Microenterprise Support Manager - Mkalles - For National Candidates Only

Background/IRC Summary:  

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and is at work in over 40 countries. 

In response to the influx of Syrian refugees in Lebanon, the IRC provides income and livelihoods support to vulnerable Syrian refugees and host communities, through its Economic Recovery and Development Program. The objective of the program is to assist vulnerable households in the most affected areas of the Akkar, Mount Lebanon, Tripoli and Wadi Khaled in meeting their essential needs and increasing their self-reliance; this is expected to ultimately lessen the use of negative coping strategies for survival.

Interventions include conditional cash assistance, financial management training, access to training and business development opportunities, legal and job counseling, and job referrals through all delivered through livelihoods centers. Specifically, the IRC has been delivering support to the local private sector environment comprising micro and small business owners to help reduce the economic burden they face as a result of the Syrian refugees influx to Lebanon. IRC’s support includes on-the-job training opportunities, access to capital for struggling entrepreneurs as well as access to loans and business development services.  IRC’s interventions are aligned with the private sector’s needs and are implemented in such a way to avoid market disruptions.

The ERD program will develop synergies with the other programs implemented by the IRC in Lebanon, particularly working closely with the Protection sector to mainstream protection principles into livelihoods approaches and expand program offerings.  The ERD program will also seek synergies with the Women’s Protection and Empowerment and Children Protection sectors.

The ideal candidate will have demonstrated experience in supporting business owners start-up or develop their business and facilitate their access to finance. The Microenterprise Support Manager will lead on the implementation of the program’s support to business owners through the facilitation of both cash grant and loan capital as well though the provision of business development services either directly or through the services of local partners.

Job Overview/Summary:

The Microenterprise Support Manager will lead on the on-going implementation of initiatives engaging local businesses in Akkar (Deir Dalloum & Wadi Khaled), Tripoli and Mount Lebanon, working closely with the Livelihoods team to ensure access to capital and business development services are delivered in such a way that respects the Do No Harm principles and ensure quality program delivery.

The main objectives of this position are:

Ensure that local micro-entrepreneurs develop market feasible ideas and launch successful microenterprises and receive access to finance and training.

Major Responsibilities:

General

• Oversee the Microenterprise Support program including but not limited to entrepreneurs’ selection criteria, verification of business plans and support to start-up microentrepreneurs and existing business owners in seeking business development services.
• Devise an outreach strategy to support the team in identifying prospective business owners including collaborating with international and local NGOs on developing referral pathways to the IRC’s Microenterprise Support program
• Develop detailed activity plans in line with program objectives, ensuring that those plans are implemented and any expected delays and / or modifications are communicated and raised in a timely manner with the ERD Coordinator.
• In conjunction with the M&E team, update the M&E tools as they are relevant to all microenterprise support activities.
• Conduct routine monitoring visits to supported businesses to ensure activities are progressing as planned and are of high quality.
• Support the Senior Technical Manager to prepare spending plans and cash projections for the Microenterprise Support program
• Monitor spending as it relates to Microenterprise Support activities, including spending relating to the IRC’s Microenterprise Support partners
• Compile and submit monthly progress reports to the ERD Coordinator.
• Liaise with interagency and outside technical stakeholders working on MSME development
• Feed into larger regional and global enterprise development and liaise with other IRC stakeholders to provide input on these initiatives.
• Contribute to periodic reports

MSME Support

• Identify financial constraints and/or capacity-building needs of employers in the relevant geographic areas and drive learning on support needed to reduce the constraints on business owners
• Lead the development of a support package for SMEs with support from ERD Coordinator and Senior Technical Manager as well as relevant  partners and consultant services as needed and identified
• Draft a strategy to target budding entrepreneurs
• Update the microenterprise support tools ensuring they are relevant to the needs of the business owners and taking into consideration feedback from the microenterprise support officers
• Liaise with IRC’s partner on the implementation of access to capital and business development support ensuring that objectives are met
• Regularly collaborate with the IRC’s Microenterprise Support partner on tools and services that ensure business owners are resilient within crises situations
• Work with consultants delivering targeted MSME-relevant services, including drafting ToRs, setting up workplan, supervising consultants’ work ensuring that deliverable are submitted, on time.

Staff Management and Development

• Direct supervision of 3 staff and technical supervision of 1 staff
• Discuss job expectations, set objectives and provide appropriate and timely feedback regarding performance, including timely implementation of the annual staff performance management system.
• Clearly define the training needs of direct reports and ensure they are able to access training and professional development resources appropriate to their skill gaps/needs.
• 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 including staff development plans.
• Provide leadership support for the successful implementation of and adherence to the IRC Global HR Operating Policies and Procedures
• Lead with commitment, integrity and accountability to the “IRC Way” –  Global Standards for Professional Conduct

Key Working Relationships:

Position Reports to:  ERD Coordinator
Position directly supervises:  3 Microenterprise officers

Position indirectly supervises: 1 Microenterprise officer in Wadi Khaled
Other Internal and/or external contacts:

Internal: Senior Livelihoods Manager, Centers Supervisors, other ERD Managers and team leaders, IRC Operations managers (HR, Supply Chain, Finance) and IRC’s Partnerships Unit

External:  Other INGOs conducting livelihoods programming, partner organizations and private sector companies

Job Requirements:

• Bachelor of Arts or Science in Economics, Business Management,
• Masters of Business Administration (MBA) is a plus
• Managerial experience; minimum of 2-3 years is required
• At least 4-5 years of relevant working experience in the area of private sector development, microenterprise support
• Demonstrated experience in business planning development
• Demonstrated experience in access to finance approaches and implementation
• Strong writing and reporting skills
• Strong project planning skills
• Strong ability to work independently, organize work, meet deadlines, maintain composure along with a sense of humor, prioritize work under pressure, coordinate multiple tasks and maintain attention to detail. 
• Excellent interpersonal and problem-solving skills, creativity and flexibility
• Private sector experience preferred
• Ability to engage both private sector actors and vulnerable beneficiaries of humanitarian assistance
• Personal qualities: works well in and promotes teamwork, comfortable in a multi-cultural environment, flexible,  able to handle pressure well and good time management skill
• Fluency in English and Arabic (particularly written, formal Arabic) required

Working Environment:  Located in Mkalles, the working environment will be a combination of office-based (50%) and field-based (50%), with frequent travel to Akkar (Deir Dalloum, Wadi Khaled and supported business’ locations), Tripoli and within nearby sites in Mount Lebanon.