Policy & Advocacy Senior Manager

Save the Children is the world’s leading independent organization for children, We work in 120 countries. We save children’s lives; we fight for their rights; we help them fulfill their potential. We work together, with our partners, to inspire breakthroughs in the way the world treats children and to achieve immediate and lasting change in their lives.  

Save the Children is seeking qualified candidate to fulfill the following vacancy in its East Jerusalem/Ramallah Offices:

Policy and Advocacy Senior Manager
Position Ref.#: SCI/PASM/oPt

The purpose of the role is to manage the external policy analysis and advocacy strategy development for the Country Office (CO), supporting primarily the Children Affected by Armed Conflict (CAAC) agenda and humanitarian space/operational space issues.  The role will support the SMT in risk mapping, mitigation and management on issues identified as most relevant for the CO, and develop policy analysis and strategic planning in response to those issues.

Main Responsibilities:

As a member of the Extended Senior Management Team, contribute to:
-Leadership of the oPt Country Office
-Support the development of an organisational culture that reflects the full programming spectrum (humanitarian and development) values, promotes accountability and high performance, encourages a team culture of learning, creativity and innovation, and supports staff to deliver outstanding results for children.
-Help design and implement a coherent organizational structure that is consistent with agency practices and appropriate to country office needs
-Ensure that all required support is provided promptly, during emergencies or times of humanitarian crisis.
-Develop risk mitigation management plans in response to ESMT, regional office, center Headquarters (HQ), or Member identified risks to the delivery of quality programs for children.

Advocacy Strategy Development
-Identify policy and practice change, on the basis of Save the Children’s experience, that would promote and protect the rights of children in the oPT.
-Based on Save the Children (SC) program priorities, and identified priority issues for children, develop key advocacy messages and identify targets from lessons learned, assessments, research and evidence gained through project implementation.
-Develop and implement advocacy objectives and initiatives, both short and long term, encompassing a wide range of issues and audiences.
-Ensure that voices of children form the basis of SC’s advocacy strategy.
-Acquire information and understanding of social policy and adapt strategies as necessary.
-Maintain a strategic overview of issues effecting children’s rights in the oPT, monitoring trends in the external environment and inputting and/or leading as required to organisational strategy and planning processes, in coordination with other team members.
-Ensure a robust overview, ongoing analysis, and development of key messages around movement and access, humanitarian and operational space issues affecting Save the Children’s ability to deliver quality programs for children.
-Keep a watching brief on policy makers and other key players in relation to children’s rights issues and identify opportunities to raise awareness and influence policy change.

Influencing
-Develop good knowledge of local and national government structures, parliamentary and political processes and key decision making structures and how to influence them.
-Undertake a range of lobbying, communications and other activities to inform and persuade policy makers, including donors and politicians, of the value of SC’s policy recommendations.
-Build systems for research, analysis and documentation that underpin evidence based advocacy and influencing at national and international levels.
-Develop dissemination and communication strategies for key advocacy messages, together with the communications team.
-Produce or manage the production of reports, briefing papers and presentations for internal and external audiences, as directed.

Coordination & Representation
-Develop and cultivate strategic relationships with other agencies engaged in advocacy and policy work in the oPT.
-Lead or support external advocacy coordination forum, including within the Association of International Development Agencies (AIDA), the Humanitarian Country Team, and the Education Cluster (Education in Emergencies (EiE) thematic working group).
-Develop and maintain a network of external contacts with key individuals in the government, NGO sector, civil society and the media.
-Represent SC at various policy forums and advocacy opportunities at national and international levels, as directed.
-Act as a spokesperson for SC to a variety of external audiences including policy makers and the media, as directed.
-Liaise closely with staff in the Policy and Communication units within the Global Initiatives, and other fora to integrate and coordinate policy change initiatives throughout SCI members.
-Develop strong links with the Members programmes for advocacy / awareness raising globally.

Advocacy
-Identify a clear theories of change, per policy priority
-Lead the development and implementation of ‘external’ advocacy strategies for the oPt Country Office.
-Identify key opportunities and events for Save the Children oPt CO to position itself as the leading organisation for children’s issues in Palestine.
-Support programme leadership and other program staff in their work, including the Child Rights Governance (CRG) team and the development of plans for achieving priority policy change objectives in both an emergency and development context. This includes working with CRG Child Participation focal point to develop guidelines on the meaningful and safe participation of children in advocacy.

Programmes and Operations
-Support programme leadership to articulate their top priority advocacy objectives in line with the Country Office Strategic Plan
-Ensure clear links and mutual reinforcement between programmatic approaches and external advocacy strategies.
-Write regular progress reports, including annual impact monitoring reports.
-Significantly contribute to the development of proposals and secure funding on behalf of the country programme where necessary.
-Ensure that SC responds appropriately to emergencies, providing policy analysis and support around humanitarian space issues.
-Perform other tasks as required to ensure the smooth running of the country programme.

Applications will be considered based on the following essential criteria:

Essential

-Master’s degree or a minimum of 8 years demonstrated experience in progressively responsible positions at senior management levels
-At least 5 years’ experience in a corporate or an NGO environment, in a management capacity leading teams towards identified objectives.
-Substantial experience in successfully leading the development of policy change analyses and implementation of advocacy strategies towards clearly articulated policy change agendas.
-Demonstrated ability to develop and lead research, surveys and other activities oriented towards developing positions and evidence base.
-Highly developed cultural awareness and ability to work well in an international environment with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures
-Ability to present complex information in a succinct and compelling manner
-Fluency in Writing and Presentation skills in English required
-Highly developed interpersonal and communication skills including influencing, negotiation and coaching
-Experience of building personal networks, resulting in securing significant new opportunities for the organisation
-Advanced understanding of Protection issues arising from a conflict setting, impact on protected populations, and implications for humanitarian aid agencies.
-Ability and willingness to dramatically change work practices and hours, and work with incoming surge teams, in the event of emergencies
-Commitment to Save the Children values

Highly Desirable
-Experience working for an international humanitarian organisation in oPt (or the Middle East) preferred
-Experience in coordination of various stakeholders a plus
-Experience solving complex issues through analysis
-High Fluency in writing and presentation skills in Arabic
-Has a strong international network within media and marketing
-Understanding of the issues concerning the INGO sector with an in-depth knowledge in communications, marketing and/or fundraising
-Demonstrable track record of leading change, resulting in significant results for the organisation and their stakeholders
-Strong results orientation