Job Summary

As a member of the Senior Management Team (SMT) of the clustered countries (Chad-Cameroon-Central African Republic/CAR), the Head of Operations is responsible for providing leadership and management/coordination of the operational functions - Finance, Human Resources (HR), Supply Chain Management (SCM), Administration, Information and Communication Technology, Security, and Audit - in support of the CRS mission to serve the poor and vulnerable. The Head of Operations is responsible for promoting stewardship of resources, ensuring principled compliance, proactively managing risk, preventing fraud, and leading (continuous) operational improvements including from a Climate Action lens, as well as proactively managing and mitigating security risks.

Roles and Key Responsibilities

• Contribute to the cluster’s strategic planning and programming 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 across each country program 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.
• Oversee financial processes in accordance with policies and ensure proactive service delivery, advice, and support to managers, staff, and subrecipients in relation to the project cycle (Design, Start-up, Implementation, Close-out). Ensure efficiency and compliance with CRS’ policies and procedures, Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), donors’ rules and regulations, and legal requirements. Ensure effective and appropriate use of CRS’s finance and supply chain management systems and other technical solutions.
• Collaborate with programming leads to ensure appropriate project expenditures in line with financial plans and proper stewardship of material sources. Promote effective use of CRS’ Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system for budget management and general oversight. Anticipate, identify, and address challenges that affect the proper stewardship, risk, and optimal utilization of program assets and resources (financial, human, and material).
• Promote safeguarding at the country level. Ensure quality implementation of CRS safeguarding policy and principles across operations at both CRS and partner level. With support from technical advisors, ensure capacity building efforts and technical guidance to CRS staff and partners, in line with CRS principles and standards, donor guidelines, and industry best practices.
• Oversee Health, Safety, and Security management. Ensure all staff understand and adhere to CRS staff safety and security trainings, policies, and plans and ensure the updating of such plans.
• Lead the operational aspects of a CP’s Climate Action strategy with support from the SMT including: implementing action plans and monitor progress, prioritizing entry points and investments for operational efficiency, and reducing Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions and waste.
• Effectively manage and supervise talent, including remote management of direct reports across countries. Ensure appropriate allocation of staff time and resources to balance the needs of multiple countries. 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 SMT, oversee the preparation of annual budget plans and grant/project budgets to ensure they reflect maximum operational efficiency, budgetary compliance, and risk mitigation. 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 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 countries’ 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.