Country Director - Ukraine
Western Ukraine
INTLPG/ International Programs – International Humanitarian and Disaster Response Unit /
Regular, Full-time /
On-site
ORGANIZATION SUMMARY:
World Relief is a global Christian humanitarian organization that is fighting for change that lasts, right here in the U.S. and across the globe. We bring sustainable solutions to the world’s greatest problems – disasters, extreme poverty, violence, oppression, and mass displacement. The organization is approximately 75 years old and has worked in over 100 countries around the world since its founding.
In the United States, we come alongside local churches, community organizations and hundreds of individual volunteers to support newly arriving refugee and other immigrant families. Today, we are proud to partner with over 6,000 local churches, and 95,000 volunteers globally to bring hope, healing and transformation to the most vulnerable.
POSITION SUMMARY:
Are you a person of compassion? An advocate for justice? Someone who stands up for the rights of the vulnerable and speaks out for the marginalized, the exploited and the forgotten? Do you believe in our calling as Christians to welcome the least of these and love our neighbor?
If you answered ‘yes’, to any of the above, World Relief, and millions of people around the world need you.
The Country Director will have overall responsibility for the development, growth and management of the Ukraine country program portfolio and day-to-day operational activities. This is achieved through the development and implementation of a country strategy which is in line with World Relief’s (WR) mission, vision and values. This includes aligning programs with WR integral mission implementation strategies’; alignment with the Core Humanitarian Standards; the recruitment of requisite personnel; the evolving development of policies and structures and systems; ongoing monitoring of programs and ensuring the quality of Monitoring and Evaluation processes; spearheading at the local level and active participation in U.S. and International resource development efforts; and the development of strong strategic partnerships and networking with local institutions, government and UN agencies, donors, UNOCHA Cluster systems and other implementing partners that are aimed at enhancing the shared mission of the organization and responding to the most vulnerable in a disaster response context and enhancing the mission of empowering the local church to serve their communities.. The Country Director will lead the senior management team and represent the organization with government, donors and other local and international organizations. This role requires 40% time spent to travel to humanitarian response community centric locations, donor prioritized regions, and project field sites outside of Uzhhorod.
Role & Responsibilities
- Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
- Strategic Leadership
- Especially as this is a new country office for World Relief, this role requires active and strong leadership in all aspects of its oversight and operations, assigning and delegating tasks where required.
- Develop and implement a three-year country strategy in line with WR’s programmatic competencies and Integral Mission, aimed at contributing toward the social, spiritual and economic transformation of the most vulnerable.
- Ensure implementation of Integral Mission in the development of new programs, using World Relief-designed implementation strategies, in line with national strategic response.
- Provide overall leadership and oversight on proposal development in coordination with Home Office for WR Ukraine programs with UN, government, foundations and private donors.
- Develop appropriate institutional structures and strategies for all long-term WR work, with special attention to establishing strong partnerships with in-country UN coordination systems, international and local NGOs, and existing churches and other national institutions.
- Hire, supervise and capacity build a growing WR in-country staff roster
- Program Management
- Provide overall management and technical direction of WR’s program in-country
- Construct country office strategy to grow funding opportunities from bilateral, multilateral and other donors to augment the resources provided from WR’s general fund •Spearhead the identification and development of new opportunities and gap locations for programming as well as pre-positioning with potential donors
- Participate in concept note and proposal development processes which may include: writing sections or components of narrative and annex documents, budget development, log frame and metrics creation, coordination of proposal timeline, and editing of all requisite documents
- Read and understand program agreements and general compliancy with individual donors as required •Ensure that program activities are being implemented according to agreements, work plans and schedules, in coordination with the leadership team
- Ensure quality, accuracy and timeliness of all program reports
- Ensure WR’s official registration with UNOCHA Cluster systems
- Maintain WR's registration as an international NGO in-Country as required
- Oversee and manage country finance personnel to ensure overall fiscal transparency and health of the country finances, including: accurate budgets, expenditures to budget and in compliance with procurement policy and procedures, coordination with headquarters financial systems management, and financial reporting that is accurate, timely, and in accordance with globally accepted accounting practices
- Liaise with headquarters for quarterly reviews and regular financial consolidation, including required audit schedules
- Approve and verify acquisition and delivery of all major purchases in compliance with grant agreements and country policies and execute sound cash and logistics management practices with all vendors
- Ensure the ongoing formal and informal review/evaluation of staff performance, including written evaluation of each direct report on an annual basis
- Oversee general security for the country office, sub-offices and project sites, which includes: the maintenance and implementation of site security for each project site, make informed decisions about staff safety and potential evacuations, regular attendance and involvement in NGO security forums, security checks when traveling to field sites, regular communication and coordination with the Home Office Security Advisor
- Monitor for cases of fraud, theft, abuse, misconduct, or conflict of interest in alignment with WR policy and international regulations, and report immediately instances to the Regional Director, International Finance Specialist and/or the Lighthouse Reporting Hotline: https://www.lighthouse-services.com/ Strategic Partnerships
- Initiate and manage relationships with USAID, UN agencies, NGOs and other donor agencies
- Participate in relevant cluster coordination acting on behalf of WR programmatic interests and goals for expansion, both geographically and with partners, and sharing pertinent data to contribute to the overall humanitarian coordination body
- Cultivate partnerships in consonance with the leadership, guidelines and policies of WR’s Church Engagement Unit with U.S. churches, denominations, and church bodies
- Under the guidance of WR’s Strategic Engagement Department, help to lead relationship building with key U.S. partner churches, including hosting vision teams and ministry teams.
