(6-Months)
The Program/Department
The Mercy Corps Finance Department is responsible for all financial functions in Nairobi, Lodwar, Marsabit, Wajir, Garissa, Mombasa, Maralal, and Isiolo for the following functions; accounting, payments and banking, payroll, budgeting, financial reporting, and grant financial management and compliance. The Mercy Corps Finance Department ensures compliance with donor regulations as well as Mercy Corps’ internal policies and procedures. In its role as a support to the Program Department, the Finance Department provides timely reports and assistance to the Country Director and the Program team to ensure that financial resources are used efficiently and effectively.
The Position
The Senior Finance and Sub Grants Officer works under the guidance
and supervision of the Kenya Country Finance Director and with direct
interaction with the Program leads, Managers, Finance and Sub grants staff
specific to respective programs without substantive Finance & Grants team,
Consortium Members and the Mercy Corps Finance Team. The Senior Finance and Sub
Grants Officer is expected to be an integral part of the senior management team
in-country and work closely with the management, technical and operations field
and country teams in Kenya.
Essential Responsibilities
GRANT ADMINISTRATION
- Conduct
day to day management and implementation of the grants work plan under
Mercy Corps.
- Propose
revisions to grant processes and procedures based on experience and
lessons learned and coordinate proposed changes with the Program
Manager(s) and Finance and Compliance Director.
- Responsible
for the preparation of monthly and quarterly reports for grant activities
that feed into the overall program report.
- Draft
the agreements less than the value drafted by HQ.
- Review
the agreements drafted by HQ.
- Ensure
that grant activities comply with Mercy Corps internal policies and
procedures, as well as Donor rules and regulations.
- Participate
in the development and implementation of the program’s annual work plans.
- Manage
and Support Finance team with other grants or finance sector activities.
- Coordinate
expenditure verification and project audits
- Ensure
that field staff are familiar with grants management procedures.
- Lead
and support the partners budget development during proposal development
PRE-AWARD
- Conduct
a pre-award assessment for pre-approved sub-recipients.
- Work
closely with the technical team to identify potential areas of support,
eligibility and evaluation criteria.
- Work
with selected grantees to ensure budgets are in line with program
activities and that costs are reasonable, allowable and allocable.
- Conduct
due diligence assessments on all grants including business feasibility,
evaluate environmental requirements and document negotiation process for
all prospective grantees.
- Work
closely with the M&E Team in developing M&E plans to ensure that
they are contributing to specific indicators and outcomes
POST-AWARD
- Conduct
post-award trainings for the sub-recipients on grants administration,
applicable donor regulations and reporting requirements.
- Identify
sub-recipient/grantee capacity building needs and provide technical
assistance where needed and trainings to assure compliance.
- Review
sub-recipient/grant reports for accuracy and completeness and regularly
monitor their budgets vis-a-vis financial reports and process
payments/reimbursements as appropriate.
- Conduct
grantee site visits as appropriate including financial monitoring of
grants and cost share to ensure proper accounting of grant funds awarded.
- Maintain
complete and accurate files for all sub-recipient/grant files as per the
Field Finance Manual.
- Input
the financial reports in Navigator and reconciling them regularly.
- Serve
as primary point of contact for all correspondence and notifications to
grant applicants and grantees.
CLOSE-OUT
- Coordinate
the close-out of sub-recipients/grants. This will involve preparing
relevant close-out documents for approval such as disposition
documentation, modification agreements on close out, close out checklists,
release of liability documentation etc.
- Any
other duties as may be assigned.
Supervisory Responsibility
N/A
Accountability
Reports Directly To: Finance and Compliance Director
Works Directly With: Program Director/Team Lead, Deputy Team Lead
Program Managers, Country Finance/Grants Teams, Program Teams, Implementing
Partners and HR and Operations departments.
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
- A
Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Finance, Economics or
relevant field; advanced degree preferred.
- Professional
accounting certification CPA(K).
- At
least four (4) years of demonstrated professional experience managing
grants, subcontracts, procurement and compliance with donor regulations,
preferably Donor-funded projects.
- Strong
accounting skills and experience in management of the general ledger,
journal entries, payables and balance sheet.
- Demonstrated
experience applying clauses and negotiating without heavy management
oversight including developing amendments and modifications as a result of
negotiations.
- Experience
providing capacity-building training to staff and local organizations.
- Proven
abilities in analytical, excel and reporting skills.
Required competencies and skills:
- Grants
Administration
- Knowledge
and application of best practices in grant management.
- Demonstrated
knowledge of financial and management systems, regulations and reporting
requirements. Evidence of ability to be creative and flexile within those
requirements.
- Analytical
capabilities with accounting procedures and processes for structuring
projects.
- Knowledge
of grants management software and information technology skills.
- Management
and Communications
- Ability
to communicate technical, budgetary and program details to staff, grantees
and applicants.
- Ability
to design and implement effective workflow processes and procedures.
- Capability
to foster an atmosphere which recognizes and respects cultural and
individual differences.
Success Factors
The Senior Finance and
Sub-Grants Officer will have proven abilities in analytical and reporting
skills with sound judgement in regards to budget, financial analysis and manage
of program issues. S/he will have the ability to communicate and interact
effectively across diverse program teams and support programmatic objectives
with timely and meaningful information.
Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions
The position is based in
either Nairobi with regular travel to the field offices.
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 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
the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary
General and IASC. 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 e-learning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.
How To Apply
