Search for Common Ground

Position Summary

The Country Director manages the overall program in Guinea from a programmatic and operational perspective, as well as leading on fundraising and donor relations. He/she leads the Leadership and Management Team (comprised of key senior staff) and leads the team in ongoing improvements. This position reports to the Regional Director for West Africa and collaborates closely with various Washington and Brussels-based divisions of Search, including the Africa Team, the Institutional Learning Team, Communications, Finance and Operations. The position is located in Conakry, with substantial travel to the other field offices as well as other states around the country.

 Search for Common Ground has been working in Guinea since 2003 on a wide range of topics, including democracy, governance, elections, natural resource and land conflicts, youth engagement, post-Ebola recovery and the prevention of violent extremism. Our activities promote reconciliation and social cohesion, use media to promote peace, advocate for good governance by empowering civil society, and engage youth, women, and religious and community leaders for sustainable peace. We work across all regions of Guinea out of two main offices (Conakry and Nzérékoré). Search has a staff of 40 people, including 43 national staff members and 4 international staff. 

This is a senior position and the post holder is a member of the Senior Management Team and expected to contribute to management decisions as required. The post holder will have a national-level responsibility for overseeing the quality of all projects in Guinea. The post holder will manage a team of program specialists, providing technical quality support to projects in all project target areas. 

Key Responsibilities

Roles and responsibilities include:

Program Development and Implementation

• Define program priorities, plans and long-term strategy (in close collaboration with the Regional Director).
• Oversee implementation of funded projects, collaborating with donors, partners, and other staff.
• Manage the country program with the highest quality standards and with well-documented results.
• Ensure sharing of results across different offices of Search Guinea, across Search and with external stakeholders.
• Responsible for ensuring lessons are learned and applied to future programming.
• Ensure that program planning and management effectively utilize available resources, and respond to gaps with fundraising and/or operational adjustments as needed.
• Report to donors according to contractual deadlines with quality narrative and financial data.
• Contribute analysis and programmatic capacities to the implementation of programming in Guinea and other countries in the region as appropriate.
• Stay abreast of the international conflict transformation field to ensure that the program’s work remains innovative and professional.
• Be directly engaged in the continuing development of the organization, its mission and its staff, through the sharing of experience and knowledge, particularly contributing to its Institutional Learning efforts.
• Strengthen existing funding relationships and identify and pursue new potential donors in collaboration with headquarters in Washington, DC and Brussels, Belgium.

Financial Management

• Directly oversee and manage the country Finance Directors, ensuring financial compliance both with Guinean laws, donor requirements and Search procedures across the organization.
• Maintain regular communication with regional and HQ finance focal points on finance issues and ensure that the organization is ongoingly audit-ready.
• Identify potential shortfalls and strategize with the organization’s senior management as necessary to ensure the program’s financial sustainability.

Staff Management and Development 

• Develop and manage a team of diverse senior staff members (expatriate, national and third-country nationals) modeling effective communication and collaboration.
• Participate in the recruitment and selection of highly qualified staff, onboarding and ensuring ongoing staff opportunities for capacity development.
• Ensure adequate mechanisms for staff appraisals, staff feedback, and review of HR/operational issues
• Strengthen the capacity of national staff and partners, contributing to Search’s legacy strategy of conflict transformation in Guinea.
• Ensure compliance with Search Operations Manual policies and procedures.
• Ensure that country policies, contracts, and disciplinary procedures and processes conform to local labor laws
• Ensure an updated security and evacuation plan is in place for all offices.

Organizational Representation 

• Serve as Search's country representative.
• Develop and maintain proactive, positive and professional relationships with partner organizations, other NGOS, donors, clients, key government officials, civil society groups, etc.
• Maintain responsible media coverage of program events and issues related to Search mission.
• Maintain regular written and oral reporting to Washington and Brussels on key country, regional, program, security and staff issues.
• Establish a direct line of communication with other African Country Directors in the region for program guidance toward strategic initiatives and staff cross-fertilization opportunities.

As job descriptions cannot be exhaustive, the position holder may be required to undertake other duties that are broadly in line with the above key responsibilities.

Qualifications

You meet the following qualifications:

Education

• Master's Degree in peacebuilding or a related field, conflict transformation/ conflict studies, communications,  journalism, political science, or related fields.

Experience

• Experience in managing large projects of at least $5 million, with multiple grants and donors.
• At least five years’ experience working overseas, preferably in Sub-Saharan Africa.
• At least ten years’ experience in program management, both programmatically and operationally, preferably on media and/or conflict transformation-related issues.
• Experience with compliance to US government and EU donor rules and regulations.
• Experience in capturing results and overseeing reporting, monitoring and evaluation systems.
• Experience in managing multi-cultural teams, preferably in Africa.

Skills and Competencies

•  Understanding of the conflict dynamics of Guinea
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills
• A problem-solving approach to challenging situations
• Ability to multi-task while leading a complex team 
• Fluent spoken and written French and English
• Track record in successful fundraising 

This position will close on October 13, 2019

 To apply

To apply, interested candidates should send the following items  to our employment portal here:

• current resume
• cover letter

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Only applicants invited for an interview will be contacted. No phone calls, please. Please see our website www.sfcg.org for full details of our work.

All Search Employees must adhere to the values: Shared Humanity - Empathy - Impartiality - Inclusivity - Courage - Hope - Humility - Audacity. In accordance with these values, Search enforces compliance with the Code of Conduct and related policies on Anti Workplace Harassment, Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Conflict of Interest and Anti-fraud.

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