United States of America: Program Assistant

Background/IRC Summary:

Founded in 1933, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) is a global leader in providing emergency relief, rehabilitation, post conflict development, human rights protection, resettlement services and advocacy for refugees and others uprooted or affected by violent conflict and oppression. The IRC is committed to restoring hope, freedom, dignity, and self-reliance.

The IRC is committed to a culture of bold leadership, innovation in all aspects of our work, creative partnerships and thorough accountability to those we serve.

IRC is one of the first humanitarian organisations to bring together specific disciplines involved in violence prevention and response (VPR) in conflict affected settings to ensure collaborative and specialized support to survivors and those at risk of violence. Over the past 16 years, IRC has pioneered and implemented programs that prevent and respond to violence against women and children, as well as other vulnerable groups in refugee settings and in other conflict-affected contexts, making the IRC a global leader in this field. IRC presently implements VPR programs to support social and political environments that foster freedom from violence, discrimination, and exclusion for vulnerable populations in contexts of conflict and displacement. Today, IRC manages VPR programmes in 26 countries across Africa, Asia and the Middle East with funding from governments, the UN, foundations, and private donors.

Job Overview/Summary:

This position provides logistical, administrative, financial and operational assistance to ensure successful implementation of activities within the Violence Prevention and Response Technical Unit. The Program Assistant is responsible for the planning and coordination of meetings and events, supporting financial and administrative operations, and providing support to the Senior Director of the Technical Unit in preparation for key meetings, presentations and travel. The Program Assistant reports to the VPRU Program Manager, works closely with colleagues across the unit and communicates frequently with IRC staff in various parts of the organization.

Major Responsibilities:

Administrative Operations and Logistics

• Respond to day-to-day communications in a timely manner ensuring that relevant team members are informed and copied as necessary.
• Manage requests via the VPRU Mailbox such as travel requests, HR support, event support, etc.
• Provide logistical assistance in the planning and execution of team meetings, including bi-weekly meetings, and other meetings as required.
• Coordinate events for technical support teams, including conferences and trainings. Plan logistics, contribute to content, negotiate contracts, analyze costs, etc.
• Review all travel expense reports to ensure that they are completed correctly, are accurately coded and are submitted to finance in a timely manner. Follow up with finance as necessary.
• Work with vendors and complete purchase requests ensuring accurate coding.
• Assist with day-to-day management of contracts, payments and other tasks for consultants.
• Maintain a master spreadsheet of all grant funding available for unit salaries including funding in the pipeline. Follow up with country programs as necessary.
• Provide general administrative support as needed for the TU Director and Grants and Operations team

Human Resources Support

• Support the preparation and management of consultant agreements in collaboration with Procurement and HR
• Support the preparation and submission of all paperwork for new staff and for staff that are leaving or transitioning to a new position
• Support on-boarding of new staff by drafting orientation schedules and liaising with hiring managers to ascertain equipment and other onboarding needs

Knowledge and Resource Management

• Support, organize and maintain resources to ensure effective information sharing within the IRC and with external partners
• Organize and maintain Box files to ensure that documents are easily accessible and routinely updated
• Maintain event calendar, inventory of assets and supplies, org chart, country coverage sheet, fact sheets, etc.
• Periodically update and maintain RescueNet with the latest technical Information and resources related to programming
• Periodically update and maintain the GBV Responders website

Other support for special projects

• Assist Unit members with the development of external reports, web content, presentations and technical tools as needed
• Other duties as assigned

Key Working Relationships:

Position reports to: Program Manager, Violence Prevention and Response Unit

Position directly supervises: May supervise Interns and Volunteers

Other internal and/or external contacts:

Internal: Interacts regularly with internal IRC departments, especially finance, human resources, IT and procurement.

External: Interact with donors, vendors, contractors, and consultants.

Job Requirements:

Education: Bachelor’s degree in relevant field is required.

Work Experience:

• Two years of experience in a busy, highly professional (non-profit) environment preferred.
• Demonstrated experience managing events, tracking expenses and monitoring payments

Demonstrated Skills and Competencies:

• Organizational skills: the ability to multi-task, learn quickly, and work independently and productively in a fast-paced and detail-oriented environment
• Interpersonal and communication skills: the ability to effectively liaise and collaborate with a variety of people in a multi-cultural environment
• Computer skills: ability to work effectively and accurately with MS Outlook, Word, Excel, email and Internet applications.
• Flexible and calm work attitude: the ability to respond rapidly to changing environments, yet remain productive and focused
• Professional and Discrete attitude: ability to manage sensitive information in a confidential and discrete manner and maintain a positive attitude.

Language Skills:

• English fluency

Working Environment:

• Standard office work environment
• Travel less than 20%

https://rescue.csod.com/ats/careersite/jobdetails.aspx?site=1&c=rescue&id=3446