ActionAid InternationalDirectorate: Policy, Research, Advocacy and Campaigns
1. Vacancy: Activista and Youth Engagement Coordinator
Location: Nairobi or Johannesburg
Salary: £36,035
International Grade: D
Purpose of the Role:
Supports the strengthening of the Activista network, ensures Activista coordinators receive professional and peer-to-peer support in the ongoing pursuit of the Activista objectives and plans across countries, following the Activista International Strategy.
Leads or coordinates international and supports national youth campaigning and activism, working closely with Activista and where there is crossover, the International Policy Advisor on Youth in order to support ActionAid’s large youth movement, that supports our campaigning goals.
Secures resources where necessary to support Activista joint goals.
Key responsibilities include but not limited to:
Work closely with the Supporter Engagement Manager and with national Activista coordinators to update the International Activista strategy. Works with the International Policy Adviser - Youth to ensure alignment with the Youth Engagement Plan.
Ensure youth activists are consulted and providing strategic direction to ActionAid’s multi-country campaigning
Work with national offices’ leadership teams to identify critical countries for engagement in supporting strong youth movement building around campaigns, the formation of new Activista groups, and inform investments into this area.
Maintain expert, up-to-date strategic knowledge of issues and movements in the youth activism ‘landscape’, share information for purposes of planning and direction-setting for Activista as well as for specific multi-country campaigns
Build links and form effective relationships with key allies in youth movements around the world to ensure ActionAid International’s and Activista’s work learns from and reflects the energy/dynamism of these movements and to encourage take up of our multi-country campaigns by these movements
Ensure there is regular and up-to-date information on Activista and youth engagement priorities, outputs, achievements and challenges to the federation’s internal stakeholders and leadership using all available channels
Contribute to campaign unit’s fundraising tasks, as and when required, including writing proposals and concept notes and preparing budgets for proposals
Participates actively in ActionAid’s internal Youth Working Group and any equivalent or related groups that arise.
Instigate work to fundraise for youth engagement and Activista, in collaboration with International and National Fundraising TeamsDesired Skills & Experience
The successful candidate will have:
Relevant Bachelors degree, Honours or Masters would be advantageous or Recognition or Prior Learning (RPL)
Substantial experience of working with youth in a community or student organising, community development or service delivery context.
Experience of involvement with radical and / or non-hierarchical movements also desirable
Substantial experience of working in coalitions, and skills in alliance building and network-formation
Strong interpersonal communication skills, with demonstrable experience of working with people from different organisations, functions, countries and cultures to deliver objectives and projects.
Strong communication skills, especially in facilitation, and proven ability to translate complicated ideas into clear messages.
The ability to sell ideas, influence and persuade at all levels and across cultures
Experience of assessing risk associated with political events and movement building in different national contexts is desirable
Knowledge of youth-related issues in a development context
Experience or knowledge of marketing, voluntary fundraising and communicating to a youth audience2. Director of Policy, Research, Advocacy and Campaigns
Location: Johannesburg, Nairobi or London.
Contract type: AAI Grade G – Entry £81,857p/a
Reference: AAI-ILT-PRAC
About the Role
The purpose of this role is to enhance the ability of ActionAid (AAI) to bring about policy change at local, national and international levels by promoting sound policy research;
advancing and delivering AAI’s campaign signature;
coordinating global advocacy initiatives; and
contributing to the integration of policy, programs and campaigns.Direct Reports
Head of Campaigns
Head of Policy
Advocacy and Research
Team AdministratorKey Activities
People Leadership and Management
As a member of the International Leadership Team (ILT); act as a key change agent, reinforce AAI’s mission, vision and values and make informed decisions.
Lead and manage the Policy, Research, Advocacy and Campaigns (PRAC) Directorate within a clear performance management framework, promoting a culture of high performance; continuous improvement; positive communication and teamwork.
Ensure good management at all levels within the PRAC Directorate.
Interpret and apply all AAI’s HR policies consistently and effectively, ensuring that all staff are aware of and comply with these policies.Strategy, Planning and Budgets
As a member of the ILT, participate in the development of AAI’s international strategy.
Ensure a full understanding of AAI’s strategy and objectives, and in that context, lead the design, implementation and management of the PRAC Directorate and project plans, engaging staff and other stakeholders in the process.
Monitor, assess and respond as necessary to changes in the external environment, ensuring that these changes are reflected in the PRAC’s Directorate’s strategy and project plans.
