Organization: Concern Worldwide
Country: Sierra Leone
Closing date:
30 Nov 2014IMMEDIATE VACANCY
Innovations Program Manager
Sierra Leone
December 2014
Introduction:Concern Worldwide is an international non-governmental, humanitarian organization dedicated to the reduction of suffering and working towards the ultimate elimination of extreme poverty in the world’s poorest countries. Founded in Ireland in 1968, Concern works in 25 countries throughout Africa, Asia and the Caribbean with a team of 3,500 personnel providing emergency relief, and long term assistance in the areas of education, health, livelihoods and HIV&AIDS. www.concernworldwide.org
Concern Worldwide’s Innovations for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health initiative (*Innovations*) is a multi-country project aimed at identifying and field-testing innovative ways of increasing access to high-impact, low-cost health interventions known to save the lives of women, infants and children in Sierra Leone, Kenya and Ghana.Concern Worldwide US, which manages this project, is recruiting a Program Manager to lead the initiative in Sierra Leone. www.innovationsformnch.org
Background:The Innovations project currently being piloted in Sierra Leone, “Essential Newborn Care Corps” (ENCC), aims to bridgethe gap between the informal and formal health system by creating a new role for Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs) that fills crucial non-clinical gaps in maternal and newborn care**.**This innovation explores the potential to re-train, re-position and re-brand TBAs within a new role which mirrors the high status position of TBAs in Sierra Leone society and is standardized to ensure quality of care. In response to the current Ebola outbreak, the ENCC project is incorporating elements of a community level response into the program, specifically around community mobilization and sensitization.
Purpose of Role:The Innovations Program Manager (iPM) is responsible for overseeing the implementation of all aspects of the pilot at the national and district level. Under the guidance of the Innovations Central Management Team (CMT) and in collaboration with the local implementation partner Health Poverty Action (HPA), the iPM will provide timely and effective program and fiscal oversight over the pilot project and will also act as Innovations’ in-country liaison with persons/organisation(s) involved in the health and development sector. S/he will serve as the in-country lead on project design issues, ensuring public health technical standards and health quality assurance are adequately and appropriately addressed in the pilot.S/he plays a critical role in positioning Innovations’ work in partnership with the Concern Sierra Leone country office and HPA to inform policy dialogue. The iPM will also undertake other duties assigned by the CMT in conjunction with Innovations and changes therein. Anticipated start date is January 2015.
Working Arrangements:The iPM reports directly to and receives guidance from the *Innovations*Program Officer (iPO). S/He collaborates and works within the parameters of Concern’s country office. The iPM will be based in Concern Sierra Leone’s office in Freetown with frequent travel to the Bo based project field office
Major Responsibilities
Technical Management and Oversight
· Collaborate and work closely with external consultants, CMT, Global Research Partner and Concern Sierra Leone country office staff to achieve the objectives of the project
· Manage and oversee the in-country work conducted by the local contractors, implementation partner, research partners and international consultants
· Conduct routine field visits to assess the quality of work and identify current, emerging, and potential risks/challenges that might compromise the implementation and evaluation
· Oversee the updating of joint work plans and budgets for pilot project and ensure they are in alignment with the overall Innovations work plans and project objectives
- Support development and review any technical deliverables (e.g., manuals, job aids, monitoring tools) produced by the implementing partner, before their submission to the Innovations CMT (and/or use at field level)
· Review monthly and quarterly reports submitted by the project implementing partner, before the reports are uploaded to *Innovations’*CMT
Support on In-country External Engagement/Positioning
- On behalf of Innovations, act as the in-country liaison with national-level MNCH stakeholders and partners to ensure that learning and progress are shared with the appropriate officials/fora
Learning Responsibilities
· Support documentation of processes and learning for internal and external purposes
· Draft ”Learning Briefs” on a quarterly basis to capture insights related to the project that might be of national health policy significance and/or provide evidence on reliability/scalability considerations
· Contribute project monitoring and evaluation reports
Reporting
· Prepare and submit high quality monthly reports and contribute to annual donor report, and other updates as required
Financial Management
· Using the existing developed financial procedures within Concern Worldwide country office, plan and manage the Innovations country budget and expenditure, including review and revisions of the budget with the relevant finance officer
· Ensure that activities are managed in accordance with approved budgets
· Review monthly financial reports to monitor expenditure and variances
Qualifications
· Advanced degree in Public Health with experience in the international health sector
· At least 3 years relevant program management experience at national and/or district level
· Significant experience working on issues related to maternal, newborn and child health in low-resource settings
· Research, monitoring and evaluation experience
· Experience working with government, multilateral, bi-lateral and national level organizations and leaders
· Proven people management experience, including the ability to motivate, develop and harness the skills of a multidisciplinary team, and work as part of a dynamic global team
Requirements
· Strong leadership qualities, including the ability to manage change and effectively apply learning
· Excellent organizational and planning skills, ability to prioritize a diverse and heavy workload, and meet tight deadlines
· Strong communication skills including written and oral (English); with a particular ability to synthesize information from various sources and distil key lessons learned
· Strong interpersonal skills
· Ability to work effectively in a multi-cultural environment
· Ability to work independently and as part of a remote team
· Strong understanding of extreme poverty, particularly as it relates to Concern Worldwide’s mission and our core program themes and regional contexts
· Patience, Humor and Flexibility
How to apply:To Apply
Interested applications should submit
· Resume or CV
· One to two-page cover letter outlining how your experience meets the person specification and include current compensation and compensation expectations.
All applications should be submitted to hr.usa@concern.net. Please apply by November 30, 2014. Due to the urgent need to fill this post, we will be reviewing and shortlisting candidates on a rolling basis and an offer may be made before the application deadline.
Concern Worldwide is an equal opportunities employer. No phone calls please.