- Maintain and regularly update Stakeholder and Analysis Matrix and regularly maintain contacts
- Participate in pertinent humanitarian meetings and active discussions to represent WR’s goals for expansion and positive relationship building
- Serve as WR’s primary representative in-country, leading official interactions with the media, government, local partners, Integral Alliance partners and other local and international NGOs including through humanitarian forums
- Organizational Development
- Oversee the hiring of strong Christian and professionally qualified staff using an equitable and transparent recruitment process, and dismiss any staff who do not perform according to standards and expectations
- Liaise regularly with Home Office support staff including but not limited to: HDRU team members, PRT, MEAL and Impact Systems, Finance, Marketing, SED, IT
- Develop and strengthen WR’s policies, procedures, systems and controls aimed at promoting accountability and alignment to prevailing laws and regulations of the country
- Develop and implement critical manuals and policies for the WR Ukraine office, including but not limited to: Human resources manual, Finance manual, Logistics and Procurement Procedures, Warehouse Storage Procedures, PSEA policy
- Create opportunities for staff growth either individually through coursework, certifications, etc., or as a group through an annual retreat, or any other forum that enhances the professional, social and spiritual growth and cohesion of the WR Ukraine team
- Annually review existing WR Ukraine policies and procedures and make appropriate amendments in consultation with relevant Home Office departments
- Perform any other duties assigned by the Humanitarian and Disaster Response Director
Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities
- Experience in administration of U.S government and UN grants
- Proven leadership and management of international donor support programs, with extensive experience in strategic planning, resource mobilization, proposal development, personnel management and supervision, and budgeting in a multi-project and multi-funding environment
- Adept at managing multi-cultural teams and strong interpersonal skills
- Strong oral and communication skills in English. Knowledge of Ukrainian or Russian preferred
- Able to demonstrate awareness of personal strengths and areas of growth required to effectively lead a humanitarian response, and to proactively seek out training or other methodologies of improving skillsets
- Flexibility, resilience and ability to maintain positive relationships in all circumstances
- Personal Christian Faith and a heart for serving vulnerable people, and committed to Mission, Vision, and Values of WR, and ability to provide Christian spiritual leadership
Requirements
- Mature and personal Christian faith
- Committed to the mission, vision, and values of World Relief
- Desire to serve and empower the Church to impact vulnerable communities
- Able to affirm and/or acknowledge World Reliefs Core Beliefs, Statement of Faith, Christian Identity and National Evangelicals For the Health of The Nation document
- Fully contribute to a rich spiritual life of the WR Ukraine team, including daily team devotions, days of prayer, prayer retreats, words of encouragement, and integrity in all programmatic aspects of response and interaction with external contacts
- University Degree in related field, business management highly valued. Masters’ degree preferred
- A minimum of three years of experience in international relief and humanitarian work with progressive leadership responsibilities and proven resource development skills, or a minimum of five years of experience in business management and leadership with progressive increasing responsibilities
- Must be able to relocate to and reside in the country of direction with or without familial accompaniment
- Up to 50% domestic and/or international travel required
World Relief offers a competitive benefits package to international employees:
- Medical, Dental, Vision
- Paid Holidays + 4 additional Personal days per year!
- Paid Sick and Vacation Time
- Paid Maternity & Paternity Leave (subject to country requirements)
- Paid Home and Hardship Leaves
World Relief pays 100% for eligible employees:
- Group Term Life (employee)
- Long Term Disability (US Expats only)
- Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D)
- Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and Mental Health/Resiliency Assistance
- Emergency evacuation insurance
World Relief - Retirement:
- 401K & Roth (US Expats Only) – WR matches up to 4%, then an additional quarter percent up to 10%
- 4% retirement plan match for all other employees, unless dictated by country law.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS:
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
· While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to have ordinary ambulatory skills sufficient to visit other locations
· The ability to stand, walk, stoop, kneel, crouch, and manipulate (lift, carry, move) light to medium weights of 10-15 pounds.
· Requires good hand-eye coordination, arm, hand and finger dexterity, including ability to grasp, and visual acuity to use a keyboard, operate equipment and read application information.
· The employee frequently is required to sit, reach with hands and arms, talk and hear.
WORK ENVIRONMENT:
· General office setting. World Relief also offers hybrid and remote schedules for limited positions.
· Great lengths of time working on computer, reading from computer screen, entering information, standing at copier or fax machine, and some time on the phone or in virtual meetings may be required.
· Year-end archiving activities involve repeated lifting and bending.
· Physical, emotional and intellectual demands
· Equipment used: Employee computer (desktop or laptop), printer, and copier.
· All of the above duties and responsibilities are essential job functions subject to reasonable accommodation. All job requirements listed indicate the minimum level of knowledge, skills and/or ability deemed necessary to perform the job proficiently. This job description is not to be construed as an exhaustive statement of duties, responsibilities or requirements. Individuals may be required to perform any other job-related instructions as requested by their supervisor, subject to reasonable accommodation. This position description is not all-inclusive and is always under review.
For World Relief staff, strong commitment to the mission, vision, and values of World Relief is essential, and Christian faith is a prerequisite for employment.
