Mercy Corps supports communities โ and the most marginalised within them โ to emerge from crisis in the face of conflict and climate change, and build towards a more inclusive, resilient future.
Mercy Corps works on the front lines of crises as a multi-mandate organisation that provides access to humanitarian aid, development, and peace assistance in places affected by conflict and climate change.
Our mission is to alleviate suffering, poverty and oppression by helping people build secure, productive and just communities. Beyond delivering aid to meet urgent needs, we develop long-term solutions to make lasting change possible, making it easier for affected communities to access resources, services, and opportunities that support them to cope, adapt, and ultimately thrive.
In more than 40+ countries around the world, over 5,400+ team members work side by side with people living through poverty, disaster, violent conflict, and the acute impacts of climate change. Weโre committed to creating global change through local impact โ 84% of our team members are from the countries where they work.
As conflict and the climate crisis further deepen challenges across the globe, Mercy Corps is steadfast in our commitment to sparking new possibilities alongside our partners, communities we serve, and dedicated supporters 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 Department
The People Team ensures that Mercy Corps has the people who will enable it to be a world-class, cutting edge, humanitarian, and development organization, creating transformational change in the world. We do this through the recruitment, retention, and development of the best global talent. Our aim is to drive strategic thinking and planning at all levels of the organization; create a robust body of research to guide us internally and externally and steward the organizational culture. To achieve this, we align conversations on learning; keep the organization focused on what has the greatest impact; leverage our comparative advantages in the crowded and competitive international relief and development landscape; and assure we are constantly learning from our work and the external environment.
The Position
The Director, People Team works closely with Executive Director and the European Senior Leadership Team (ESLT) to lead the European People Team. They are also a member of the People Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and will have a dual reporting line to the VP, People Team. The Director will define, drive, develop, and implement People team strategies and culture change that align with MCE strategy and global People Team priorities in support of Mercy Corpsโ transformative Pathways to Possibility (P2P) strategy. The post-holder's responsibilities extend to all Mercy Corpsโ offices in Europe and include ensuring full legal and regulatory compliance across all jurisdictions and working effectively with other stakeholders to ensure a positive employee experience and an organizational culture where talented people want to come to work and can thrive.
Essential Responsibilities
โข Advocates for and represents all areas of Mercy Corpsโ People strategy. Actively participate as a strategic leader and member of the Mercy Corps Europe (MCE) senior leadership team and People Team SLT.
โข Works with the Executive Director to guide the overall vision and approach of the People Team in MCE, delivering clear actionable plans aligned with needs and the context for MCE, and gain support/ownership for that agenda with key stakeholders.
โข Build a strong, people-focused team in Europe characterized by high-level of trust, engagement, innovation and creativity who are aligned to the vision and have the skills and motivation to deliver it.
โข Strategically develops and manages cross-departmental and cross-functional relationships and activities to ensure that the people function is well integrated into wider agency objectives.
โข Design, develop and lead the People function for Mercy Corps in Europe, supporting the Executive Director in Europe to deliver on the European Strategic Plan.
โข Oversee the expansion of MCE into new countries in Europe and ensure full HR compliance in all European legal jurisdictions in which Mercy Corps operates.
โข Set and track annual KPIs as part of the three-year strategic plan for Mercy Corps in Europe, providing this data monthly and quarterly to the Executive Director in Europe and supporting with reporting to the Board as required.
โข Lead the compensation benchmarking across all European markets and benchmark individual roles within the pay bands, ensuring there are clear guidelines for all staff on how to position staff within bands, support career development and ensure staff are trained to manage staff according to the Mercy Corps progression approach.
โข Ensure our benefits align with vision to ensure we remain an employer of choice able to attract, develop, and retain talent.
โข Support Senior Leadership Team in Europe to promote team member wellbeing and build the culture which will support us to deliver on the Mercy Corps strategy.
โข Serve as a trusted and credible advisor to managers and team members on a wide range of HR-related topics, including performance management, team member development, All Voices survey and leadership development
โข Leverage and supports ongoing communication campaigns to strengthen the People team brand throughout appropriate digital, social media and in-person avenues within the agency. Apply lessons learned and best practices to achieve this objective at the country and regional level.
โข Partner with the Employee Relations Team to ensure strategic decision-making and compliance in all performance and conduct related issues.
โข Leads and assists in the development and planning of organizational change/transformation, leading identification/framing of problems, creation of trusting relationships, and action plan fulfillment.
โข Works with the People team leadership team to develop and implement organization-wide HR policies and programs and ensure that they are consistently applied across the region.
โข Adopts a data and evidence-based approach to identify trends and areas for improvement and providing recommendations to senior leadership on how to address any issues or concerns.
โข Actively promoting the organization's diversity and inclusion initiatives and working with the European Senior Leadership Team (ESLT) and the People team functions to develop programs and initiatives that support a diverse and inclusive workplace.
โข In addition to these specific responsibilities, the Director, People Team must possess strong leadership skills, excellent communication and interpersonal abilities, and a deep understanding of HR best practices and regulations. They must also be able to work effectively in a fast-paced and dynamic environment and be able to adapt to changing business needs and priorities.
Supervisory Responsibility
Human Resources Business Partners Mercy Corps Europe
Accountability
Reports Directly To: Executive Director MCE, and the VP, People Team
Works Directly With: ESLT, Total Rewards, Talent Management, Leadership and Learning, Talent Acquisition, Employee Relations, People Operations, People Systems, Corporate Finance; Ethics, Legal and other teams as needed.
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 Qualifications & Transferable Skills
โข 10 years of Human Resources experience in global roles with a bachelorโs degree in HR or related field.
โข CIPD (or equivalent) qualified to Level 7 is highly desirable.