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  • Role: DIRECTOR PROGRAMMES AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
  • Applications for this role will close on: WEDNESDAY 21 JUNE 2023
  • Location of role: Pacific Region
  • Salary Grade: B2 (based on country location)
  • Term: 2 years
  • For any further assistance please contact Julia Peters – [email protected]

Important Note: All Applications must be lodged online – https://oxfampacific.bamboohr.com/careers/241

DIRECTOR PROGRAMMES & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

Job Purpose

Directly line managing a team of Oxfam in the Pacific’s thematic advisors, the role has a high level of capacity in people management and organisation and team management. The role will require a focus on team management with a main responsibility in ensuring the efficient and effective mobilisation of thematic and technical support to Oxfam in the Pacific’s programming partners to enable them to deliver sustainable high-quality, technically sound initiatives.

In achieving these objectives the Director’s role will need to operate at both strategic and operational levels, engaging stakeholders and building relationships at the global, regional and local level.

Working in close coordination with the Director PELI and Director Corporate Services the role will play a key role in performance management and work planning as well as developing and managing inter-departmental systems and processes. This position will work closely with the Program Management and Performance to ensure our business development initiatives, program performance requirements and internal and external accountabilities are adequately resourced as well as with programmes staff focused on engaging with the region.

Job Responsibilities

Accountability

  • The position is accountable to the Pacific Regional Director, for the delivery, effective management (which includes budgets and plan), monitoring and evaluation and learning from Programs.

Strategy

  • The role is responsible for building the Programs team into a high performing team of technical advisors and specialists whose expertise is mobilised to drive transformational change within Oxfam in the Pacific’s programming portfolio, and who are capable of working across the confederation to support partners in designing, resourcing, delivering and learning from high quality programs.
  • Lead and engage in Oxfam in the Pacific strategic planning processes, ensuring timely engagement of thematic and technical staff in global, regional and local strategy discussions
  • Development and execution of funding strategy and processes to support effective program development, through analysis of development and donor trends at a strategic level, identification of unique value propositions, engagement with donors, integration of business intelligence into program strategy and proactive and propositional concept and design development, including identification and development of partnerships.
  • Together with Director PELI and Influencing lead will drive forward influencing strategies that will engage institutional donors in Oxfam Pacific’s business model in a collaborative, equal-footed partnership approach.
  • Is a member of the Pacific Leadership Team that develops and has oversight of the implementation of Oxfam in the Pacific’s strategic and operational plans

People Management

  • Lead on ensuring the Programs team makes a meaningful contribution to Oxfam in the Pacific as well as remaining relevant with stakeholders (donors and public) by ensuring the team capacity and systems remain agile, responsive and able to meet the changing contextual and organisational demands
  • Lead and support the development of a strategic evidence and learning agenda that is built on and responds to portfolio performance and analysis, strategic inquiry, knowledge translation and the subsequent formation of policy and standards.
  • Lead and engage in departmental and team planning processes, ensuring increasing alignment between organisational strategic priorities and the activities undertaken within the team and on the ground.
  • Lead on the allocation of thematic and technical staff time to business development and resourcing, programmatic quality support and Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning, ensuring inter-departmental and cross organisational coordination and prioritisation in accordance with strategic priorities
  • Engage in OI and OI systems to forecasting future thematic and technical needs and plan for ensuring team maintains skill set that enables OIP to continue making a meaningful contribution to the work of Oxfam
  • Lead and engage in cross departmental working groups to develop and use systems to improve the quality, effectiveness and efficiency of programming work across the region
  • Lead the development, monitoring and review of budgets across the program portfolio
  • Ensure the timely and accurate finance and program reporting across the portfolio, in compliance with all Oxfam and donor requirements
  • Lead in exploring funding opportunities and business development with current and potential donors
  • Ensure that good practice financial and fraud management systems are developed and embedded across the program portfolio and that they comply with Oxfam and donor requirements

Public Engagement

  • Will lead on public engagement with programmatic matters
  • Accountable for ensuring that appropriate tools and technology are in place to allow a strong flow of positive and consistent program content to influence and communicate with internal audiences and external stakeholders including but not limited to government, media, donors, non-governmental sector and supporters.

