Location: Washington DC or US Remote
Valid unrestricted work authorization in the country in which you will be based (United States) is required at the time of application for this position.
Position Status: Full-time, Exempt, Regular
Salary Level: The salary range for this position is $53,000-$57,667 USD commensurate on experience
About Mercy Corps
Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have long term impact.
The PRO-WASH & SCALE Award
PRO-WASH & SCALE (Practices, Research, and Operations in Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene and Strengthening Capacity in Agriculture, Livelihoods, and Environment) is an Associate Award funded by the USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA).The purpose of PRO-WASH & SCALE is to strengthen the design, implementation, and overall effectiveness of key sector-specific interventions in food security activities across BHA’s portfolio in emergency, early recovery, risk reduction, and resilience (ER4) activities. The technical intervention areas include water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), agriculture, livelihoods, infrastructure, natural and water resource management, climate change, and disaster risk reduction.
PRO-WASH & SCALE is a 50-month activity (2023-2027) funded by USAID/BHA and implemented by Save the Children and Mercy Corps, through the Agriculture Technical Support Unit. Mercy Corps leads PRO-WASH & SCALE’s activities related to agriculture, livelihoods, natural resource management and markets.
The Position
The Operations Officer plays a key role in ensuring Mercy Corps’ logistical, procurement, M&E and financial processes and activities under PRO-WASH & SCALE comply with USAID and MC regulations. They will lead the Mercy Corps PRO-WASH & SCALE team in a timely and efficient start-up and close-out process and will liaise with Save the Children’s communications and program management teams on all relevant operations-related matters.
Essential Responsibilities
START UP AND PLANNING
- Support start-up procedures in compliance with USAID and Mercy Corps’ rules and regulations and in consideration of Project DPro best practices.
- Maintain internal task management system and suggest ongoing improvements, and tracking and filing systems for consultants, vendors and financial transactions.
- Support recruitment, hiring and contracting of staff and consultants in coordination with Mercy Corps HR. Lead on contract amendments.
- Support orientation of new hires (consultants, interns, etc.) to Mercy Corps’ systems, processes and communication and project management platforms/tools.
PROCUREMENT AND COMPLIANCE MANAGEMENT
- Support program compliance with USAID and Mercy Corps’ logistical, procurement and financial procedures.
- Maintain program documentation per award filing structures and USAID and Mercy Corps requirements. Ensure internal and external systems for tracking grants (GAIT) and program deliverables (USAID’s DEC, Mercy Corps’ Digital Library, etc.) are updated. Ensure filing is aligned with Mercy Corps’ policies regarding access and storage.
- Coordinate with other departments contract processes for the hire of technical consultants, including submission of all information required for compliance, payment tracking and tracking budgets
- Monitor systems and support improvements for tracking consultant tasks, deliverables and level of effort (LOE) and ensure compliance with financial policies and procedures
- ‘Coordinate all aspects of high-impact the vendor procurement process and file back-up documentation accordingly’
- Set up and/or maintain systems for the efficient procurement of equipment and services, payment processing and financial reporting
- Ensure all financial transactions are documented, tracked and filed.
- Liaise with Mercy Corps finance for all procurement and HR payments.
PROGRAM SUPPORT FUNCTIONS
- In coordination with the PRO-WASH & SCALE communications team, provide logistical support for in-person and online trainings and knowledge sharing meetings and events. For in-person events, liaise with Mercy Corps country offices on local procurement, country-level compliance and overall organization.
- Proactively address travel-related needs for Mercy Corps PRO-WASH & SCALE team members and consultants in collaboration with agency domestic and international travel agencies, including organizing airfare/transportation, accommodations, advising on completion of expense reports.
COORDINATION AND OUTREACH
- Collaborate with Save the Children’s communications team to disseminate award events and resources via relevant external listservs, networks, websites, as well as Mercy Corps internal comms channels (Globe, Workplace, the Hub, mercycorps.org)
- Take minutes at team and other relevant meetings and ensure they are circulated and filed accordingly. Support coordination between PRO-WASH & SCALE and other Awards, including on scheduling meetings.
MONITORING AND EVALUATION
- In coordination with the Activity Director, Technical Leads and Save the Children’s M&E team, support the strategic development and implementation of an integrated M&E strategy
- Track MC specific outreach and engagement with BHA, stakeholders and implementing partners to feed into the M&E system.
- Maintain Mercy Corps’ PRO-WASH & SCALE M&E systems, ensuring data is accurately stored, organized and up-to-date in program records, including complete and accurate back-up documentation and inputting to the Mercy Corps TolaData system.
- Support adaptive management through keeping data organized and easily accessible; support with data analysis and visualization for award reflection and decision making; help lead team pause and reflect sessions as needed.
PROGRAM CLOSE OUT SUPPORT
- Support the Program Director and SCALE team to manage program close out activities, ensuring it is timely, efficient and complete
- Support closeout procedures and requirements to ensure compliance with all relevant USAID and Mercy Corps regulations
Supervisory Responsibility: N/A
Accountability
Reports Directly To: PRO-WASH & SCALE Technical Director, Mercy Corps
Works Directly With: All PRO-WASH & SCALE team members
Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills
- AA, BA (or equivalent educational background) in Administration, Program Management, International Development or related field, or equivalent professional experience.
- 2+ years of demonstrated experience in providing administrative and logistical support for donor-funded grants or contracts, including knowledge of project management frameworks
- Ability to establish, improve and maintain organizational systems for tracking tasks and inputting data; previous experience managing or supporting M&E systems a plus
- Proven ability to communicate effectively with colleagues from various backgrounds and cultures, working across countries and time zones
- Proficiency with MS Office software required (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint). Sharepoint experience a plus.
- Preference is given to candidates with prior work experience working for USAID funded programs.
- French language proficiency a plus.
Success Factors
The Operations Officer must be a detail-oriented multi-tasker who is able to communicate clearly and work under pressure. They must demonstrate patience, flexibility, and taking the initiative to solve problems. Vital skills include organization, communication (both written and verbal), as well as building and maintaining effective internal and external relationships. They must demonstrate the ability to understand and follow agency procedures, programmatic strategy, meet deadlines, and work both independently and as part of a complex distanced-based, multi-cultural team. Exposure to and interest in working in international development is important, and an understanding of the complex challenges faced by program teams operating in overseas environments is critical.
Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions
This position must be based in the United States. Candidates based in Washington, DC, will have the option of working remotely or in-person at the Mercy Corps DC office. Travel is not anticipated for this role.
Ongoing Learning
In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.
We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.
Equal Employment Opportunity
Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.
We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.
Safeguarding & Ethics
Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct elearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.
As a safeguarding measure, Mercy Corps screens all potential US-Based employees. This is done following the conclusion of recruitment and prior to assuming full employment.
Our screening process is designed to be transparent and completed in partnership with new Team Members. You will have the opportunity to disclose any prior convictions at the conclusion of the recruitment process before the check is initiated. We ask that you do not disclose any prior convictions in your application materials or during the recruitment process.
Covid-19 Vaccine Policy for US-Based Employees
Mercy Corps has determined that, in an effort to protect the health, safety, and well-being of all Mercy Corps employees working in the United States, all U.S.-based employees must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19, regardless of prior COVID-19 infection status. This policy is necessary to ensure not only the safety of our workforce, but the ongoing functionality of the organization.
This policy will be revised as needed to comply with federal, state, and local requirements, and to respond to changing guidance from public health authorities.For new employees this requirement goes into effect within 10 business days of employment. Team members that travel are expected to comply with host-country requirements, including vaccinations. Failure to comply may impact your employment. Proof of vaccination or exemption must be provided.
