Iraq is emerging from over three years of civil war against the Islamic State and remains one of the most complex operating environments in the world. The devastating human consequences to huge numbers of people will endure for decades and the destruction of communities, livelihoods, homes and infrastructure will take years to repair. Iraq has a new government in place, and while some parts of the country are beginning to stabilize, others remain precariously close to collapse. Over 4 million Iraqis have returned in the past year, but 1.9 million remain displaced. 230,000 Syrians continue to seek refuge in the Kurdish region. The new government will struggle to rebuild trust and restore basic services.
A lead responder in Iraq since 2003, the IRC delivers aid and services that help communities survive, recover, and gain control of their future. The IRC is providing robust programming across 6 governorates through women’s protection and empowerment, child protection and protection and rule of law programming; cash distributions and livelihoods programming in support of economic recovery and development; education programming; and integrated early childhood development programming. Our work spans the spectrum from emergency response within 72 hours to long-term programming supporting our clients to rebuild their lives through starting small businesses. Our work in these challenging settings gives rise to some of the most pressing issues facing contemporary humanitarian action, including questions of access, security, funding and coordination.
Job Overview/Summary: Based in Erbil, Iraq, the IRC Grants and Partnerships Coordinator will work with the Deputy Director of Programs (DDP) to maintain quality grants coordination for all country program grants and sub-awards. Reporting to the DDP, this position will work closely with all departments and staff including program coordinators, finance, and operations on compliance, donor regulations, business development and reporting. The Grants and Partnerships Coordinator will supervise a small team of Grants Managers and Officers.
The IRC Grants and Partnerships Coordinator will liaise with all program and operational units of IRC Iraq and the Middle East Regional office as well as IRC’s NY headquarters and the IRC office in London.
Major Responsibilities:
Fundraising & Visibility
•In coordination with DDP cultivate donor relationships nationally and for specific target regions.
•Track upcoming opportunities by priority sector.
•Develop and maintain the Business Development Plan
Proposal Development
•Under the leadership of the DDP, coordinate the proposal development process by creating proposal calendars, following up with all relevant staff members to receive timely inputs, consolidating inputs and ensuring coherence with proposed budgets, and submitting to technical advisors and on OTIS for review.
•Assist the DDP to align new proposals to the country Strategy Action Plan (SAP).
•Liaise with NY grants units, technical units and IRC UK to ensure proposals meet internal standards and are donor compliant.
•Communicate with field sites in order to work directly with program staff on the development of proposals and to regularly visit IRC program activities.
Grants and Compliance
•Lead the grants unit in the submission of high quality activity and donor reporting on a timely basis according to IRC and donor regulations. Ensure all required documents are included, complete, and correct and approved by the respective Program Coordinators, M&E, and Finance focal points, and country management.
•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 senior staff in relevant departments.
•Keep the DDP, senior management and technical units at the NY and UK offices informed of any projected inabilities to meet contractual obligations, report submission and spend rates/significant budget variances. Also, be able to proactively mitigate risks through proposing remedial solutions.
•Oversee the implementation and follow-up of grant opening meetings, monthly grant review meetings, and grant close out meetings in collaboration with the Deputy Directors, HR Lead, Finance Controller, and program staff.
•Ensure quality information management related to grants by overseeing the regular maintenance of grant files, reporting calendars, and updating of internal IRC documentation and Grant Unit tools. Maintain proper records of all Grants.
•Oversee the development of and timely submission of high quality report to HQ and donors, as relevant.
•Work closely with compliance staff on issues related to compliance with donor rules and regulations.
•Assist senior management in donor liaison and communication as requested.
Sub-Award Leadership and Management:
•Lead the re-establishment of and chair the Sub-Award Working Group in order to develop and implement the Sub-Award Partner Management System (SPMS).
•Assist the DDP to ensure SAP commitments related to partnerships are implemented and partnership agreements are aligned with the SAP
•In coordination with the Emergency Coordinator and the DDP ensure EPP commitments related to partnerships are implemented and lead on the development of EPP priorities related to partnerships.
•Build capacity in the management of sub-awards by facilitating training, and providing one-on-one follow-up support, in drafting agreements and modifications, proposal and budget review, tracking budget versus actuals and other topics
•Represent the IQ program in engaging in regional and global sub-award initiatives (i.e. tools and guidelines) and their applicability/relevance to the IQ mission
•In coordination with the DDP, represent IRC with external partners and sub-awardee organisations, to ensure accordance with policies and procedures, including prime donor compliance
•Oversee the development, management and close-out of sub-awards in compliance with IRC and donor requirements.
•Support the development of Sub-Award tools and systems
•Ensure the maintenance of Sub-Award Tracker and ensure regular maintenance of sub-grant files, both electronic and hard copy.
•Update internal IRC documentation and provide analysis of current and closed sub-awards.
Human Resources Management 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.
•Holds high-quality meetings with each direct report on a regular and predictable basis, at least bi-weekly.
•Provide a measurable development/capacity building plan including on-the-job learning with the aim of strengthening technical capacity, exchanging knowledge within the team and providing guidance on career paths.
•Promote and monitor staff care, well-being and self-care; approve and manage all time, attendance and leave requests to ensure adequate departmental coverage.
•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 trainings.
•Coordinate inter-departmental partner capacity building including programs, operations, finance, HR, etc. through a detailed capacity building plan for each partner that is reviewed and updated quarterly.
•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.
•Model healthy work-life balance practices. Support appropriate interventions in response to identified staff care needs of both national and international staff.
•Work with regional HR staff to identify and implement recruitment and retention strategies.
Key Working Relationships
Position Reports to: Deputy Director of Programs
Position directly supervises: Grants Managers, Senior Grants and Partnerships Officer and Grants Officer, along with the to be hired Partnership Finance Manager.
Other Internal:
Country Director, Deputy Director of Operations, Field Coordinators, Technical Coordinators, Finance Controller, Regional team, London and New York counterparts
External:
International and national NGOs
Donor Agencies
UN Agencies