Be accountable for the budget of the entire PRAC Directorate, including the development of the budget.Campaigns
Lead and advance AAI’s campaign signature;
Lead the co-ordination of AAI’s multi-country campaigns;
Set standards for campaign planning;
Provide advice, mentoring and feedback to country-led campaigns;
Lead the production of common campaign communication assets;
Promote new methods of campaigning and mobilisation.Policy, Research and Advocacy
Lead policy research and content analysis, promoting AAI’s enhanced human rights based approach;
Ensure effective and focused global advocacy initiatives, with clear influence objectives, alliance building, coherence and clarity as well as integration with countries and other IS units;
Develop public policy positions, including production and sign off to ensure
consistency and quality assurance;
Co-ordinate the policy analysis and research for multi-country international campaigns or programmes.External Representation and Alliance Building
Co-ordinate AAI representation at the international level and build relationships with social movements and other key allies to share best practice and learning.
Foster external networks of expertise and create knowledge hubs or centres that connect internal and external research and policy.
Ensure clear global alliance strategies and lead in their implementation.Capacity Development
Build the capacity of PRAC and leverage skills at country level to deliver policy, research, advocacy and campaigns.Youth
Lead the development and implementation of a youth strategy;
Integrate youth and activists within campaigning;
Increase and ensure greater coherence on the federation’s youth work;
Better integrate youth work within policy, advocacy, research and campaigns and promote the mobilisation of poor youth.Financial Management
Responsible for managing delegated budget responsibility for resources within approved limits.;
Responsible for preparing activity-based budgets and monitoring actual monthly spend against these budgets, including providing relevant accruals and explanations of variances;
Responsible for approving all transactions (including amendments) to their budget;
Act within the parameters set by the international secretariat financial policies and procedures.Other
Value Practice:
Demonstrate a strong commitment to develop, promote and practice AAI’s vision, mission, values and strategy;
Women's Leadership and Gender: Act upon a commitment to gender issues with a strong focus on women's leadership;Collaboration:
promote and use cross-functional learning;
participate (where applicable) in international platforms and cross-functional
project initiatives within AAI.
Accountability: Promote, practice and contribute to the continuous improvement of transparency and accountability in the federation in line with the AAI Accountability Charter.
Provide support to the committee of the international board;
Carry out any other duties that are within the scope of the job.Personal Specifications
Education, Language & Qualifications
Master’s Degree with significant experience working in policy, research, campaigns and advocacy.
Good command of the English language both verbal and written.Essential Knowledge, Skills and Experience
A high-achieving, strategic, experienced and dynamic professional with a proven ability to develop a clear strategy for the PRAC Directorate.
Proven experience managing and leading a large diversified team, with a focus on high performance and problem solving.
A proven track record of facilitative, collaborative team management to drive a culture of accountability, and ownership along with a natural ability to network and build successful and lasting relationships.
Proven track record of leading processes that resulted in, or contributed to policy changes at an international level.
Outstanding communication skills across various cultures.
A commercial acumen with expertise in budgeting, strategy and planning and a flair for innovation.
Commitment to AAI’s vision, mission and values.
Desirable Knowledge, Skills and Experience
Experience working at an international leadership level, including working with boards.Competency Profile
Strategic Perspective: Demonstrates understanding of the organisation’s priorities and goals and effectively analyse complex problems.
Change Management: Uses effective strategies to facilitate organisation change initiatives and overcome resistance to change by involving others, listening and building commitment;
Decisiveness: Prefers quick and appropriate actions in many management situations;
Leading Employees:Attracts, motivates, and develops employees;
Building Collaborative Relationships: Builds productive working relationships with co-workers and external parties, whilst valuing people of different backgrounds, cultures and demographics;
Communication: Expresses ideas clearly and concisely and disseminates information about decisions and plans;
Leading with Purpose: Has personal direction and is not easily side tracked by details or workload;Credibility:
Acts in accordance with stated values;
follows through on promises;
uses ethical considerations to guide decisions and actions;
Taking Initiative: Takes charge and capitalizes on opportunities.3. Position: Head of Finance
Reporting to the Executive Director, the Head of Finance shall be responsible for effective financial management in accordance with AAIK and AAI policies, regulations and international accounting standards and to provide accurate and timely financial information to AAIK management and other stakeholders.
The holder of the position is a member of senior management team and is expected to ensure organizational efficiency and effectiveness through participation in decision making, advising on the financial status of the organisation, communication and implementation of agreed upon decisions.
