Regional Community Accountability Advisor - Asia

Programs Asia - Various Locations, Nepal

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Description

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. 
 
Program / Department Summary 
The Asia region is comprised of Afghanistan, Georgia, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Timor Leste, and Uzbekistan. Programming in these countries focuses on humanitarian response, economic and market systems development, resilience, financial inclusion, food security, nutrition, sustainable energy, Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), among others. Common themes include community engagement, inclusive development, gender, and working in partnership with local government, the private sector and civil society actors. Mercy Corps’ investment in thought leadership, continual learning, and adaptive programming allows us to make changes that are essential in a fluid context, with significant ambitions to learning and sharing through building an evidence base, investment in program performance and quality, including Community Accountability Reporting Mechanisms (CARM). The region is committed to using community feedback and local partnerships around design and delivery of programs to articulate country-level impact and contributions towards solving complex global challenges. Aligned with this approach, local partnerships and Mercy Corps Asia’s locally led approach is critical to how we meaningfully engage with key stakeholders from the prepositioning stage to program closure and sustainability plans. Our locally led approach emphasizes the need to consider and integrate community voices and our partners who are on the frontlines to direct our technical approach and work together. To support this work, the Asia Regional Community Accountability Advisor will serve in a technical advisory role to support country programs in the design and implementation of CARM, as well as partner engagement, with the aim of delivering impactful programs that are responsive to community needs. 
  
The Regional Community Accountability Advisor is also a part of the global Community Accountability team and will work closely with other Community Accountability regional Advisors and the Senior Global Community Accountability Advisor, on global initiatives that support regional objective and contribute learning and input into policy and tool development.  
 
General Position Summary  
The Regional Community Accountability Advisor will serve in a technical advisory role to support country programs in the Asia region to manage and continually improve their Community Accountability Reporting Mechanisms (CARM) in accordance with the CARM Policy, ensuring that programs are impactful and responsive to community needs. In addition to their regional colleagues, the Regional Community Accountability Advisor will work closely with other Regional Community Accountability Advisors and the Global Program Standards team to share learning and best practice from countries within their region, support the organization to understand Community Accountability beyond CARM and help country teams to automate their CARM systems.  
  
Essential Responsibilities 
  
PROVIDE SUPPORT TO REGIONAL CARM 
  • Contribute to the development, refinement, and implementation of the CARM tools and strategy for ensuring global adherence to the CARM standards and policy requirements.  
  • Ensure the needs and constraints of the Asia country and regional teams are well represented in discussions and revisions to the global CARM strategy and tools. 
  • Support CARM in-country by supporting the hiring process, selection and onboarding of new in-country CARM team members, as well as skills building and coaching of CARM teams. 
  • Provide remote technical support to country/program teams, through one-on-one country outreach, regional calls, webinars, etc. 
  • Provide monthly updates to the regional senior leadership including through the use of a regional CARM dashboard. 
  • Work with country teams to design and document their CARM processes and support the process of developing or revising CARM SOPs. 
  • Support country teams to systematize the use of community feedback throughout the program lifecycle - emphasizing community feedback and perspectives are considered during proposal design, implementation and sustainability activities. 
  • Provide remote training and support to team members serving in CARM short-term assignment positions. 
  • Provide in-country technical support to high-risk country programs to guide them in designing and implementing their CARM. 
  • Lead teams in process mapping to identify gaps in their CARM. 
  • Identify countries requiring increased technical support and liaise with the Global CARM team and regional leadership as needed. 
  • Track CARM progress at a regional level. 
  • Participate in the ‘Centering Community Voices’ locally led working group ensuring community feedback and perspectives are integrated in regional locally led strategy and planning. 
  • Support country programs in CARM analytics, establishing processes for using CARM data for learning and improved programming and prepare regional aggregations and reports. 
  • Support countries to adopt a global platform to automate their CARM systems, in alignment with the Global Community Accountability team. 
  • Develop the region’s understanding of Community Accountability beyond CARM in coordination with the Global Community Accountability Team. 
  
SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY & LEARNING 
  • Support country teams’ Senior Management/Leadership Teams to use CARM monthly reports and feedback themes for improving program quality both within programs but also across the country office. 
  • Support country teams to establish processes for ensuring best practices from CARM feedback themes are reflected in future proposals and programs. 
  • Identify and compile case studies of CARM best practices, success, and lessons learned in country programs to facilitate cross-country and regional learning. 
  • Contribute to the development of additional CARM tools and resources. 
  • Support country learning initiatives (e.g., research briefs, program learning documents) ensuring community voices and feedback are captured for program adaptation and business development. 
  • Create and lead a regional community of practice for country CARM focal points. 
  
INTERNAL & EXTERNAL COLLABORATION AND INFLUENCE 
  • Coordinate closely with the Global Program Standards team and other members of the Global Technical Resources and Quality (TRaQ) team to ensure CARM guidance and best practice is well aligned with our broader performance and quality work, to share lessons learned, and to identify gaps in resources or support and propose solutions. 
  • Participate in both regional and global CARM meetings and planning. 
  • Share regional approaches around Mercy Corps’ locally led strategy that embed community voices and feedback to strengthen community engagement and programmatic impact. 
  • Coordinate on CARM-related matters with other regional team members and units, including ethics and assurance, safeguarding, IT/T4D, new initiatives, and the Regional Program Team. 
  • Build and maintain positive working relationships across country programs. 
  • Represent Mercy Corps as needed with peer agencies and external accountability focal points. 
  
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 TO PARTICIPANTS 
  • Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts towards accountability, specifically to our participants and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging participant communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our programs. 
  
Supervisory Responsibility 
None 
  
Accountability 
Reports Directly To: Regional TRaQ Director & Senior Global Community Accountability Advisor 
Works Directly With: Regional Director, Deputy Regional Director-Programs, Country Directors, TRaQ team members, other global, regional and country team members. 
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 programs. 
  
Minimum Qualifications & Transferable Skills 
  • BA in relevant field required. 
  • 5-7 years of experience in international relief and development. 
  • Country office-based experience with community feedback and accountability reporting mechanisms required. 
  • 1-3 years of country office-based experience in international relief and development required. 
  • Demonstrated knowledge of grant-based funding models, emergency response and development strategies and operational challenges in the sector. 
  • Significant experience designing and/or delivering training modules. 
  • Strong knowledge of, and experience with organizational development of CSOs in challenging environments, and ability to inform the content and method of organizational development training. 
  • Demonstrated experience and ability to professionally and appropriately represent the organization and negotiate and defend Mercy Corps’ interests with a diverse range of international and local organizations and other groups. 
  • Effective verbal and written communication, multi-tasking, organizational, and prioritization skills are necessary. 
  • Proven ability to work collaboratively with colleagues in other departments or locations, as well as experience engaging with diverse teams. 
  • Experience with staff coaching and mentoring is preferred. 
  • Proficiency with MS Office software (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and any other case management software that supports the automation of feedback mechanisms. 
  • Proficiency with data analytics software such as Power-BI preferred. 
  • Strong team coordination, listening, and consensus building skills. 
  • English fluency is required; Russian or other relevant regional languages preferred. 
  
Success Factors 
The individual needs to be a creative problem solver, able to support program teams to overcome contextual challenges in the design and implementation of CARM. They will also be a skilled communicator, able to develop and utilize strong relationships with program team members and other departments. They will have a positive and dynamic working style that enables them to adapt to challenges as they arise. They will harness the expertise, experience and ideas of diverse Mercy Corps team members and external partners to strengthen community accountability within Mercy Corps. 
 
Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions 
This position is based in a country in the Asia region where Mercy Corps has an office and/or is registered. The position requires travel approximately 30-40% of the time to locations in the region where living conditions may be exceptionally rugged and/or where security protocols will need to be followed. When visiting country offices or program location, the team member may be required to work in remote settings and over weekends and/or evenings. 
Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside work hours when deployed or on a visit/short term assignment to a program location. 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. 
Every voice matters and diversity is powerful are critical elements of Mercy Corps’ values that allow us to achieve our mission of alleviating suffering, poverty, and oppression by helping people build secure, productive, and just communities. We embrace diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have sustained impact. Mercy Corps is an Equal Opportunity Employer regardless of background. Women, minorities, people with disabilities and veterans are strongly encouraged to apply. 
 
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  
 
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion 
Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives. 
We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today. 
 
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 . By applying for this role an applicant confirms that they have not previously violated an employer’s sexual misconduct, sexual exploitation and abuse, child safeguarding or trafficking policy. 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 e-learning 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]). 

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