Mercy Corps Technical Director (Nawiri) Jobs in Nairobi, Kenya

Mercy Corps Technical Director (Nawiri) Jobs in Nairobi, Kenya


General Position Summary

  • The Technical Director is responsible for driving integration of diverse technical sectors and coordinating county-level leadership for the specific goal of sustainably reducing persistent acute malnutrition below emergency threshold levels.

  • The Technical Director will lead coordination and collaboration of technical experts in water systems, social behavior change, climate smart agriculture, environment, alternative livelihoods & inclusive markets, as well as resilience for the benefit of over one million vulnerable people in Turkana and Samburu.

  • In addition to providing technical direction for the project, s/he will bring both the technical and functional skills required to manage Nawiri’s technical advisors while providing nutrition specific technical support.

    Essential Job Responsibilities

    Strategy and Program Management

  • Support the Deputy Chief of Party (DCoP) to guide overall technical strategy and approach to deliver clear actionable plans that will sustainably reduce persistent acute malnutrition.

  • Set direction for Technical Advisors ensuring coherence across composite teams and wider consortium; strategically engages to advance implementation of those plans.

  • Build and maintain external partnerships and serve as key external communicator for Nawiri across a wide range of coordination platforms.

  • Support the socialization of the program with Government stakeholders, USAID, Technical Steering

  • Committee ensuring necessary approvals and collaboration as required.

  • Ensure all interventions adhere to Mercy Corps’ Gender Policy, Do No Harm principles, Environmental

  • Safeguards, and beneficiary accountability standards.

    Technical Leadership & Team Management

  • Provide technical support for the implementation of high quality nutrition programming following Nawiri’s theory of change, with a strong emphasis on social and behavior change

  • Collaborate with the DCoP in managing and developing sustainable and integrated multi-sector programming that is accountable to Government, participants and donors and will identify opportunities that strategically connect learning into a cohesive program implementation with the mindset to scale.

  • In collaboration with the DCoP, Strategic Learning Lead, M&E Lead, and Research & Design Lead, design and implement a layering and sequencing strategy to ensure that each activity is timed and implemented in a way that builds towards overall desired food and nutrition security and resilience impacts.

  • Manage activities to achieve this layering and sequencing plan.

  • Ensure that external activities and investments inthe intervention area are considered.

  • Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive to achieve excellence on their own team and embrace their role and responsibilities in advancing the shared goals of the larger Team, to forge its reputation as a cohesive, strategic and responsive Consortium.

  • Conduct regular field visits and provide targeted technical feedback while ensuring nutrition is at the forefront of program thinking.

    Program Quality, Learning and Communication

  • Serve on Research, Learning and Adaptation Team (RLAT) and facilitate problem solving across technical teams or between research and Learning Working Groups (RLWG) and other departments as needed.

  • Support DCoP to facilitate multi-team shared learning and evidence on what is working in order to standardize best practice, develop innovative approaches for new program development and advance Nawiri’s goal.

  • Support the integration of M&E across the program and ensure M&E roles and responsibility are properly integrated within technical staff roles and responsibilities

    Representation

  • Represent the DCoP and the broader technical team as requested at key internal stakeholder and leadership meetings.

  • Engage and interact with Mercy Corps HQ (TSU, Policy and Research, Program and Quality) teams to ensure
    robust support.

  • Spearhead technical partnership initiatives and empower Technical Advisors to do the same.

  • Conduct himself/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to not jeopardize its mission.

    Security

  • Proactively ensure that team members operate in a secure environment and are aware of policies.

  • Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country leadership.

    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

  • 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

  • Oversight of the technical advisors which includes Resilience Advisor, Alternative Livelihoods and Inclusive Markets Advisor, Water Systems Advisor, Climate Smart Advisor, and Social, Structural & Behavioral Change Advisor.

    Accountability

  • Reports Directly To: Deputy Chief of Party
    Works Directly With: Strategic Learning Lead, Research Design Lead, Institutional Strengthening Lead, M&E Lead, partner agencies (research & Design Lead, Health Systems and Nutrition Lead), local government, USAID and support departments (Finance, HR and Operations). Coordinates with HQ Policy and Research, Program and Quality, and Technical Support Unit (TSU).

    Knowledge and Experience

  • Master’s degree or equivalent experience in a relevant field such as social sciences, nutrition, public health, food security, etc.

  • At least five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in the successful implementation of integrated health or nutrition activities working on programs of a similar scope and scale, with preference given to integrated nutrition programs. At least two (2) years must be in program management, including direct supervision of technical and support staff.

  • Demonstrated systems thinker and ability to think outside of the box in the implementation of a unique program with experience in adaptive management and using research as part of program implementation.

  • Demonstrated ability to collaborate with a wide range of stakeholders, and to liaise with donors and remote HQ teams.

  • Fluency in written and spoken English is required.

  • Strong budget management experience is required.

  • Prior experience in designing, implementing or managing implementation research strongly preferred.

  • Prior experience of working on USAID-funded programs strongly preferred.

  • Previous experience working in the ASALs of Kenya strongly preferred.

  • Essential computer literacy and capacity to work with MS Office applications.

  • Ability and willingness to travel frequently by road and flight to the northern arid lands including remote communities (estimated 40% of the time) sometimes at short notice.

    How to Apply

    For more information and job application details, see; Mercy Corps Technical Director (Nawiri) Jobs in Nairobi, Kenya

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