About CRS

Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. CRS works to save, protect, and transform lives in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, HIV, health, agriculture, education, microfinance and peacebuilding.

Job Summary:

CRS launched its work in Ghana in 1958 and currently has robust programming in Agriculture and Livelihoods, Health, WASH, Migration, Youth Development and Peace Building, Gender, and financial inclusion. CRS is implementing several projects across these core program areas. This new project focuses on supporting, interventions in priority agricultural value chains segments, including: 1) Animal Farming (Poultry and Fish); 2) Grains and Cereals, (Maize, Soybeans, Groundnuts, and Rice) and 3) Horticulture (Vegetables and Fruits).

In your role, you will support a team to achievement of project objectives through coordinating and reporting on all project activities and providing technical guidance and advice to staff and implementing partner(s) advancing Catholic Relief Services’ (CRS) work serving the poor and vulnerable. Your coordination and relationship management skills will ensure that the partners in the region for which you are responsible apply best practices and constantly works towards improving the impact of its benefits to those we serve.

You will manage, coordinate, and monitor project activities and relationships with the project’s consortium members, partners and other project stakeholders to assist the achievement of the project objectives advancing Catholic Relief Services’ (CRS) work serving the poor and vulnerable. Your project management skills and knowledge of the program area will ensure that the CP delivers high-quality programming and continuously works towards improving the impact of this project. This position will report to the Director for Agriculture, Livelihoods, and Landscape and will be based in Tamale, Ghana, with frequent travel across Northern, Oti, and Bono East Regions of Ghana.

Roles and Key Responsibilities:

• You will lead technical, budget management, monitoring and reporting activities through most of the project cycle – start-up, implementation and close-out – in line with CRS program quality principles and standards, donor requirements, and good practices.
• Effectively manage talent and supervise. Manage team dynamics and staff well-being. Provide coaching, strategically tailor individual development plans, contribute to the recruitment process of project staff, and complete performance management for direct reports.
• Ensure learning properly accompanies project activities throughout the project cycle. Support accountability through coordinating project evaluation activities following MEAL Policy. Proactively identify issues, report them to inform adjustments to plans and implementation schedules.
• Engage and strengthen partnerships relevant to project applying appropriate application of partnership concepts, tools and approaches.
• Coordinate activities required for ensuring the financial, material and human resources for the quality implementation of the project. Conduct periodic budget reviews and follow-up with partners on timely submission of financial reports to facilitate proper tracking of resource use.
• Identify staff capacity needs and technical assistance needs of partner organizations and contribute to capacity strengthening and required interventions to support quality project implementation.
• Assist with preparation of trends analysis reports and disseminate results. Review project documentation to ensure project file is complete with all required documentation and is filed per agency and donor requirements.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Critical thinking and creative problem-solving skills with ability to make sound judgment.
• Strong relationship management skills and the ability to work effectively with local stakeholders. Representation abilities.
• Ability to write compelling donor reports.
• Proactive, results-oriented, and service-oriented

Attention to details, accuracy and timeliness in executing assigned responsibilities

Preferred Qualifications

• Relevant project management experience, especially for large private donors, a plus.
• Experience working for projects supporting inclusion of women, youth and people with disabilities.
• Proven staff supervision experience.
• Experience working with stakeholders at various levels and strengthening community partnerships.
• Ability to contribute to the development of technical proposals, a plus.
• Experience analyzing data and contributing to evaluation reports.
• Experience using MS Windows and MS Office packages (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).

Required Languages -Proficient in English Language.

Travel – Must be willing and able to travel up to 50%.

Roles and Key Responsibilities:

• You will lead technical, budget management, monitoring and reporting activities through most of the project cycle – start-up, implementation and close-out – in line with CRS program quality principles and standards, donor requirements, and good practices.
• Effectively manage talent and supervise. Manage team dynamics and staff well-being. Provide coaching, strategically tailor individual development plans, contribute to the recruitment process of project staff, and complete performance management for direct reports.
• Ensure learning properly accompanies project activities throughout the project cycle. Support accountability through coordinating project evaluation activities following MEAL Policy. Proactively identify issues, report them to inform adjustments to plans and implementation schedules.
• Engage and strengthen partnerships relevant to project applying appropriate application of partnership concepts, tools and approaches.
• Coordinate activities required for ensuring the financial, material and human resources for the quality implementation of the project. Conduct periodic budget reviews and follow-up with partners on timely submission of financial reports to facilitate proper tracking of resource use.
• Identify staff capacity needs and technical assistance needs of partner organizations and contribute to capacity strengthening and required interventions to support quality project implementation.
• Assist with preparation of trends analysis reports and disseminate results. Review project documentation to ensure project file is complete with all required documentation and is filed per agency and donor requirements.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in agriculture (Economics, Extension, Agribusiness), Business Administration, Development Finance, or Entrepreneurship required. Master’s degree in international relations or in the field in Agriculture (Economics, Extension, Agribusiness), Business Administration, Development Finance, or Entrepreneurship would be a plus.
• Minimum of 7 years of work experience in project management, ideally in the field of Agriculture financing, Savings and Internal Lending Communities (SILC) or Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs), Agribusiness Development and for an NGO.
• Additional experience may substitute for some education.

Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff)

These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.

· Integrity

· Continuous Improvement & Innovation

· Builds Relationships

· Develops Talent

· Strategic Mindset

· Accountability & Stewardship

Supervisory Responsibilities: (You will be supervising three (3) Snr Project Officers and two (2) Snr Project Officers – MEAL for the three regions) on the project. You will also oversee the work of partner project officers

Key Working Relationships:

Internal: Agric Technical Advisor, Agric Program Director, Head of Programming, Snr Project MEAL Officer, Grant Manager, and Snr Project Officers.

External: Agric Technical Advisor, Agric Program Director, Head of Programming, Snr Project MEAL Officer, Grant Manager, and Snr Project Officers.

***Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. We welcome as a part of our staff people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need.

Disclaimer: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skill, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.

Note:  All positions requiring residence or frequent travel outside their home country must undergo and clear a pre-employment medical examination.

CRS' talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to safeguarding the rights and dignity of all people – especially children and vulnerable adults – to live free from abuse and harm.

CRS is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. CRS works to save, protect, and transform lives in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, HIV, health, agriculture, education, microfinance and peacebuilding.

CRS’ talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to safeguarding the rights and dignity of all people – especially children and vulnerable adults – to live free from abuse and harm.

CRS welcomes candidates from the countries and regions in which we work. In the event the successful candidate is an expatriate or global telecommuter, the anticipated duration of the assignment is informed by a term limit, based on the type and level of the job and the needs of the agency.

CRS is an Equal Opportunity Employer