Description
Position Description
Location: preferred location in Asia region where Mercy Corps has an office or location within relevant time zone
Employee Type: Full-time
Reporting To: Regional Director MENA/Europe & Asia
Supervisory Responsibility
Awards Management Team Lead(s), Technical Director, Regional Technical Resources & Quality Director, Managers/Directors of Regional Programs. and other technical team members (as relevant). Regional MEL/Evidence & Learning Focal Point, Regional Institutional Fundraising Specialist(s) are also dual managed with global structures for associated competencies.
Budget Management Responsibility
This role oversees a regional budget of about 250 million USD, along with country programs.
Position Summary
Mercy Corps runs a growing multi-million-dollar portfolio across Asia with programs currently serving populations in 10 countries (Afghanistan, Georgia, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Uzbekistan). Though the region is characterized by multiple systemic challenges and dramatic shifts in context, Asia remains one of the worldโs strongest and most dynamic regional economies, benefiting from a booming private sector and growing urban centers.
The Deputy Regional Director, Programs (DRD-P) is a senior leader who works closely with the Regional Director (RD) to ensure that transformational change occurs through the combination of: programmatic impact in our communities; the ability to influence change makers at local, regional and global levels; and a restlessness to innovate in search of better solutions. Working closely with the Regional Director (RD), they will provide strategic direction and support to regional and country teams to build an impactful portfolio that strengthens community resilience to conflict and climate shocks, aligning to Mercy Corpsโ four P2P outcome areas: Food Security, Water Security, Economic Opportunity and Peace and Good Governance. The DRD-P is responsible for the successful delivery of high-impact programming that is responsive to donor commitments and adheres to Mercy Corpsโ program management standards. They lead the Technical Resources & Quality, Evidence & Learning, Awards Management, and Business Development teams within the region, ensuring that technical resources are available and deployed in a strategic way to enable country and regional teams to deliver on P2P outcomes. They will work closely with the Regional Director to build and sustain a cohesive regional management team, ensuring the Asia regional portfolio is set-up to deliver programmatic excellence through established and responsive systems, and will serve on the Regional Management Team.
The Deputy Regional Director, Programs will support the accountable actors within the region and country programs with the operationalization and advancement of Mercy Corpsโ five commitments in their region โ climate smart, evidence-driven, innovative and creative, locally-led, and safe, diverse and inclusive. These commitments underpin the goals and outcomes of P2P across our operations and programs. They will collaborate closely with commitment sponsors, agents, working groups and team members at the regional, country, and program levels to advance commitment workstreams and integrate the commitments into organizational culture.
Essential Responsibilities
STRATEGY AND PLANNING
- Act as a key partner for the Regional Director to achieve an effective Regional Management Team, alongside the Deputy Regional Director, Operations, that is positioned to deliver programmatic and operational excellence to achieve significant impact and influence in the region.
- Provide strategic direction across the regional portfolio, supporting the development of compelling country-level strategies and annual implementation plans that integrate with a coherent regional strategy and are aligned with Mercy Corpsโ Pathway to Possibility.
- Provide overall programmatic leadership and oversee program performance across the portfolio, in close partnership with the DRD-O. Ensure that all programs in the portfolio achieve the highest possible impact through a focus on strong technical quality, sound program management systems and practices, a focus on innovation, and strong systems for evidence and learning. Partner closely with global TSU and PAQ teams to ensure that programs receive effective technical and program management support for program design and delivery and proposal development.
- Work closely with the DRD-O to support effective program planning, budgeting and management.
- Support oversight and accountability for complex and flagship programs of comparatively large budgets, ambitious scopes, and high visibility, within the region and engage as a strategic leader so that implementers remain accountable to delivery. Play a leading role on complex program boards in the region when necessary.
- Lead the development and execution of a Regional Evidence and Learning Agenda, working with regional and Global-based teams to establish regional research and learning priorities that advance evidence, learning, and influence objectives within the region and are connected to global strategic priorities, underpinned by our evidence-based commitment.
TEAM MANAGEMENT
- In partnership with the Regional Director, motivate, empower, and guide teams towards excellence. Ensure a positive team culture and work environment. Fill in as needed for Regional Director and for field leadership. Directly supervise Country Directors as stipulated by the Regional Director.
- Supervise the Awards Management Team and ensure that strong systems and processes are in place for the effective administration of donor awards. Ensure that teams across global support offices work together as a cohesive regional program support unit and collaborate closely with country teams to ensure effective grant administration.
- Supervise the Regional Technical Resources & Quality team, including the Regional Technical Resources & Excellence Director and/or any additional technical or programmatic resources at regional level. Line management of regional programs as relevant.