Specific Responsibilities
Financial Accounting and Reporting
Formulation and implementation of the AAIK’s finance and accounting policies and procedures in compliance with International Accounting Standards (IAS/IFRS), AAI policies and other AAIK policies;
Formulating and implementing of an effective system of internal control that safeguards and ensures optimal utilization of AAIK assets and resources and prevents fraud and irregularities;
Ensuring the organization’s assets and liabilities are safeguarded and recorded correctly;
Ensuring prudent financial management in the Organization;
Giving guidance in all financial and accounting matters;
Overseeing custody and control of accountable documents;
Ensuring timely reconciliation of accounts, expenditure control and payment of suppliers;
Overseeing timely preparation and payment of employees salaries, tax and other statutory deductions;
Ensuring production of accurate and timely financial and management reports to the board, CD, management, donors, and AAI in compliance with international Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), local accounting regulatory body (ICPAK) requirements and ActionAid International Financial Policies and Management Framework;
Production of timely and accurate reports to donors as specified in the various agreements;
Production of statutory financial statements and reports in accordance with IFRSCash and Treasury Management
Ensure AAIK has sufficient cash within the head office and field offices to enable effective implementation of programme work and meet immediate obligations;
Manage exchange to ensure losses are minimized when making foreign currency sales;
Advise management of any adverse economic status especially where major currency losses may be realized; and
Ensure AAIK has sufficient reserves in compliance with AAI reserve requirements and to ensure financial stability.Budgeting
Coordination of annual budgeting and forecasting in accordance with AAIK and AAI guidelines and procedures in furtherance of the CSP implementation;
Preparation of consolidated detailed and summary annual expenditure budgets that aid management and board in making necessary decisions and in compliance with AAI requirements.
Lead the organization in allocation of financial resources including both sponsorship income and partnership incomes to ensure financial stability and good liquidity of the organization; and
Production of three-year financial plans within the prescribed timetable.
Fundraising and Donor Grant Management
Providing support to fundraising team during proposal development and contract negotiations;
Review and approve all donor proposal budgets to ensure the projects’ viability, reason ability and effective financial resourcing;
Ensure full compliance to financial requirements of all donor contracts;
Ensure all projects reasonably contribute to financing of the organizations’ core functions of the organization.Partner NGOs
Assessment of the financial management capability of potential partner NGOs, including their internal control systems, documentation and capacity to report on expenditure before long-term relationships are entered into;
Development and implementation of an accounting and reporting system between partner NGOs and AAIK;
Development of close communication links with the finance and administrative staff of partner NGOs and development of their financial capacity in a systematic way;
Continuous review of partner expenditures on a regular basis;
Ensuring that the external and internal audit reports of partner NGOs are reviewed and acted upon as necessary; and
Undertaking scheduled Partners visits and provision of necessary capacity building activities.
Staff Management, Development and Performance Measurement
Ensuring efficient and effective management of staff within the department taking into account staff skills and leave allowance;
Lead the development of financial management skills for the finance and non-finance staff of AAIK;
Undertake performance appraisal for staff in the department and initiation of correction actions for identified gaps;
Facilitate training & development and undertake coaching and mentoring of staff within the department;
Development of organizational wide performance measurement system and impact assessment indicators; and
Participate in Board and committee meetings and give necessary support and information.SUN / VISION / TM1
Ensuring maximum and optimal use of the SUN, Vision & TM1 systems in the country programme;
Ensuring integrity of SUN/Vision/TM1 systems and regular backups;
Ensuring finance staff are properly and adequately trained on SUN /Vision /TM1 and are able to maximize on the use of the systems for various activities including capturing of transactions and production of reports;
Ensuring availability of up-to date TM1 database information;
Ensuring availability of relevant user training manuals to all finance staff; and
Ensuring the security of the systems to safeguard the integrity of the data and the information there from.Audit
Ensuring that financial statements and schedules are prepared for internal or external auditors as required;
Ensuring sufficient audit trails are maintained for all transactions at the AAIK;
Provision of support to internal and external auditors; and
Follow up and implementation of agreed recommendations by both internal and external auditors;Appointment to the position will be made from persons who have:
Have a Bachelor of Commerce degree or Business Administration or its equivalent from a recognized University
Is a Certified Public Accountants (CPA (K)) or ACCA (final) or its equivalent;
An MBA or Masters of Science or MA in Business management or equivalent from a recognized University will be an added advantage;
Have at least ten (10) years working experience in financial management and accounting work in an INGO or a large organization of which at least five (5) years
must have been at senior management position;
Is a member with good standing of relevant professional body e.g. ICPAK;
Have demonstrated high understanding of finance and accounting matters;
Have experience in development and implementation of financial systems; and
Have practical experience in donor grants management & reporting, management reporting and statutory reporting in compliance with IFRS.
Strong conceptual, analytical, documentation and presentation skills;
High degree of integrity, dependability and confidentiality;
Good interpersonal and communication skills coupled with ability to influence, negotiate, advice, mentor and train;
Ability to work independently and be self motivated; and
High level of IT proficiency in use of SUN system, Vision, MS Word, Excel, Access, Power-point, and e-mail.4.Position: Head of Human Resource, Organizational Development and Essential Services
Reporting to the Executive Director, the Head of Human Resources, Organisational Development and Essential Services (HRODS) shall be responsible for overall coordination and management of human resource, administration and organisation development functions in ActionAid International Kenya (AAIK) In addition, the HRODS shall be responsible for supervision of information technology, procurement and logistics functions in the organisation.
