Religious Engagement Specialist at Search For Common Ground’s International

Position Summary

• Search is seeking an experienced expert in Religious Engagement who will oversee the implementation of our Nigeria FoRB strategy and Religious Engagement Programs. The role will specifically focus on the leadership of four ongoing religious engagement projects that are aligned with our Nigeria FoRb strategy. These projects include the following:
• The Embassy of the Kingdom of Netherlands funded “Promoting and Protecting Freedom of Religion and Belief (PP-FoRB)” Project
• The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs funded “Joint Initiative for Strategic Religious Action” Project
• The EU Delegation to Nigeria funded Inclusive Religious Engagement Enhanced by Women (I-RENEW) Project
• The US Department of State Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour (DRL) funded “Nigeria Youth Collective Action for Religious Engagement” Project.
• The role is expected to lead the positioning of Search for Common Ground (Search) as an active player in leading the promotion of Freedom of Religion and Beliefs in Nigeria.

Job Responsibilities

• Leadership and oversight of Search’s religious engagement programme portfolio in Nigeria, including representation of Search with all donors, partners, authorities, and other key stakeholders.
• Manage Search’s religious engagement programme relationship and act as the primary point of contact on religious engagement in the country programme with regards to activity implementation, compliance, collaboration, and management matters relating to the projects reporting to the position.
• Provide technical oversight, administration, fiscal management, and grant and contract administration and management, assuring quality, impact and cost effectiveness of the project.
• Hold overall responsibility for assuring that all assistance provided under the religious engagement portfolio is technically sound and appropriate for the needs to be addressed and for adequately managing and supervising the work of all field staff, long‐term staff, short‐term staff, consortium partners, and/or sub‐partners, as proposed.
• Provide technical management and oversight in the delivery of Search’s religious engagement programme portfolio in Nigeria. This includes strong technical expertise in Freedom of Religion or Beliefs (FoRB) conflict analysis, conflict transformation, community dialogue/peacebuilding structures, advocacies, multimedia activities, and journalism.
• Oversee multiple activities simultaneously, including hiring, training, mentoring, and supervising local personnel.
• Provide strong senior leadership and strategic direction to the project team and as consortium lead, including relationship management with key stakeholders and project partners.
• Assemble and motivate a team of local staff and short-term consultants, and effectively supervise project personnel.
• Liaise with Search’s internal teams, including the Nigeria Country Team, the West Africa Regional Team and global HQ teams in Brussels and Washington, DC as required.
• Represent Search’s Religious Engagement Portfolio at high level events and meetings, including public speaking engagements on relevant topic areas.
• Operations: Ensure compliance of staff and partners to Search, donor and country rules and regulations
• Ensure adhesion to logistical and security architecture of the country or regional implementation landscape
• Infuse organizational Values into all work
• Other duties that are broadly in line with the above key contributions as assigned

Competency Behavior Indicators (Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities)

• Motivates colleagues and direct reports to develop while resolving problems within the context of a proactive and broad vision set by the organization.
• Builds and maintains collaborative relationships with vendors, organizations, professional associations, partners, funders, and Search’s network of experts to facilitate work intended to provide a service to Search.
• Manages and contributes to both routine activities and initiatives while also making progress on continuous improvement efforts.
• Juggles multiple demands and adapts to new situations with fresh ideas or innovative approaches.
• Contributes to the development and implementation of departmental strategies based on organizational goals and objectives.
• Practices ethical behavior to meet Search’s expectations for conduct, minimizes ambiguity, and sets an example for others.
• Builds a framework and sets in motion a plan to overcome challenges by making sense out of complexity and an uncertain future, staying cognizant of the implications of a choice for the department, and being decisive while also applying flexibility for further change as needed and with changing work plans to meet environmental factors.
• Sets up procedures and team building to ensure high quality of work (e.g., review meetings).
• Seeks out creative solutions within a complex and international environment while working within an organizational framework of compliance, ethics, best practices, and standards.
• Shares information, advice, and suggestions to help others be more successful and provides effective coaching.
• Sought out as an expert to provide advice or solutions in their technical or functional area.
• Convenes groups or teams through the problem-solving and creative thinking processes, leading to the development and implementation of new approaches, systems, structures, and methods in a Shared Services environment.
• Involves team members in thought leadership discussions and decision making to lead to continued growth and development for team, department members, and Shared Services colleagues.

Experience and Education

• Master’s degree (or higher) in Peace and Conflict Studies, Development, Political Science, International Affairs, Social Sciences, or other relevant subjects.
• Minimum 15 years of progressively responsible professional experience, with at least 5 years of senior management experience in Religious Engagement Programming and/or work with Local, State, Regional, National and International actors.
• Knowledge of and familiarity with donor program requirements. Senior management level experience in similar grants.
• Experience managing subgrants and contracts under grants for complex projects. Proven ability to manage all aspects of grant and contract administration and technical assistance staff with a commitment to teamwork.
• Professional experience and knowledge of the Religious context of Nigeria.
• Experience overseeing Religious Engagement focused Projects is an advantage.
• Proven ability to manage technical assistance teams and lead multidisciplinary teams while developing a common vision.
• Demonstrated ability to foster a culture of respect and inclusion.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English is a requirement