the following:

• Please note that this vacancy seeks to hire the selected candidate through an international contract;
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by Federation policies, procedures, plans and applicable laws;
• The closing date is midnight Geneva time. Applications received after the closing date will not be considered;
• Only those candidates shortlisted for interviews will be notified.

The position will be based in Panama. If the selected candidate is a national or resident of Panama, a national contract will be offered in line with the applicable compensation and benefits. The position incumbent will travel frequently to the countries affected by the migratory crisis, identified within the appeal, as it evolves and as required by the operation.