NGO Jobs in Nairobi Kenya - Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is a leading global relief and development agency saving and improving lives in the world’s toughest places. 

In more than 40 countries, we partner with local people to put bold ideas into action, help them overcome adversity and build stronger communities. 

We help communities survive and move beyond emergencies. When natural disasters strike, economies collapse or conflict flares, Mercy Corps is there. 

Working with communities, we leverage local logic to help people transform their lives to grow more food, earn higher incomes and ultimately advocate for their needs. 

We see global challenges as an invitation to pioneer innovative, sustainable solutions. Mercy Corps is looking for committed and dynamic individual to take up the following position.
 
Position: Senior Program Manager
 
Location: Nairobi

Program / Department Summary: Mercy Corps implements high-quality, analytical development work in very difficult places. 

We have been operating in Kenya since 2008 and are presently implementing development programs across the Central, Rift Valley, North Western and Northern Eastern regions of Kenya.
 
Mercy Corps plans to implement a Kenya Election Violence Prevention and Response Program (KEVP) which will work to mitigate the risk of escalation of election-related violence in the lead up to, during, and immediately following the Kenyan elections scheduled for August 2017. 

KEVP will shore up ongoing efforts of Kenyan civil society organizations, including student organizations, youth bunges (parliaments) and the local private sector, religious groups, as well as current USG partners in Kisumu, Nakuru, Nandi, and when need arises, Nairobi, to ensure that youth and communities are able to remain resilient to political manipulation and ensure a peaceful election. 

KEVP will work with these key stakeholders to create communications materials such as film to be used in workshop trainings and for public screenings. 

The program will establish and strengthen existing local networks, including the 2013 Champions for Peace networks in Kisumu and Nakuru, establish county level Early Warning Early Response (EWER) Hubs, and link them to Uwiano platform, leverage different players and networks to preempt political manipulation by providing administrative and logistical support to enable them to monitor risks, and develop actionable plans for prevention and response.
 
General Position Summary: Under the direction of the Chief of Party, the Senior Program Manager will be responsible for the day to day running and overall planning and implementation of KEVP activities and will directly manage the program staff based in Nairobi to ensure activities are implemented according to schedule, budget and required quality. 

Essential Job Functions:
  • Ensure timely and efficient delivery of project results, coordinate partners, program planning and review, stakeholder engagement, financial and people management, and donor reporting;
  • Supervise and provide technical guidance to project staff in a range of conflict transformation, peacebuilding and election violence interventions, ensuring synchronization and collaboration between Mercy Corps technical staff and local partners and working with them to bring ideas, findings, and lessons learned to project leadership and the donor agency;
  • Document and disseminate program achievements and lessons in collaboration with partners and key stakeholders;
  • Mentor and motivate staff for optimal performance, overseeing work plans, managing M&E and engaging consultants for curriculum development and technical support;
  • Strengthen  early warning/early response teams in projected election hot spot and connect the same to the national early warning/early response mechanism that play a major role in Kenya’s  elections;
  • Train young people on EWER mechanism;
  • Manage any activities as may be assigned by the Chief of Party in Kisumu, Nakuru, Nairobi, Uasin Gishu and Nandi and in accordance with approved proposal, budget and timelines;
  • Coordinate and share information with the COP to ensure overall program targets and donor obligations are being achieved; 
  • Provide direct and ongoing supervision and managerial support to KEVP staff in the Kisumu, Nakuru, Nandi Nairobi and Nakuru offices to ensure effective implementation of program activities;
  • Oversee the development of program and staff work plans, and ensure regular one-to-one sessions and performance reviews to review progress and resolve any concerns or issues;
  • Support and facilitate KEVP team development, encouraging active participation of team members and supporting positive relationships between members;
  • Identify training needs and opportunities for KEVP staff to ensure that they have adequate resources to complete program objectives, and to enable learning and growth;
  • Ensure that program staff have the necessary facilities and office equipment for the smooth functioning of the program;
  • Visit project sites regularly to provide appropriate technical assistance, monitor and oversee activities;
  • Support the Project staff to establish a system to monitor and evaluate program activities and impact on an ongoing basis. Ensure that program monitoring is being done on a regular basis and that adequate monitoring reports are prepared;
  • Participate in peace, election and conflict-related coordination meetings and professionally represent Mercy Corps in these meetings;
  • Support the development of partnerships with national and international NGOs, CBOs and other agencies involved in election conflict management initiatives and other Mercy Corps activities;
  • Maintain close cooperation with the Finance and Administration departments and other staff to ensure that the program is in full compliance with all the established operational, administrative and financial procedures;
  • Regularly meet with the COP and Kisumu Area Manager to discuss program achievements, especially when they deviate from the original plan;
  • Participate in KEVP Team meetings as required;
  • Work with the COP to organize and facilitate field visits for donors and Mercy Corps staff;
  • Jointly prepare donor reports with the COP and other staff to capture program impact;
  • 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: Area Program Managers
 
