Mentorship and Communications Coordinator

Position Title   : Mentorship and Communications Coordinator
Position Type  : Full Time-Service Contract
Location          : Gaza Office
Duration          : 9 Months, with possibility of extension
Department     :Gaza Sky Geeks

PROGRAM/DEPARTMENT SUMMARY:-
Gaza Sky Geeks (GSG) is Gaza’s leading co-working space, tech education hub, and startup accelerator, run by Mercy Corps, a nonprofit international relief and development organization with programs in the occupied Palestinian territories since the 1980s. Mercy Corps founded GSG in partnership with Google.org in 2011.  We bring together online freelancers, outsourcers, and startup founders together under one roof to share ideas, best practices, code, and build brighter futures through the power of the internet. Gaza Sky Geeks’ overarching goal is to build an internationally competitive technology ecosystem in Gaza through online freelancing, outsourcing, and startups.

In support of our mission, GSG has cultivated a network of over 400 international mentors who provide remote and in-person mentorship to our startup teams, coders, and freelancers. We also have a vibrant network of individual supporters, donors, and GSG champions around the world. This role would be the focal point in executing a communications strategy to keep this network informed and engaged with Gaza Sky Geeks.

GENERAL POSITION SUMMARY:
Through Mercy Corps, Gaza Sky Geeks will hire a Mentorship and Communications Coordinator. The Coordinator will successfully manage the logistics of our visiting international mentors from initiating their permit applications to being their main point of contact when they are in Gaza to conducting follow-up with them after their visit. The Coordinator will also be responsible for pairing coders, startup teams, and freelancers with international mentors abroad for Skype mentoring sessions.
 
The Coordinator will also be responsible for overseeing GSG’s communications strategy, including outreach to our local and international community of partners/supporters through monthly newsletters and bi-weekly updates, as well as taking the initiative to develop other externally facing communications collateral. This role will reside within the Gaza Sky Geeks program structure and be identified as Gaza Sky Geeks personnel, and accordingly must represent him or herself according to GSG’s professional standards and guidelines.

Through written, oral, and in-person interaction with external audiences, this role is one of GSG’s most important externally facing positions. It requires superb attention to detail, excellent English abilities, a high level of emotional intelligence, excellent cross-cultural understanding (particularly of international perceptions of Gaza), proactive attitude, and high levels energy and enthusiasm. It is an excellent opportunity to build your network of professional contacts in the international technology and entrepreneurship sectors-- contacts that will provide long term value to you while at GSG and beyond.


ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS FOR MENTORSHIP COORDINATION:
1-Oversee end-to-end execution of international mentor visits; logistics and preparation, including providing feedback to mentors on workshop presentations and mentoring sessions while in Gaza
2-Manage international mentor program logistics for selected mentors coming to Gaza including supporting travel logistics, ensuring travel documents are submitted, and providing on-the-ground scheduling and support
3-Demonstrate flawless communication skills with a wide variety of mentors from the USA, Europe, and Middle East both in written and spoken Arabic and English
4-Successful execution of mentor visit events, from first handoff to follow up thank-you emails
5-Facilitate and monitor all communication between entrepreneurs and mentors, whether in person or remote, during based on the GSG startup, freelancer, or coder needs and the mentors’ capacity.
6-Manage communication between GSG beneficiaries and mentors as needed; e.g., provide translation and help entrepreneurs introduce and express their needs professionally as needed in writing and in person
7-Build a follow-up system between you and GSG program participants and be always updated about their needs
8-Deliver workshops with GSG program participants on how to take full advantage of mentorship
9-Attend and manage face-to-face sessions and maintain a record of all the sessions data (who received mentorship, the name of the mentor, and action items)
10-Maintain a digital content library with all mentors’ decks and presentations, as well as source high quality content online for the GSG library. Maintain GSG’s physical library inside Gaza Sky Geeks.
11-Provide feedback to GSG leadership on progress of GSG program participants, their engagement with mentors, and recommendations on courses of action to take to improve their abilities.
12-Continually and proactively improve systems for communications, mentorship engagement, and program delivery within GSG

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS FOR COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATION:
1-Develop and execute an overall communications strategy for GSG that engages multiple audiences abroad and in Palestine, using multiple channels and forms of content
2-Responsible for executing preparation and dissemination of internal GSG reports on activity occurring within GSG every two weeks, as well as monthly newsletters to audiences in Palestine and internationally on GSG activities
3-Provide proofreading and translation support to GSG team members by reviewing documents meant for external publication
4-Provide support in donor report preparation in English, as needed
5-Produce well-written, error free Arabic content translated from English as assigned
6-Produce well- written and grammatically correct English written content translated from Arabic interviews with GSG community members
7-Lead expansion of GSG communication channels to:
a-Include a ‘thought leadership’ element into GSG communications portfolio
b-Strategy around local community engagement mechanisms in Gaza
c-Shape strategy and concept of a GSG blog (everything from platform selection, content strategy, content development and curation)
8-Develop system to curate all GSG communications collateral and organize for ease of accessibility

QUALIFICATIONS, KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
1-Impeccable writing skills in English and Arabic (as demonstrated by a writing and email samples) with the ability to draft various forms of content to diverse audiences and conveying the GSG brand with creativity and professionalism
2-Precise attention to detail in managing logistics and schedules for calls, meetings, and movements inside and outside of Gaza
3-Strategic thinking and understanding of GSG programs to facilitate effective mentor-mentee matches
4-Strong relationship management skills and emotional intelligence with a customer service attitude to ensure positive, beneficial experience of visiting mentors
5-Experience working or studying abroad and/or experience interacting with internationals in a professional setting
6-University degree preferably in English with a strong interest in learning about technology and entrepreneurship
7-Strong understanding of the social, political, and economic context of the Gaza Strip, Europe and/or the US.
8-Proficiency in MS Office, Slack, Google products (Drive, Sheets, Docs), and Salesforce. GSG does not use email internally. We use Slack.
9-Willingness to work outside of normal business hours as required, especially evenings and weekends when mentors are visiting or preparing to enter Gaza

SUCCESS FACTORS:
1-Ability to work in a flat, fast paced environment with others who are passionate about supporting Gaza’s technology ecosystem
2-Comfort with uncertainty and change—GSG is a small program but growing rapidly. Just like our program, we seek staff who are adaptable and pitch in on what needs to be done-- even if not a part of one’s regular job description.
3-Strong listening abilities to understand the needs of GSG’s tech community
4-Superb attention to detail and ability to produce error free work
5-Positive attitude, passion for your work, and high energy levels
 6-Proactive, get-stuff-done mentality that always prioritizes outcomes, not just inputs
7-Excellent written and oral communication skills;
8-Strong interpersonal, conflict resolution and negotiation skills;
9-Excellent time and organizational management skills;
10-Excellent ability to work under pressure and carry out multiple tasks simultaneously.

TO APPLY, Please follow the next procedures:

(INCOMPLETE APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED)

-PLEASE SUBMIT to [email protected] with your name in the subject line the following:
1-Your updated CV
2-Two writing samples that demonstrate your ability to write in different formats to various audiences

-A filled out application online at: 

Online Application

Deadline for submitting the application is Monday, 24 April 2017.

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