Senior Director, Strategy & Performance – International Rescue Committee – New York

Job Description
The Senior Director, Strategy & Performance will lead the strategy planning and delivery process for IRC’s international programs, design and implement methods to assess and drive accountability within country programs, and identify ways to ensure optimal country capacity and structure. Reporting to the Vice President, Head of Field Management, this individual is a key member of the International Programs Department field leadership team and will collaborate closely with the Regional Vice Presidents, Country Directors and field staff, and the full range of partners across the technical excellence, operations, finance, fundraising, awards management, advocacy, communications, compliance and legal functions.

Key Responsibilities
Strategy leadership, delivery & coordination
Lead the country Strategic Action Plan (SAP) process, including development, monitoring and review of the guidance and tools.
Critically review draft SAPs to promote alignment to IRC’s global strategy, responsiveness to humanitarian need and context, consistency in strategic direction across regions and countries, and the right balance of ambition and realism.
Monitor country progress on SAPs & Good/Great Standards, advising the field leadership team as needed.
Develop quarterly and annual synthesis reports to identify key trends, successes and challenges across SAPs, and work with IPD leaders to develop follow-up working groups as needed.
Chair the cross-functional SAP Steering Committee, ensuring effective leadership and support to strategy planning and delivery at the field level.
Play an active role in the continued integration of IRC’s field and HQ planning processes, ensuring that plans are driven by quantified ambitions for scale and impact, and that there are strong feedback loops between field and HQ needs and priorities.
Ensure public and private funding priorities are driven by programmatic needs and ambitions.
Participate actively in the development of IRC’s future strategy, and ensure a smooth transition to the next generation of country Strategy Action Planning.
Country program performance & delivery
Support the field leadership team to develop and implement a holistic and practical framework for assessing country program performance which encompasses the breadth of IRC’s strategy.
Clarify accountability for the achievement of specific indicators and the respective roles of country teams and HQ units, and develop mechanism to reflect this in performance reviews of key individuals.
Coordinate the establishment of appropriate routines and fora to review country performance and HQ support, supporting RVPs and working closely with other teams as appropriate.
Work closely with relevant colleagues in IPD and other departments to measure performance on grant delivery and business development, and identify and implement opportunities for improvement.
Support our continued efforts to develop the ability to measure progress toward client outcomes and donor deliverables.
Field capacity & change management
Identify, test and implement ways to improve county (and regional) capacity to deliver on IRC’s commitments and objectives.
Advise on organizational design changes to regional and country teams to optimize performance, and support testing of new ways of working.
Assess critical resourcing gaps (human and financial) and work with IPD and other leaders to identify and implement solutions.
Work with the Head of Field Management to ensure the recommendations of the ‘Delivery Excellence’ project are resourced and replicated across international programs.
Work closely with the VP of International Operations to assess the field impact of new initiatives and ensure appropriate change planning and support is in place.
Work closely with regional and country leadership to support the roll-out of new initiatives and ensure adequate support is made available by HQ units.

Qualifications
Education
Relevant university degree required, graduate degree strongly preferred.
Work Experience And Required Skills
Extensive field experience leading large-scale humanitarian, protracted and/or post-crisis recovery programs.
Extensive experience of overseeing large complex project portfolios comprised of a mix of funding sources and instruments.
Excellent analytical, strategic thinking, influencing and project management skills
Strong ability to balance strategy and ambition with tactics and pragmatism, grounded in a robust understanding of what it takes to deliver in complex, dynamic operating environments.
Excellent presentation, written and verbal communication skills; commitment to open and transparent communication.
Collaborative leadership approach that contributes to positive team environment, and builds strong relationships with people from all backgrounds, genders, cultures and viewpoints
Commitment to diversity and inclusion; experience in incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work.

Languages Required/Preferred
Professional fluency in written and spoken English. French, Arabic and/or other language skills a definite advantage.

Click here to Apply Online

Related Job Ads: