Partnerships and Grants Officer

Position description

IRC Poland: On 8 February 2022 three IRC staff arrived in Poland to initiate scoping of local and national actors in Warsaw, Lublin, and Rzeszow as well as across the Western, Central, and Eastern regions in Ukraine. When on 24 February Russian troops entered eastern Ukraine with the aim of toppling the government led by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and conflict-affected individuals started fleeing to neighboring countries, the IRC established a presence in Poland to build partnerships with local state, civil society, and private sector actors to respond to needs of arriving refugees. As of April 26, over 5.3 million people have fled Ukraine seeking safety with nearly 50% (2.9 million) of those displaced fleeing to Poland. Reports indicate almost all arrivals in Poland are women and children, including those that are unaccompanied and separated, as well as older persons. IRC Poland’s goal is to ensure the survival of emergency-affected people in a way that enables their safety, dignity, and empowerment. Working in the program areas of economic recovery and development and safety, the IRC will accomplish this by working to see that 1) People affected by the war in Ukraine are able to meet their immediate and basic needs with safety and dignity and avoid harmful coping mechanisms and 2) People affected by the war in Ukraine are protected and supported to recover from the consequences of violence and displacement through equitable access to services and information.

Job Overview

The Partnerships and Grants Officer plays a pivotal role within the Poland Country Program, supporting the overall objective of achieving high-quality and compliant programming. Reporting to the Senior Grants and Partnerships Manager, the Partnerships and Grants Officer will focus on the effective sub-grants management, fostering strong and sustainable partnerships. In addition, will support the Country Program in grants-related tasks. This role involves supporting grants and partnership activities, ensuring compliance with IRC’s Partnership Excellence for Equality and Results System (PEERS), Business Development Manual, and other relevant grants and partnerships standards. The position reports to the Senior Grants and Partnerships Manager and is based in Warsaw, with occasional trips to other regions/cities for project monitoring or donor visits.

Key Responsibilities

Support Effective Partnerships and Partnerships Management

• Assist in promoting and applying IRC’s PEERS, contributing to the understanding of PEERS across the Poland Country Program.
• Contribute to capacity-building activities, ensuring IRC’s partnership principles are integrated into programs and projects with partners.
• Assist in documenting and responding to partner feedback on IRC’s management of the partnership relationship.
• Collaborate with the Senior Grants and Partnerships Manager in assessing the CSO landscape, mapping, and engaging diverse partners (QNGOs, LTGs, diaspora-led organizations, INGOs, etc.).
• Support the partnership vetting and due diligence processes in coordination with relevant departments.
• Assist in the overall management of partnerships within the designated portfolio.
• Aid in the coordination of Partnership Project Opening, review, and Closing Meetings.
• Coordinate partners' narrative and finance reporting processes, ensuring timely and accurate submissions.
• Act as a liaison between partners and the IRC Poland team, escalating questions or concerns as needed.
• Maintain organized partnership files according to PEERS requirements for each partner.
• Update Partnership Project Tracker/Monitoring Schedule in collaboration with the Senior Grants and Partnerships Manager.
• Support the processing of sub-award agreements and modifications on IRC’s Opportunity Tracking Information System (OTIS) in compliance with PEERS.
• Assist in ensuring relevant IRC units provide input and approvals for sub-award agreements.
• Contribute to the planning and execution of Monitoring Visits to partners.
• Assist in implementing partner support plans in line with Partnership Agreements.
• Monitor partner engagement in the implementation of PA Special Conditions.
• Collaborate with the Partnerships Working Group for the closeout of partnership projects, ensuring compliance with PEERS and Partnership Agreements requirements.
• Perform other relevant tasks within the Grants and Partnership Department, as assigned by the Senior Grants and Partnership Manager and/or Senior Grants and Partnerships Coordinator.

Grants Management

Pre-Award:

• Conduct research and gather information for proposal design and business development.
• Support the coordination of the proposal development process, including writing and reviewing relevant sections and working with other departments.
• Track all donor engagement, new opportunities, pipeline, and submissions.
• Assist in the development of external communication tools for donor visits/meetings on IRC Poland and IRC Poland programs.
• Identify and support the development of new public and private sector fundraising opportunities and initiatives.

Post-Award:

• Utilize grant/project management tools (grants snapshots, grants tracker, etc.) to ensure accurate tracking of opportunities, reporting, and programmatic adjustments throughout the project life cycle.
• Collaborate with the Grants and Partnerships Team to closely monitor grants and partnerships results and spending, raising concerns in a timely manner.
• Proactively support other grants management processes across the portfolio in collaboration with other departments.
• Assist in maintaining and updating the IRC’s Opportunity Tracking & Implementation System (OTIS).
• Manage and update online information management and filing systems, ensuring all relevant documentation and key communications are appropriately filed for IRC and partner grants.
• Ensure IRC colleagues have access to relevant records and information.
• Provide support to the team in execution and planning of the Project Cycle Management Meetings, including facilitation, writing meeting notes and follow up with relevant departments.
• Support the Grants and Partnerships team in timely coordination, writing, revision and diseemination of high-quality reports, including donors and partners.

Coordination and Communication:

• Ensure proper review of donor-facing materials, including proposals and reports, by HQ, technical advisors, MEAL, DDP/CD, etc.
• Notify country program staff or partnerships of any changes to awards, including proposal approvals, amendment approvals, D1 updates, or key donor needs.
• Align written publications and internal planning files with IRC branding guidelines.
• Support the coordination of donor meetings and prepare ad-hoc updates for donors, especially those related to critical context shifts.

 

Qualifications

Mandatory:

• BA degree or equivalent in International Development or Affairs, Humanities, Finance, Business or related field; Advanced degree a plus – or equivalent work experience
• Minimum of 2 years’ experience in assisting and/or managing activities/projects within the I/NGO environment in Poland
• Highly organized, close attention to detail, and ability to effectively prioritize tasks in a fluid environment
• Ability to work well independently but also coordinate with other teams
• Willingness to travel frequently to field offices and partner locations
• Professional fluency in spoken and written English and Polish; able to communicate concisely.
• Very strong English writing and editing skills; strong computer skills
• Experience with humanitarian organizations would be an asset.

Key Working Relationships:

Position Reports to: Grants and Partnerships Manager

Position directly co-supervises: N/A

Other Internal and/or external contacts: the position regularly corresponds and attends meetings with external and internal audiences, thus a strong ability to communicate and maintain positive working relationships is highly desirable for this positon.

Internal: Technical Coordinators, Grants and Partnerships Department staff, Finance team, Supply Chain team, and others.

External: Partner staff.

PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS

Standard Responsibilities: All IRC employees have a responsibility to Promote and actively participate in initiatives and efforts to build team engagement, inclusion and cohesion in IRC Poland and to Foster ongoing learning, honest dialogue and reflection to strengthen safeguarding and to promote IRC values and adherence to IRC policies

Standard of Professional Conduct: The IRC and the IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in the IRC Way – our Code of Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Accountability, and Equality.

Commitment to Gender, Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion: The IRC is committed to creating a diverse, inclusive, respectful, and safe work environment where all persons are treated fairly, with dignity and respect. The IRC expressly prohibits and will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, retaliation, or bullying of the IRC persons in any work setting. We aim to increase the representation of women, people that are from country and communities we serve, and people who identify as races and ethnicities that are under-represented in global power structures.

 

Application instructions

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