Head of Office

The Opportunity

The Head of Office is Save the Children’s most senior representative in Balkh and bears responsibility for the timely, quality and compliant implementation of projects and operations in his/her provincial area. This includes the strong leadership and direct management of support functions such as Finance and HR.

The Head of Office is also responsible for the maintenance of positive relationships with key stakeholders in the area; a strong oversight and grasp of internal controls; and overall contribution to the national programme. Access negotiations, agency coordination and partner engagement skills are essential.

In Balkh, the Head of Office will be particularly strong on internal controls in Finance, Supply Chain and Human Resources. This includes compliance with Save the Children’s policies and procedures; the creation and maintenance of a positive and dynamic team environment; and ability to bring positive changes and solutions to achieve change for children in Afghanistan.

Encouraging a field-centric approach, the Head of Office will also ensure that project sites are regularly visited by direct reports, that all projects adequately incorporate humanitarian preparedness and resilience, and that Save the Children works ‘from the ground up’.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

Leadership (20%):
As a member of the Provincial Office Senior Management Team:
* Co-chair the Senior Management Team and AIR meetings in the province alongside the Deputy Head of Office, ensuring alignment with ToR and that meeting action points and updates are minuted and followed up on.
* Provide leadership and accountability for efficient and effective support functions in Balkh
* Lead the development and maintainence of an organisational culture that reflects Save the Children’s dual mandate values (humanitarian and development), promotes accountability and high performance, encourages a team culture of learning, creativity and innovation, and frees up our people to deliver outstanding results for children and compliance for Members and donors.
* Manage and motivate area staff to perform highly in their respective roles and responsibilities.
This will include leading on area staffing structure, recruitment, performance management and
implementing staff welfare policies.
* Take disciplinary action where required.
* Ensure appropriate staffing at all levels within Balkh.
* Ensure appropriate gender and ethnic diversity within the programme team.
* Incorporate staff development strategies and Performance Management Systems into team
building processes.
* Ensure availability of appropriate professional development opportunities for staff.
* Encourage a team culture of learning, creativity and innovation.

Risk Management (35%)
* Lead the creation and implementation of the risk management committee in Balkh
* Be accountable for development and implementation of mitigation measures related to key risks in Balkh.
* Liaise with relevant CO-level functions to report on and follow up on relevant risk mitigation measures in and flag issues
* Ensure that staff are fully aware of policies that prohibit fraud, nepotism, corruption and/or bribery and prevent and respond to Safeguarding incidents.
* Work closely with HR to promote a safe working environment for staff, children and adult beneficiaries.
* Ensure that staff follow HR procedures and that they respect official working hours, policies, anti-harassment and code of conduct policies.
* Ensure that all staff operate with the highest standards of professionalism, and in a manner that is gender-sensitive.
* Implement effective safety and security procedures for the area office, ensuring that these are updated and revised at regular intervals and that new programmes are built around security and risk considerations.

Timely, quality, compliant Programme Operations (20%):
* Support the Deputy Head of Office to resolve high-risk and/or sensitive programming issues, reaching out to relevant CO counterparts when needed.
* Co-chair AIR meetings at provincial level, flagging key issues to CO and across functions as needed.
* Ensure that information gained through child and gender-friendly MEAL and CFM systems is reported and followed up on, and integrated into detailed implementation plans and future projects.
* Feed into proposal budgets to ensure support functions in Balkh are budgeted appropriately and that proposal designs are relevant for the context in Balkh.

External Relations (25%):
* Represents Save the Children with high-level government officials and parties to the conflict.
* Proactively drives access negotiations and upholds Save the Children’s red lines.
* Support the Deputy Head of Office with partner relations as and when needed.
* Oversee agency coordination in the Balkh area with all types of stakeholders, including participation in local forums, clusters and working groups.
* Participate and coordinate with the Deputy Head of Office to actively to establish, maintain, and improve active and regular working relationships with: provincial-level government and non-governmental authorities (e.g. Armed Opposition Groups), donors, partner agencies, and local and international NGOs.

The Organisation

We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realise the right of children and to ensure their voices are heard.

We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:
* No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday
* All children learn from a quality basic education and that,
* Violence against children is no longer tolerated

We know that great people make a great organization, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children. We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive workplace where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
Essential:
* Undergraduate degree with 6+ years of high-value implementation experience within Afghanistan
* 7+ years of project management experience
* 2+ years of experience in emergency response programmes, including rapid needs assessments and NFI distribution
* Fluent in English and Pashto
* Solid grasp of internal policies and procedures as related to controls
* Good self-starter with effective time management skills
* Proven management experience
* Able to build influence with other senior stakeholders
* Experience of logistics, procurement and supply chain management
* Strong representation skills and willingness to speak out for children
* Training, facilitation, briefing and presentation skills
* Strong skills in coordinating and collaborating with others in partnership
* Proven diplomacy and access negotiation skills
* Positive, solution-driven, and with a ‘can-do’ attitude
* Experience in proposal development for institutional donors such as OFDA, ECHO, DFID etc.
* Proactive approach to the mainstreaming of humanitarian preparedness and resilience in all activities irrespective of location, theme or project type

Desirable
* Fluency in Dari
* Experience working in humanitarian emergencies across multiple areas of Afghanistan
* Previous experience in NNGOs/INGOs, UN etc.

Application Information

Please apply using a cover letter and up-to-date CV as a single document. Please also include details of your current remuneration and salary expectations. A copy of the full role profile can be found at www.savethechildren.net/careers

Closing Date for Application:10 November 2021
We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.

All employees are expected to carry out their duties in accordance with our global anti-harassment policy.