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.
Program/Department Summary
Climate change severely and disproportionately impacts US Territories and small island developing States (SIDS) in the Caribbean.
Worsening environmental risks like rising and warming seas, volatile dry and wet seasons, and catastrophic storms mean that islands and SIDS bear the brunt of the impacts of climate change, even though their carbon footprint is small relative to the worldโs largest carbon producers, and their capacity to cope is constrained by their narrow resource base.
Caribbean islands need flexible tools to make them more resilient through the climate crisis.
Tools that:
- Protect lives
- Protect livelihoods
- Protect food and water security and
- Protect ecosystems and natural resources.
Mercy Corps began this work following the historic 2016 hurricane season. Since then, with the help of our donors, more than $34 million has been put toward preparedness, response and climate resilience programming in the Caribbean. Mercy Corps has learned that empowering people and their communities with flexible assets and knowledge is the best way to measurably protect lives and livelihoods.
The Caribbean Resilience Initiative is a sub-regional structure within Mercy Corps which aims to positively impact those communities most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change across multiple Caribbean jurisdictions. Current funded projects are building centers of community resilience, including solar, water, community gardens, and disaster preparedness, in Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Jamaica, US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and the Bahamas.
The Position
The Finance Officer is a member of the finance team of the Caribbean Resilience Initiative (CRI) portfolio, and as such plays a key role in all aspects of financial management of CRI programs across multiple jurisdictions in the Caribbean, working remotely and collaboratively to ensure compliance with Mercy Corps internal policies and procedures as well as donor regulations. S/he works under the direction of the Finance Manager, who in turn is responsible for all financial functions, including accounting, payments and banking, budgeting, financial reporting and grant financial management and compliance.ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:
- Maintain the bank file, ensuring that all bank information is properly filed and maintain good banking relationship and correspondences.
- Conduct financial review of purchase requests, purchase orders and payment requests up to a defined threshold in the CRI approval authority matrix, to ensure compliance with MC and donor policies and procedures, project budgets and compliance with donor regulations and local laws.
- Participate in the month end accounting close process, ensuring the accuracy and completeness of the ledger, subjournals and all supporting documentation.
- Assist in review and follow up on subgrant compliance issues (i.e. subaward pre-award assessments, program budgeting, funds transfers, financial reporting, reconciliation, and financial monitoring).
- Maintain custody of the office cash and office cash levels as per the office Cash Management Policy
- Maintain the cash advance tracking sheet, follow up on uncleared advances and ensure advances are reconciling with general ledger records.
- Process bank payments via online banking, checks or wire transfers and prepare monthly bank reconciliations.
- Prepare payment vouchers and ensure that all transactions are properly and fully documented and recorded on a daily basis.
- Prepare monthly payroll based on information provided from HR and timesheets, payroll accrual entries, process statutory remittances and maintaining payroll filing as per MC requirements.
- Prepare monthly amortization entries of prepaid accounts and benefits accrual documentation and prepare monthly benefits accrual entries.
- Assist in month end review of sub-office journals to ensure proper coding of all transactions and account maintenance.
- Prepare photocopies and scans of vouchers and other supporting documents required for HQ and donor reporting.
- File all cash and bank vouchers and maintain voucher filing system (hard copy & electronically) according to MC procedures.
- Assist in the set up and maintaining of the Finance Dept.โs grant files.
- Monitor cash and bank balances and coordinate monthly cash flow requests from program team and prepare consolidated country cash flow requests to HQ as required.
- Assist in the preparation, maintenance and consolidation of office operational budgets.
- Perform data entry into the accounting system as required.
- Assist the Finance Manager in responding to audit inquiries and requests for financial information.
- Conduct himself/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to not jeopardize its humanitarian mission.
- Other duties as assigned.
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY: N/A
ACCOUNTABILITY
REPORTS DIRECTLY TO: Finance Manager
WORKS DIRECTLY WITH: Grants program, Program and Operations staff in US Virgin Islands, Jamaica, Saint Lucia and Puerto Rico, and other US locations.
Minimum Qualifications & Transferable Skills
- Three or more years of finance experience, including budgeting and grant management.
- A university degree in finance, accounting or a related business field is required.
- Two yearsโ experience in the Finance Department of an non-government organization preferred
- Familiarity with major international donor rules and non-profit accounting
- Knowledge of and experience with statutory reporting requirements in Caribbean jurisdictions strongly preferred.
- Prior experience with computerized general ledger software, ideally Serenic Navigator
- Advanced computer skills in MS Office programs, particularly Excel
- Strong analytical skills coupled with a solid understanding of grant management rules.
- Excellent oral and written English skills.
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.
Success Factors
The ability to interact effectively with international and national personnel is required. A demonstrated ability to multi-task, meet deadlines and process information in support of changing program activities is necessary. A high professional standard of finance and procurement ethics as well as the willingness and ability to enforce compliance with Mercy Corps and donor policies and procedures is essential. The ability to take financial data and present it in meaningful financial reports is essential. The Finance Officer must be willing to travel to Mercy Corps field offices and project sites.
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 worldโs 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