Country Director, Global Surge

The IRC’s Global Surge Team (GST) is a roster of esteemed and highly qualified humanitarian professionals who deploy on short notice to non-emergency and emergency contexts to support the IRC’s mission. Members of the GST provide specialist support where talent is most needed for short-term deployments of up to three months.The GST is a flexible, occasional employment opportunity. Deployment needs vary based on demand. Staff can take on additional deployments as opportunities arise and if they are interested.

**Job Overview:**

The Country Director, Global Surge (CD) leads all programs implemented in the country program in which the IRC operates. The CD is responsible for overall leadership and supervisory management of IRC staff, programming, and operations, including program quality and accountability, stewardship of resources, staff safety and security, performance management and external representation.

In this role, you will be directly responsible for the program's overall coordination and strategic direction; providing oversight and coaching for senior managers; leading country program teams to identify, design and deliver responsive, high-quality programs; ensuring efficient management of public grants and private funds for results, compliance, and timely reporting; and oversight of financial management and compliance systems.

**Major Responsibilities:**

**Leadership and Representation**

- Lead the country program by maintaining open and professional relations with colleagues, promoting a strong team spirit, oversight and resources to enable staff to perform successfully.
- Develop and carry out strategies that result in strong representation with: government ministries at various levels; UN OCHA; donors including US and UK governments, ECHO, UNHCR, UNICEF and other international organizations; international and local NGOs.
- Ensure that IRC maintains a strong reputation and relationship with major donors.
- Develop and maintain a high level of understanding of donor priorities and planned funding streams.
- Initiate and sustain strong, mutually beneficial and authentic partnerships with local organizations.
- Seek out and pursue opportunities to raise the profile of the work of IRC and its partners, as well as the lives and the needs of the people IRC seeks to serve.
- Play a leadership role in efforts to improve humanitarian coordination
- Lead country program collaboration with colleagues to deliver regional programming and advocacy.
- Ensure leadership and management processes enable the IRC to effectively adapt to contextual changes and fully make use of opportunities to expand humanitarian access and assistance.

**Strategic Direction, Quality, and Growth**

- Ensure the strategic vision and direction of the country program is aligned with IRC Strategy100 to serve people with responsive, high-quality and accountable programming, and secure the resources necessary for realization.
- Together with other members of the country program senior management team (SMT), ensure the strategy action plan is of quality, implemented and guides decision-making.
- Ensure quality through consistent use throughout the country program of: rigorous assessment, design, and proposal development and review processes; comprehensive monitoring & evaluation, accountability and learning systems; staff development investments; and partner organization capacity strengthening.
- Remain current on national and regional issues impacting the country program and partners, and develop responsive strategies to changing contexts.
- Ensure the SMT delivers the leadership, management structures, staffing skills and approaches, and operational systems required to ensure a coherent ‘one IRC’ approach to achieve regional objectives.
- Find opportunities for appropriate expansion and growth of programs, supported by the acquisition of and investment in human resources.

**Safety and Security Management**

- Take primary responsibility for overall safety & security management for the country program.
- Oversee the management of all security issues, together with safety & security lead, including appropriate response to emergency situations as they arise.
- Maintain a culture of safety throughout the country program, including trainings and briefings that prepare all country program staff for security incident prevention and response.
- Keep security, evacuation and contingency plans current and accessible to country program staff.
- Maintain close coordination and communication with the Regional Safety and Security Director on relevant concerns and evolving issues that could adversely affect IRC staff or operations.

**Staff Management, Learning and Development**

- Oversee the management, coaching and development of staff to build a team of skilled, committed and motivated staff. Coach, train, supervise and mentor direct-report staff, including communicating clear expectations, setting performance objectives, providing regular and