Business Development

  • Leads OiP’s role within the confederation funding architecture to access intelligence, opportunities and skills. Brokering assistance from technical advisers and donor account managers in affiliate HQs, regional offices and shared services.
  • Oversees bid cycle through active program management unit aimed to encompass and work closely with PQ to capture key learnings for new business and strategy
  • Leads on business development opportunities

Innovation

  • Actively identifies, qualifies and tracks funding and partnership opportunities in an innovative manner in pursuit of supporting Oxfam in the Pacific’s strategy, PELI and programs.
  • New funding and business models will be developed together with Partnership lead to identify and strengthen partnership delivery modalities linked with the overall Pacific strategy

Program and Delivery

  • Contribute to and maximise use of the Oxfam local and global knowledge networks to share strategic thinking and learning more widely as well as within the region to ensure that programming builds on learning and is evidence based, innovative and agile to respond to opportunities for change.
  • Lead the development and implementation of program strategies and associated plans within the Thematic pillars and across the region.
  • Lead the development, monitoring and review of program budgets and support thematic program managers to fulfil their financial and budget management responsibilities
  • Ensure that all program teams collaborate with each other and coordinate their work effectively by sharing lessons and planning and learning together
  • Ensure that all partners receive the support they need to deliver their work effectively
  • Ensure that adequate opportunities are provided for staff and partners to collaborate, reflect and learn from each other’s work

Job Requirements

Technical Skills, Experience & Knowledge

Management and Leadership

  • Proven track record of leading and motivating multi disciplinary, geographically remote teams and operations across a number of locations with a commitment to promoting leadership amongst local staff.
  • Significant senior leadership and management experience in the development and delivery of high quality program, influencing and humanitarian strategy, with and through partners or directly, in one or more challenging locations.
  • Experience of managing complex change processes and relationships involving a wide range of both internal and external multi-cultural stakeholders across a variety of disciplines and geographical areas.
  • A high degree of self awareness and an understanding of how to drive and support excellent team performance and individual development in line with Oxfam’s values and policies.

Representation and Communication

  • Proven track record of success in representing an organization with partners, government agencies, private sector organizations, media and donors at senior level: nationally and globally.
  • Proven track record of success in advocacy and influencing
  • Demonstrable experience of working with the media and an ability to represent the organisation in the media if required.
  • Demonstrable ability to convey complex messages in an appropriate manner to broad and diverse audiences.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills to motivate, influence and negotiate.

Finance and Funding

  • Ability to maximise fundraising from diverse institutions, both local and international.
  • High level financial and asset management skills to steer and efficiently manage the operational and program budgets of AUD $15m

Risk

  • Experience of managing security, risk and legal compliance within an INGO context.
  • Proven track record of making sound judgements in uncertain and pressurised situations.
  • Able to fulfil agreed standards in disaster preparedness, mitigation and management including humanitarian response activities for Category 2 emergencies.
  • Able to anticipate and manage risks that could threaten the organisations reputation, operational viability and security.
  • Experience of crisis management and security management.

Strategic Analytics

  • Ability to manage the development of, and contribute to, the high level analysis of factors driving poverty, marginalization and vulnerability in developing country contexts. The ability to ‘think politically’ understanding motivations, pressures, power dynamics and challenges faced by colleagues, partners, decision makers and other actors; and the ability to generate effective strategies to influence them.
  • Proven analytical skills, with the ability to:
    • Take and manage calculated risks based on evidence based assumptions.
    • Think strategically, to maximise adaptability and agility
    • encourage forward thinking, new ideas and learning from experience beyond the country program context while acting within a global framework
  • Good level of IT literacy and an understanding of how new developments in technology can positively contribute to the aims of an INGO.

Values

  • Committed to a rights based approach including an active commitment to putting women’s rights at the heart of all we do as well as the rights of other marginalized people in all aspects of an organization’s work.

Travel

  • Ability to travel away from home, often to remote programmatic sites within the country for up to 12 weeks per annum, including periodic travel abroad for global meetings.

Languages

  • Fluent in written and spoken English. Ideally the ability to also work in an additional local language

Qualifications

  • Essential: Degree in Management, Human Services, Administration or related field
  • Preferable: Advanced Degree in Management, Human Services, Administration or related field

Candidates will be appraised against this overall job description but in particular, the following key selection criteria:

  • Proven track record of leading, motivating, supporting and empowering multi-disciplinary teams, with a commitment to promoting leadership amongst local staff.
  • Significant senior leadership and management experience in the development and delivery of high quality program, influencing and humanitarian strategy, with and through partners or directly, in one or more challenging locations.
  • Evidence of the ability to lead staff and programs in a cross-cultural context, preferably having worked in a developing country for more than 5 years
  • Strong analytical skills and the ability to think strategically, including to think beyond the country program context and act within a regional and global framework.
  • High level interpersonal, influencing and communication skills with a proven track record of success in representing an organization with partners, government agencies, private sector organizations, media and donors at senior level: nationally and globally.
  • Demonstrated skills and experience in leading budget planning and monitoring, including the development of funding frameworks.