Description

Location: Puerto Rico

Position Status: Full-time, Permanent

Closing date: Please submit application by end of Friday April 3.

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have long term impact.

The Caribbean Resilience Department

Climate change severely and disproportionately impacts small islands in the Caribbean. 

Worsening environmental risks like rising and warming seas, volatile dry and wet seasons, and catastrophic storms mean that islands and small island developing states (SIDS) bear the brunt of the impacts of climate change, even though their carbon footprint is small relative to the world’s largest carbon producers, and their capacity to cope is constrained by their narrow resource base. 

Caribbean islands need flexible tools to make them more resilient through the climate crisis. 

Tools that protect and improve lives, livelihoods and also the natural resources these communities depend on. Mercy Corps partners with community service organizations across the Caribbean to strengthen the networks around vulnerable communities, provide resources to build out adaptive programming, and respond collaboratively to climate threats as they arise.

Mercy Corps began this work following the historic 2016 hurricane season. Since then, with the help of our donors, more than $34 million has been put toward preparedness, response and climate resilience programming in the Caribbean. Mercy Corps has learned that empowering people and their communities with flexible assets and knowledge is the best way to measurably protect lives and livelihoods.

The Position

 Mercy Corps is in the second year of a three-year Department of State-funded project called Strengthening Caribbean Economic Growth (SCEG) aimed at improving employability and entrepreneurship across the Caribbean. To achieve this, Mercy Corps provides small grants to local organizations across the region as well as provide recipients with capacity building and learning opportunities. The Program Manager will lead implementation of this program, which will work with community service organizations (CSOs) in the following jurisdictions: Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, The Bahamas, Dominica, Grenada, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the 5 Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago.

Mercy Corps has completed an initial survey of the key barriers to employment and entrepreneurship. The findings of that assessment informed a competitive grant opportunity wherein applicant CSOs put forward projects that addressed constraints identified in the assessment, and had the potential to be replicated and/or scaled across the region. The first cohort of grant recipient CSOs have been identified and are working through a subaward process (February 2026). Pilot projects will measurably improve job skills training, employment opportunities, and livelihood outcomes for women, men, and girls and boys aged 16 and older in the Caribbean.

Strong and collaborative partnerships are at the core of Mercy Corps strategy in the Caribbean. This position will cultivate and champion Mercy Corps’ CSO partnership network of over 30 organizations across the region. The Program Manager will work to strengthen capacity for Mercy Corps’ Caribbean CSO network, leveraging the resources available through the program, other resources available through the Caribbean Resilience Initiative portfolio, and the global organization.

Essential Responsibilities

PROGRAM MANAGEMENT

• Manage and oversee the implementation of the SCEG project, in cooperation with key project stakeholders, including local community service organizations, non-governmental organizations, local government officials, and the donors;
• Collaborate with program, finance and administrative staff to ensure systems are in compliance with donor and Mercy Corps policies and procedures;
• Ensure program implementation is on time, target and budget, using effective M&E systems to reach desired impacts;
• Create and maintain systems ensuring effective and transparent use of financial resources for timely and informative reporting in line with donor and Mercy Corps policies and procedures;
• Implement and model Mercy Corps’ philosophy of social entrepreneurship and leverage Mercy Corps’ best practices;
• Promote learning and knowledge management through documentation and knowledge sharing around best practices and lessons learned;
• Provide leadership and oversight in all aspects of program implementation, management and evaluation;
• Provide technical leadership to the program in the areas of economic empowerment and organizational capacity building;
• Ensure adherence to Mercy Corps program management minimum standards.
• Monitor adherence to program donor grant agreements, as well as Mercy Corps’ and donor policies and procedures for procurement and compliance.
• Oversee program staff performance and quality of program implementation. 
• Communicate frequently with program partner network

TECHNICAL LEADERSHIP and GUIDANCE

• Ensure program is designed and implemented with consideration for technical recommendations from Mercy Corps’ global livelihoods and resilience technical teams as well as industry best practice;

• Support field monitoring and conduct periodic qualitative reviews on the strategic direction of activities that build economic security across the region.

REPORTING, MONITORING and EVALUATION

• Establish and oversee effective program monitoring, evaluation, and reporting systems for both internal and external use and ensure high quality input is obtained from team members.
• Work collaboratively with MEL Officers and wider MEL unit and global program quality assurance technical resources to ensure data collection builds evidence base for approaches that build economic security;
• Use reporting results to monitor program success, measure impact, and calibrate program strategy accordingly.
• Ensure documentation of achievements and lessons learned to ensure best practices are captured and disseminated in quarterly and final program reports.

REPRESENTATION and COORDINATION

• Act as main focal point for network of CSOs partnering with Mercy Corps across the Caribbean, connecting CSO partners with resources available through the regional portfolio and global organization. For example, where appropriate referring CSOs to Mercy Corps’ Ventures unit.
• Liaise with local government officials including the government ministries, local NGOs, project partners, local religious leaders, and other community members to ensure support for and acceptance of Mercy Corps projects in relevant geographic areas.

STRATEGY AND PLANNING

●        Ensure that the program strategy is clear and communicated to team members, local partners and communities.

●        Work with the Caribbean Resilience Initiative leadership team to develop and support the CRI strategy.

●        Lead on measurement and analysis of regional key performance indicators to inform strategic decision making.

HUMAN RESOURCES, SAFEGUARDING AND DIVERSITY

●        Support Mercy Corps global and regional initiatives for human resources, including safeguarding, and talent development;

●        Collaborate with the people team to promote staff access to high quality learning opportunities, with a special emphasis on national team member development;

●        Assist with the on-boarding of senior team members, ensuring they are set up for success and familiar with agency systems, procedures, and protocols.

SAFEGUARDING RESPONSIBILITIES 

• Actively learns about safeguarding and integrates it into their work, including safeguarding risks and mitigations related to their area of work

• Practices the values of Mercy Corps including respecting the dignity and well-being of participants and fellow team members

• Encourages openness and communication in their team; encourages team members to submit reports if they have any concerns using reporting mechanisms e.g., Integrity Hotline and other options

Supervisory Responsibility

None, subject to change

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Director, Caribbean Resilience Initiative

Works Directly With: CRI Program Managers, Finance team, Operations team, HR team, global Social Integration and Development technical unit, Market Systems Development technical unit.

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

• Minimum of 4+ years of demonstrated experience in community development programming.
• Minimum of 4+ years of progressive technical responsibility; preferred to include experience in livelihoods or market systems development, economic empowerment, or youth entrepreneurship experience preferred.
• Demonstrated commitment to working with CSOs toward mutual objectives. Experience in CSO capacity building activities strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to work and coordinate effectively with a wide variety of stakeholders, including national and local government, donors, community-based organizations, and the private sector
• Degree in a relevant academic area – e.g., economics, climate sciences, a social science discipline, etc. (7+ years relevant progressive technical experience would be considered in lieu of advanced degree)
• Experience designing and implementing training and/or capacity building activities
• Ability to travel to various program sites (up to 25%)
• Experience living/working in the Caribbean preferred
• Experience working with USG donors preferred
• English fluency required; Spanish, French or Dutch proficiency preferred

Success Factors

A successful Program Manager will be well organized and able to complete deliverables with a remote and decentralized regional team. Cultivating and maintaining meaningful relationships with our partners across the region is central to the Caribbean Resilience Initiative’s strategy. A successful PM will be a good communicator, an advocate for our partners and the communities we serve, and will be a creative problem solver. The needs across the Caribbean region are diverse. A successful Program Manager will look for opportunities to meet the needs of the communities we serve with the resources available through the global organization.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

The position is remote though candidates must be able to work a typical AST workday. All MC employees are expected to work a five-day work week. This position requires 25% of travel by road, sea and air to field program locations.

Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside work hours when deployed in a field posting or on a visit/TDY to a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and Mercy Corps’ policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

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

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 prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. 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 elearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.