The holder of the position is a member of senior management team and is expected to ensure organizational efficiency and effectiveness through participation in decision making, advising on HROD activities in the organisation, communication and implementation of agreed upon decisions.
Specific Responsibilities
Human Resource Management
Development, implementation and interpretation of Human Resource strategies, policies, procedures and systems that are consistent and in harmony with the Kenya labour laws, Global HR/OD framework and other AAIK policies;
Formulation and implementation of human resource strategies and plans that are aligned to country strategy paper and priorities;
Management of manpower planning, recruitment, selection, induction, orientation, confirmation, promotion, disciplinary and termination processes within AAIK;
Development and implementation of performance management systems for all staff in AAIK including facilitation of performance appraisal, provision of feedback and initiation of corrective actions;
Formulation and implementation of remuneration strategy, policies and procedures including ensuring payment of salaries and benefits to employees, carrying out regular reviews to ensure external competitiveness and internal equity;
Development and implementation of employee welfare and wellness services including medical schemes, insurance, security, pension and work life balance;
Facilitation of training needs assessment, staff training and development;
Formulation and implementation of human resource information systems and ensuring accuracy, security and availability of information thereof; and
Implementation of global and regional HR initiatives including local and international initiatives in developing and improving gender equality within HR/OD systems.Organizational Development
Promotion of AAIK’s mission, vision, values, principles and culture within and without the organisation;
Development and implementation of an effective and efficient organizational structures that supports achievement of CSP and agreed AAIK’s decision making, authority and accountability approaches;
Undertake continuous assessment of leadership, organizational and staff capacity and to provide corrective measures of any identified gaps;
Initiate, catalyze and/or facilitate change and transformation processes within the organisation programme, operations and development areas/initiatives;
Development and implementation of programmes for full employee engagement and participation in implementing organisation strategies, plans and priorities;
Facilitate development and integration of country, functional and programme structures, operating frameworks, strategies, systems and plans;
Assessment of organizational, inter-organizational and intra organizational linkages and to facilitate development and implementation of change initiatives required to ensure harmony and operational efficiency;
Participate in the ALPS processes as they relate to the country program e.g. PRRPs, peer reviews, country appraisals;
Develop and implement programmes to enhance ability of the AAIK and Partners to implement Country Strategy Paper and programmes;
Development and promotion of an organizational culture and climate that promote AAIK’s values, behaviour and attitudes, ALPS principles within the Affiliate Programme and partners;
Handling of individual and teams conflicts and grievances within the organisation;
Implementation of global and regional OD initiatives in the organisation.Administration, Procurement and Information Technology
Overseeing formulation and implementation of policies, systems and procedures governing administration, procurement, Iinfomration Technology , logistics and front office operations within the organisation in order to promote organizational efficiency and effectiveness;
Coordination of outsourced services;
Overseeing the provision of logistic services in the organisation; and
Availing necessary administrative requirements to every office.Staff Management, Development and Performance Measurement
Ensuring efficient and effective management of staff within the Department taking into account staff skills and leave allowance;
Undertake performance appraisal for staff in the Department and initiation of correction actions for identified gaps;
Undertaking training of staff within the Department;
Development of organizational wide performance measurement and impact assessment indicators;
Participate in Board and committee meetings and give necessary support and information.Appointment to the position will be made from persons who have;
An MBA or a masters degree in Organization development/Human Resource Management/Strategic Management or its equivalent from a recognized University;
Have at least ten (10) years working experience in human resource management/ organisation development function in an INGO or a large organization of which at least five (5) years must have been at senior management position;
Is a member of relevant professional body e.g. IHRM, ICPS;
Has good knowledge of Kenya Labour laws and employee relations systems;
Proven experience in leading, supporting and motivating staff and teams.
Strong conceptual, analytical, written, presentation and negotiation skills;
Excellent management, leadership, planning and prioritization skills;
High degree of integrity, dependability and confidentiality;
Good interpersonal and communication skills coupled with ability to influence, negotiate, advice, mentor and train;
Multi- tasking skills and ability to think strategically; and
High level of IT proficiency in use of MS Word, Excel, Access, Power-point, e-mail, Desktop Publishing packages.Application Procedures
Applications should be sent with your CV, motivation cover letter by no later than 27th October 2014.
You are requested to highlight in the motivation letter how specifically you meet the criteria for this role.
Please clearly indicate which position you are applying for.
Internal Applications send to: hrworkspace@actionaid.org
External Applications send to: Programmes.jhb@actionaid.org
Due to high volumes of applications received, we can only correspond with short listed applicants.
Should you not have received feedback on your application within two weeks of the closing date, please consider your application unsuccessful.
ActionAid International will not consider candidates from recruitment agencies.
We reserve the right to withdraw any of our vacancies at any time.
ActionAid International promotes diversity and welcomes applications from all section of the community.