Partnership Capacity Building Officer

GENERAL POSITION SUMMARY: The Partnership Capacity Building Officer’s role is to support the management of capacity building activities under at least three large multi-sectoral programs/grants. Under the direct supervision of the Partnership Capacity Building Manager, the Partnership Capacity Building Officer is responsible for coordinating and assisting in partner Organizational Capacity Development and other emergency capacity interventions. The position holder will work closely on implementing the Organizational Capacity Index and other relevant baseline assessments with implementing partner(s) to ensure smooth, efficient, and effective development of partner capacities. The position encompasses a wide range of capacity building activities, including planning and coordination of high quality interventions, monitoring, collating information collected from partners, arranging trainings with partners and mentoring of specific partner staff where appropriate.  The Program Officer also plays a key role in the implementation and overseeing of capacity development plans throughout the program implementation while providing input for capacity development initiatives to both internal and partner staff.  Relevant technical sectors the Partnership Capacity Building Officer will be involved in include but are not limited to: Leadership, Programs, Finance, External Relations, Administration, and Logistics.  The position holder will work closely with the Partnership Capacity Building Manager, who will seek to expand the skills of the Program Officer and delegate more responsibility during the duration of the contract. ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS: Program Support Assist in capacity assessment of identified organizations using Mercy Corps Organizational Capacity Index Tools. Help develop and/or refine existing CSO capacity building curriculum to fit local context and capacity. Recommend to the Partnership Capacity Building Manager best approaches for staff and partner capacity development, building on existing Mercy Corps knowledge and experience. Organize and participate in the facilitation of meetings/workshops/trainings to help increase the capacity of local staff and implementing partners in planning and implementation of capacity development interventions in emergency response programs. Assist in any other task or duty assigned by the supervisor. Help design and incorporate conflict sensitive approaches and gender sensitivity, based on field feedback, effectiveness in the field, and appropriateness to ensure civil society organizations are being strengthened and their capacities are being developed. Support mechanisms for effective monitoring and evaluation of capacity development plans. Maintain a comprehensive filing system for capacity building documentation according to “Project Management at Mercy Corps” minimum standards. Provide reports on the capacity building initiatives, including good practices and lessons learnt Where possible, provide technical oversight and support, direct and/or remotely, for capacity development plans by the local and/or regional partner(s) at the field level. Abide by all security protocols and assist in ensuring their implementation by other staff. Conduct him/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to not jeopardize its humanitarian mission.  Representation and Coordination As required by the supervisor, represent Mercy Corps at donor meetings, and government and sectoral coordination forums/meetings. Under supervision of the Partnership Capacity Building Manager, develop and maintain working relationships and coordinate with relevant international and local agencies, including humanitarian and human rights organizations, local authorities and local partners.  Organizational Learning:  As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities they serve - we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves. Highlights: Participate to staff training, helping to build technical capacity of staff, operators and partners in the area of Leadership, Finance, External Relations, Logistics, Administration, Program, including periodical reflection and analysis of capacity development interventions. Mentors and coaches colleagues and team members building their capacity to enable them to obtain high quality results and impact Helps to development and execution of context specific solutions to improve collaboration, coordination and performance; Work with partners to strengthen linkages with other actors to enhance organizational learning which directly impacts staff performance and productivity;  Accountability to Stakeholders: Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts towards accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to the international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects. Highlights: Ensure that partners adequately participate in Mercy Corps capacity building interventions, engage in the implementation process, are comfortable to give feedback and that feedback is used to improve the quality of our interventions and develop their institutional capacities; Integrate M&E and accountability systems that are compliant with HAP international benchmarks, SPHERE and other relevant standards, as well as to the Donors’ requirements; Conduct himself/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to not jeopardize its humanitarian mission or put the team, assets and mission at risk; KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE: University Degree or Higher in field relating to humanitarian and development work 1-3 years of experience working in Non-Governmental Organizations, ideally focused on humanitarian relief. Strong knowledge of and experience with organizational development of CSOs in challenging environments, and ability to inform the content and method of organizational development training. Experience in implementing capacity related activities to strengthen civic civil society organizations networks. Expertise in implementation of capacity development plans is a plus. Good understanding of structure and processes in NGOs.   Knowledge and understanding of conflict mitigation, peace building and negotiation and ability to translate them into capacity building elements for peace actors. Demonstrated experience in emergency response programming in highly insecure environments. Commitment to locally-owned capacity building initiatives and past experience of engaging and working with local stakeholders for organizational capacity development. Demonstrated capacity to collaborate closely with INGOs, national NGOs and Community Based Organizations. Good communication and organizational skills. Proven ability to work cooperatively with colleagues from other departments in a team environment, and to lead a diverse group of people. Knowledge of humanitarian standards and codes, including SPHERE, HAP is an asset. Demonstrated familiarity with the MS Office software (i.e., Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) is required. Show great initiative and be able to work well in a team and independently. Demonstrate knowledge of the Syrian conflict context and understands capacity needs. Commitment to high level of confidentiality with sensitive information. Arabic and English language written and spoken is essential; Excellent written English is desired.   SUCCESS FACTORS: The successful candidate will have proven experience working effectively and respectfully with authorities, NGOs, and CBO representatives, and will have effective verbal and written communication as well as multi-tasking, organizational, and prioritization skills. S/he will have demonstrated attention to detail, ability to follow procedures, meet deadlines, and work independently and cooperatively with team members, and will have an interest and ability to travel and work in insecure environments. Sensitivity to multi-cultural humanitarian and development work and ability to train and facilitate dialogue among a diverse group of individuals with various skill sets and working styles are all critical, as is a commitment to working with community members to make concrete improvements to their organizational capacities and sustainability. An ability to creatively solve problems, juggle multiple priorities under tight deadlines, and to calmly and diplomatically deal with unexpected and sudden events impacting capacity development plans are also essential.  Mercy Corps Team members represent the agency both during and outside of work hours. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures and values at all times and venues, in such a manner as to bring positive recognition to Mercy Corps and to not endanger Mercy Corps’ humanitarian mission.