Accountability
 
Reports Directly To: Chief of Party
 
Works Directly With:  Local implementing partners, Program partners, Government, IEBC, NGOs and CBOs in Nairobi, Kisumu, Nakuru, Uasin Gishu and Nandi, HR and Finance teams

Knowledge and Experience:
  • Bachelor’s degree in Conflict Management/Peace Building or another Social Science;
  • Minimum of 6 years’ experience managing conflict management or other capacity building related projects preferably with NGOS;
  • Experience managing teams and facilitating planning and program development processes;
  • Financial and personnel management experience and knowledge;
  • Experience in both community level programming and government focused capacity building;
  • Leadership skills, and proven experience in developing effective teams;
  • Demonstrated problem solving skills;
  • Demonstrated experience in coaching, conducting workshops and community meeting facilitation;
  • Excellent report writing and communication skills; 
  • Strong organizational and managerial skills;
  • Excellent computer skills, including all Microsoft applications;
  • Demonstrated skills to successfully initiate, communicate and maintain positive relationships with beneficiary communities;
  • Excellent relationship management skills;
  • Ability to communicate effectively in English both verbally and in writing
Success Factors:
  • Excellent written and oral communication skills;
  • Demonstrated cultural sensitivity and appropriate flexibility;
  • Ability to effectively communicate with Mercy Corps target populations and partners;
  • Demonstrated attention to detail, ability to meet deadlines, and work independently and cooperatively with team members;
  • Willingness to travel frequently to other locations;
  • Ability to quickly learn and implement new information/concepts.

Position: Learning and Communications Specialist 
 
Location: Kapenguria

Program / Department Summary: Mercy Corps drives high quality, analytical work in tough places. We currently manage a breadth of programs in Central, Rift Valley, North Western and Northern Eastern regions of Kenya from a basket of donors. 

We partner with a range of private, public and civil society actors to systemically broaden opportunity for people across the regions of operations.
 
PEACE III, a 5 year USAID funded Program, implemented by Pact Kenya and Mercy Corps is designed to strengthen cross border Conflict Management in the Horn of Africa. 

It aims at strengthening horizontal and vertical linkages within and between local, national, and regional conflict management actors - working with and through local implementing partners to build the capacity of community peace leaders and organizations.   

PEACE III operates in 5 countries namely Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia and South Sudan in what is known as Karamoja and Somali Clusters. 

Mercy Corps manages and implements the PEACE III in Karamoja Cluster and has operational offices in Moroto, Lodwar and Kapenguria.

General Position Summary: The Learning and Communications Specialist is a key position in Program quality assurance, accountability, documentation and learning.

The position will support program design, implementation and utilization of information collected at different stages.  

Under the direction of the Program Director for the Karamoja Cluster (Uganda, South Sudan, Kenya and Ethiopia), the position holder will be responsible for documentation, learning and communication. 

S/he will be responsible for documenting and cataloging stories/quotes for project descriptions and qualitative data use that feed into needs of Mercy Corps, its partners and donor reporting requirements.
 
Essential Job Functions: Working under the supervision of the Program Director, and in collaboration with MERL Manager, the Learning and Communications Specialist will be based in Kapenguria-West Pokot but with travel to the entire Karamoja Cluster and will be responsible for the following key functions:

