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 Program Summary  

Mercy Corps has been responding in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale war in February 2022. The team is providing emergency assistance to refugees in neighboring countries and people displaced inside Ukraine so they can meet their basic survival needs. We also fund local organizations that know their community best and are working quickly to address their most urgent needs.

Building on the successes and lessons learned of the original Locally led, Inclusive and Versatile Emergency Support to Conflict Affected Populations in Ukraine and Poland program (LIVES), under LIVES 2.0 Mercy Corps will continue to work with CSO partners to deliver a comprehensive package of emergency assistance to the most vulnerable conflict-affected individuals and communities in Ukraine. With a focus on reaching those most in need in frontline, recently de-occupied or hard-to-reach areas, Mercy Corps and our local partners aim to reach over 80,000 individuals with emergency cash and other humanitarian aid. Another principal objective of LIVES 2.0 is to support local partners with the resources they need to grow their knowledge of, leadership in, and capacity to deliver the humanitarian response. The overall outcome is “The most vulnerable conflict-affected Ukrainians are enabled to meet their basic needs through rapid, localized and appropriate humanitarian assistance, delivered in a gender, age, and ability responsive way.”

The Position

Mercy Corps requires a strong Program Manager who ensures the efficient and effective implementation of the LIVES 2.0 program in Ukraine. S/he is responsible for coordinating and implementing the delivery of the program, including daily management of program activities and coordination across departments, and ensuring appropriate systems and support mechanisms are in place to track, analyze and report on results. S/he is a strong team leader, able to develop and mentor team members in Ukraine. S/he is an effective communicator, able to work with internal and external stakeholders to achieve common objectives. S/he is responsible for managing relationships with internal and external stakeholders including maintaining close working relationship with technical teams and the regional program team at HQ as well as the donor.

Essential Responsibilities

STRATEGY & VISION

• •  Implement Mercy Corps’ strategic vision and provide operational leadership to the implementation of Mercy Corps activities under the FCDO/LIVES 2.0 program.
• •  Provide structure to the existing activities and response mechanisms to reinforce program quality while ensuring the programs swiftly responds to needs.
• •  Support team members and partners through capacity strengthening opportunities.

PROGRAM MANAGEMENT

• •  Oversee program management and administration of teams across various field locations.
• •  Develop program implementation strategies, including partnership frameworks, participant targeting SOPs, and clear distribution procedures.
• •  Ensure that program implementation is responsive to communities and partners, and consistent with Mercy Corps’ relevant program guidelines, principles, values, quality standards and strategic plan.
• •  Fulfill Mercy Corps’ Program Management Minimum Standards based on the organization-wide guide.
• •  Work with program teams to ensure day-to-day activities are implemented in a coordinated way according to workplan and budget.
• •  Ensure program implementation is on time, target and budget, using effective monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) systems to reach desired impacts.
• •  Create and maintain systems ensuring effective and transparent use of financial resources for timely and informative reporting in line with donors and Mercy Corps policies and procedures. This includes careful budget management/oversight through coordination of monthly budget vs actuals meetings and accurate monthly forecasting, seeking input across departments.
• •  Ensure that participants are effectively targeted according to established vulnerability criteria, and that feedback mechanisms are in place.
• •  Ensure all interventions adhere to Mercy Corps’ Code of Conduct; Gender, Diversity and Inclusion guiding documents; Core Humanitarian Principles and Do No Harm.
• •  Oversee the production of written reports on program activities, capturing the impacts of activities. 

TEAM MANAGEMENT

• •  Work with program and PAQ teams to hire and orient team members for the FCDO program.
• •  Facilitate FCDO specific progress team meetings and ensure all workplans of the various departments are harmonized.
• •  Promote accountability, communicate expectations and provide constructive feedback informally and formally via regular one-on-ones and performance reviews.
• •  Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive to achieve excellence, and cultivate resilience and well-being under challenging situations.
• •  Coordinate with teams on support gaps and needs, providing back-stopping support for urgent tasks

INFLUENCE & REPRESENTATION

• •  In close consultation and collaboration with the Humanitarian Lead and Director of Programs, act as main focal point and liaison for FCDO and other external stakeholders.
• •  Identify, build and manage collaborative partnerships with sub-grantees, donors, local governments and other stakeholders.
• •  Demonstrate flexibility, resilience and ability to maintain positive relationships and composure.
• •  Maintain high ethical standards and treat people with respect and dignity.

Supervisory Responsibility

Roving Technical Cash/NFI Coordinator, Protection Coordinator, Senior Program Officer – Dnipro, and Program Officer - Odesa

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Humanitarian Lead

Works Directly With: Programs, Partnerships, MEL, CARM, Subawards & Compliance, Finance, HR, Operations and Security Teams

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

• •  Diploma or University Degree in international studies, social, economic or other relevant field is desired.
• •  Minimum 5 years of relevant work experience, of which minimum 3 years of experience managing programs focused on humanitarian assistance, relief or development work.
• •  Experience with partner-led programming and localization methodologies
• •  Strong understanding of cash, NFI, and rapid response programming, as well as protection mainstreaming methodologies
• •  Demonstrated experience in budget management, including projections and tracking of expenditures.
• •  Project DPro Certificate required (or willingness to complete within first months of joining)
• •  Willingness to travel to field locations for program monitoring and partner support.
• •  Demonstrated ability to meet deadlines and work independently and cooperatively with team members in a cross-cultural environment is required.
• •  Excellent interpersonal and communication skills: Ability to interact effectively with project partners, local stakeholders and community members.
• •  Familiarity with the MS Office software (i.e., Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) is required
• •  Excellent oral and written Ukrainian and English is required.
• •  Knowledge of Sphere standards and other training in humanitarian response preferred.

Success Factors

The successful Program Manager - LIVES 2.0 will combine exceptional management skills and experience in running emergency programs. Prioritizing, problem solving, ability to seize opportunities, attention to detail and strategic vision are essential. S/he will also have proven experience with cross-cultural teams and capacity building. Ability and willingness to travel within Ukraine, including in areas of program implementation in eastern Ukraine, security permitting. The most successful Mercy Corps staff members have a strong commitment to teamwork and accountability, and thrive in an evolving and changing environment while taking care of self and others.

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 based on 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. 

Benefits 

Mercy Corps is offering competitive 25 Benefits Packages (10 law statutory and 15 market competitive), including but not limited to the relocation, transportation, phone allowances, remote and flexible working modality, duty of care, well-being support, 24/7 free resilience consultations in addition to a salary offer. Team positive working environment in a well-established and growing international humanitarian organization with career development opportunities through our global talent development platform. 

PLEASE, APPLY: https://recruiting2.ultipro.com/MER1024MERCY/JobBoard/7a14d810-d41a-4542-9b9c-ba39a563b91a/OpportunityDetail?opportunityId=f01ebba5-3519-4467-892a-b1adc3eb6af6