- Manage the regional Evidence & Learning team and partner closely with Global teams to ensure strong program-level M&E/evidence generation systems, as well as the production of relevant evidence and learning products that align to regional and global research and learning strategic priorities. This may include collaboration with the Crisis Analysis teams in specific countries.
- Ensure that dual managed team members have a deep understanding of their roles and are connected to relevant stakeholders across the agency to inform and promote agency strategies and best practices.
- Promote accountability, communicate expectations, and provide constructive feedback informally and formally via regular one on one meetings and performance reviews.
- In the event of a major disaster or emergency in the region, work directly with Mercy Corps Emergency Response Team to coordinate an appropriate and timely response.
PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT & PORTFOLIO GROWTH
- Oversee Business Development functions in the region to ensure the submission of high-quality, strategically aligned proposals that lead to growth of the regional portfolio. This includes line management of regional Business Development team members, support to country offices with strategic positioning for new awards; and ensuring effective collaboration across teams for the submission of quality proposals.
- Support country and regional teams to identify, explore, and pursue funding opportunities that support regional and country strategy objectives.
- Oversee the development of concept notes, proposals, and other funding requests, ensuring quality submissions that maximize chances for success, including sourcing technical expertise and other resources to assist with proposal development.
- Position Mercy Corps for strategic funding opportunities that build on country and/or regional programmatic priorities
- Develop systems to understand regional Proposal Development metrics, including data analytics around win rates, analysis of monthly PRODEV BvAs, PRODEV ROIs, etc. and work with the regional team to analyze data and identify strategies to maximize the chances of success.
INFLUENCE & REPRESENTATION
- Develop and maintain strong relationships with global and regional donors and partners and engage with prospective donors to shape and influence their strategies and funding priorities, in alignment with the Regional Directorโs strategic vision.
- Develop and nurture strong external relationships and networks to support program success, including regional coordination platforms and advocacy bodies.
- Identify and pursue areas for thought leadership, including building connections with civil society leaders, government officials, donors, private sector partners, relevant diplomatic missions, academics and other stakeholders that center communities and people impacted by crisis and climate change. Work with the Regional Director to ensure that Mercy Corpsโ evidence and learning agenda is aligned to regional influencing objectives.
- Serve as a respected representative for Mercy Corps in the region, promoting the organizationโs capabilities, expertise, innovation, strategic vision and values.
COMMUNICATION
- Encourage program coordination and information sharing within and between countries and connect teams to ideas, partners and resources to drive creative solutions for greater impact.
- Maintain close working relationships with counterparts in other regions, facilitating the gathering and sharing of experiences and lessons from other regions.
- Represent Mercy Corps at external events to build voice, brand, and influence.
- Along with the Regional Director, act as a key liaison between headquarters, regional management, and country teams to effectively publicize program innovations and successes.
- Help to ensure timely and targeted communication and information flows that highlight Mercy Corpsโ regional and global impact.
OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES
- Work with the Regional Director and the regional management team to lead the planning and preparation of regional gatherings, strategic meetings, program exchanges, learning events, etc.
- Assist with the identification, location, set up and transition of Mercy Corps offices as necessary.
- As a seasoned leader, the Deputy Regional Director, Programs will be expected to provide cover for the Regional Director, Country Directors within the region, or other strategic leadership gaps should they arise.
- Maintain high ethical standards and treat people with respect and dignity.
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.
All other duties as assigned.
Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
โ Confident communication and facilitation skills applicable to donor relations and inter-agency coordination.
โ Demonstrated ability to think strategically and solve complex problems at an organizational level.
โ Ability to handle multiple issues at one time, especially in emergency situations, and to organize and prioritize accordingly.
Required Education and Experience
โ BA/S in international development, social science, public or business administration or other relevant fields required, MA/S or equivalent years of experience strongly preferred.
โ At least 10 years field experience in senior management and direct program implementation; experience in complex/fragile environments is a plus.
โ Direct experience managing and supervising large teams, as well as staff mentorship and development.
โ Demonstrated proficiency and experience with US, UK, EU, UN and other public and private donors, government grant and financial management requirements.
โ Demonstrated understanding of the critical humanitarian and development issues in the region, and significant experience with the challenges and contexts of operating in the region.
โ Significant experience in strategy development, program design/development and planning.
โ Knowledge of Sphere standards and other training in humanitarian response preferred.
โ An internationally recognized qualification in project or program management or a commitment to obtain the qualification in the early months of work.
โ Fluency in written and spoken English. Fluency in an additional language of the portfolio is considered advantageous
Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions