The Caribbean Resilience Initiative (CRI)

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.

Mercy Corps is in the first 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 will provide small grants to 12 local organizations across the region as well as provide recipients with capacity building and learning opportunities: 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 and developed a call for proposals, poised to launch the end of October. Part of this process includes feedback and capacity building for applicants on program design and proposal development. This process is expected to run in November-December, with the first awards being signed in January.

The Position

CRI is looking for an STA to serve as Interim Program Manager while recruitment for a permanent PM takes place.

The individual filling this role will be expected to ensure a smooth launch of the small grants competition, managing the information sessions with the economic development consultant, coordinating the review committees, and preparing documents for State Department approval. The STA will also need to design and implement the process for feedback and capacity building to applicants.

Scheduled project deliverables during the duration of the STA include:

• RFP launch- October 31
• Info sessions for candidates- first week of November
• Establishment of application review panel- first half of November
• Finalization of subaward documents including agreements, MEL plans, reporting templates- by end of November
• Application review- first two weeks of December
• Preparation of recommendations to DoS- mid-December
• Feedback and revision support- December-January
• Preparation of sub-award packages- January

General 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 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 inclusion and 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.

REPORTING, MONITORING and EVALUATION

• Work with the MEL team to ensure robust MEL and CARM systems are in place to enable required reporting to the donor as well as capture outcomes and impact for internal use.
• 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.
• 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.

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 Gender Equity and Social Inclusion 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

• Experience in project management- particularly in managing sub-awards to local organizations.
• PMDPro or equivalent certification
• Knowledge of Mercy Corps policies and procedures for awarding and managing sub-awards.
• Familiarity with market systems development framework highly desired.
• Fluency in Spanish is a plus.

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. This position may require travel to the region to conduct verification and site visits.

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

Team Efficiency and Effectiveness 

Achieving our mission starts with how we build our team and collaborate. By bringing together individuals with a variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives, we strengthen our ability to solve complex challenges and drive innovation. We foster a culture of trust and respect, where every team member is valued for their contributions, empowered to reach their full potential, and motivated to do their best work.

We recognize that building a strong and effective team is an ongoing process, and we remain committed to learning, improving, and growing together.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out different 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.

As an applicant, if you witness or experience any form of sexual misconduct during the recruitment process, please report this to Mercy Corps Integrity Hotline ([email protected]).

As a safeguarding measure, Mercy Corps screens all potential US-Based employees. This is done following the conclusion of recruitment and prior to assuming full employment.  Our screening process is designed to be transparent and completed in partnership with new Team Members. You will have the opportunity to disclose any prior convictions at the conclusion of the recruitment process before the check is initiated. 

We ask that you do not disclose any prior convictions in your application materials or during the recruitment process.