Head of Operations, Burkina Faso

Job Title: Head of Operations, Burkina Faso
Job Type: Regular, Full Time
Job Location: Ouagadougou
Reports to: Country Representative

About CRS
Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. CRS works to save, protect, and transform lives in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, HIV, health, agriculture, education, microfinance and peacebuilding.

Job Summary:
As a member of the Country Program’s (CP) Senior Management Team, you will provide leadership and management of the operational functions – Finance, Human Resources (HR), Supply Chain Management (SCM), Administration, Information and Communication Technology, Security and Audit – in suppor t of the Catholic Relief Services’ (CRS) mission to serve the poor and vulnerable. You will promote stewardship of resources, ensure principled compliance, proactively manage risk, and lead operational improvements. As part of the Senior Management Team you will proactively manage security and mitigate security risks.

Roles and Key Responsibilities:
* Contribute to the CP strategic planning and programming by providing input on needed investments in operations capacity – systems, processes and staffing – that meet CRS’ standards, donor requirements, and local regulations and support high-quality programming. Represent CRS, as needed.
* Plan, integrate, coordinate, and monitor day-to-day operations to ensure all support services are delivered with high-quality in an efficient manner. Address issues where operations support needs to be adapted for complex programming. Oversee the piloting of new operations initiatives that require the setting of new standards and systems
* Collaborate with programming leads to ensure appropriate project expenditures in line with financial plans and proper stewardship of material sources. Anticipate, identify and address challenges that affect the proper stewardship, risk, and optimal utilization of program assets and resources (financial, human, and material).
* Effectively manage talent and supervise. Manage team dynamics and staff well-being. Provide coaching, strategically tailor individual development plans, and complete performance management for direct reports. Monitor and assess performance to ensure adequate capacity for successful support of high-quality programming. Contribute to staffing plans and recruitment process of senior staff.
* With the Country Representative oversee the preparation of annual budget plans and grant/project budgets to ensure they reflect maximum operational efficiency and budgetary compliance and mitigate risks. Set and provide technical oversight of internal processes for approving expenses, monitoring spending, and making budget adjustments in line with operational and programmatic needs and with donor requirements.
* Ensure the program is adequately staffed to meet CP needs and HR systems, policies and practices support a high-performance culture, staff development and retention. Assure quality personnel administration and a work environment that truly reflects the agency’s guiding principles.
* Oversee compliance with agency and donor requirements and local laws and regulations through periodic systems checks, review and assessment of CP’s operations policies and procedures. Act as lead contact and responder to issues that emerge from internal and external audits and provide recommendations and guidance to implement improvements.
* Create and maintain the proper conditions for learning. Establish a safe environment for the sharing of ideas, solutions, and difficulties and the capacity to detect, analyze and respond quickly to small deficiencies. Provide capacity strengthening guidance for project teams and partners, which includes cross-departmental learning.

Required Languages – English and French required.

Travel – Must be able to travel up to 20%.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
* Excellent strategic, analytical, systems thinking, and problem-solving skills, with capacity to see the big picture and ability to make sound judgment and decisions.
* Strong relations management abilities. Ability to work collaboratively
* Team leadership abilities
* Ethical conduct in accordance with recognized professional and organizational codes of ethics
* Proactive, resourceful, solutions-oriented and results-oriented

Key Working Relationships:

Internal: Country Representative, Head of Programs, Programs Managers, Head of Office, Deputy Regional Directors for Management Quality, Regional Finance Officer as well as other regional staff and HQ Finance Department.

External: Government Ministries, Catholic Church officials, US government officials, Audit firms and partner organizations.

Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. We welcome as a part of our staff and as partners people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need.