Thought Leadership and Influence:
  • Focus on key learnings in: conflict management, peacebuilding through formal and informal structures; private sector engagement; social impact; and other areas of interest to PEACE III project;
  • Supplement program learning agendas by developing compelling thought leadership pieces, sharing of lessons learned, new innovations and best practices/case studies, for both external and internal use;
  • Capture and write up stories from the field to articulate conflict and market system development and/or related sectors in action and ‘how’ and ‘why’ of project interactions with peace building and governance actors that can be shared internally and externally;
  • Engage and collaborate with a range of partners and stakeholders to stimulate joint inquiry, analysis and reflection that lead to shared learning and collective action;
Learning and Knowledge Management:
  • Assist in developing revamped internal document management systems and information flows, including the Mercy Corps’ shared document drive and others that aligns with the implementing partner’s information management;
  • Develop and manage streamlined knowledge management system to efficiently manage the wealth of information produced by PEACE III partners and relevant external stakeholders and ensure the strategic use of this information to catalyze learning and evidence-based decision-making across the agency;
  • Support data collection, analysis, organization and presentation;
  • Participate in assessments, evaluations and monitoring surveys. This will entail trainings and management of data collectors, report writing and facilitating results discussion;
  • Visit sites and partners to collect supplementary data and conduct qualitative research both independently and in teams;
  • Establish database for partners working with the program and work closely with the program team to monitor progress;
  • Maintain an active advisory role with each program team, train and help guide them towards robust and relevant data collection;
  • Support the implementation of the Institutional strengthening plans with the PEACE III partners;
Communication:
  • Lead in the  implementation of PEACE III  communication strategy; 
  • Provide oversight to program publications and visual outputs such as presentations so they are of high quality and are disseminated appropriately;
  • Take high quality outcome communicating program photographs;
  • Blog and or compile other written releases or reports as required;
  • Lead documentation of case studies, success stories, lessons learnt and other qualitative information for periodic communication;
  • Design and update program communication materials and develop compelling thought leadership pieces, new innovations and best practices, and similar communication products tailored for a specific audience;
  • Conduct, document and record beneficiary interviews and share all learnings from the program;
  • Work closely with program team members to develop and maintain excellent communication, and facilitate periodic reflection and analysis of program monitoring information that feeds into programming and learning;
Other
  • 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.
Organizational Learning: As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities they serve, we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves.
 
Accountability to Beneficiaries: Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
 
Supervisory Responsibility: Program Assistant

Accountability

Reports Directly To:
 Program Director
 
Works Directly With: MERL Manager in Uganda and Kenya and Program Team members
 
Knowledge and Experience:
  • Minimum of 5 years of experience managing market development programs, or a combination of strategy and business consulting, impact investment, product design, or relevant areas;
  • Must hold at least a bachelor’s degree in Mass Communications, Information Science, Economics, or any relevant field. A Masters Degree is an added advantage;
  • A minimum of 4 years of program management and communications experience;
  • Must have good writing and analytical skills;
  • Experience working in Peace Building and Conflict Management programs;
  • Should have knowledge of quantitative and qualitative data collection, reporting techniques;
  • Good skills in Microsoft Office, adobe publisher or similar publishing software;
  • Must be fluent both spoken and written English;
  • Knowledge of Karamoja cluster is an added advantage.
Success Factors: The ideal candidate should be willing to work in the toughest and complex environments associated with violent conflicts.  

S/he will be an excellent communicator, have a strong sense of humor, multi-tasker, and able to work in difficult and often stressful environments. 

Position: Senior Procurement Manager 
 
Location: Nairobi, Kenya or Beirut, Lebanon 
Program / Department Summary: The Global Procurement group is a new team at Mercy Corps, bringing together functions which are currently handled by Operations, Finance, Compliance and Legal departments. 

Procurement at Mercy Corps is currently decentralized with the majority of the agency’s procurement spending occurring at the field level.

General Position Summary: The Senior Procurement Manager will be responsible for the development and maintenance of strategic initiatives within all sourcing categories of responsibility including NFI’s, vehicles, communications, water and sanitation, food, health and cash assistance. 

Specific responsibilities include development of category strategies, supplier negotiations, identification of cost saving opportunities and overall management of supplier relationships.  

A good proportion of the total category spend and suppliers will not be managed directly; however, the Senior Procurement Manager will need to consider the total spend within the category and provide support and oversight.
 
Essential Job Functions:
  • Develop tailored supply strategies and plans for each assigned category;
  • Expertly negotiate and administer contracts and cost management;
  • Provide training and guidance to internal stakeholders on updated procurement processes;
  • Manage strategic sourcing and procurement processes (RFX, RFP);
  • Cultivate and maintain supplier relationships;
  • Lead strategic supplier relationship management to continually identify process improvements and cost reduction opportunities;
  • Maintain relationships with, and provide service to various business functions across the organization including legal, regional/country offices, marketing;
  • Analyze spend data and cost models for continuous improvement;
  • Manage procurement related projects and programs through internal and external changes;
  • 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.
Organizational Learning: As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities they serve, we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves.
 
Accountability to Beneficiaries: Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
 
Accountability
 
Reports Directly To: Senior Director, Global Procurement
 
Works Directly With: HQ Departments, Country Programs, Compliance, Finance, GSC

How to Apply

CLICK HERE for more details on the position and application procedure