Project Director at Mercy Corps

Program / Department Summary

• The Educating Nigerian Girls in New Enterprises (ENGINE) Programme is an initiative to improve learning outcomes and the economic status of marginalized adolescent girls aged 16-19 in the Northern Nigerian states of Kano and Kaduna, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and the metropolis of Lagos, Nigeria.
• ENGINE through funding from the UK Department for International Development’s Girls Education Challenge, the Coca-Cola Company and other stakeholders supported over 18,000 marginalized girls to reduce education and financial barriers in its first implementation phase.
• In its second phase, ENGINE 2 will facilitate transition of these girls into functional literacy, numeracy and scale up their business opportunities and linkages.
• ENGINE 2 will further increase girls’ and young women’s access to (1) financial education and life skills; (2) peer to peer networks and mentoring; and (3) direct assets (materials and savings). Beneficiaries will be integrated into value chains as well as conduct other market-driven employment opportunities.
• ENGINE 2 will also work with girls in formal and informal education to increase their learning opportunities and outcomes to prepare them for future economic activities and work in the policy environment to provide an enabling environment for girls to flourish in their chosen pathways.

General Position Summary

• The Project Director will be responsible for providing overall leadership, technical and strategic management to the project. S/he will manage staff, national partners and resources to ensure that the program meets performance-based targets on time and within budget, per DfID requirements.
• The Project Director will coordinate with other donor funded programming to link marginalized girls with ENGINE activities.
• S/he will ensure program funds are spent efficiently and maximize Value for Money per DfID requirements.
• The Project Director will supervise and build the capacity of key program staff and ensure accountability to Mercy Corps policies and donor rules and regulations.
• S/he will be the primary ENGINE representative to donors, relevant government entities, public and private sector partners, Government agencies and external stakeholders.

Essential Job Responsibilities

• Strategy & Vision:
  • Develop overall vision and strategic plan for ENGINE project, in collaboration with ENGINE consortium members.
  • Recognize opportunities for innovative action and create an environment where alternative viewpoints are welcome.
  • Set direction by prioritizing and organizing actions & resources to achieve objectives and contribute to countrywide strategy development.
  • Design and support evaluation assessment and analysis to determine scope of the project based on needs and opportunities.

• Program Management:
  • Lead the technical aspects of functional literacy, numeracy and school to work programming for ENGINE program.
  • Monitor adherence to grant agreement, Mercy Corps and DfID policies and procedures and relevant external rules and regulations.
  • Oversee performance of consortium partners and sub-grantees and conduct frequent field visits to all project sites in the North West and South West. Problem-solve with partners when needed.
  • 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.
  • Identify and manage links with existing and planned donor interventions that target adolescent girls to identify girls on an on-going basis to participate in ENGINE activities.
  • Maintains links and keep current on up-to-date best practices around innovative strategies of promoting girls school to work transition; disseminate technical information and assistance where necessary.
  • Oversee the production of high-quality reports on all aspects of the ENGINE program in a timely and efficient manner.
  • Ensure that M&E team members focus on assisting programs to generate practical information that can be used for ongoing program decision-making while also capturing results at the impact level.

• Team Management:
  • Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive to achieve excellence.
  • Promote accountability, communicate expectations and provide constructive feedback via regular performance reviews.
  • Supervise, hire and orient new team members as necessary.
  • Provide team members with information, tools and other resources to improve performance and reach objectives.
  • Implement performance planning and management systems, establish performance expectations with team members, and regularly provide constructive feedback on team members’ performance.
  • Contribute to country team-building efforts, help team members identify problem-solving options and ensure the integration of all team members into relevant decision-making processes.

• Finance & Compliance Management:
  • Ensure compliance with donor and Mercy Corps regulations related to emergency programming.
  • Review scope of work to hire and manage any technical consultants, including review for technical efficacy and contract budget.

• Influence & Representation:
  • Identify, build and manage collaborative partnerships with consortium partners, sub-grantees, donors, local governments and other stakeholders.
  • Communicate effectively to ensure overall project targets and donor obligations are met.
  • Proactively form relationships with private sector actors to complement DfID funding.
  • Participate in education coordination and other donor coordination meetings or workshops and/or as requested by the Director of Gender Programs.
  • Security
  • Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country leadership.
  • Proactively ensure that team members operate in a secure environment and are aware of policies
  • Work closely with Mercy Corps Nigeria country team’s security focal point to develop and maintain systems that ensure the safety and security of the team in all aspects of its implementation process.

• 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 Beneficiaries
  • Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Knowledge and Experience

• Master’s Degree or its equivalent in Education, Management, Social Sciences, International Development or other relevant field.
• A minimum of 10 years of progressive work experience including at least 4 years in a senior management or technical advisory role on large, education, gender- focused, skills building program, systems strengthening and governance.
• Experience managing large-scale education or school to work projects especially targeting marginalized girls or young women programs required. Preferred expertise in at least one of the following areas: accelerated learning programs, Islamic and/or community-based education targeting community acceptance of girl’s education, increasing economic assets through savings clubs and links to financial institutions. Experience using SMS for training or messaging preferred.
• Strong understanding of DfID compliance issues.
• Strong management skills, with good understanding of relevant cross-cultural issues in high security environment. Experience managing a multi-organizational team (international and national partners) is a plus.
• Experience working in Northern Nigeria a plus.
• Experience with private-sector led initiatives.
• Strong written and oral communication skills in English required, including report development, writing and editing.
• Familiarity with cultural and religious context of north and south Nigeria
• Demonstrated attention to detail, ability to follow procedures, meet deadlines and work independently and cooperatively with team members.
• Demonstrated experience working with country-level ministries and government officials, Ministry of Education experience preferred.

Success Factors

• The successful candidate will combine exceptional leadership, management and technical skills with a focus on innovative interventions to engage adolescent girls in informal education and skills building linked with private sector entrepreneurship and employment opportunities in a culturally and religiously conservative environment.  S/he will have an outstanding ability to develop, implement and manage innovative and complex programs within the current and future program structure of Mercy Corps in the region. Multi-tasking, prioritizing, problem solving and simultaneous attention to detail and strategic vision are essential. 
• The most successful Mercy Corps staff members have a strong commitment to teamwork and accountability, thrive in evolving and changing environments and make effective written and verbal communication a priority in all situations.
• Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside work hours .Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.